Cover Image: The Waiting Room

The Waiting Room

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Member Reviews

Oh my goodness, this book was amazing! I found the plot fascinating and VERY unpredictable which made for an exciting read. There were a couple moments in the book where my jaw literally dropped from plot twists that were completely unexpected! The author did a great job with Veronica, the main character - a woman who is struggling with grief and loss. The story follows her as she tries to cope. I really enjoyed the two primary supporting characters- Mark and Gillian- and the roles they each play in the story. I highly recommend this book. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley- my opinions are my own.

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OH MY GOODNESS! WHAT A RIDE!!

This book just made my top 10 books of the year and possibly, top 10 books I've EVER read!!

Wow. Just wow. It's hard to say a lot about that plot without giving too much away, so I won't say too much. Veronica Shelton has a lot on her shoulders. She gave birth to her daughter and within weeks, her husband was killed. This leads her to battling postpartum depression. Weird things start happening. There's a break in at her house and then, she comes home to her baby missing. And I will stop right there because this is a book you MUST read!!

I love Emily Bleeker's writing. I haven't read any of her other books (I will get on that, ha!) but she made me a fan with this book. The parts describing a mother with postpartum depression were spot on. The character development was very detailed and vivid. I felt like I knew these people. However, let me mention one thing.


You will get whiplash from ALL THE TWISTS! When I thought I had one of the many twists figured out, EMILY BLEEKER PROVED ME WRONG! I read a lot of mystery/thriller/suspense books and I can usually predict the twist, but I was completely wrong with this one! My jaw dropped on the floor and stayed there the entire second half of the book. In some novels, the twists are thrown in for 'surprise' and don't make much sense and you can tell the author rushed things. That was NOT the case in this novel. All the twists were deliberately thought out and fit into the story perfectly. I really can't say enough AMAZING things about this novel. READ IT!

It comes out August 28 so preorder your copy today!

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an early reader's copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

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I'm not usually one who figures things out ahead of time when I am reading a suspenseful thriller, but this time I was sure from about a third of the way in that I had it all figured out. Turns out I was only about a third right!

This is a good book that might keep you guessing along the way.. or else you will stop guessing, thinking you know already what is going to happen.. and BAM! I think you will be surprised!

I recommend this book as a twisty, turny read that will hold your attention.

Four stars!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions are my own.

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This book was truly heartbreaking from the very beginning. Veronica loves her daughter Sophie so very much and all the heartbreaking events of this book shows an absolute mother's love. This book has so many twists and turns and it keeps you guessing until the very last page. I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing. All opinions are my own.

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Another thrilling book by Emily Bleeker!
Veronica is in a bad space, her husband died recently and she suffers from severe postpartum depression. She can't touch her daughter though she loves her.

There is a break-in and her daughter is now missing. The police go from sympathetic to suspciosuous toward Veronica.

And Veronica is anxious to find her baby.

The book was gut wrencinching and heartbreaking at times. This thriller kept me up all night reading. I could NOT put it down until I learned how it eneded.

Many thanks for to Netgalley and Emily Bleeker, I eagerly await her next book!

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The Waiting Room is a terrific psychological suspense. This book kept me on the edge of my seat, I could not put it down. Very well written. This author is one to watch. Highly recommend this book.

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I had tears by the time I finished this book. My heart felt as if every drop of emotion was drained out of it. I was in turmoil. I liked the book, yet I didn't like it in some parts.

The story goes like this, since her husband's death, Veronica has post partum depression. She couldn't touch her daughter. Her mother looked after the daily needs of her daughter till one day the child disappeared. And Veronica had to go searching for her daughter since police were doing nothing but suspecting her mom and herself.

My first book by author Emily Bleeker, and I loved the last 30% of the book. It made up for the first part of the book which was both confusing and haphazard. I didn't like the main character at all, not because of her circumstances, but because she seemed to be disconnected to anything. I did later realize that it was a part of the plot, this is what the author wanted to lay down the foundation.

But I came very close to DNFing it. It was just per chance that I persisted and came to the exciting parts of the book, which took my breath way. I wept for the lost mother, I wept for the lost child. I wept for the circumstances of life where a mother feels such a pain. I wept buckets!! The ending just took my heart in its hand and squeezed the last bit of emotion.

I wanted a suspense thriller, and I got a book seeped in emotions. I suppose not a bad way to spend a Monday evening.

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This is my first book by Emily Bleeker and I wasn’t disappointed. Veronica after losing her husband in a RTA is left alone to raise 2 ½ week old baby Sophie but is also suffering from post partum depression. Her mother moves in with her to look after the baby as Veronica cannot bring herself to enter the nursery let alone even hold or touch Sophie since the accident. After an ultimatum given to Veronica by her mother, she begins therapy. She meets Gillian in the waiting room and they soon become friends. After a night out with Gillian, her first since the arrival of baby Sophie, Veronica wakes to find her baby missing, with the police pointing the finger at her, she manages to escape the house to go find her baby. She enlists the help of Gillian and Mark (whom she met both in the supermarket and on her night out with Gillian and in therapy, is he stalking her?). Who can she trust, who is telling the truth? Will she find baby Sophie?

This is a great psychological thriller full of suspense, full of twists and turns. The author has a way of making you think they are all possible suspects, very well written. Will definitely be recommending it to my friends.

