Sara Shepard is a master at writing a triller that draws you in with all the secrets and lies. This book like Pretty Little Liars is based of the lies that we try to hide. The three women highlighted in the book have some pretty big things that they don’t want any one to know. Yet when they are all brought together to a mysterious compound in the middle of the dessert, secrets star to be revealed.
This book is laid out beautifully. There are three parts each of them allowing the reader to get a glimpse into the past and the present. Both building up the readers knowledge of how we got to where we are today. Each part is written in the perspective of a different friend. Each reviles more of the truth. Sara always has an ace up her sleeve though and readers will love how twisted together these women’s lives truly are.
Thank you so much to Penguin Group Dutton and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

DNF @ 25%

I was excited to check this one out after loving the author's previous work in my younger years.

However, I struggled to immediately connect to Nowhere Like Home like I did her previous work. The premise from the blurb sounds interesting, but in execution, the pacing was pretty slow and it's hard to suspend belief for some of the actions of the main characters.

The writing also felt pretty simplistic and young despite the older MCs. I found I didn't truly connect with these characters nor did I care what happened them.

Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Part 1 of this thriller is an absolute banger. I was super invested in Lenna and how she ended up at this commune and what secrets the commune was holding. Then as parts 2 and 3 unfolded I slowly started losing interest. Getting the other sides of the same story two other times kind of felt redundant. Some of the motivations for the characters didn't make sense, especially in the final pages. I still don't understand why Lenna was so attached to Rhiannon. There was a lot of telling, but not a lot of showing if that makes sense.

I will hand it to the writer she knows how to grip you into a story right off of the bat. I just wish the pacing would have been as consistent as it was in the beginning.

I loved how this book had such a mysterious and unsettling vibe. I really had no idea how everything was going to play out and it definitely kept me guessing the whole time. I loved how the book was structured with past and present timelines. It kept me wanting more since you find out pieces of the puzzle a little bit at a time. There are so many layers to the story and lots of twists that had my mind spinning!

Thank you so much PENGUIN GROUP Dutton and NetGalley for the arc!

This story centers around Lenna who had friendships with Rhiannon and Gillian. The friendships were troubled and codependent but surprisingly Rhiannon reaches out to reconnect with Lenna. Lenna jumps at this chance because she has been having difficulty adjusting to motherhood while holding a dark secret. Lenna goes to the commune where Rhiannon lives and enjoys spending time with the other mothers but something doesn’t feel right there. The story unravels with the past’s secrets finally being revealed along with a current secret.
I felt like this book was lacking character depth, Lena’s anxiety seemed to be to blame for everything. I do like the choice of having the commune be a place for moms to live together and share their motherhood journey and advice. Overall the final twist just didn’t add anything to the story for me.

A thrilling adventure into the desert with a bunch of women, who all have secrets that they are keeping from one another. Only when one tries to leave is when secrets are shared and everyone turns out to someone they weren’t.

If you're interested in reading about an intentional community (and the weirdness therein), this isn't exactly what you're after. The characters are interesting and it does take a few surprising turns, but be warned-- the community is the least interesting aspect of the whole novel.

Lenna gets an invitation from Rhiannon, a friend who disappeared years ago. She wants her to come to a women’s community called Halcyon. Lenna believes she has hidden motives. Secrets and lies are revealed.
This story alternates between past and present and was a thrilling read. Thanks NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for this ARC that will be released February 20, 2024!

Thank you to NetGalley, Sara Shepard, and Penguin Group Dutton for an early copy of Nowhere Like Home in exchange for an honest review.
I was so excited to get my hands on a copy of this one because I absolutely adored this authors PLL series! As always, Shepard delivers a twisty story full of secrets, suspense, and drama! I enjoyed the dual timeline and the different POVs we got while reading the story.
The concept of the story was newer to me (which I always appreciate) and the ending had me questioning what really did happen out in the desert.
Be sure to put this one on your TBR as it comes out on 2.20.24!

