This was described as "Desperate Housewives meets the Couple Next Door", and it was a poor version of that. I didn't enjoy it.

A neighborhood mystery with a few unexpected twists. I liked the dual voices and the side plots that ultimately fed into the mystery. However none of the characters were likable, and that made parts of the book difficult to get through. A solid 3 stars for me.

This landed right in the middle for me. I'm hard to please when it comes to domestic thrillers, so this one was just fine. It started with a lot and then after the fast pace it just ended up having a lot of run off throughout. I finished the book and was left with many questions that could've been answered if the writing was a little better. The plot itself was good. The dual POV's definitely helped.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC

Thanks to netgalley for an advanced reader copy. I felt this was a solid 3.5. Some parts were compelling, others a bit predictable. I would read this author again, as I felt there was good potential.

Why are more people not talking about What The Neighbors Saw by Melissa Adelman!? Ugh! This thriller was just SO good!

I'm going to start by shouting this statement from the rooftops: I LOVE BOOKS ABOUT NEIGHBOURHOOD DRAMA! And this one continued to scratch that itch for me!

I was hooked on this suspenseful suburban thriller from the get go. Both narrations from Alexis and Blair were unreliable at various times, and I ate up each of their twisted perspectives! I also found myself really relating with Alexis as a young mother - I love finding a character I can connect with but especially within this genre. As the story unraveled, I became aware that not everything was as it seemed, and quickly became suspicious of key characters in the story.

This one is like taking bits from The Whispers, None Of This Is True, and Everyone Here Is Lying - and I loved all three of those books, so it's no shock that I loved this one too! Cough cough - it also gave me Gone Girl vibes!

Have I mentioned that I like warped neighbourhood dramas yet?

Once more for those in the back: I loved this book!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Minotaur Books for the complimentary copy to read and review.

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to @macmillian.audio for a free download of the audiobook.

This was a quick book that kept me turning pages. I loved the nosy neighbors. It made me miss the show Desparate Housewives, suburban dramas just draw me in.

What the Neighbors Saw had some unexpected twists that I enjoyed. The characters and their backstories were well developed that fingers for a death were pointed in multiple directions. I wouldn’t call it a “chilling read”, but it was a fun “who done it”.

4 stars

#books #bookishlife #booklover #readingisfun #iowabookstagrammers #iowabookstagram #netgalley #macmillanaudio #stmartinspress #ltbreaderteam #whattheneighborssaw #melissaadelman

Alexis and her husband Sam are ready for their new life. They've bought a severely neglected Cape Cod house in an exclusive DC suburb. It's a lot of work, but, they are ecstatic. Sam is working hard at his law firm and Alexis is pregnant. They are both so excited.

When their new neighbor Teddy turns up dead, the whole community's image is shattered. Who is the killer? Why is Teddy dead? What did he do? This one kept me interested until the end, guessing who did it?

What The Neighbors Saw written by Melissa Adelman left me feeling on the fence. I really enjoyed this book, but the author portrayed one of the characters with an eating disorder, that had absolutely <b>NOTHING</b> to do with the plot. Body shaming in books is just not okay with me, so for that reason alone I had to take a star off. This book is like something you watch on the Lifetime channel, it was just one of those fascinating domestic suspense thrillers, you could even read this book during Halloween. I enjoyed this book, but I just didn't love it that much, but the ending completely took my breath away, I didn't see this book ending the way it did. What The Neighbors Saw meets Desperate Housewives in this bone chilling novel. The cover is so beautifully detailed, it definitely gives me read this book with a flashlight vibes. Despite having to lower my rating, I still enjoyed this book nonetheless, but I just didn't love it. I will still recommend What The Neighbors Saw for those of you who love domestic suspense thrillers, but for those of you who don't maybe this is your sign to give it a go. I have never read this author before, but maybe I will give her another try in the near future.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND ST. MARTIN'S PRESS FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!!

Alexis and her husband Sam decide to buy a neglected million dollar fixer upper in a DC suburb. Alexis and Sam decide to make renovations on their dream house, but once they finally fix something, something else needs fixing up, slowly their savings are getting low. Sam and Alexis are ecstatic, this could be their perfect dream house. Alexis is a stay at home mom with their toddler son, and now she's pregnant with their second child, they have a in house nanny, and Sam is on the cusp of making partner at his law firm. When Alexis and Sam arrive to their new house, their neighbors welcome them with opened arms and baked goods, but there's other neighbors who look at Sam and Alexis differently because they are a bi-racial couple. None of the characters in this book were perfect at all, in my opinion Sam wasn't a very loving husband, he would always call Alexis "old lady" and treat her like garbage. I liked Alexis at first, but when she would just bow down to Sam and his negative trash talk, it made me lose sympathy for her. Things are looking up for their lives and their new home, and Alexis believes she can finally leave her troubled past behind.

