This is a story of a bad neighbor. Once Darren moved in with all his annoying habits, the neighborhood was like a war zone. It's a nightmare that everyone can identify with. What if this happened in my neighborhood, was all I could think. As his antics and hostility grew, the suspense built and built. I found myself squirming, trying to figure a way out of it for the neighbors. The outcome of the escalation was surprising. As with her book, Our House, Louise Candlish leaves the reader with one last twist at the very end.
I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own. (less)

This book had me anticipating the worst case scenario , and the author didn't disappoint . Great book , easy to read . I was sucked in immediately.

Those People by Louise Candlish
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Darren and Jodie have just moved into the house on the corner and they definitely don’t fit in with the rest of the neighborhood. Their outright lack of respect for their neighbors brings on a series of retaliations. Then early one morning the unthinkable happens, there’s a horrid death in their little neighborhood. The police begin their search and it becomes clear that they all have something to hide.

I know it’s said a lot, but I truly did not want to put this book down! It had the perfect amount of suspense to keep me totally drawn in without prolonging it too much and getting boring. The story is told from the perspectives of several neighbors starting eight weeks before the shocking death. Sometimes I get lost with that style but I found no problem with that at all with this book. It’s got a good flow and it’s well written. I definitely recommend this book!

"My relationship with him? Mutual hatred, I would say. I recognized his type straightaway. Doesn't give a shit what anyone else thinks. Uncivilized, basically." - Ralph Morgan, 7 Lowland Way

Lowland Way is a lovely tree-lined residential street filled with old Victorian homes. This award-winning community is known for self-monitored harmony and peace; a place where children can safely play in the streets on every Sunday. This upper class oasis turns a blind eye to the economically depressed area on the other side of their manicured hedges; this "Stepford" community pats itself on the back with haughty self-importance and perfect neighborly respect for rules and regulations. There is suspense hovering over the neighborhood. Who will inherit the home of the recently deceased neighborhood matron who lived at 1 Lowland Way?

The opening chapter reveals that the new owner, Darren Booth, having moved in eight weeks earlier, was not fondly received and that something tragic has happened at that address. The British Metropolitan Police are interviewing one of the residents, Frank Morgan from 7 Lowland Way:

"Yes, we're aware that someone's been killed; of course we are. What a terrible way to die, absolutely horrific. . .Yeah, it all looked normal on the corner when I left. The usual scrap heap. Piles of rubble everywhere. . . A total disaster zone."

The neighborhood's hopes that the heir to Jean's home would be a respectable up-and-comer were dashed when Darren blew into town with massive sound system, fleet of rusting used cars, and a tool box filled with ear-splitting devices. This misplaced commoner began a 24-hour renovation of the house and staged a used-car business parking his broken down vehicles in the limited parking available on the street.

1 Lowland Way is a duplex; one of the only semidetached homes on the street. The residents of the other half of the house are introduced to Darren Booth in the dead of night when the adjoining wall in their baby's bedroom came under assault from a power tool. The jack-hammering noise was overlaid with an accompanying dose of heavy metal music.

An elderly resident across the street from 1 Lowland Way suffers financial ruin as her B&B loses it's ranking due to the situation at the Booth house. Guests were turned off by the noise, the rusty cars, and the haphazard scaffolding.

Day after day the noisy intrusion continues with no relief to be found. "Friendly and unfriendly" visits to the new home owner have been worthless.  The police and the community council feel they have no reason to step into the fray.

As the police investigate, what at first appears to be a tragic accident, the placid nature of the neighborhood begins to slowly disintegrate. Tempers rise and suppressed feelings surface that break apart friendships. A seismic shift begins in their group dynamics; everyone within range of 1 Lowland Way exposes their dark side.

When the repeated police interviews begin to reveal that a murder has been committed, everyone begins to take sides. Cue the finger-pointing and accusations.

The story unfolds slowly; excruciatingly slow, flipping from present day to events leading up to the tragedy. Although the story hones in on the lives of Darren Booth's neighbors, we never get inside the heads of Darren or his girl friend, Jody. We are given just enough information to deduce that neither side of the neighborhood conflict is without fault.

