Freya and her fiancé Jack have moved house and are just getting to know the neighbours when Emily and her daughter Thea go missing. No one seems overly concerned, her husband Michael is an overbearing man who Freya becomes increasingly scared of. The police seem very dismissive of Freya’s deep concerns which lead to Freya becoming more and more determined to find out what has happened. She creates a web site dedicated to helping find them but becomes scared when she receives threatening posts warning her to abandon her search.
An easy fast moving read - wholly believable too.

Sometimes I wonder, are some mysteries so easy to predict or has my mind been trained to figure out the twists way before the end of the novel?

An author introduces us to a documentary maker Freya, who has recently moved to a new neighborhood with her fiance. She loves the community and the neighbors on each side of her property. And while Freya and her fiance are in a midst of renovating their new home and starting the family their next-door neighbor and her daughter vanish. Based on her previous work-related research, Freya is obsessed with the idea that Emily's husband has a hand in her disappearance. Frustrated with the fact that the police are doing little to nothing to locate the mother and daughter - she takes the search for the duo into her hands. The task is emotionally overwhelming for Freya, and worse - puts a huge strain on an already shaky relationship with her fiance. But she has a goal - and not even frightening warnings can stop her from achieving it.

Great idea of the plot. hence the reason I was drawn to the book. The story seemed predictable, I found there was nothing gripping or impressive. And the ending... although I predicted the twist at the end, was overdone. Many actions seemed to be implausible and over the top, which dulled the suspense. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture publisher for a free and advanced copy of the novel.

DNF at 20%. Not gelling with the writing style and was anticipating more. Just personally not for me.

I couldn't put this book down!
The main character was so brilliantly developed. Her background as a documentary maker; her vivid imagination; her secret from the past; her absolute determination to find her missing neighbours all blend together and you are left wondering if what is happening is real or part of her imagination. You are torn between rooting for her and yelling at her to just stop meddling.
The twist at the end was unexpected - I'd drawn up my own conclusions and was rather surprised when the real villain was exposed - and what follows after that was ingenious!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

Wellp, unfortunately I did not love this book. By the time I got to the end I didn’t hate it because the ending wrapped up pretty nicely. Definitely unrealistic but I liked it. But holy smokes, it had way too much blabbering in it to finally get to the good stuff. For my taste, there was TOO MUCH, it was trying so hard to enhance the story and it just took away from it. I did not want to finish it, but I’m that type of person, once I start a book, I try to finish it. But, I did manage to skip MANY pages at one point, and by the end of the book it didn’t seem like I missed anything at all. I still knew what was happening. The epilogue tried too hard too, this story had potential, it just didn’t hit home for me.

Holy moly! I could not put this book down and it kept me guessing the entire time. Many times when I read a thriller, I can guess throughout the novel who did what, but I had no idea until the last 20 pages or so the whole truth. You will fall in love with Freya & Emily...I honestly hope there is a 2nd book to follow up on them. Highly recommend!

4.5 stars

I love when a thriller keeps me on the edge of my seat, and The New Home did just that!

When Freya moves into her new home, she immediately hits it off with her neighbor Emily and is thrilled to finally have a friend she can chat with over wine while their husbands aren’t around. But not everything is as perfect as it seems. One day Emily and her daughter up and vanish, and Freya is left wondering what has happened to her new friend. Emily’s husband isn’t exactly the most personable neighbor on the block and to Freya, he seems a likely suspect behind his wife and daughter’s disappearance. It doesn’t take long for Freya to start digging for clues, but soon they lead her down a dangerous path…one she definitely didn’t see coming.

I really enjoyed reading this book and thought it was a fantastic, suspenseful thriller. Just like Freya, I thought I had everything figured out. Every time Freya dug up a new clue (literally), it seemed so obvious. But I was waaay off, and I’m so glad I was because the end caught me completely off guard and in the best way. Highly recommend this one!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4219434519

The new home has it all!

A gripping story line, amazing characters and a fantastic plot

Read this book!

This is the second novel I've read from this author and I can't wait to read more.

It's a stand alone psychological Thriller.

The premise to this was interesting and it kept my interest from the start to the finish.

I hope to read more from this author in the future.

BLOG TOUR REVIEW

Review for 'The New Home' by Chris Merritt.

Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Chris Merritt, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous

Publication date 7th September 2021.

This is the third book I have read by this author. I have previously read 'Knock Knock' and 'Who's Next?' which I highly recommend.


I was originally drawn to this book by its beautiful eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Fans of Claire McGowan, Shalini Boland and Lisa Jewell will love the gripping tension and unexpected twists of The New Home.' I am a huge fan of Shalini Boland and Lisa Jewell so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I am also a huge fan of Chris and if this is half as good as 'Knock Knock' and 'Who's Next? ' it is sure to be a page turning read. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).

This novel consists 59 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!

This book is based in Surrey, England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿, UK 🇬🇧. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture. The fact that this book is based in England is even better as I have been on holiday in England many times so may even recognise some places Chris has set the book around.


This book is written in first person perspective with the main protagonists being Freya and an unsub. The benefits of books written in first person perspective are as long as they are well written it makes you feel that you are being spoken to by the protagonist and it can create more of a bond between yourselves and them. If there are several protagonists you also get to see more of what is going on.

'The New Home' discusses some topics that may trigger some readers or may not be suitable for others. I like to point this out ahead of time in my reviews so you can judge if this book is for you or not. In this book Chris discusses/includes mental health, miscarriage and domestic abuse.

Wow!!! Well done Chris on yet another unputdownable psychological thriller!!

The storyline itself is a must read!!! It is packed with suspense, lies, mystery, sadness, friendship, love, loss and red herrings!!! It is very fast paced and I was absolutely hooked throughout. There is so much going on and it constantly leaves you guessing, thinking you've worked it all out and then BOOM an ending you would never have guessed!!! I was absolutely addicted and it left me on the edge of my seat with my heart racing biting my nails. The ending was absolutely explosive and one I did not consider at all. A huge well done Chris on this as it is getting harder and harder to shock me with all the books I read but you managed to completely blow my mind!!! I am looking forward to reading more of your books past and future!!! If you are planning on reading this then clear your schedules as it is completely unputdownable!!

The characters are all strong and realistic. All of the main characters were well developed with alot of history. I became completely invested in Freya and was intrigued by the unsub trying to work out who it was and was shocked when I discovered the truth. I enjoyed watching Freya's relationship with Emily develop and it was lovely to see such a string friendship grow in a short time. I wasn't sure how I felt about Jack, a bit of a mix really but for the majority of the time he really annoyed me with his attitude. I actually just write how I felt about him by the end but deleted it as don't want to give anything away!!! In fact it's quite hard to say how I feel about any of the characters without giving anything away so will just say how I felt about them at the start. Cathy was a really sweet lady and I felt really sorry on her, I'm glad that Freya became so close to her and looked after her as if she was her Gran. I didn't like Michael from the start as I just found him to be blunt, rude and sexist. Although Duncan and Patrick only came along at the end they seem like characters I would love to get to know more. Overall a great mix of characters that worked perfectly in the storyline.

Congratulations Chris on another absolutely addictive read!!! Welcome to my favourite author list and here's to your next book!!! 🍻


Overall an absolutely unputdownable psychological thriller with an explosive ending!!

Genres covered in this novel include Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Noir Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction and Psychological Fiction amongst others.

I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Gone girl, Shalini Boland and Lisa Jewell.


302 pages.

This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!

Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.

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I wasn’t sure whether this was going to grip me or not - the characters didn’t have enough depth to them initially. However, the unanswered questions were sufficient to keep me reading until the end.

