I enjoyed this one a lot. The writing style the book was well written. The character development were slow at first but developed over time. I would give this a four out of five

Such a fun page turner, which I didn’t expect at all. I had a really hard time putting it down and I loved the twists and turns. I wanted more from the ending though!

When I started this book, I was not sure I was going to like it. Nathan Oates snatched my attention early on and kept it throughout with a tale of twisted behavior and suspicions that had me on the edge of my seat.

The story follows Gil as he takes in his nephew after his sister and her husband die in a terrible accident. But Gil harbors negative feelings for his nephew after an old incident that put his own child at risk and now he is highly suspicious of his behavior. What I really enjoyed about this book is the questions it drew from me as I read along. I questioned everything! There were so many times I thought Gil was crazy, the wife was messing with him, or maybe the nephew was bad or the daughter was in on it. I was very intrigued and had to find out how it ended!

I think my only issue is that Gil was kind of annoying sometimes to the point where I had to take a break from the book. I know he was extremely stressed, but his behavior was very erratic and unreasonable on every level. As an educated adult, I feel like he would have handled that a little better and little more reasonably. However, this did not take away from the intrigue and mystery of the story itself, so I really did enjoy this book. I will definitely be checking out more books from Nathan Oates going forward!

Well, well, well. Nathan, shame on you for that ending! But seriously, I enjoyed this one quite a bit. Gil made me very frustrated. He acted unhinged the entire time. He made everyone dislike him. But I knew what was really going on. I just wished his wife was more supportive about his paranoia.
I look forward to reading more novels by Oates.
Thank you, Netgalley, for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for a free and unbiased review.

Slow with no real twist that made me want to keep reading. I was bored and did not finish the whole book.

A book that should truly be turned into a movie, it has that much entertainment within. This book captured what movies I've watched do, the suspicious troubled kid living with an estranged family member, threatening to cause danger within their lives. A truly suspenseful read.

I really wanted to love this book. It had all the major players: two unreliable narrators, a seemingly sociopathic teenager, and a family potentially in danger. But towards the end it all sort of....fizzled. I feel like there was no real twist when I was expecting a twist. Or a reveal. Or something. But it turned out that the story I was reading was true the whole time, I guess? Which I suppose is a reveal in a way? But I felt let down after a super strong start.

I tried so hard to like this book. It was incredibly slow and just not the type of book I enjoy reading. I didn’t like any of the characters and it made it difficult to sympathize with and/or care about them. I ended up skimming to the end just to see what happened.

I know this book is perfect for some of my friends who enjoy a slow burn thriller. It just wasn’t for me.

Thank you for the early copy!

A professor's quiet life is changed forever when he takes in his charming, manipulative teenage nephew, whose wealthy parents have just died under mysterious circumstances, in this propulsive debut psychological thriller.

Told in limber, mesmerizing prose, A Flaw in the Design is a twisting novel of suspense that brilliantly explores the tensions surrounding class, family, and the drive to control one's own story.

The letter from the editor at the beginning of this dark, intriguing novel captures all of the best buzzwords and descriptions of this book perfectly and now that I have read them, I am having a hard time coming up with my own, but I will give it a try.

This was written in a style I am not drawn to, yet I also believe the choice in prose is very fitting and appropriate. Though the reading does not flow easily, the content demonstrates such talent and absolute compelling allure. Envisioning Matthew, with his constant smirk and standoffishness was easy, and also sets the reader up for an initial impression that is not in his favor. In fact, it was easy to come up with first impressions quite quickly on many of the characters, making the novel that much better as each scene develops.

Dark and disturbing, deep and shocking, this novel is one that will certainly keep you on your toes. I can easily see this being turned into film, and it would be one I would watch for sure!

This was a 3.5 star read for me.

I did like a few things, the pacing was good for most of the book and I felt myself waiting to see how the characters respond to each other.
I think Matthew always had me feeling a little on edge, especially with how he and Gil interacts with each other.
I'm not sure if I truly liked either of these characters, something is just a little off about Matthew, and I just don't think Gil was able to bring up the slack.
Not a bad read, still very entertaining and I'm open to reading more from this author.