It is an interesting study of human behavior when individuals are put under uncontrollable pressure. "Those People' creates a scenario where both sides of the social strata make no attempt to find an amenable compromise. The ending, predictable, has a few surprises but overall leaves the reader feeling underwhelmed.

The book was an easy read but fails to match the success of the author's first book, Our House.  Let's hope the author steps up to the plate with her third book..

Thank you, Netgalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

Thank you to Netgalley for the e-arc of Those People By Louise Candlish! 📖
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I have a LOT of thoughts on this one. I’m so torn between oh my god I did not like this to wow I actually really enjoyed myself. It makes no sense but I’ll do my best to explain.
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Lowland Way is the suburban dream. The houses are beautiful, all the neighbors get along, and all their kids play together outside on the weekends. But when a couple moves in a disturbs the peace and break the rules, it doesn’t take long before an all-out war begins. One morning a shocking death occurs and accusations start flying. It seems like everyone on Lowland Way has something to hide....
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This was sold to me as a thriller, and I don’t really think that’s what I’d call it. It almost feels like you’re reading a soap opera or a (really good) lifetime movie. Its called a “neighborhood drama” which I’ve never heard of before. It’s a snobby neighborhood with stuck up, unlikable characters everywhere you turn. Like I mean they are RUDE and so high and mighty it was unbearable sometimes. I loved one couple, the wife mostly, and the rest of the people most of the time I wanted to scream and rip my hair out at them. I’m sure that’s the intention of the book, but my goodness some of these people are truly the worst! But despite truly disliking majority of these people that didn’t really put me off!
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I love a slow burn, but I think this one burned a little too slowly. A lot of parts felt dragged out. Figuring out all the characters off the bat was a little tough but I did get the hang of who was who shortly after. Once I got the hang of that it felt much nicer and easier to get into the story again.
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I truly did not know what the ending was going to be. But for me that’s no surprise, I never know. I loved that everything you expected was actually not what should have been expected, if that makes sense. It was all very well put together, a smooth story that really wasn’t as bad as I feel like my review sounds. That being said I did feel a little bit underwhelmed by the ending, but it wasn’t a bad ending.
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If you don’t mind an entire book full of awful people (again, I’m sure that was the intentions) and you like a good drama about rich neighbors who have hit their breaking point I’d say give it a try. It was something different than my usual read and I’m glad I read it! This book would be an amazing choice for a book club. There’s so much to discuss through the whole book, I was writing notes the entire time and wished I could discuss it with someone.
I think if you’ve made it this far, you should read it. It won’t be for everyone but it’s definitely worth giving a try.
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Lowland way- full of beautiful houses and neighbors who live in harmony with each other. The neighbors are all friends and get along so well in part because they follow the guidelines/rules of the neighborhood. All that changes once Darren and Jodie move into the neighborhood. Darren and Jodie don’t play by the rules- they knock down structures, do construction work at whatever time they want, blast their music, have an abundance of cars that are taking up spaces for other people and so on. The neighbors try to get them to follow the rules but they aren’t having any of it. Tensions rise, spouses fight, friends turn against each other and then there is a death on the street. What happened? Were they murdered? The book is told through multiple character’s points of views and through interviews with the police. Overall a light, quick read that keeps you wondering until the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

Just as she did in her previous novel. Our House, Louise Candlish tells the story of a large neighborhood in Those People. There are lots and lots of characters in this neighborhood, but Candlish is brilliant at character development so each is very clear in the reader's mind. A unique talent, in my experience. In Those People, we are in a lovely London neighborhood where everyone knows everyone else, they know each other's business, they have neighborhood street fairs, and life is good. Suddenly, one of the neighbors dies and leaves her house to a boorish relative who thoroughly destroys everyone else's happy life. He smokes, drinks, plays music at ungodly high volume, is loudly renovating the house, and even appears to be selling used cars from and around his property. A total neighbor from hell! Finally, of course, this being a thriller and all, someone dies.