I would like to thank Netgalley, Lake Union Publishing and of course Emily Bleeker for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

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What an interesting way to write a book. Not at all your typical thriller and suspense. Which is not to say the book doesn’t have that, because it does. Veronica Shelton is grieving. Grieving the loss of her husband after his death. So much so that she can’t bear to hold, touch or interact with her 8 month old daughter Sophie. Until one morning after Veronica awakens to find her daughter missing. Frustrated by Police efforts to help her, Veronica embarks on a journey to find her daughter herself before the Police point the finger at her. And what we learn a long the way is that everyone copes with their grieving in many different and varied ways. A+ for creativity.

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This is by far one of the best books I have read so far this year. It's one of those books you hate to have to put down. Veronica suffers from severe postpartum depression and I really disliked her when I started the book but when I finished it, I really liked her. Veronica becomes friends with two people she meets in the waiting room of her counselor's office. I will not say anything further because I do not want to spoil anything for anyone. This book has a lot of surprises in it and a surprising ending I certainly did not see coming. I very highly recommend this fantastic book and you might want to have some tissues handy as you get close to the end.

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Veronica Shelton is a children's book illustrator now suffering from postpartum depression. She hasn't even been able to hold her baby for the last 6 months so her mother has taken on that role. She's in therapy as she's also dealing with the loss of her husband.

As things seem to be improving slightly, her infant daughter goes missing and Veronica becomes the prime suspect.

This is a story that hooked me immediately but, soon began to feel like just another story with an unstable, unreliable narrator. I do think that readers who like twisty, psychological fiction might want to try this as it was a very quick read.

Rating - 3.5/5 stars

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Veronica has lost her husband and is trying to cope with a newborn. Ever since her husbands death she cannot bear to go into the baby's room and pick her crying infant. Her mother who has moved in with her has to attend to the child.

This is the opening to the story. The surprises await you at every turn of the page and nothing is as it seems. The. character Veronica is complex and the problems are psychological and seem insurmountable. How does such a person fit into society, how does society adapt to such a person. Are there many more Veronica's that we are not even aware of?

The story was winding but not boring. You knew things were slightly off but the writer keeps you on edge till the very end with its denouement.

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We are introduced to Veronica Shelton who is suffering from post-partum depression so badly she cannot bring herself to touch her own baby daughter; plus she is mourning for her husband who was killed in a road accident shortly after the birth of the baby. In an instant, gone is her lovely, life. Unable to continue her work as a children’s book illustrator she relies on her mother to care for the baby that she loves but she cannot care for; cannot, in fact, even enter her bedroom.

Then despite her reservations she is persuaded to see a counsellor and on her first visit she comes across two people in the waiting room that she tries to avoid communicating with.

Now, here comes the crunch! Just read the book, it is amazing. I cannot say more because it will spoil it. It is suspenseful, intriguing and will have you guessing, and guessing again. Oh, you might get a bit irritated by Veronica – I know I did. ‘Just pick your baby up’ I was shouting as I was reading. Clever girl that Emily Bleeker, she knows best. Fantastic – hated when it ended (sign of a good book for me).

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

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Omg! This book is sooo good! Buckle up you are in for a bumpy ride filled with twists and turns you don’t see coming! Wow! I’m still in shock after this read!!

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The Waiting Room is the second book I have read by Emily Bleeker, the first being When I’m Gone. I have to admit that The Waiting Room knocked me for a loop. I didn’t have a clue how it was going to turn out. I was shocked at the outcome.

When I first started the book, I was pretty well hooked from the first few pages. However, I found myself really annoyed with the paychological issues of the main character. What woman who has suffered great personal loss would not hold her tiny baby for more than six months??? Why was her Mom enabling her to do that?

While there were several mysteries that I didn’t feel we’re adequately resolved (the alarm going off in her house, the opening scene with the texts, etc.) I felt like the final reveal made those open-ended items a bit more tolerable.

The Waiting Room is very fast-paced. I read it in two days and it only took me that long because of work, kids, and other obligations. I would recommend it to anyone who likes thrillers and especially if you enjoy psychodrama.

Thanks to Emily Bleeker, Lake Union Publishing, and NetGalley for my Advanced ecopy in exchange for an honest review.

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I read this with no idea what genre it was and was drawn into Sophie's world as if I were reading women's fiction. It did begin to feel very unlikely, but definitely kept me engaged and reading on. So when it all began to unravel it came out of left field for me; surely a sign of a great psychological suspense! Although this was rather too extreme a situation to be realistic, the depiction of a grief so deep that the mind cannot cope is real, and beautifully expressed in this story.

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This is a page turner from the very first page. The story seems innocent enough in the beginning but then I found everyone guilty or the suspect. Great job by the author to provide just enough character development when a character is introduced to make you keep guessing. The author touches on some sensitive topics which helps you grasp the why in some of the situations through out the book.

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This book wasn’t as good as I was hoping it would be. It had a great concept and plot with a good character development but it wasn’t that engaging to me. I see I am in the minority on this one as most people really enjoyed the story but not me. Just so-so for me. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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I received this book for my honest review. I've never read anything by this author but can say that this will be the first of many that I will read. I felt connected to the character from the first chapter and needed to find out what happened. The story had me guessing the entire way and the surprises that came made sense to the story but some I didn't guess till right before. I even had to stay up late and lost track of time to finish it. I will be recommending this book for sure!

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The book was just okay to me. The twist didn’t shock me because I’ve read similar books with similar premises before and I kind of saw it coming early on. The writing was decent. I didn’t get connected to any of the characters.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy.

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