A compelling tale of an entire family, each with intricate and dark secrets. Someone begins to terrorize their house as secrets begin to enfold. Fast paced and kept me guessing. A great thriller of a read.

I wanted to love this book, but in the end I found that it fell flat.

Viv and Thomas live slightly beyond their means in a lovely suburban home in a nice suburban neighborhood. They have two teenagers, a boy and a girl. The family is filled with secrets, inner guilt, hidden foibles, and so when someone begins egging their house in the dark of night, each inwardly feels responsible. The vandalism intensifies to slashed tires and burning hedges, and the family feels more and more terrorized. The police are inept and unconcerned, so Thomas buys security cameras and a gun. This plays out through the entire novel. Vandalism, guilt, vandalism, more guilt.

My problem with this novel is that I found none of the characters likeable at all. For the most part, they are vain, superficial, and not particularly intelligent. The story unfolds from the perspective of each family member in alternating chapters, which was never confusing, but only seemed to show how vapid each character is.

The mystery is solved with no real surprises and an attempt at a twist, but by that time, I just didn't care.
I wanted to love it, but I just didn't, however and I very grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read The Perfect Family in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I adore all of Harding's other books and this one was one of my absolute favorites! We meet Viv, Thomas, and their two teenagers, Eli and Tarryn as they seem to be a "perfect" family. But each of the characters is harboring secrets that could blow up in their faces, so when their house begins to be "attacked" by eggs and rocks in the middle of the night, no one is sure whose secret has been discovered. Told from the four alternating points of view, the novel never loses its pace and things just escalate as each of the family members believe someone in their lives is responsible. Many relevant themes are addressed: the hidden dangers of social media, hazing, bullying, rumors spreading among friends, and the tenuous state of marriage when partners don't trust each other. Don't even try to figure out who is behind it all! Just ride this delicious roller-coaster of a book as you know Harding doesn't disappoint! And that last line will have you gasping!

Many families look perfect from the outside, bu
t the facade is quickly shattered when one looks inside. Thomas, Viv, and their children appear to have it all, until they don’t. Thomas and Viv’s marriage is rocky, Eli dropped out of college, and Tarryn is acting out in a dangerous way. This novel is full of tense situations and as the dominoes fall, it appears no one in the family will come out unscathed. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my review.

I actually really love this thriller about a family targeted by an unseen enemy. I could easily place myself in the main characters’ positions. It’s fast paced but at the same time develops into a complex story. I highly recommend this thoroughly enjoyable read.