This is about two friends, Lenna and Rhiannon. The book is told in 3 parts, both past and present. Rhiannon
invites Lenna to stay with her at a community called Halcyon. People go to this place as a rebirth, a fresh start. People don't talk about who they used to be.

There is another friend named Gillian. Lenna remembers Gillian while at this community. The two of them, standing on that ravine, the gray morning drizzle. Her twisted smile. Her sneering laugh. The pebbles, scuttling beneath Lenna's feet. And then, her scream. What really happened to Gillian?

Lenna needed to tell her husband, Daniel everything. She needed to tell him the hold Rhiannon had on her, the lies Gillian told her, but also that she'd bought into those lies, that these two women had pulled at her arms like she was a rag doll, manipulating her one way and they another.

Wild Ride, Twisty Story, and a Slow Burn! 3.5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy! This book is set to release on 2/20/24.

2.5 stars

New mom Lenna has recently reconnected with her old friend Rhiannon, who is now living in an off the grid commune in remote Arizona. Lenna decides to join Rhiannon for a trip to the commune. Once she arrives, her past with Rhiannon, socially awkward Gillian, and others emerges it’s ugly head.

I thought this book was rather slow. I was waiting for things to happen, and nothing really happened until the end. There is a pretty big twist. Prior to that, though, it was pretty predictable.

Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton, Sara Shepard, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this novel

Thank you to netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton, Dutton for allowing me to read Nowhere Like Home
by Sara Shepard. Shepard is one the best when it comes to writing thrillers and this one didn't disappoint.

I really loved this one and didn’t figure out the twists until the very end! Such a great setting at a commune out west. Every has secrets and no one is telling. Great storytelling. The ending felt a bit rushed to me but other than that I thought it was fantastic!

I was so excited to receive an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Dutton. The concept was something that really interested me as I'm always saying that I want to buy a huge plot of land and make my own little commune.

I’m going to start with the negatives. There wasn’t much focus on the ”mommune”, which was the reason I was so excited for the book. Also, the twist, while unexpected, was not as jaw dropping as I have grown accustomed to.

Positives: it definitely held my interest, and I loved the way the author wove together the past and the present, as well as multiple character POV’s.

All in all I really enjoyed this book, and now I want to read more by this author!

This is my first return to Sara Shepard since Pretty Little Liars and I loved it. The toxic female relationships, the lies and secrets. I was hooked from the start and it flowed easily with alternating povs between past and present. It was a game trying to figure out who I could trust. I highly rec adding it to your tbr!

I really wanted to like this book, but I just couldn’t get into it. I finished it and the ending does help, but this wasn’t for me.

Interesting premise focusing on women that have joined a cult-like farm. Is it their saving grace or worst nightmare?

First off, thank you to Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my review! For fans of Big Little Lies and of course, Pretty Little Liars, this is for you!!

Nowhere like home had me HOOKED!! Definitely not a lot of downtime while reading this book, so naturally I finished in a day. There were so many mysteries, you never know which character you can trust. The setting is unique and the non-linear story line worked strongly in the plot’s favor.

While this is definitely a thriller, it’s also a story about women, motherhood, and the extremes people will take to find security. 4.5/5 stars!

New mom Lenna receives a call from her estranged ex-best friend Rhiannon, inviting her to a “womans only” commune hidden in the Nevada desert. Lenna, still puzzled over her breakup with her friend, accepts the invitation, hoping for a fresh start. But when she arrives, she starts getting strange vibes from the other women at the commune, and when a familiar face arrives, Lena’s terrified that long buried secrets will come to light. Nowhere Like Home has a soap-opera feel to it, not surprising considering the author, but the story flows nicely with enough suspense to keep you engaged, despite some of the heavy doses of drama and Lena’s constant angst. A few interesting twists and surprises fuel the plot and make this a recommended read. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This Arizona desert mystery definitely requires some thinking! The plot was twisty and sometimes a bit far-fetched but aren’t the best thrillers sometimes a little wacky? I found this novel enjoyable and I think it will be a hit spring/summer book for thriller folks.