This is another book that got my attention in the very beginning and the alternating before and after chapters will keep you guessing constantly. You assume one thing right away and as the story goes on you realize your assumption is more than likely wrong. So, what really happened? How did that dead body get on the floor? Who did it? Nicci French gives nothing away until the end and keeps you guessing and turning the pages. This is a cleverly thought-out book that I enjoyed. I am giving it 4 stars because I didn't really understand the ending. That last chapter threw me for a loop. I felt there should have been a little more added to get a better understand; unless Nicci wanted us to draw our own conclusion. Either way, I've enjoyed other books by Nicci French and this novel is going on that list as well. Thank you NetGalley for lending me this book to read.

I love this writer . The way she writes her books are amazing . Very easy to understand . The plot is always amazing and for sure blow your mind . This book hooked me from the beginning the plot is amazing the characters well explained . I strongly Recommend this book .

DNF at 20%. I didn’t connect or like any of the characters. Here’s to hoping my next NetGalley read is better. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Other Side of the Door by Nicci French

This novel is a compelling combination of psychological suspense and murder mystery.
In chapter one, the reader is immediately engaged in the story when Bonnie, the narrator, finds her lover’s body lying dead in a pool of blood in her friend’s London flat. Then the mystery unfolds, as Bonnie tries to get rid of the body and find the killer.

Told in a before and after alternating chapter style, which is a writing construct I like, the story progresses nicely as the reader is introduced to the entire cast of characters. Bonnie, a music teacher, has cobbled together a group of amateur musicians to play at her friend’s wedding. Like layers of an onion, the personalities and secrets of each band member are revealed. Their lives are complicated and add to the depth of the narrative. All the characters, including Bonnie, are flawed and were unlikable to me.

In spite of that, I found the story to be clever and well told, with plenty of twists and an ending that is indeed gripping. This is another solid hit for British author Nicci French.

Thank you to HarperCollinsPublishers/William Morrow and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Nicci French is on a roll! The duo has two forthcoming books, and they are both excellent. The Other Side of the Door tells the story of Bonnie Graham, music teacher and casual musician, recently broken up from her long term boyfriend, Amos, and suddenly socially pressured into putting together a band for her college friend's wedding. What was supposed to be a summer of repairs on her new flat turns into an intense fling with sulky, handsome Hayden, a musician who is a friend of a friend and joins the group's rehearsals. Hayden is a free spirit who charms the women, annoys the men, and occupies a position of hero for one of Bonnie's former students who's in the band, He charms Bonnie, too; although she's not one to fall for that sort of thing and seems poised to begin a relationship with Neal, another musician who is clearly besotted with her. Instead, she somehow falls under Hayden's spell, drifting into his orbit and giving way to a drunken summer of lazing about, playing music ... and getting hit by Hayden when he loses his temper.

The book alternates chapters into "Before" and "After," the "Before" bit being how the book opens: with Bonnie, sitting in her friend Liza's apartment, which Hayden has been crashing in, as he doesn't believe in being tied down. On the floor is Hayden, with a fatal head wound and blood on the carpet; Bonnie has bruises on her neck. What happened is unclear, but what is clear is that Bonnie needs someone to help her clean up this mess. She chooses to call Sonia, a fellow teacher and singer in the band. Sonia is level headed and will know what to do ...

The book rollicks back and forth until we catch up to the breaking point where the unthinkable happens. The authors throw a couple of pretty good twists in, rendering it reasonably difficult to solve the "whodunit?" but not making the reader feel like the twists are a cheap shot or a plot rescue. French has a good feel for dialog and relationships, and her characters, for the most part, speak the way human beings actually speak, something you don't always get in a good thriller. Ultimately, the denouement is a little thin, but overall, this is an excellent thriller that keeps the pages turning despite a slightly slow start.

As an avid reader, there is nothing worse than a "twist" that materializes halfway through the book and nothing better than an unexpected ending that occurs in the book's closing pages. I am pleased to say that "The Other Side of the Door" by Nicci French is in the later category. The story focuses on Bonnie Graham and the events leading up to/events following the murder of Hayden, her lover with a checkered past. Each chapter focuses on either "Before" or "After" the murder which makes for an interesting and engaging back-and-forth with regards to the timeline. While the ending wouldn't fall underneath the "shock" umbrella, it was certainly satisfying and appropriate for this novel. French does a good job of utilizing all of her supporting characters and doesn't include extraneous and unnecessary characters to serve as "red herrings."

The Other Side of the Door is a murder mystery / thriller that gradually unfolds in a series of Before and After chapters. This was my first time reading a story presented in this style and I had mixed feelings about it. I appreciated the originality, but also found it frustrating. There were a number of plot twists and I kept feeling the need to look back and forth in order to compare and re-read certain chapters. There were also quite a few players in this story and I found none of them to be particularly likable or relatable. Even though I wasn't super crazy for this novel, I am giving it 3 stars because I like the fact that it is original and had an unpredictable ending.