Candlish tells her story from the perspectives of each of the neighbors, which serves to both advance the plot and the character development. The who-dunnit mystery is excellent; however, the problem for me was that not a single character was likable so I couldn't empathize or care about the outcome. I absolutely loved Our House, so this was a let-down for me, but it wouldn't stop me from snapping up Candlish's next novel. I'm rating this at 4 stars mostly because I think Candlish is a fabulous writer.

My thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Books for providing me a digital ARC in return for an honest review.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Hmm. I don't know where to begin. So, the beginning, I guess. The story held promise (from the blurb), the plot unlike anything I've read in a while. I jumped in, excited as each family had their turn dealing with the obnoxious newcomers. The dynamics of family members were interesting as they unfolded, both in relation to one another and to the horrible people.

Somewhere along the 30% mark, it all bogged down for me. Too many people involved with too much minutiae and backstory that dragged the pacing, and ultimately the story, down. The further I read, the less I liked anyone. Rather than forming a bond with any character, a disconnect occurred to the point the only person I cared about was the baby not getting his proper sleep.

In frustration, I jumped to the 85% mark just to see how it all ended.

I don't mind reading about unlikable characters; in fact, they can be some of the most interesting. But when all they do is snipe behind closed doors while pretending to be polite otherwise, and let others take advantage, they quickly spiral into boring.

For me, this was that book, and I cannot recommend it.

“Those People” is author Louise Candlish’s chronicle of bad neighbors. Darren and Jodie simply appear at run-down property he inherited, immediately displaying their disregard for other people. Newcomers Darren and Jodie are belligerent, slovenly, and pugnacious. Because of them, the peaceful South London neighborhood of Lowland Way is now disreputable. Hard rock music blares constantly, rundown cars are parked haphazardly leaving no room for other residents to park, and the house becomes more unsightly because of constant, noisy remodeling.

Darren and Jodie are neither receptive to complaints nor inclined to change their ways and, after their arrival, mishaps start occurring including the death of a young lady, crushed under rickety scaffolding at the makeshift construction job.

Hostility, flaring tempers, and murderous fantasies begin to appear. Subtle hints of discord turn into rampant discontent. Neighbors, who perhaps don’t realize that seeds of discontent were in place before the appearance of Darren and Jodie, begin devising various plots to get rid of the hated duo that has disrupted their lives. Their own disorders begin to surface.

Candlish is masterful in her ability to use multiple narrators and frequent flashbacks in creating both suspense and amusing encounters in the first part of her story. Her imagination is spot on as she develops the neighbors’ unrest. The action increases as police intervention becomes more serious and neighbors get more involved in their individual plots. No spoilers here. You’ll have to read the book to find out how the situation is solved.

The ending might not be as explosive as some readers might like. Retribution might not be satisfying enough to others. But the resolution could be just where the author intended to go with her story. Just a thought, but she might want to add more intrigue in her next book. I was satisfied, however, with her low-key approach that was still vibrant.

Let me start by saying that I absolutely love this cover. It lets the reader know right away that it is a thriller.

This fell flat for me. It was slow going to the point where I didn't even want to pick it back up. The characters felt unlikeable and one-dimensional. The potential is certainly there, a fun whodunnit trope. The idea of the characters and their relationships were promising but ultimately didn't live up to the potential.

Everyone can relate to having terrible neighbors, but it just dragged and I couldn't keep my mind focused on the writing.

Loved this book! Written from many perspectives over different time periods, this whodunnit kept me guessing until the end. Louise Candish did an excellent job of making the antagonist truly dreadful and showing faults in all the protagonist roles. Read this one on the beach in less than a day.

Thank you so much for this ARC!

I was delighted to receive an advanced copy. However, the beginning was very slow and almost difficult to follow. I may try to read it again in the future.

