Why Did I Listen To House Of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen?

There's just something about a thriller-mystery via audiobook. House Of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen was a solid choice to listen to -- plus I did not have to wait too long to borrow it from my library. I had wanted an audiobook that had a plot that would draw me in, would be easy to follow, and hold my attention. This book fully delivered.

What's The Story Here?

House Of Glass follows a law guardian named Stella. She takes on a case in which she must decide and advocate for either the mother or the father to have custody of young Rose. You see, the Barclay family live a life that looks golden - huge house in the DC suburbs, beautiful family. Only, the nanny just died by murder, having fallen out of an upstairs window. Rose and her grandmother were in the garden when it happened. It is unclear if it was the mother or the father. So, that's where Stella comes in. Complicating matters is that Rose is experiencing selective mutism as an effect of what had happened, so she can't say what she saw. Oh, and when Stella gets to the house, she's creeped out. There's absolutely no glass in the home. Everyone is suspect, including Rose.

How Did I Like House Of Glass?

Sarah Pekkanen's book had a chokehold on me. Normally I can transition from listening to my audiobook in my car to reading another, different physical book and then resuming the audiobook when it is either time to do a chore, exercise, or go someplace. However, with House Of Glass, I just had to keep listening. I suppose I was so drawn in because I really needed a distraction and this book provided that. It also has quite a few twists and I am slow so I can't always guess who the guilty party actually is -- so I had to keep listening just to know what would happen and who did it. Stella also has a sad backstory that plays a key role in the book too. I liked that this thriller was layered and interesting.

How's The Narration?

The audiobook is narrated by Laura Benanti who does an excellent job. As I said, it was so hard for me to stop listening to this audiobook, I was captivated. I think if you are an audiobook person and you also enjoy mystery-thrillers, this book is the one to pick up. It is 10 hours 43 minutes long but flies by.

Another great thriller!! This story kept me guessing all the way to the end. I have ready many books from this author and she always has a spot on my TBR list!

House of Glass delivers a solid, engaging thriller with a compelling central mystery and a strong protagonist. Stella Hudson, a best interest attorney assigned to a particularly twisted custody case, finds herself unraveling dark secrets within the Barclay family. With a possibly murderous child, a bitter divorce battle, and a home strangely devoid of glass, there’s plenty to keep readers hooked.
The twist at the end worked well—it wasn’t a shocking, out-of-nowhere revelation meant just for impact, nor was it overly predictable. It felt earned, which is more than I can say for many thrillers that rely on last-minute shock value. Stella herself was a complex, well-developed character, and the novel’s fast pacing kept me turning pages. While House of Glass doesn’t necessarily break new ground in the genre, it’s a well-executed, entertaining read that kept me guessing throughout.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper for providing me with an advance copy of this book. My review is voluntary and reflects my honest opinion.

This book made me dizzy! I was sure that the daughter was a menace, one of those children born with a dangerous psychopathy, and then I wasn't sure at all, back and forth until the end when it all made sense. I must also say that the house where the story mostly takes place gave me feelings of claustrophobia. All in all, I did enjoy this story, although I felt that it was longer than it needed to be, that it took far too long to get to the heart of the secret of what exactly happened that day.

Loved how the story progressed. Kept me interested all the way through. Just when you thought you had it figured out, something would sway that thought. Was a quick read, kept me engaged.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

I love Sarah Pekkanen, so I was excited to see that she had a new one coming out! It's an exciting thriller with interesting characters, it just didn't grab me as much as other thrillers, and the ending seemed a little over the top to me. Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC!

3 stars

The overall story idea sounded promising and for the most part, especially the murder mystery, was great but the main character was challenging for me to like/connect with. I felt the story was a little bit dragged out.

The narrator I felt did an okay job. I felt more comfortable listening to her narrate at a faster speed.

Many thanks to Netgalley for the e-arc!

I really enjoyed this book. This was my first book by this author and can't wait to read more from this author. This book was extremely twisty and I didn't know who was lying and who wasn't.

Fantastic and fun. One of the best mysteries I've read in quite some time. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time!

Creepy Kid Thrillers is a subgenre that I will always read, and this one also featured a Creepy Old House, so it was a fun combo.