After Gil’s sister and her husband die in a car accident, Gil and his family open their home to his nephew. Gil hasn’t seen his nephew Matthew in seven years. The last time the families had been together, there was an incident that strained their relationship. Gil teaches creative writing, and is surprised when Matthew signs up for his class. He is shocked when Matthew starts turning in disturbing stories.

A Flaw in the Design is told from Gil’s point of view. Gil is hesitant to have Matthew move into their home. He doesn’t trust him, and becomes consumed with proving Matthew is evil. However, everyone else believes Matthew to be a smart and charming young man.

A dark and intense thriller. Recommended to readers who like clever psychological thrillers.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The book started out slow for me. I did not care for the main characters Matthew and Gil. The ending left me feeling like I was missing something. The book just had too much anger for me. Thank you #NetGalley, #PenguinRandomHouse, #NathanOates and #AFlawintheDesign for the novel for my review.

Immersive and engaging. A recommended purchase for collections where psychological thrillers are popular.

This was such an odd book! I loved the way I shifted between oh Gil is definitely an unreliable narrator, to then questioning everything, and cycling through those two forever. What a great ending!

The Flaw in the design is a suspense novel about a college professor that takes in his teenage nephew after the boy’s parents are killed in a car accident. But their relationship becomes increasingly tense as he suspects that the teenager could have been involved in the accident.

Gil has been estranged from his sister Sharon for years after he accused her eleven year old son (Matthew) of trying to drown his daughter. Now Sharon and her husband are dead and as Matthew’s godfather and closest living relative Gil and his family are expected to take the boy in. But Gil can’t get past Matthew’s previous actions and starts to convince himself that the boy has gotten away with murder. The reader watches as Mathew fans the flames of suspicion by implicating himself in creative writing assignments that he turns in to Gil’s writing class. But is Matthew taking advantage of his uncle’s past mental health issues by pushing him to the edge or is he really guilty of orchestrating the deaths of his wealthy parents?

This is a well-written and smart slow burn domestic thriller. The reader is left to decipher if Gil’s suspicion is just the jealous paranoia of a middle-aged family man with tight finances who has never forgiven his wealthy and urbane teenage nephew or rooted in actual fact. I wouldn’t say this is the most fun novel (both Mathew and Gil are completely humorless) but felt more grounded in reality than most of the books within this genre.

3.5 stars

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick. Our library purchased and our patrons have been checking out and and enjoying the book. I see it is a popular book club choice as well we hope to have more oppurtinies to support authors like them

I've heard it said before that books come to you at the right time. When I originally tried to read this book I ended up DNF'ing it. However, when I recently read a review about this book, I decided to give it another try - and it was finally the right time for me to enjoy this book.

Gil and his wife have long suspected that their nephew Matthew put their daughter in a life threatening situation; but after losing both his parents Matthew comes to live with his aunt and uncle. It's been years since the incident with their daughter, so Gil and his wife are hoping to put the past behind them and start fresh with Matthew. After all, Matthew lost both of his parents and not only has to deal with their loss, but also needs to adjust to a simpler lifestyle than the life of privilege he is accustomed to. As Gil begins noticing inconsistencies with Matthew's words and actions, he begins to think something dark lies within Matthew. With those around him thinking that Gil is just not moving forward with his relationship with Matthew, he knows that he needs to take matters into his own hands before someone gets hurt. He quickly realizes that there is more behind Matthew's mask then even he had noticed.
I enjoyed this book from beginning to end. Filled with twists and turns this book kept me waffling between Matthew being a psychopath and Gil just being paranoid. This book ended with a bang that gives me hope that we haven't heard the last word of this tale just yet.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to @netgalley and @randomhouse for the gifted copy of this book.

Interesting and well written I just personally couldn’t get into the story. Difficult to follow at times and a little slow. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This one was a bit rough for me. I ended up skimming the middle - I just really disliked the main character. Gil is pretty self-centered. And while Matt did seem like a conniving jerk, his evilness just didn't rise to a level where I cared, which is probably because I didn't like Gil. Definitely not an awful book, but not one of my best reads of the year either.

A Flaw in the Design is one you want to add to your reading list. This was a fun read, full of twists and turns and left me guessing. Can't wait to read more from the author.