When Lenna reconnects with an old friend she finds herself living in a gated community that is a “mommune”. Here she is trying to figure out who these women are and why she was invited to live in the desert with them. She is not allowed to take outside phone calls or ask anyone about their pasts. But as time goes on, Lenna is more convinced there is something sinister going on in this community.

This book was a solid 3 stars for me. I didn’t love everything, but I didn’t hate it either. I found I was hoping Lenna would be stronger and make different choices. I also found that I didn’t connect at all to the characters so I had a hard time getting into it at some times (however I believe others may have the opposite thought!). I did want to know the truth so it kept me interested til the end. I did enjoy the end but had some questions still!

Overall if you are looking for a thriller with a culty vibe, you might like this. Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for a copy in exchange for my honest review

This was a GREAT book. The relationship dynamic between Lenna and Rhiannon was so intricate and interesting. I loved the commune dynamic- especially the mystery of the identities of the residences. The ambiguous ending allows the reader to decide how they think the mystery ends on their own, which often isn't executed well but this was excellent.

Nowhere Like Home
⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
Author: Sara Shepard

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and 
Penguin Group and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: When Lenna gets a call from her old friend Rhiannon, she is startled; Rhiannon disappeared years ago without a trace. But Lenna is even more startled to learn that Rhiannon has a son and that she lives off the grid with a group of women in a community called Halcyon. Rhiannon invites Lenna, a new mother herself, to join them. Why suffer the sleepless nights by yourself? It takes a village, after all.

Lenna decides to go and hopefully repair her relationship with Rhiannon, but as she drives into the desert and her cell service gets weaker, she becomes suspicious. Who are these women and why did Rhiannon invite her here? And that is before she learns about the community's rules (no outside phone calls, no questions about people’s pasts) and the padlock on the gate that leads out to the main road. But Lenna has other concerns, secrets from her past she is terrified will come out. When a newcomer arrives in the community, Lenna’s worst fears are confirmed—she was brought here for a reason.

My Thoughts: When I requested this book, I knew it had some mixed reviews. But I know that reviews are subjective and the premise (and cover) was interesting to me, so I took a chance. Lenna is surprised when she gets a call from her old friend, whom went missing years ago, Rhiannon. Rhiannon has a son and has invited Lenna to come to her community with the adage saying, it takes a village. Lenna decides she needs a getaway and decides to visit. Lenna starts to become suspicious when she has no cell service, the strict community (aka seems very much like a cult) rules, and the padlock on the gate. The community is called Halcyon Farm and they live off the grid. Lenna becomes even more hyperaware when a newcomer shows after her, from her past that she would like to keep hidden, and soon she realizes she was brought for there for a reason. The themes follow social anxiety, friendship, family, and throws in some secrets and lies, as well as betrayal.

The story is narrated by four main people. Lenna is our MC. Then her friend, Rhiannon. The narration was rounded off by two of the commune residents, Gillian and Sarah. The narration also follows a dual timeline, past (from two years ago) and present. I really wanted to connect with Lenna but struggled so much with her behaviors and failure to act. The characters were well developed, with depth, mystery, and were intriguing. The author’s writing style was complex, compelling, suspenseful, and engaging.

The story was a slow burn to build up the characters, then the plot was delivered in twisty sections, and the ending, with its own surprise plot twist wrapped up most of the holes but left some that I wished were wrapped up with the others. The ending was also a complete suspicion of belief, which I do not mind doing, after all this is fiction but it seemed a little over the top.

This is truly is a story of toxic friendships, cult-like behavior, with tense, deep buried secrets. Overall, I did enjoy this story and would recommend to other readers.

"Nowhere Like Home" by Sarah Shepard is a captivating and heartfelt novel that takes readers on a journey of self-discovery and redemption. The story follows the protagonist, Emily, as she navigates the complexities of her past and present while trying to find her place in the world.

One of the most unique aspects of this book is the way in which Shepard explores the concept of home. Throughout the novel, Emily grapples with the idea of what home truly means to her, and how it shapes her identity and sense of belonging. Through her relationships with family, friends, and romantic interests, she learns that home is not just a physical place, but a feeling of comfort and acceptance that can be found within oneself.

Another standout feature of "Nowhere Like Home" is the depth and complexity of the characters. Each character is richly developed and multi-dimensional, with their own hopes, fears, and struggles. Shepard does a fantastic job

The plot and premise of Nowhere Like Home really grabbed my attention and I had high hopes for this novel but it didn't quite work for me. The characters felt a bit catty and unlikeable, slow uneven pacing, and the overall story lacked depth and dimension. It was ok but not great

DNF. I was hoping for a twisty, culty thriller and I got a domestic thriller with catty women and just not a good time.

So many topics in this book upset me but I had to keep reading. I needed to know what happened and where everyone ended up. Very interesting and twisty and kept me very entertained. Thank you for the arc

I have not read any of Saras work, but i of course watched PLL. I typically like books that are centered around cults. But this one just didn’t hit as hard as I wanted it to. It was just ok for me.

Lenna is struggling to find her place as a new mom. A friend from her past, Rhiannon, invites her to come visit at a women's commune where she lives. Lenna is hesitant, but she needs a connection so she packs up the baby and heads out to the middle of nowhere to meet a long lost friend. From the moment she arrives, things start to feel off with her friendship and the commune. She's ready to get out of there but she realizes it might be a lot harder to leave than it was to get there.

I liked the twists and turns, but I struggled with the setting and characters. I couldn't really picture the commune setting at all because I felt like the descriptions didn't go together. The characters lacked depth, even the main characters. I wish we had more insight into all the players.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the ARC of Nowhere Like Home.