Documentary maker Freya and fiance Jack, a hospital doctor, have moved from London to their 'doer-upper' of a property, one which Freya has great ideas for. However all her passion for making the property her forever home fizzle when she gets distracted by a more pressing desire: to find her missing neighbour and her daughter.
It's only a few months after they've moved in when Emily and Thea go missing; Freya and Emily are beginning to form a nice friendship, however Emily's husband Michael is a different kettle of fish. Freya finds him stand offish, if not downright unpleasant. But is Freya imagining the look which seems to pass between Jack and Emily when they first meet - it seems like they recognise each other. But that can't be right can it?
Frustrated by the lack of progress and police interest in the case, Freya decides to step up and be the one to seek out the fate of her friend. She sets up a social media page asking for information - but could this be leading Freya herself into danger? As the story moves along, we find out there is more to Freya's past than we were initially aware of. Jack is dismissive of Freya's concerns, the detective in charge of the case even more so. Why is nobody helping her, why don't they care?
We follow Freya's analysis of each person close to Emily, her thoughts and plans to discover the truth. I have to admit to thinking long and hard about the possibilities of what could have happened to the girls when I wasn't actually reading the book. The author certainly put enough scenarios out there as to who could have ill intentions - but I didn't see the actual outcome panning out as it did. I had question marks in my own mind about some of the characters, but bigger doubts about some of the wild accusations that Freya was coming up with.
Chris Merritt has plotted and presented some excellent plot twists in this novel which has enticed me into looking into more of his books for the future. His characters are so nicely created that we are presented with just enough information about them to make them credible suspects but without giving away too much of their part in the plot. Everyone's a suspect!
Suspense, creepy houses and suspicious characters abound in this excellent thriller. It will have the hairs on the back of your neck standing up, I guarantee!

This is one of the books I went into blindly without reading the synopsis and that's the best decision I made because honestly, this is one of the best crime thrillers I've read.

The author took his time with it yet it was fast paced, never got boring and he kept adding thing after thing so that you'd never guess what the ending would be in a million years and whatever you guessed would be wrong and true to that, I did not see that ending coming.

EXCERPT: The key slides smoothly into the padlock, and it clicks open. I remove it from the hasp and pull the door open. It sticks, the wood groaning as the door separates from the lintel, while the hinges screech as if in pain. I'm sure someone must have heard me. With a final look over my shoulder, I hang the open padlock back on the hasp and step inside, pulling the door closed behind me to avoid being seen.

The interior is almost pitch black. Whatever light there is has been filtered through the cobwebs and mold coating the inside of the tiny, smeary window. I take out my phone and switch on its torch.

The first thing I see is more cobwebs, and I'm temporarily paralyzed with fear as I clock the number of them, lying as thick as wads of cotton wool in the corners. My torch beam picks out a cluster of huge, fat spiders, motionless, as if they're waiting to attack me. I know it's ridiculous to be frightened of them, that they won't hurt me. I tell myself that out loud and remind myself why I'm here: to find out what happened to Emily and Thea.

I sweep the beam around the edges of the space. It's full of junk. I see big sacks of compost, plant pots, folded garden chairs and tools. None of it looks as though it's been used in years, and part of me wonders if this is a wild goose chase, and whether Michael and Emily haven't even set foot in this place the whole time they've lived here.

But I remember the shoe and the ring I discovered outside. And the brand new padlock that must have been put on the door for a reason. As I shine the beam down to the floor, I freeze. I think I've found that reason.

Blood.

ABOUT 'THE NEW HOME': Freya loves her new home on a quiet suburban street. And her beautiful neighbour Emily is everything she’s ever wanted in a best friend. Finally, she has somebody to share her secrets with over a glass of wine. But as Freya watches her new friend setting the table for dinner one evening, she sees something shocking that makes her think that Emily’s life might not be as perfect as it seems. Days later, Emily and her daughter vanish…

When you meet Emily’s husband, you will think you know what he’s hiding.

You will ask yourself whether Emily and Freya really did meet by chance.

You will think you know what happened to Emily and her little girl the night they went missing.

But when you discover the truth, it will shake you to your core and you will lie awake at night wondering if you can ever really trust the people in the house next door…

MY THOUGHTS: The New Home is a suspenseful, slightly creepy mystery that had me flipping the pages. My suspicions flitted from one character to another to yet another. I just didn't know who, if anyone, I could trust, including the narrator, Freya.

None of the characters are particularly likeable, except Cathy, Freya's elderly next door neighbour who appears to be in the early stages of dementia. But in amongst her ramblings, there may just be a few grains of truth.

Freya herself tends to be obsessive, which is fine in her career as a documentary maker, but it can lead to problems in her day to day life. She's a complex character. One moment my heart would be breaking for her, the next I would be wanting to tell her to get a grip. By the way, did you know that 62% of violence against women is committed by family members or partners. If you didn't, you certainly will by the time you get to the end of this read. Freya produces this statistic regularly, almost like a mantra.

Freya's partner, Jack, is an overworked cardiologist, but the clinical approach he uses in his work probably isn't the best approach to take with his fiance at home. He loves Freya, and thinks he's doing his best for her, even after he discovers the secret she's been hiding from him.