This was a good thriller but for some reason felt long to me and a bit repetitive. I saw most of it coming so I was anticipating an even bigger twist but was let down by the easier outcome. Still good though, maybe more of a 3.5 stars.

I <i>devoured</i> this book!

It's written so well. You're sucked in from the very beginning. If you're like me, you're questioning everything. But even I didn't see all the twists and turns coming and I'm usually pretty good at spotting them!

It felt cinematic. The pacing, the descriptions, the characters, the dialogue, the mystery -- it all works beautifully. The ending does wrap up a bit too quickly and neatly for the rest of it but that's my only complaint.

<i>Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.</i>

Sarah Pekkanen’s 'House of Glass' is a gripping psychological thriller that unravels the dark secrets hidden behind a seemingly perfect marriage. With razor-sharp tension and an atmosphere thick with unease, the novel explores themes of control, isolation, and the illusions we build around love and safety. I'm not typically the biggest fan of domestic thrillers, but Pekkanen masterfully layers suspense and keeps me on edge as the truth slowly fractures through the cracks. A chilling, compulsive read for fans of domestic thrillers that left me questioning everything.

A tense psychological thriller that peels back the façade of a seemingly perfect family to reveal the darkness within. This novel centers on nine-year-old Rose Barclay, who has gone silent after witnessing her nanny's suspicious death, and Stella Hudson, a best interest attorney reluctantly pulled into the case.
The story unfolds in an unsettling setting - a historic DC mansion without a single pane of glass, a "plastic house" as symbolic as it is strange. As Stella digs deeper into the Barclay family's secrets amidst a bitter divorce, she discovers that everyone has something to hide.
What makes this thriller compelling is the dual mystery at its core: what really happened to the nanny, and why has Rose stopped speaking? The narrative cleverly plays with perspective, as Stella must determine who's victim and who's perpetrator in a household where deception is the common language.
The novel expertly builds tension as Stella's own troubled past becomes entangled with the case, creating a dangerous dynamic that threatens both her professional boundaries and personal safety. With every suspect having credible motives, the story keeps readers guessing until its final revelations.

House of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen is one of those books that completely sucked me in, and I couldn’t put it down until I had read the last page. The story revolves around a seemingly perfect family living in a luxurious home, but beneath the surface, things are far from perfect. Pekkanen’s writing is so sharp and engaging, and she does a fantastic job of creating a sense of mystery and intrigue from the very beginning. As the story unfolded, I found myself constantly trying to piece together the secrets and lies that were slowly being revealed, and I loved how the tension kept building throughout the novel.

What really stood out to me was the way Pekkanen delves into the complexities of family dynamics, trust, and the ways we sometimes hide our true selves. The characters felt so real and multifaceted, and I could feel their pain, their secrets, and their desires in a way that made the story even more compelling. The twists and turns were unexpected and kept me guessing until the very end, and the final revelations left me reflecting on the entire story long after I finished reading. House of Glass is a beautifully written, suspenseful novel that explores the fragility of family and the dark side of perfection. If you love a good psychological thriller with emotional depth, this book is a must-read.

WOW! WOW! WOW!

This was a ride! Pekkanen pulls you in from the first page and has you guessing until the very end. I felt like I knew what was going on but boy was I wrong!

This book is captivating, and super twisty. I also like learning about legal side of this too - the best of both worlds.

This is a must read if you love psychological thrillers!

I was excited to have received this arc as I really enjoyed the books this author had written with another author.
The first half of this book went quickly it was such a page turner!
The other half just wasn’t quite what I expected, everything seemed to shift, it seemed to take away from the main mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. While I missed the release date, I was still excited for this one!
I couldn't put this book down. A nanny is pushed to her death. A couple is getting divorced. A lawyer is trying to decide who should have custody of the daughter, Rose. The grandmother lives in the basement.
There are lots of super strange happenings; lots of eerie things.
Who killed the nanny? Why is Rose acting the way she is? What is going on in this house?
So good!

Just when I thought I knew where this was going, it changed direction. And not in a "rethink everything you just read kind of way," just a nice satisfying twist. Maybe a little too much of the main character's own trauma backstory, but other than that, it was a good read.