This story was basically a decent, average murder mystery. Rich man, dead wife, new girlfriend. Lots of suspects. But, what elevated it to 4 stars for me was the totally unexpected twist at the end! Very clever, Ms. Miller. Other readers might have caught on sooner, but you totally got me! Loved the ending. Warning ... do not look ahead! Just read the book and wait for the fun surprise at the end!

Chilling, and the murderer is not so who you are expecting. This is hands down a page turner and one you will not want to put down until it ends. Everyone is a suspect even when you think they have been cleared. The author holds the clues tightly and reels the reader in by using clues that seem innocuous and innocent. It is definitely worth reading twice.

I truly enjoyed reading this book and I'm so glad I went out on a limb and requested this on NetGalley. I never like to talk too much about plots in my reviews so this one will be short and sweet. I think if you are a lover of mysteries that delve deep into the lives of the characters then this book will be right up your alley. This book has a cast of characters that are extremely unlikeable, but that always makes it more fun to read. I have been seeing this being compared somewhat to movies (and books) like Dial M For Murder and Rebecca. As a lover of film noir (although my favorite Hitchcock films are the ones Cary Grant star in), I can understand those comparisions. I think the kind of locked room style of the book and the situation Colleen finds herself in is reminescent of those movies. The book almost has a creepy vibe that screams classic film noir which I enjoyed. I could almost picture the house in black and white as I was reading. There are some twists, but I liked that the book wasn't dependent on them. The ending was satisifying and enjoyable. This is a solid read and I'm happy that I read it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine books for providing me with a review copy. Not only did I enjoy the book, but I found a new author to look out for. I will definitely be checking out more of Miller's work.

h drama and suspense, and so many twists and turns throughout. This is the first book that I have read by Ms. Miller, and it definitely won’t be the last. The storyline is very well developed and entertaining. I highly recommend this book if you like a great mystery. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving this review

Do you want a good book to take your mind off your troubles? In Her Shadow by Kristin Miller will be the book to make you forget what is going on around you! Oh my goodness, I couldn't put the book down. If you love Domestic Thrillers, you must read this book. Wow! This book will blow your mind.

I had my nose buried because I literally could not wait to see what was going to happen. Even the chapter titles were intriguing. There were so many characters who had dark sides. I couldn't tell who I liked and who I didn't like. They all had a reason to commit murder. I couldn't figure out the guilty person. My mind is still blown away.

Her writing style is impeccable. She makes you think because there are lots clues and hints along the way. There are several characters in the book but, I was never confused. You are constantly trying to figure out the culprit. I had a love/hate relationship with all of the characters. I'm not sure how she did that! .

I'll be looking for more books by Kristin Miller.

I received this book from the publisher for a fair and honest review.

Huh.... I think I'm still at a place where the totally unexpected ending has me reeling. The author did an excellent job of leading me down one false trail after another, only to leave me discovering everything I thought I knew was wrong. . And what a masterful job she did of it.

I honestly felt sorry for poor, naive Colleen, the main character, who was going to be killed by the end. There were certainly plenty of suspects from some of the neighbors who I wouldn't believe could possibly be good friend material, to the difficult cook and housekeeper who pretty much ran things around the house. . Colleen's boyfriend wasn't exactly a prize either. Kristin Miller definitely did a great job of bringing all these people to life. She also planted a clue earlier in the book, but I'll be darned if I even thought of it later when it might have seemed relevant.

The things that did bother me about the book was the large amount of cursing involving God, which is something I truly do not like in books.