Michael is the missing Emily's husband, he's not particularly sociable, and borders on rude a lot of the time. He comes across as aggressive and uncaring. He doesn't seem particularly concerned about her whereabouts, and neither do the police.

Although I enjoyed this book, there were a couple of things I thought could have been done better. The author hasn't spent much time or effort establishing the friendship between Freya and Emily. We are told by Emily that they were great friends, but I didn't feel it. At one point I wondered if this friendship was a delusion on Freya's part, which could be a deliberate ploy by the author. I certainly didn't feel that the friendship was close enough to account for Freya's reaction and subsequent actions after Emily and Thea going missing.

I also found the short chapters told from the point of view of an unknown person annoying. I don't feel that they added any value to the reading experience. Each one was essentially the same, and eventually I began skipping them. I know that this is currently a popular trope, but I have found very few novels where it has actually worked as intended. It doesn't work here, even after the final revelation.

Chris Merritt has written a good, suspenseful mystery; one that I enjoyed.

⭐⭐⭐.8

#TheNewHome #NetGalley

I: @cjmerritt81 #chrismerritt @bookouture

T: @DrCJMerritt @Bookouture

#contemporaryfiction #domesticdram #mentalhealth #mystery #suspense

THE AUTHOR: Hello! I'm a British author whose crime thrillers combine psychology, suspense, and characters you care about.

All my novels are set in London, where I live. My first trilogy starred Zac Boateng and Kat Jones, two detectives motivated by family, who tackle organised crime and police corruption. LAST WITNESS, the second Boateng and Jones book, reached #13 in the UK Kindle chart in 2019.

My second series features detective Dan Lockhart - an ex-soldier with a missing wife - and psychologist Dr Lexi Green, an American living in London. These novels are darker, more psychological serial-killer cases, with romantic relationships as a central theme.

I began writing fiction in 2014, after previous careers as a diplomat, based in Iraq and Jerusalem, and later as a psychologist working with victims and perpetrators of crime. I specialised in treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which sparked my interest in telling stories about how people cope when faced with extreme adversity.

Now, I spend most of my time writing novels and drinking coffee while 'thinking' about writing novels. When I'm not writing, I love climbing and playing basketball.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Bookouture via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The New Home by Chris Merritt for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

Freya is excited to be moving into her new home with her fiancé Jack. As a cardiologist, Jack's new job moves them into a London suburb. Freya makes documentaries, especially for women in desperate cirumstances. However, she is currently not working on anything. When she meets new neighbors Emily and Michael, she gets a strange vibe from Michael. Another neighbor that raises her hackles is the elderly Cathy.

Despite these concerns, Freya is determined to settle in and for her and Jack to begin renovating their new home, especially as they left their friends behind in London. Perhaps Freya has found a new friend in Emily. However, after a few months Emily and her young daughter Thea disappear. With his prior film experience and working with women, Freya is certain that foul play has occurred with Emily and Thea and that Michael had everything to do with it. Freya relies on her past experiences to solve the mysterious disapperances.

Freya doggedly pursues her ideas, much to Jack's consternation and to the police's annoyance. Not sure she can trust her own instincts and the other neighbor Cathy's odd statements from time to time, she still plows forward. Meanwhile, Freya herself has a past, and this is where this already thrilling story takes a sharp twist.

How much of who Freya is and who Michael and Emily are have to actually do with what is going on? A tangled web to be sure, but what a delight watching it all play out in this thrilling story. Freya's character was intriguing and I found myself drawn into her drama and that of the unnamed narrator, which gave the story a different edge, thus creating a tension-filled read from beginning to end.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Freya, who makes documentaries, and her fiancé, Jack, a cardiologist, have bought a house that needs lots of fixing up. Freya soon meets her neighbor, Emily and daughter, Thea, 5. Emily’s husband, Michael, is a computer programmer. While Emily is very sweet and outgoing, Michael is not at all personable. On the other side of their house lives an older woman named Cathy who has warned them to be careful of Emily and Michael.

When Freya finds herself pregnant, she is ecstatic. Jack is a bit surprised because he understood they would wait awhile, but he’s still happy. Some weeks later, Freya loses her baby and sinks into a pit of depression.

