👀🏘Book Review:
Title: The New Neighbor
Author: Karen Cleveland
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/3 stars

I read a review on this one saying that it made her brain cells hurt! 🤣 That is probably the most accurate description! It was just too twisty and confusing. I'm all about the twists, but this one was overboard!

Beth Bradford has just moved out. Her marriage has ended, and her children have already moved out to start their own lives. It's a lot to deal with, and then to make the situation even more difficult, she is removed from a case she has been working on as an analyst with the CIA. Beth watches as a new family moves into her old home and soon begins to suspect that this new homeowner, Madeline Sterling, might have ties to that case she was working on. But then there ends up being thousands (I'm exaggerating here 😮‍💨) of additional suspects if you listen to Madeline and you go down this twist, turn the corner, another twist, turn around, twist, to the left, twist..... you get my drift? Had the potential to be great.... but it just wasn't. 🫣

Thank you, @netgalley and @randomhouse, for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Published: July 26, 2022

This is a first CIA book for me and I kind of liked it. It was very interesting. This was also a first by this author, I think I’ll dive into her backlist a bit this year! Thank you for my early release copy!

a very generous 2 stars....

This book was a wild trip. I almost DNFed it right at the beginning because I didn't realize it was going to be a political espionage thriller. But I continued to persevere and honestly this book was a trip and not in a good way. The main character was so insufferable, and I think at some point she truly suspected every single person which was so annoying. Normally I don't mind an unlikeable main character, but I sincerely don't think there was anything I liked about her.

Maybe there would be another book by this author I would like but this would simply did not work for me.

Thank you Random House ​and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book.
Beth's tenacity is akin to that of a bulldog; she simply refuses to give up. Her unwavering determination and self-assurance while navigating through this tale are truly admirable. The mystery of "The Neighbor" adds an intriguing layer to the story. As Beth conducts her investigation in the present, past memories take on fresh perspectives, offering new insights.

With each page, the suspense builds, and the question arises: Has someone close to Beth been unwittingly recruited to aid the enemy? The plot races forward, compelling me to finish this captivating book in just one day. And that Epilogue—I absolutely loved it!

Beth's last child is off to college, she and her husband have sold their home and although she has thought they were downsizing, she's found that he's not moving with her but starting a new life of his own. When she returns to work she finds that she's been removed from her position with the CIA tracking an Iranian operative for over a decade. When she sees intelligence that says "The Neighbor" has moved to a new cul-de-sac she suspects the new owner of her home. What starts there sends her into a frenzy suspecting the new owner and then each of her former neighbors. It's a frenetic search that sends her every which way. At first I thought this was going to be a story about two strong women pursuing the truth but I found Beth to be a little too crazed. Other than that, an enjoyable read.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Entertaining and had me guessing all the way until the end. Lots of twists and lots of characters so one must pay close attention to that in the book. But otherwise really enjoyed it.

Beth lives in a cul-de-sac with numerous neighbors that work for the federal government in a safe neighborhood to raise your children. However, there is a secret amongst them with one of them feeding information to a terrorist. Beth is originally on the case, but as her life starts to fall apart so does her job. She ends up going on putting a case together that is not authorized and makes her look suspicious.

At first I though Beth was a little crazy and delusional, which the writer did a fantastic of portraying in her storytelling. The ending definitely through me for a loop and I didn't expect that coming my way at all.

Thank you #NetGalley for the advance copy.

Another page-turner from karen Cleveland featuring intelligence officers--this time not always behaving intelligently. You keep reading to see what (possibly stupid or self-sabotaging thing) the protagonist will do next in her quest to understand why she was taken off a case she has pursued for a decade. It's a compelling yet frustrating thriller.. Beth is determined to keep investigating despite personal risk, making for good tension and drama, she but somehow keeps missing important things. Some people have serious prime suspect potential but are not considered until late in the game. It's fun, but by the end, it's a bit over the top.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital advance review copy.

