"It's as if Rose split into two people when she watched her nanny die: The little girl of before—a gifted student with the vocabulary of a much older child.

"And the expressionless child who sits before me now, suffering from traumatic mutism."

Stella is a BIA (Best Interest Attorney), someone who is appointed to represent a child's best interest during a contested divorce proceeding. She usually refuses to work with children under the age of 12, but when her mentor and friend Charles asks her to represent 9-year-old Rose, she can't say no. Especially because Stella herself suffered from traumatic mutism after her mother's death when she was a little girl. With Rose, she must literally act as the child's voice.

Rose's parents are a wealthy couple who employed a nanny, Tina. After Tina plummeted to her death after falling through her bedroom's third-story window, Rose stopped speaking. Both parents are still living in the family home, and hoping to win primary custody of their daughter. But as Stella gets to know them, she realizes she needs to figure out what really happened to Tina before she can make a decision. As Rose's behavior toward Stella becomes increasingly confrontational, the attorney begins to wonder if this mysterious little girl could have played a role in her nanny's death.

I liked the fact that as a BIA, Stella has a responsibility to investigate—she's not just trying to satisfy her curiosity, she is sincerely concerned with what's going to be the best decision she can make on behalf of Rose. The memories awakened by Rose's condition make Stella want to look into her own mother's death, a plot point I didn't find quite as compelling as the main storyline. Overall, this is a taut and intriguing psychological suspense novel.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press (via NetGalley) for the review copy.

I loved the wife between us by this author so to get an early copy of this book on NetGalley I was excited.

This was a really good thriller/ mystery that kept you guessing. It was about Rose a 9 year old girl who steals sharp objects and does not speak. A lawyer who had a similar background gets put in charge to find out who Rose should live with and uncovers the family secrets.

I was really hooked the first half of the book and did not guess the right person which as an avid thriller reader. The little hints Rose gave was great, but I did still have a few outstanding questions by the end of the book.

Okay so this book was good. Did I love the ending? No. I think there should have been more red herrings. There wasn’t a lot to go off of since there weren’t many characters.

However, this kept me intrigued the whole way. I loved the mystery behind the glass objects, the windows being replaced, and what the heck Rose was keeping from everyone.

The pacing was a tad slow, I could have used a bit more intensity, but overall I liked it.

This book did what many others don’t and really kept me guessing. The character of Rose was so well developed without her even needing to say a thing!! It was said that it was eerie every time Stella had to go to the house and the feeling was definitely felt as a reader. All in all I loved it and would definitely recommend to others!!

I loved this book so much. I was nervous for a while but the way reg past caught up with the present and the twist! Such a great, satisfying ending!

Stella, who is an interest lawyer, who is assigned to a new case to 9 year old Rose whose parents are going through a divorce and her nanny recently died at her home too. Stella goes beyond looking for the best interest of Rose and digs into why the nanny died. The story is a bit creepy and leads you down to not knowing who to trust. In addition to this case, Stella finally looks into the case of her mom's death and learns so much about her past. I found the attempt at romance for Stella was a bit out of place and didn't really add to the book and didn't provide any glimpse of what's to happen. Overall, a great enjoyable psychological thriller.

Laura Benanti did a great job with the narration and kept me on the edge of my seat.

Thank you @stmartinspress @macmillan.audio @netgalley for a copy of the book.

3.75 stars

This is another solid and engaging thriller from Pekkanen.

Young Rose needs some help, and Stella is just the one to provide it to her. Rose has stopped speaking after the suspicious death of her nanny at the family's home. Stella, who also had a traumatic childhood event that led to her long silence, will now use her investigative skills and empirical experience to find out the truth behind this strange death and Rose's silence.

I enjoyed this overall, but I wanted a lot more Rose content throughout and fewer references to Stella's past which, at some point, felt a bit overwrought. This is a good beach read: entertaining enough with little focus required.

When and where accessible, I recommend the audio version.

This book had everything that I love in a mystery whodunit!

A giant creepy house? Check!
A slew of suspicious characters? Check!
A mysterious death? Check!
A child who cannot speak and may be hiding the truth of said mysterious death? Check!!

I gobbled this story up in a day, fighting off sleep to keep turning the short chapters to find out what happened. A nanny dies, after she falls out of her bedroom window. Was she pushed? Or was it an accident? A child may be the key to the truth, except she can’t talk.

This story was a puzzle with plenty of surprise twists to keep me guessing. The ending blew my mind and left me unsettled. I also enjoyed Stella’s personal journey, in parallel with the child. If you’re in need of a fast paced, fun and creepy story, look no further! Highly recommend!

