The New Neighbor by Karen Cleveland
This is one of those books I wish there was a good editor. There is an interesting, spell binding story here but it is ruined by white wine and for much of the book a somewhat hysterical protagonist. Beth from the CIA, has spent over 15 years trying to find “The Neighbor” a spy within the CIA who so far has no done anything to disrupt the CIA. She is suddenly transferred, just as her youngest goes off to college which she hopes means she has more time to focus on this “Neighbor” when she is transferred out of Langley to some campus where she no longer has secret clearance and is no supposed to teach new agents how to fill out forms. She and her husband Mike sell their home in a beautiful cul-de-sac where all the ladies would gather on lawn chairs drinking white wine and watch their kids grow up. At the same time as they are packing up their house, her husband leaves her. Not a good day.
Somehow, she thinks the people who are buying the house, might be “The Neighbor” who is under the control of the Iranians. So, for the bulk of the book, she rails against the CIA, who begin to think she is crazy. Ultimately, she does save the day but not the month. As she does thwart the plan to corrupt the software of the CIA, many of her neighbors in the cul-de-sac will go to jail as pawns bribed by The Neighbor. I will not spoil who this is but as the book ends there is a no twist in the plot. Stay tuned for Neighbor II.
As I mentioned there is a good story here but the lead character is just to drunken hysterical and the rest of the establishment is just written as to daft to see anything Cartoon movie ? Maybe. The book needed a guiding hand.

Interesting story! I was torn between 3 and 4 stars - some unique aspects but nothing extraordinary.

The main character was a narcissist who was trying to move on with her career as her marriage failed. With adult children, she threw herself into work! This caused her friends and co-workers to see her as over ambitious and later, as delusional. Lots of twists in the story with an unexpected ending!

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review.

Very clever and a great opening. A thriller about the CIA and a "perfect" family/wife/career woman. Beth is an analyst for the CIA on the hunt for "The Neighbor" an Iranian agent. But she is reassigned, her husband leaves her and she is desperate - though she isn't supposed to - to find The Neighbor. When a new woman moves into her recently sold home, Beth feels as if Madeline is taking over her world, husband, career, home. Everyone in Beth's former neighborhood works for the CIA and Beth can't shake the idea Madeline has something to do with The Neighbor. Loved the characters in this one. Fast paced, clever and original. I love spy stories.

*Thank you NetGalley for my ARC!

I had to give this one 5 stars. First, I’m a sucker for anything FBI/CIA related, and the neighborhood setting was so fun and fascinating. I couldn’t put it down, and have such a strong visual of life in Langley Oaks.

This book is fast-paced with an unreliable main character (she reminded me a bit of Carrie Mathison in Homeland). She is obsessed with her work, especially after being pulled off the case and “demoted” for no reason. She leaves no stone unturned in trying to track down a traitor known as The Neighbor, so much so that you begin to wonder if she’s truly the crazy one.

It kept me guessing until the very end (and the epilogue is 🤌🏼 chef’s kiss).

Out 7/26! I’m off to go binge more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, for this advanced reading copy. This ARC was provided to me in exchange for my honest review.

Beth, a CIA agent working in counterintelligence, has been working to try and find "the Neighbor" for 15 years. Then, when her last child leaves for college, she sells her family home, her husband announces he is leaving her, she also gets kicked off the case and demoted to teaching new recruits. Adding salt to her wounds, she learns that there is new information on the "Neighbor" case. She cannot stop herself from trying to find the person behind it all and continue her work on the case. Her friends and family are concerned about her as she makes nonsensical accusations and she is convinced that the woman who purchased her home of 17 years is "the Neighbor".

This is a wild ride into the work of espionage! I loved that as I was reading, I too started to question Beth’s sanity just like her friends, family and coworkers. The twists and turns throughout the book are surprising and kept me reading until the late hours of the night. I just couldn’t put it down. The New Neighbor was an excellent read, and I really enjoyed it!