The neighborhood's picture perfect image is shattered when their neighbor, Teddy is found dead on the neighborhood's hiking trial. Teddy is married to Blair who welcomed Sam and Alexis with opened arms. Teddy is a handsome and successful father of three. Who could have possibly wanted Teddy dead? Could it have been his wife, Blair? Because she never really showed that many emotions. Well, I'll tell you this, read the book to find out. The community is pretty shaken up learning about Teddy's death, but as the police struggle to identify the killer, tension in the neighborhood is now rising and long buried secrets are starting to emerge. Sam and Alexis were never a part of this neighborhood's drama, but since they are new, they are instantly dragged into the neighborhood drama that has been brewing, not so much Sam because he's always working, trying to make partner at the law firm. Alexis feels sympathy for Blair, Teddy's widow, so Alexis and Blair instantly form a budding friendship. As the two women grow closer, the neighborhood only becomes more divided. When the truth behind Teddy's murder is uncovered, Alexis and Blair must reexamine their friendship, are they willing to take that risk?

I liked the first half of the book but kind of lost interest in the second half. The starting premise was excellent - a young couple moves into a new neighborhood, a house they can barely afford, meets neighbors who are so different from their old lives...and then of course, there is the murder. The story didn't really work for me after that. The twists seemed too many or too bizarre to add intrigue.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

Although not my favourite thriller I’ve read this year, I read through this book pretty quickly. A bit slow for the majority of the novel, it did wrap up and had some enjoyable twists. I will definitely look for Adelman’s next book,
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC of this novel.

This was another quick and enjoyable read for me. I found the main character likeable and was invested in the story. It was fast paced and I loved the neighborhood setting. None of the neighbors are what they seem and Alexis is forced to figure out who she is dealing with. Her husband is not terribly supportive of her. I enjoy a wealthy people behaving badly book and this fit the bill. Highly enjoyable, not likely memorable.

Thank you Minotaur Books, Melissa Adelman, and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in return for an honest opinion.

Let me start by saying that I love suburban dramas that involve the neighbors. This book delivered that neighborhood drama.

The story follows Alexis and her husband Sam, who bought an expensive but neglected house in an exclusive neighborhood. After the purchase, Alexis and Sam start arguing about all the repairs that the house needs. Soon after they move in, their neighbor, Teddy, is found murdered on a trail near their house and suddenly the exclusive neighborhood they moved in to doesn’t feel so safe. After Teddy’s death, Alexis forms a friendship with Teddy’s wife, Blair, while she tries to figure out who could have murdered Teddy.

I loved how the neighborhood was described. It really gave off that perfect neighborhood vibe at first, but then gave off a “things are not how they seem” vibe after all the drama starts to happen. The characters did give off a desperate housewife vibe, however, I wanted more of a character development with some of the neighbors. I wanted more of a relationship build between Alexis and Jennifer, Jeff, Laura, Shawn, Dylan, Emily, etc. I wanted more scandals. I wanted more details on the drama Alexis saw when she was out hiding in the trees one night. I think if there was more of a relationship build between all the characters, then the scandals would have been more shocking.

I did enjoy this story. I loved the suburban drama feel. I liked the character build between Blair and Alexis. Their friendship was well written. And the disconnect between Alexis and Sam was well written too. It made the reader really despise Sam.

The twists at the end were great. I didn’t see them coming and really enjoyed how the story ended. I’d recommend this book to anyone that loves a suburban neighborhood drama.

4/5 stars.

When Alexis and Sam buy the worst house on the block in an exclusive DC enclave, they think their dreams have come true. They’ll fix it up, make it their own and build their family life there. Sam is on track to become a partner in his law firm and Alexis is on maternity leave with their second child.

Everyone on the block welcomes them and they settle into a routine, albeit challenged by everything the house needs and the stress of two young children.

Then one of the neighbors--successful, attractive, father of three Teddy--is found murdered along a popular riverside trail. Despite the ongoing investigation, any clues dry up and the police make no arrests. Alexis and Blair, Teddy’s widow, become friends even as the neighborhood becomes more and more divided.

And then the truth about Teddy’s death comes out…and nothing will ever be the same again.