A Modern Mystery Based On An Old Cult Classic

Colleen is madly in love and also five months pregnant and is moving in with Michael who wants to take care of her and make her life easier. Michael was Colleen's former employer and he has been separated from his wife for about five months around the same time Colleen got pregnant. (Interesting?). Unbeknownst to Colleen, her new home is a secluded gothic styled mansion (Raven Manor) and immediately she feels the vibes that she is not welcome and the whole household seems to revolve around the mysterious former lady of the house, Joanna. Colleen fears that Michael may be waiting for Joanna to return to Raven Manor when only days after moving in a body is discovered yards away from their home and for Colleen her world will never be the same again

This was a fast and easy read with suspicion and cold characters throughout the story. The last chapter was a devious and unexpected way to end the story which I did appreciate. Unfortunately for me, I thought all the characters were very shallow and unlikable and the book was based on "Rebecca" so I was really looking for that dark and atmospheric storytelling and it just seemed to fall flat rate in that area. There was quite a bit of mystery and questionable motives of all the characters so that did keep the book moving very quickly but I just couldn't connect with any of the personalities involved. Many other reviewers gave high ratings for this book so I do recommend it so you may read it and base your own opinions about the story.

I want to thank the publisher "Random House Publishing and Ballentine Books" and Netgalley for granting my wish and awarding this copy to me and all opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given this book a rating of 2 1/2 Shallow ❇❇⭐ Stars!!
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This is a modern day rendition of Rebecca with a twist. When Colleen gets pregnant and has been warned to reduce stress, Michael takes her to his home to stay. Colleen is surprised to find such a luxurious home. Instead of a relaxing stay, Colleen feels that the staff and the neighbors are always comparing her to the beautiful Joanna. When a body is discovered across the road, life becomes even more stressful. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through Netgallery. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. This is a book that kept me riveted. I like that it was told from multiple points of view: Colleen, Michael, a neighbor Rachel, and a detective. I like that even though the story covered only a week in Colleen's life, the timeline jumped back and forth. I also like that there were flashbacks to the past rather than a character just describing the events. I gave this book five stars because I didn't want to put it down

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Pregnant, her boyfriend's wife has left him only to turn up dead in his neighborhood just after she moves in. Who in the neighborhood is the killer and could the new girl friend be next? With a twist on the end I didn't want to see coming everyone could be guilty in this page turner. A good choice to distract you from the pandemic.

Wow! What a horrible bunch of people. None of these people have any redeeming qualities. I kept wondering through the whole story which of the awful people killed Joanna. And that twist at the end. Wow!

"Desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death."- In Her Shadow.

SYNOPSIS: Once his secretary, Colleen is now pregnant with Michael's baby. When he brings her to his opulent estate, Ravenwood, she is abruptly thrust into a life of luxury she's never known. But Colleen finds the immense house suffused with the memory of Michael's beautiful wife, Joanna, who left months ago and who haunts her imagination. It quickly becomes apparent that there is little room for a new mistress of this house: The staff greets her with hostility, and there are entire wings and corridors from which she is prohibited to enter.

Then bones are unearthed in the grove across the street.

When Michael falls under the suspicion of the detectives investigating the case, the soon-to-be mother of his child finds herself hurled deeper into her boyfriend's dark past--a past that threatens to upend all her dreams. But the terrifying secrets lurking in the shadows of Ravenwood pale in comparison to the drastic measures Colleen will take to stake a claim to her new life. - In Her Shadow

REVIEW: Thank you so much to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine Books, and Kristin Miller for providing me an advanced reader copy of the book in order for an honest review. Overall, I rated this book 3.5 stars but decided to round the rating up to four stars for review purposes. I am such a fan of domestic thrillers and found this book to be right up my alley. I enjoyed reading this book, found it to be thrilling, and it did keep me guessing throughout the entire book, which is something I enjoy. However, I felt that the plot had some holes which affected the ending for me. For example, the detectives in the story don't seem to catch on to some similar findings (keeping this vague so I don't spoil the story). I also think that there was so much that they missed just out of pure convenience for the plot. One of the characters also seemed to conveniently know some knowledge about another character's whereabouts, and I have no idea how they found this out as it was not present in the book.

I did love the ending of the book and felt that the final twist was great. However, I am not sure I like how it was all revealed. There were great lead-ups to the final reveal, but the last part of the book tells the reader what all happened in a couple of pages or so. I would have rather had more hints or seen the development of this more throughout the book. It felt like a lot at once, and I would have rather had the suspense more drawn out. As I mentioned, the book did keep me guessing the entire time and I was not able to figure out what happened on my own, so this was a good ending.