Would recommend for fans of…
🌵 Pretty Little Liars
🌵 Lifetime movies

Sara Shepard will always be one of my favorite authors! I devoured the Pretty Little Liars series during my teenage years, and I’ve really enjoyed the adult and YA standalones she’s recently released. Her latest, Nowhere Like Home, is about Lenna, a woman who is drawn to a commune by an old friend. When Lenna arrives, she starts to realize that something is amiss and that she can’t outrun the secrets of her past.

Nowhere Like Home is perfect for those who read (or watched) PLL back in the day. It incorporates a lot of Shepard’s trademark plot points (and plot holes), but the story itself feels more mature. Although toxic friendships and missing women are still key themes, Shepard pays equal attention to subjects like mental health and motherhood, adding a level of seriousness that’s not always present in her YA novels. But, Nowhere Like Home still maintains an enjoyable level of soapiness that makes it the PERFECT read for beach/pool season.

Sara Shepard’s books are perfect for anyone that is looking for an escapist, easy-to-follow mystery that’s never too scary or gory. Add this one to your TBR–you won’t regret it!

Nowhere Like Home is out now. Thanks to Dutton and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I know Saras work, i of course watched PLL. I dont typically like books that are centered around cults. Its just not my favorite trope. Then the FMC gets amnesia, a trope i HATE. i DNF around 40%

I really enjoyed this one. I loved how to POV jumped between the characters and the past and present to fully form the story from all perspectives. I did not see the ending coming but thought it was a decent ending. This really had me gripped from the very beginning and kept me wondering about these women and this group until the very end. I really enjoyed the contrast between the remote community and the women's lives before joining the commune. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I had high hopes for this since I loved PLL and a few other books by Sara Shepard, but this fell short for me. It could have been super good with motherhood, communes, living cut off from the general public. The characters didn’t really have substance to them. Twenty something friends fighting over being friends. I didn’t want to get attached to them. The plot was interesting but not anything gripping. It was slow at times too which made it drag and hard for me to finish. I expected more twists and turns from the author of PLL. Still an enjoyable read but nothing I would probably read again unfortunately.

3.5 As soon as I saw that this book was about a cult/ mommune I was sold. While I was hoping for more I had a fun time with this one. This book follows a few POV but for most of the book we follow Lenna a young mom who reconnects with an old friend and decides to start her life over at Halcyon Ranch a commune for women empowering women and helping them become mothers or a mommune as they like to describe it. While this seems too good to be true for Lenna soon finds out it might be.

This was an interesting thriller the plot wasn’t that surprising but I still had a fun time with this book. I enjoyed the extra POVs that were added later in the story but the first part felt a little long just following Lenna. I will say it did have a pretty good twist at the end and I enjoyed the writing. I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

Nowhere Like Home is an adult thriller novel from author Sara Shepard who is best known for the popular young adult Pretty Little Liars series. The story in Nowhere Like Home is one that changes timelines and is told from multiple points of view.

Lenna is new to motherhood and of course like most a bit overwhelmed by it all. Out of the blue Lenna receives a phone call from her old friend Rhiannon who she hasn’t spoken to in two years. Rhiannon is also mother now and is staying in a remote women’s only community called Halcyon.

Lenna is hesitant when Rhiannon invites her to come stay with them at Halcyon but what better time to repair their friendship but no sooner than she arrives Lenna becomes suspicious of the many rules of the community and being cut off from the outside world when Lenna herself has her own secrets she’d also like to protect.

Nowhere Like Home is actually my first read from author Sara Shepard so I didn’t quite know what to expect going into this one but was certainly curious since she written books that became such a highly popular series. For me the whole cult like type of setting isn’t exactly my favorite and of course everything there was what you’d expect with being cut off so that didn’t exactly stand out until further on. The ending was also one that you may need to suspend disbelief but certainly picked up the pace and action a bit more. Overall I’d say this one landed in at a solid three stars, not my favorite but an alright read in the end.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Wow! This one kept twisting and turning. I thought the author did a great job crafting this world around LA and the commune, and developing the characters to a point where I really cared what happened, but also didn't really know who to trust. I'm recommending this to all of my thriller loving friends because I could not put this down.

Nowhere Like Home is flat out WEIRD! Not in a bad way, but definitely not what I was expecting. Lots of twisted friendships, unusual dynamics, and a random secret "mommune" make it interesting and enjoyable, but it still feels a little off the wall to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my review!

Title: Nowhere Like Home

Author: Sara Shepard

Publisher: Penguin Group Dutton

Pub Date: February 20, 2024


Brief Summary: A woman reconnects with an old friend who is involved with a mysterious group.

I really enjoyed this book. I read the book and also listened to the audiobook narrated by Brittany Pressley. Brittany Pressley once again does not dissapoint with her amazing narration. I thought that the story was very clever and unique, and super addictive -- I finished the book in a matter of a couple days. I hope Sarah Shepard writes more books for adults in the future. I recommend listening and reading this book at the same time for the best experience of this mind bending and crazy story!

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This was certainly an interesting read. I love the cult premise and examining female friendships, but I also didn't really like any of the characters..?! I am left trying to figure out exactly how I feel about this book. It was truly middle of the road. Some of the twists were great, but I also saw some of the coming from a mile away. I truly could not stand the main character of Lenna. She seemed extremely childish in nature and I just cannot fathom how a young mother can decide to up and leave her husband to live in a cult like environment. I just wasn't really buying it. I did enjoy the book while reading it, although it was truly a slow burn. Again, I almost don't completely know how I feel about it as a whole. Interesting but potentially forgettable. That being said, I'm sure that there are other readers who would appreciate this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

I really enjoyed this at the start, and I loved the premise of a wellness cult with nontraditional parenting. However things just got too campy near the end, and I felt all the action was just distracting. Certainly not a bad book, but not one that will stick with me.