What the Neighbors Saw alternates between Alexis’ and Blair’s points of view, and it does take a bit of time to build. But for me it was worth getting to know everyone as the groundwork is laid for the reveal of who killed Teddy and why. Melissa Adelman builds the tension well as the characters’ quirks and personalities are revealed…some in quite alarming ways. Some more in-depth character development wouldn’t have gone awry for some of the supporting cast. But the story flowed well and the author kept the level of suspense building to the finale.

I wouldn’t really call this a “chilling read” or a thriller. Yes, a murder occurred, but it happened without detail and then the rest of the book was built around it. It was a bit obvious where the story was going, but the ending was a bit interesting.

The one thing that I don’t understand is why the author made the female character so weak and really annoying with her feelings about being “fat” after having a baby. It was just constant throughout the book and quite annoying when every other character described her as thin. It felt like such an unnecessary point to keep repeatedly making.

This review was also posted on Goodreads.

What the Neighbor Saw is about a young successful couple who decide to purchase a fixer upper in an exclusive neighborhood. Alexis is pregnant with their second child and Sam is hoping to to make partner in his law firm. Sam and Alexis just know that this is their perfect forever home regardless of the issues with the house and the financial burden on them. All is going great UNTIL their next door neighbor is found murdered on the neighborhood trail. Is there neighborhood really safe? Do they really know their neighbors? Who killed Teddy and why? Who can you truly trust?
This was the perfect neighborhood thriller with lots of suspense and twists that you don't see coming. I really loved how each character was fleshed out by the author and it was up to the reader to like them or hate them. Sometimes it was hard to decide. I'd highly recommend this domestic thriller to readers who love that neighborhood drama element.

I didn't really enjoy this one but I did finish it. I didn't find any of the characters likeable at all so it was a bit hard to care what happened to any of them. Sam and Alexis argue so much and he was really hateful to her and it was hard to read. The story was a bit of a slow burn. I would give the author another chance - this one just didn't grab me. Thank you for the advanced copy to read in exchange for my honest review.

I didn't enjoy this book at all unfortunately. There was so much added unnecessary detail. I really should have dnf it.

Thank you netgalley for the Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Alexis and Sam move into an upscale neighborhood in D.C.. They can't really afford it, but they hope it will help their marriage and be a great place to raise their growing family. When their neighbor Teddy is found dead on the trail behind their homes, Alexis starts to wonder if this neighborhood is actually safe at all.

"She's getting away with something pretty awful, and I'm happy for her."

And those are the types of characters you'll find in What the Neighbors Saw. Not even one likable character.

Blair, whose husband died, is entirely awful, at one point making a comment along the lines of: "Jennifer's makeup is a bit overdone for this community. I'll have to discuss this with her later." Who the eff put her in charge?

Alexis has a pronounced eating disorder, only eating one meal per day and feeling horribly guilty about it, while everyone on the block talks about how ghastly thin she is.

Sam is just cruel, playing to his wife's insecurities. I actually cringed anytime he spoke to Alexis.

And I didn't even care who killed Teddy.

That being said, I'm always here for neighborhood drama, and some scenes were worth the read. I thought the ending was a bit ridiculous - Alexis was able to figure something out that seemed so glaringly obvious that no one else on the block who've lived there for years could figure out? Okay.

All of this being said, I liked the way this story unfolded, and I'll definitely read this author's sophomore novel. Hopefully there'll be at least one redeemable character! 😂

Read if you like:
- high drama in a neighborhood setting
- slow burn
- truly awful people being exactly who they are

This was a decent ride of a book. I enjoyed the two character POVs and trying to unravel the different mysteries. However, the ending seemed a bit far fetched and wrapped up too quickly for my liking.

4.5 stars

This book had me hooked from the get-go, and as much as I disliked the neighbors, I couldn’t help but get sucked in by the drama they all created.

A suspicious death, a stalker, and long-buried secrets…this is just the tip of the iceberg in What the Neighbors Saw! When Alexis and Sam moved into an exclusive DC suburb, things appeared to be looking up for the young couple. But the picture perfect image of the neighborhood is blurred by the suspicious death of Teddy. The police are unable to identify the killer and the neighbors become more divided by the uncertainty of it all.

When the truth behind Teddy’s murder was revealed, I wasn’t entirely surprised by who was responsible, but I was surprised by how easily they got away with it. It really makes you question how well you know your friends and neighbors, and whether or not you would keep their secret.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story and highly recommend it!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing a copy of this book to review.*