The characters in this book were all unlikeable people in one way or another, but I think that's what makes this book so good. You are trying to figure out the mystery, but are led in so many directions because everyone is hiding secrets or participating in some shady behavior. I think the characters were all unique and I had no problem telling them apart when parts of the story were told from their perspective (I believe there were four perspectives overall). I think that part of the reason why this story was so interesting to me was because of the characters and the situations that they are all in.

Overall, I enjoyed my time reading this book and would recommend it to people who are fans of thriller books, and especially those who are fans of domestic thrillers. From what I understand from other reviews, it seems like this is the first (or one of the first) thrillers that Kristin Miller has written, and I hope that she keeps writing more. I would be excited to see what she comes up with next, and I also plan to check out her previous titles.

RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2020

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This was a twisted, disturbing book. The writing was somewhat confusing in places and the characters were shallow. This book was not what I thought it was going to be. I'm sure there are others who will have different views and I hope you will enjoy the book. :-( 📚

What a dark and twisted story. You can't help but dislike many of the characters as they all seem guilty and the characters you feel bad for are actually bad people. The story keeps you engaged and guessing until the end.

The prologue totally hooked me. The writing is fantastic and I couldn't wait to see what happened next.

And then everything fell apart.

This is yet another in a steady line of domestic suspense novels in which the female lead is something way beyond timid and naive, and unquestionably stupid to the point where she almost deserves her fate. The male lead is at once unlikable, making me wonder what the heck the woman saw in him (aside from his money) and why she's allowing this freak to control her life after only a few months together.

And then we get to the POV switches, where every character has a completely different perspective of events and each other. Talk about unreliable narrators! That's all we have here.

And, so, I'm sorry, but I just couldn't continue on with this book.

I first want to thank Random House Ballentine for allowing me to read and review this book prior to it being published.

This book starts off with a young girl Colleen who is pregnant and moving in with her new boyfriend, Michael. Michael's former who disappeared without a trace. Many characters are introduced fast (like Dean the personal chef for Michael--- wait until that twist happens--- and then Samara, the unlikeable housekeeper, and the neighbors who are more to handle than you can imagine). The book is a little slow at times but the last five chapters were amazing. I NEVER saw the ending (aka the last chapter) until I was reading it.

I highly recommend this book. If you like a mystery and a whodunit... you will love this book.

Miller’s writing proves that a compelling book can be written without needless language!! On July 16th Joanna sends a last text to her husband, Michael. She has left him and gives plenty of reasons for him not to look for her. Months later her body is found in a grove across from their stately home. Did Michael kill her? There are plenty of suspects and none are likable. Colleen is Michaels new love interest. Pregnant with their child, Michael moves her into his beautiful home just as Joanna’s body is found. Everyone loved Joanna so why did she end up dead? Will Colleen be able to live in her shadow? Interspersed with chapters from many different characters, this book was hard to put down. Navigating through many twists and turns we finally find out who killed Joanna! A fast paced very good read!

Well played Kristin Miller, well played!!!

This novel was not quite what I was expecting, but I LOVED every second of it!!! So, I stayed up WAYYYYY too late last night reading it and was distracted all day at work thinking about finishing it this evening.

So, we have Colleen, our little lamb. Secretary to Michael. It's the age old story....only with a twist. Michael's pregnant wife disappeared only 6 months ago and Colleen finds herself in the same predicament when Michael asks her to move into his mansion.

I loved the multiple points of view from Colleen, to Michael, to Rachel the neighbor, to Detective Shaw. I loved all of the characters and all of their nasty bits!

I'm definitely adding Kristin Miller to my favorites list and I look forward to checking out the rest of her catalog.

A special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for providing me with an ARC.