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59731400-

This is a compelling mystery that grabbed my interest right from the beginning, and never let go. It's a quick read with a lot of twists and turns, and a frighteningly believable glimpse into a world of espionage and counter-espionage set right here in suburban America. Written by a former CIA analyst who clearly knows the ins and outs of that agency, as well as it rivalry with the FBI, the story centers on Beth Bradford, a female CIA analyst who's been searching for years for an Iranian agent who appears to have infiltrated the inner circle of the CIA with a goal of compromising the agency's intranet, a goal that, if achieved, would open up the agency's most top-secret data base and destroy America's security networks. Beth returns from a two-week vacation to find herself removed from her office and transferred to a CIA training center that's become a dumping ground for analysts who have outlived their usefulness. Her long search for the agent code-named The Neighbor has not only been taken from her, she's also being denied access to all her own work products and the information she's gathered over the years in the search. Beth becomes convinced that she knows the identity of The Neighbor, and is obsessed with proving it both to regain her status in the agency and to insure the security of her country.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for this ARC of The New Neighbor by Karen Cleveland.

While this genre is not usually my cup of tea, I must say that I might just be reading more of it in the future. Beth is a strong, powerful female character that shows the stress that life brings still happens to everyone including her, a CIA agent. Just after dropping her last child off to college, her husband informs her that he is leaving her. Going to work to clear her head she finds out that the case she has been working her entire career is not hers anymore and she is being demoted. She refuses to let that stop her and delves into dangerous territory.

This was a heart stopping suspenseful book that had me begging for more and guessing until the very last page. I loved the female lead and everything this book brought to the table. This being my first Karen Cleveland book, I can now say it will not be my last.

Wow! This book was insane. I loved reading about what goes on behind closed doors with the CIA and this book makes you wonder what goes on that we’re all oblivious to. The twists and turns just kept coming and even though I kind of saw the ending coming, there was a ton of details I didn’t expect! If there was ever a sequel I’d definitely read it.

The New Neighbor held my attention right from the first page. I love a good spy suspense book and this plot was full of twists and turns. Beth was a great female lead and I found myself following every clue as to the new neighbor's identity, right along with her.  Beth hit many stumbling blocks along the way but managed to get around most of them.

This is a fast-paced book with more twists and turns than a roller coaster! Beth has no idea who to trust or who is what they say they are, after seventeen years of friendships Beth has no idea now who is telling the truth. I finished this book in two days because I simply needed to know who The New Neighbor is. With its jaw-dropping conclusion, this spy novel did not disappoint.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books for the copy of The New Neighbor. This is a fast-paced read that really kept me guessing. Beth was an interesting main character. I’m not sure she was a very believable CIA agent, given how she kept jumping to conclusions and accusing people. She really made the accusations of her mental unsoundness seem possible!
When the story started coming to a head it got exciting, but not really plausible. Then the “One Month Later” and the epilogue were odd. I found them both unsatisfying.
But this is an interesting story, and if you are willing to suspend belief you will like this book. I will be trying other books by this author.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

The New Neighbor by Karen Cleveland is a twisty thriller about a neighbors in a cll de sac with ties to the CIA. I loved it, and could perfectly imagine this idyllic suburban street. Perfect families living in perfect houses with lush lawns and shiny new cars—not a hint of the secrets lying beneath the surface. I started it in the afternoon and raced through the pages because I couldn't go to sleep without knowing how it ended! Highly recommend!

Oh my poor grey cells! They hurt like hell! I don’t know how many twists a regular thriller reader can handle. But this book’s twists like harsh slaps against your face and I think I am not gonna feel my cheeks for a long time after reading them.

If they want to make sequel for “ Dazed and Confused” movie, they can take my photo and turn it into movie poster. Because I’m truly dazed and confused! When I was reading the last third, I truly wanted to close the book and scream: “ I’m the freaking neighbor! The show is over! Everyone can go home now!”