I felt like this book had twists just for the sake of having them. It stopped being a page turner for me about halfway through. Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for providing a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Great read by a new author for me. The plot is well written and enticing to the reader. Makes the reader feel like part of the story. I could not put the book down.

Wow. What can I say? I definitely don’t want to put this down. AT 👏ALL👏 #netgalley #theothersideofthedoor #niccifrench #netgalleyreads #bookstagram this story is told before & after. A woman who is with a dead body is the opener. Who is it? How did they die? Did she do it? The story is woven together so beautifully. I thought I knew what happened. And why. The glorious part of this book is that you DON’T know who, what, or why. This will definitely be a boon you’ll want to grab and prepare to block your schedule. #booklover #bookstagrammer #booknerdlife #bookrecommendations #booksbooksbooks📚

The Other Side of the Door by Nicci French was a quick and easy read. Sadly, I did not care to finish it, but alas I did. Lots of bouncing from the past and present which did not work well.

The plot left much to be desired and I found the conclusion to be quite obvious. I would like to thank Net Galley for this advanced copy and I hope to read more from the author as I see she has more books that may be more to my taste.

This is another book in my multitude of examples of when perspective/time-shifting doesn't work. It felt a little bit unnecessary and just a way for the author to make sure that we weren't bored throughout the middle and end... which didn't work for me.

Almost could just work better as a friend group drama without any murder, I was severely bored by the plot. I actually did enjoy the writing, it was relatable and easy to read. But, the plot was really lacking in almost all aspects, especially just being a thriller and lacking a good protagonist.

Sadly I will agree with most reviews. This is a quick and easy read but I just couldn’t get into it. I had a hard time getting into the story. We have a murder mystery setup and a lot of past and present back and forth. Just not my favorite.

This was a hidden treasure I found in my
October reading. The other side of the door starts with Bonnie opening a friends apartment door and finding a dead body.

Now with body opening up this fast paced mystery the reader needs to find out who killed the deceased? Why? Did Bonnie have anything to do with it?

The story goes back and forth with chapters “Before” and “After” the body is found to a climactic conclusion. I found it thoroughly enjoyable. There was a good complexity to the story while still keeping the reader wanting more. I read this on e-book when I was at the gym. Otherwise I probably would have read it in one or two sittings.

If you’re looking for a great, easy, enjoyable thriller I would highly recommend! Thanks Net Galley for the copy!

Can’t stop biting my nails in anticipation!! You’ll love to hater Hayden and feel bad for Bonnie. The relationship between the characters is strangely satisfying. Love lost, betrayal, heartache, a constant need for validation and love. All of which come together nicely in this novel about friends protecting each other until the ultimate truth comes to fruition. How can such a secret be kept so neatly between people, yet continue to be spoiled by emotions? Nicci French does a great job at bouncing back and forth between BEFORE and AFTER in her chapters that you can’t stop reading without knowing what comes next. I really appreciated the somewhat closure at the end, but also the very open ended comments that are truly could turn into a sequel. Great job and thanks so much for the advanced copy!

The Other Side of the Door, by Nicci French. Here’s the set-up: we meet the protagonist in a “before” timeline, when she’s being asked to get a band together to play at a rather vapid friend’s wedding, and an “after” timeline, when she finds herself in a flat with the body of a man with whom she clearly has a very complicated history. Many, many poor decisions are then made - and, sadly, that’s just one reason why this book was a complete miss for me. I just couldn’t feel the slightest thing for any of the characters. I did not care who killed the guy or whether the protagonist would be arrested for the crime or who was getting away with what, and I became increasingly annoyed at the stream of seeming rhetorical questions endlessly bouncing around the main character’s head. I know that Nicci French has a huge following, however, and it is entirely possible that the “unreliable narrator” genre has simply worn thin for me. Many thanks to William Morrow & Custom House and to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Other Side of the Door starts by the main protagonist, Bonnie, agreeing to put a small band together to play in a friend's wedding. One of the band members ends up dead. The story continues by going between the past and present, dividing the before and after of the murder of the band mate and what spirals after this revelation It was a quick and easy read. I suspected the wrong person, which is good in a mystery novel.

I enjoyed this one but for some reason it took me awhile to get through it. I couldn't pinpoint exactly why this was the case because the mystery was intriguing and the writing was well done. I may just not have been in the mood for this kind of book when I read it.

This novel starts right off with a crime scene, no holds barred there. But I couldn’t find myself getting into this novel, as it skips from both past and present. The writing duo of Nicci French have kept close to the vest with their popular theme - a main character that you grow to like, (even possibly root for!) and other secondary characters that play into an inevitable plot twist.

This is one book I probably wouldn’t have finished if I didn’t agree to review, honestly. My heart wasn’t in it!

sadly this book didnt hit the spot for me. this book had a lot of time shifting events that didnt work for me. the plot was not much of a surprise. some of the characters were frustrating which made me want to shake them and ask whyyy. overall i was not a fan of this book. but thank you netgalley for letting me review.