Those People is a twisted tale of just how fast things can go very wrong for one posh neighborhood in South London when less than desirable new people move in. Many of the chapters in the book begin with interviews the characters have given to the police on the day of the accident and then flashback to fill in the story. As the tale unfolds, nerves become frayed, the posh veneer begins to crack and an accident happens. The wild ride continues to a bit dark, yet satisfying, ending.

Another triumph from Louise Candlish! Special thanks to Netgalley and Berkeley Publishing. Who doesn’t like a well run community where the neighbors all get along and everything is harmonious? Pause to play Sunday where everyone moves their cars so the children can play safely and carefree from the streets cars? Where most everyone who is anyone knows your name? Ah bliss! A sure sign you and your family have made it in an almost suburban neighborhood in London.. Everyone peacefully existing or so we think, until “those people” move in and threaten the very utopia the neighbors think they have achieved. Watch as the carefully crafted facades the superior street thinks they have achieved starts to crumble when those neighbors don’t fall in line. Relationships will be tested, perhaps even lives! You don’t want to fall out with the neighbors do you?
A great read on group mentality and what happens when you don’t fall in line..

Ohhh how I enjoyed this one. Something about the “drama” that wasn’t really drama. I have the same problems with noisy neighbors, and I too, ha plot to... not kill them but burn their house down! Also thinking about moving..:

Anyway, the beginning was a little slow for me but then it picked up (for me) and I really enjoyed how everything came together and things were being “discovered.”

I liked each of the characters, the narrative, and the writing so much that I am going to read her other book, “Our House.”

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this title.

I typically love this author...but this one fell a bit flat. It was good, don't get me wrong, just not what I had in mind.
The ending was probably the most disappointing part of the whole thing, it just fell flat. It didn't actually end and not in a cool "OMG, that was the end!!' kind of a way, but in a "did they forget the last page" kind of way.
All in all, three stars. The characters, plot, story were good....ending was flat, denouement disappointed.

This book deals with what would you do to get rid of the most annoying neighbor living in your street...having experienced some annoying neighbors I could relate...Darren is rude and uncouth and he certainly doesn't belong in this posh neighborhood...
A series of events happen that bring all the neighbors together and under suspicion...The book is reminiscent of an Agatha Christie book full of characters and who did it....a little disappointed with the ending ....wanted a more dramatic conclusion.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read and review.

Having read other books by this author I was excited to read this book. It was original and I did not want to put it down, but in the end I was left a bit unsatisfied.
When new neighbors move in to the house at the end of the street, the rest of the people in the surrounding houses are taken aback, first because they didn't realize the house was even for sale, and then because these new people just don't seem to fit in. They play loud music at all hours, keep junk vehicles in their yard, don't abide by the neighborhood "rules," and are standoffish at best--rude at worst. The resentment the original inhabitants of the neighborhood grows and escalates, causing tension in their own personal lives. And then one day someone loses their life. The first half of the book deals with the weeks leading up to the suspicious death, and the second half deals with the aftermath and the search for the truth behind what really happened.
The author does a great job creating the people who live on this street, and their motivations behind keeping their neighborhood a safe haven. The story threads and plot are woven well through the 1st half, if not the first two-thirds of the book. But when the book begins to move toward its conclusion, and the mystery begins to be unraveled, the story begins to feel underwhelming. I kind of had the feeling of, "Hhmmmm...oh well!" What should have been a twisty-turny exciting ending was not that at all.
It was not a bad book, it was just not an amazing book. I would recommend it if you enjoy mystery and domestic thriller novels. And I will read more by this author.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview Those People by Louise Candlish.
A perfect neighborhood - cookie cutter, normal people, all you want for a nice place to live. Well that's until a family moves in and in their own "unconventional" way, disturb this surburban neighborhood.
Well that doesn't work here and soon there is an "accident" - and this little community will ban together to get what they want - back to "normal?". We shall see.
Good book, well written - 3 stars.

DNF. Sorry. Lost interest . No review available. Didn't like it. That's all I can say. Don't have 100 characters to continue review. Trying hard to meet 100 character review. I'm done. Hope this is enough.