The New Neighbor is a slow-burn thriller with a fresh and exciting premise. Set on a quiet cul-de-sac filled with people working at the nearby CIA agency, neighbor Beth is on an extended mission to discover who is an Iranian intelligence agent referred to as "The Neighbor".
When Beth is demoted at the same time her marriage is officially over, she sells her family’s home, and her last kid leaves for college, her world begins to fall apart. Beth becomes obsessive over the woman who buys her house, wondering if she has ties to Iran. She then starts looking deeper into her other neighbors, hanging out on her old street and trying to circumvent CIA protocol so she can still access her old assignment (tracking The Neighbor). This story was a wild ride and took the reader on a lot of twists and turns. At the same time, it also managed to be so slow at times (for such a convoluted “who dunnit” type of story). The story definitely kept me guessing as to the identity the culprit (down to the very end) and I wanted to continue reading because so was intrigued as to if Beth would discover the neighbor, and if she would get caught. That said, things got so complicated and crazy and felt really far-fetched. It also made me wonder what Beth was doing the last decade working on this case. The conclusion wrapped things up in an unbelievable way that I did not enjoy, and overall I found the second half of the book to be really frustrating. Still, I needed to finish it to find out who The Neighbor could be.

This book moved along rather slowly and I had trouble connecting with the characters. Overall, this was just an okay read for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Now an empty nester, Beth and her husband sell their house and move to a smaller house. But then her job as a CIA agent transfers her and is now on the lookout for "The Neighbor". Her husband abandons her and now her new life starts with just her and the new assignment. Will her actual previous neighbor be the suspect? Lots of suspense and twists in this book. I feel like I was on the mission myself. Beth is a very likable character. I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more by this author.

After reading two of her previous novels, Need to Know and You Can Run, I have come to expect solid domestic spy thrillers with a strong female protagonist from Karen Cleveland. The New Neighbor again follows this winning formula. Beth's life is currently in disarray: her son is leaving for college, she and her husband are separating, she's moving out of her neighborhood, and she's been taken off her big CIA case. I liked the twists and turns. Unfortunately, what I was disappointed with was how Beth acted emotionally rather than professionally - she didn't show the strength I was expecting from her.
Thanks to #Netgalley and #RandomHouse #Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Maybe I’m just burned out on thrillers, I’m not sure. It was enjoyable enough, but nothing that I would revisit.

Thank you so much for this ARC!

This is not my typical genre - I never go for CIA, espionage things, but I did love the domestic aspect. Normally books about the CIA are difficult for me to understand, but this was written so simply and was very intriguing.

It did not disappoint! I had a lot of fun trying to figure out "whodunnit". Fast paced with quick chapters. I will definitely be on the search for new Karen Cleveland books.

This was a solid thriller. Plenty of action and I liked the main character. Nothing really wow'ed me though

Nope. This one was slow from the rip and never seemed to take off. I normally like a thriller and especially about the CIA but it was just too slow. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy in exchange for a review

A bit of a slow burn with so many twists my head was spinning. The characters didn’t feel fully fleshed out and I wanted to care more than I ultimately did about them or what was happening in the story. I’d read another by this author but with reservations.

Holy twists!! This book was a page turner for sure! I wanted to keep reading to find out what would happen next for Beth. Things got so wild that as I read I just kept thinking how in the world is this going to end!? The New Neighbor was fast paced, action packed, and very enjoyable overall!

Omg I just finished and did NOT see the ending. I thought I had predicted it, but I was so so wrong. Beth is a CIA intelligence agent trying to track the elusive “Neighbor” - an enemy recruiter. However she gets let go from her job with seemingly no notice, so she decides she needs to take matters into her own hands. And does she. This was such a page turner - I could not stop reading it!!

Well this was not what I expected. I am not sure if I totally hate or not. I found parts to be quite interesting then others that I just was like what the heck?!