After so much twists, conspiracy theories later, I am truly numb and I honestly couldn’t find any relatable character in this book including ultra obsessive heroine whose main mission is finding THE NEIGHBOR and saving the country! Nope, even her quick assumptions about the identity of the neighbor at the first third of the book was far fetched. I doubted if she was a real CIA agent or if she was stay at home suburban wife who read too much detective novels and watched too much spy movies.

And the ending: when I read the last pages, I screamed “ Really !?” You may guess I’m not happy with the conclusion of the book.

Quick summary: CIA analyst Beth Bradford sends her youngest child to the college, finding a seller to their family house but without having time to suffer from empty nest syndrome, she finds out her husband wants a divorce and she’s taken off the case she’s working for nearly the decades.

Her focus was Quds Force, their external operations wing. And in particular, a high-ranking Quds Force commander named Reza Karimi. Karimi's mission is gaining undetected access to JWICS. Beth caught his most of the recruits but she missed only one of them: THE NEIGHBOR! The Neighbor is an access agent, a notoriously difficult who takes over the role of recruiting. Individuals who agree
to work for a foreign intelligence service, sell out their own country works with the neighbor. And they're nearly impossible to find, because they are locals. They can be anyone!

Beth lost everything she cared for and she has a lead! She knows the identity of the neighbor ( let’s say possible identity) but she needs to make her superiors believe in her when they only advise her let go off the case!

Pros: the book is riveting page turner keeps you guessing the identity the culprit. It’s fast pacing, it never bores you! You are just intrigued and you want to know how the author will wrap things up. Because at the second half of the book, things get so messier and extremely escalated!

Cons: I found the entire execution a little exaggerated and far fetched. Conclusion didn’t work with me!

Overall: it’s a wild ride, quick, smart but also confusing read! I’m giving my three stars! I still enjoyed action packed, mind bending parts! I wished I could enjoy it more!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/ Ballantine for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

I read this in one day at the spa! It really kept me hooked and turning the pages.

Unfortunately, I found the ending pretty obvious at about 60% of the way through the book. Given the main character's confidence in her abilities, I would've expected her to have solved the case sooner - but maybe that right there is the reason she got taken off her own case.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

The New Neighbor by Karen Cleveland is the story of Beth, a CIA analyst who recently drops her child off at college. Beth and her husband decide to move to a smaller home when her husband announces he is leaving her. To add more salt to her wounds, Beth is demoted at her job. Things have been better for Beth, to say the least…

Soon Beth finds herself hanging onto an old case at work that leaves her with lots of questions and suspicion. As she begins to investigate this former case,she finds herself back in her former neighbor where everyone is in some way connected to the CIA. This book was a bit out of my typical thriller comfort zone that I’m usually drawn to. I still enjoyed this book and felt it had a lot of suspense, secrets, twists and turns. The plot was interesting and the story was very well written. It’s a fast paced book which I also appreciate! There is a big twist at the end, which was obviously my favorite part of the book. I felt the character of Beth was very well developed, and I found myself wanting things to work out for her in the end. I’ll leave it at that- no spoilers :)

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. I would highly recommend that everyone picks up a copy of this book once it’s released. I’ll look for more of this author’s work in the future, and check out her backlist also.

I was excited to receive an advance copy of The New Neighbor by Karen Cleveland. It is the first book I read by this author and will seek out her other books.

The New Neighbor drew me in from the very star.t. The writing style enables the reader to feel like he/she is watching the scenes unfold without being bogged down with extensive details. The characters are likable and become more and more interesting as the story unfolds.

The plot was outstanding. It was fast paced, suspenseful and had me guessing throughout the entire book. I could not put the book down (rarely happens) and was very satisfied with the ending.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book. It was outstanding and I highly recommend it.

With a thrilling plot and a compelling cast of characters, The New Neighbor earns an easy five stars from me.