I loved the novel Rebecca and I had seen comparisons and comments comparing In Her Shadow to that novel, so I probably had some unfair expectations. I had a hard time making myself care very much about what happened to any of the characters because I never felt like I got to "know" them. Experiences seemed vague. The ending was interesting and the chapter titles and timelines were part of the "surprise," so there are some positives.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and words are mine. You can purchase yours on April 21, 2020 here :https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VF1R5B6/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1.

Let me start by saying this, It is a dark and stormy day (please tell me you get this joke). Now seriously, my setting is a day with 40 mph winds, raining like crazy and I am grateful today is weather that calls for a blanket and a good book. I had the blanket already-this is the book I needed to get me through today. I was not moving from my comfy reading nook that I stole from my daughter. Her room seems to be the warmest in the house, so I usurped her spot and cuddled up with this book and strapped in for quite the ride.
If you thought that I was going to read something light and fluffy on a day like today, you were way WRONG! This is a book filled with HOLY %h?ts and WTFs. I have never before read anything by Kristin Miller, but let me tell you, I am adding her to my to read list and never letting her go! This type of book came alive as I read it on the pages. Not too many books I read make me think-" this would be a great movie", but this did! I am thinking Gone Girlish like book. This book begins aggressive, she may as well have grabbed me by my shirt collar and bullied me 80's movie style to reading this book cover to cover in one sitting. This book is so good, I almost needed a drink right after because it was almost as if I was there, I experienced those things. Is there therapy for post traumatic book disorder? HAHAHA Just kidding, wasn't that bad. I like the fact that the chapters toggle between being told by other people. They are titles as to who is the author for each chapter. This way, you are getting a view into what other people think of the situation.
We begin this lovely book with Colleen being attacked as she is pregnant. The next chapter is titled, "Sunday One Week Until Colleen's Murder". Wow, that is one way to begin a book! So, we go from her murder to the recounting of the whole situation. The first chapter is all lovey dovey with Michael pulling his Maserati into the six -car garaged driveway. Colleen is flabbergasted at such extravagance. A house this gorgeous right on the sea. Colleen had no clue that he had lived in such a mansion. Being 5 months pregnant with his baby and all, you would think there would have been some sort of conversation, right? Guess not. As they pull up to the house, she notices a curtain moving suddenly, as if someone was there. Someone watching them. Yup, seems pretty ominous to me too! Michael introduces the house as Ravenwood. A house with its own name, quite profound and telling, if you ask me. This is the house that he occupied with his wife, his missing wife, one that moved six months ago and has not been heard of since. Michael hasn’t filed for divorce of his wife of five years. As the tour of the mass mansion carries on, Colleen notices that there are no touches of a woman in the house at all. It is very immaculate and then there are the rooms that are kept locked. She is told that there is no need to go in there, it is just a movie theatre, gym and a few other rooms locked off so that the housekeeper does not need to clean those rooms. WHAT?? LOCKED ROOMS?? Don’t tell me that I cannot go somewhere and expect me not to go in there. I absolutely want to know what is in these rooms and I am not the only one, Colleen too is intrigued. Once the tour is over, Michael tells her that he has to go back to the city for a meeting. He moves her into the house and basically leaves her to her own to not go in locked rooms. Her moving truck hadn’t even arrived, and he is off and heading out. We soon get to meet a neighbor who seems interestingly too familiar with the place. She seems nice enough, but is she? This book is a roller coaster of events! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will be looking for more by this author, sooner rather than later!

Oh Colleen! Really? First she gets involved with her boss Michael, then she gets pregnant, then she moves to Ravenwood, his palatial estate. Is she surprised that the staff doesn't want to be nice to her? Yes she is, even though Michael's wife Joanna disappeared just six months ago. Is she concerned about why Michael tells her not to go into certain rooms? Not for a while. Does she get that she's fallen into a big gothic novel? Nope. She does start to pay attention when bones are discovered and Michael becomes a suspect. This is told from multiple points of view, including that of the detective, which adds to the story. It likely will remind you of Rebecca, at least a little, and of horror movies you've watched where you keep telling the female character to get out! Thanks to Netgalley for the ARc. There are some good twists here that will keep you turning the pages.