A few months later, Emily and Thea are reported missing. When Freya offers her sympathy and any help she can give him, Michael is very short with her. Ah, but Freya is worried that Michael have had something to do with their disappearance and does some investigating of her own.

As she gets wrapped up in this, a problem from her past returns to haunt her. She tries keeping things from Jack but it’s inevitable that it will come out. When it does, things get difficult with their relationship as Freya falls further down the rabbit hole in her search for Emily and Thea.

This book had me on the edge of my seat because there are so many scary things happening and the author’s descriptions make them even more so. At times, I wanted to choke Freya, but the ending actually had me chuckling. So, when you add spooky to laughter, you get a good book. Enjoy!

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Thrilling. Beautifully written. Just amazing. Another spectacular readfrom this incredible author. Loved loved loved this one.

When Freya & Jack move into their new home, she is delighted to meet her neighbour Emily, her husband Michael and their little girl Thea, Emily and Freya begin a friendship and everything seems perfect until Emily and Thea disappear. The police don't seem interested but Freya is determined to find her friend. The search leads her to some dark places and her trust in everyone she knows is tested to the limit.

This was a good plot and the characters were well developed. The writing style is easy to read and the pace of the story is fairly quick with plenty of twists and turns. A good book that makes you keep turning pages. Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to preview this title.

I wanted to love this book.

First of all, I want to say that the writing is pretty solid. The pacing was good, as well. The thrills were peppered all over the story and I found myself often unable to put the book down. I actually read this in 3 sittings over a day and a half, which is a rather obvious sign how much of a page-turner it is.

However, that’s where the positives end, at least for me. This book suffers from one major flaw that’s impossible to ignore: a hugely unlikable protagonist.

And it’s not just because we don’t know her enough, no. In fact, the more we found out about her, and the more the story progressed, I found myself hating her more and more. Never have I read a narrator that’s more irritating, more unrelatable, more unreliable than Freya Marie Northcott. The constant references to gender, (“the masculine this” “the male that” and often in a judgmental or discriminatory way) the nosy ‘exploration’ of her neighbors’ homes, and frankly, the way she basically suspects everyone around her. She’s the neighbor who thinks she’s doing everyone a favor, when you just want her to stay out of your business. And she’s always jumping into the most ridiculous conclusions! She’s also selfish, always only thinking about herself and thinking that other’s people’s actions have an ulterior motive that involves her. Freya, love, the world does not revolve around you. Your fiance is NOT not cooking dinner because ‘pAtRiArChY’, but because he always comes home tired af from working his new consultant job at the hospital. And him suggesting that you go see a psychiatrist and take meds isn’t because he wants to manipulate and control you “like men do” but because he’s worried about you. Jesus, this woman makes all women (especially feminists) look bad. And as a woman myself who believes in female empowerment and equality, I wanna shake her so, so bad.

I have so many more things to say but I think I’ve ranted enough. I really don’t think I can hate her more.

I still have one more issue though, and that’s the plot. The plot is ridiculous, now that I’ve had some time to think about it. Yes, it was fast-moving for the most part. And yes, the book is a page-turner with plenty of thrilling and exciting moments. BUT, I absolutely felt let-down by the ending. It took me over 3 hours to finish this book, and THAT’S the big ending? Seriously?

Ultimately, I still do want to read a book from this author. The writing is good, it’s entertaining, and if you need something to pass the time, I would still highly recommend this. However, here’s to hoping that the author writes a better main character/narrator next time, because I can’t sit through another Freya Marie Northcott.

Oh, sorry, MS Freya Marie Northcott.

The New Home by Chris Merritt is another addictive read from an author who never seems to miss the mark. This one should be added to your TBR immediately.

Freya Northcott and her fiance Jack are moving into a new home, excited to start their lives together. Next door neighbours Emily, Michael and their daughter Thea make them feel welcome, but there is something about Michael that Freya doesn't quite trust. So when Emily and Thea go missing soon after, Freya's suspicions become singularly focused on her strange and unsettling neighbour.

Told exclusively from Freya's perspective, the reliability of the narration is in question from the start and, like Freya herself, the reader wonders just whom among the potential suspects can be trusted.

This is a gripping read that kept me on my toes from beginning to end. Recommended. 4.5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an ARC.