What is it that I love so much about it? Um, everything, I think, but let's get a little more specific.

The writing is wonderful, not fanciful. The language isn't showy and over the top. It is written in the exact way a thriller should be written: straightforward but with emotion, compelling but with pauses in the action to help us understand our characters. It gives me somewhat the same feel as Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen's joint writing style, though that may just be because I adore all of their writing so fully.

Beyond strictly the writing, I enjoyed the way the characters were crafted. Suspicion fell on almost everyone without the author being too blunt and obvious about who should or shouldn't be branded a villain until nearer the end. I also cared deeply for the main character, and found myself rooting for her throughout her every move. I really connected with her in a way that isn't always easy for me to do.

Though there are elements of The New Neighbor that are very much CIA- and FBI-based, I wasn't confused at all. Cleveland made it all easy to understand, without feeling as though she was talking down to me (a mere mortal who doesn't understand governmental agency procedures).

I also have to say I was very pleasantly surprised by the pro-America theme to this story. There was much talk, and thought, regarding the importance of people in these high-level government positions being unwavering in their faith to their country, and how disastrous things can get when there are traitors among them. The main character also swore allegiance to her country, first and foremost, her friendships coming second to her most important task: keeping America and Americans safe. I absolutely love this, because it's something I rarely see in books lately, so it adds a whole new depth to the story that most today simply do not possess. Yay for innovative ideas!

Bravo, Karen Cleveland. You've written a lovely novel. Please don't ever stop writing.

I wanted to like this more than I did. I've read and enjoyed Karen Cleveland before so was excited when NetGalley gave me the opportunity to review this one. I expected it to be similar to other neighbor books I've read, about the families on the street. But "the neighbor" turned out to be an Iranian agent that Beth is trying to track down in her position with the CIA.

Even though I was confused throughout the first part of the story, lo and behold, the neighbors on the street did play a part in the plot. And Beth changed from a likable person to an unlikable one as she spied on the neighborhood, especially a woman who had moved into Beth's previous home. Anything else feels like a spoiler. I'm curious to learn what others thought about this one.

PS I admit that one reason it may not have held much interest to me was that I was reading it on a Kindle that I loaned to MY neighbor, so when I came back to the last half of the story, it was hard to get into.

I want to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review The New Neighbor.
Beth is a CIA analyst and seems to have it all. But her life is about to undergo numerous changes. She is facing an empty nest, they are selling the house they have brought their children up in, her marriage is falling apart and she is being removed from a case she has spent years on. She's been tracking an Iranian intelligence agency know as the The Neighbor. Then Beth watches as the woman who bought her house moves into her old perfect life. Could she be the spy? Almost all the neighbors in the cul de sac have ties to the CIA so it would be the perfect place to insert a spy.

Beth is not the most likable character and her actions are a bit unbelievable. But once you get passes that, this is a great spy/thriller. I read this in one day! There are plenty of twists and turns and just when you agree Beth has it figured out, something else pops up. Good read!!! a solid 3.5 stars

Really good suspense. No explicit sex or foul language to detract from the good story line.

Beth works for govt agency and has been trying to identify major counter spy for many years. She has family changes, work changes, and gets new lead on the location of spy at same time. Suddenly coworkers and neighbors no longer trust or believe her. Is she psycho and imagining or really finding the spy. Unexpected surprise ending.

I received an ARC of this upcoming novel through NetGalley. I was so excited to read this as I am a big fan of this author’s prior novels. The author’s prior experience as a CIA analyst in counter-terrorism really shines through in this novel. The protagonist is a CIA analyst who has been hunting an Iranian. She moves out of her home, is informed by her husband that he is divorcing her, and is demoted to a new position in the CIA, all in short order. But she can’t stop searching for “The Neighbor” and comes to suspect the woman who has moved into her old house. An action-packed, paranoia-filled good time. Highly recommended.