This book grabbed we at the beginning, just thinking of a stranger deciding whether the child should live with a mother or father after the nanny mysteriously fell out of a window. There a lot of clues which kinda gave it away to me, but a lot of misdirection as well.
Everyone is mysterious with their own secrets, but who should did custody of the little girl?

Absolutely loved this fast-paced thriller! This is my first book by Sarah Pekkanen and I tell ya - I AM HOOKED. This one had me guessing through all the twists and turns, and the killer reveal at the end was brilliantly done. And no, I did not guess the ending! Perfect and engrossing weekend read.

House Of glass was a quick paced, deceptive thriller. This book will keep you guessing who killed the nanny. Just when you think you have everything figured out, bam, guess again.

Stella is called into the Barclay home to determine the best living situation for 9 year old Rose, whose parents are going through a divorce. The Barclay's nanny died tragically and everyone seems to think Rose is the prime suspect.

Do yourself a favor and read this. You won't be disappointed. 4.5 stars.

Rating: 3.75


A nanny found dead. Who did it?

This book was a good thriller. It was a page-turner. I loved the moments of spook I felt when reading. It keeps you guessing and wondering who did it. I will say this might be a predictable read for some. However, I am sure other readers will be surprised by some twists in the book.

House of Glass was a deeply disturbing thriller that had me hoping and praying for a twist- and whew! It delivered!

📚 House of Glass
✍ Sarah Pekkanen
📖 Domestic Thriller
⭐4/5

🙏 Thank you to St. Martin's Press, NetGalley and Sarah Pekkanen for the advanced copy of House of Glass. All opinions are my own.
◾
🎯 What I loved: Pekkanen's writing is always propulsive and I couldn't put this down. So much of the book has readers believing one thing is true while hoping for a twist to make everything make sense and the plot twist is well worth the wait. I appreciated that this was as much about Stella's exploration of her own grief as it was about finding out what really happened to Tina De La Cruz and the dual mysteries served the story well without being unnecessarily intertwined.

🙅‍♀️ What I didn't: There was one strange curveball thrown in towards the end of the story that I don't think served the plot well (once you read this- and you should!- you'll know what I'm talking about) and a few odd things that didn't see a resolution but overall, this was an incredibly well done thriller that I enjoyed until the last page.
◾
Read if you love:
* domestic thrillers focused on the uber wealthy
* creepy children
* unsolved murders (past and present)
* explorations of childhood trauma
◾
See also: Hidden Pictures, A Turn of the Key, The Housewife

This is such a good mystery/thriller. Who doesnt love a story with a spooky child? Just when you think you know, believe me, you dont. Amazing!!!

Stella is a lawyer who is assigned by the court in custody cases to represent the child. She decides who should get custody of the child based upon her assessments. She is assigned to analyze Rose, a nine year old who has recently experienced trauma after her nanny fell from a window at her house and suspiciously died. Stella realizes this won’t be a typical case, after visiting the home and discovering that Rose has gone mute and that there is no glass in the house to be found. Who are the Barclays protecting?

Ouuuuuu Pekkanen does it again! I loved the creepy elements of this thriller, with Rose becoming a suspect in the nanny’s murder. Her being mute and the suspense surrounding her fascination with weapons added to the intrigue right from the start. You didn’t know who to trust and I also found the dive into Stella’s own past quite interesting. The ending was a bit far fetched in my opinion, but action packed!

This was a good read, albeit a little predictable. I enjoyed the story and the little clues throughout the book. Not quite a page-turner, but a good read overall.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

HOUSE OF GLASS
Sarah Pekkanen

We’re reading HOUSE OF GLASS this month in our Amazon Book Club called UNDER THE RADAR BOOK CLUB.

This is my summary and review of the book.

Stella is a court-appointed advocate for children of families going through a dispute over where and who the child should be placed with upon the dissolution of a marriage.

She just received a new client named Rose. Rose is younger than the clients she normally takes on, in fact, Stella has a hard and fast rule against working with younger clients because of her personal trauma when she was younger that left her temporarily mute.

But her childhood experience is exactly the reason Stella’s supervisor thinks she would be a perfect advocate for Rose. Rose also suffers from traumatic mutism and he believes Stella is just the person to bring out a fair decision in Rose’s case.

Who is the most appropriate primary guardian for Rose?

And can Stella help Rose without hurting herself?

I had a good time reading HOUSE OF GLASS. I've read Pekkanen before and my reading experiences have varied in enjoyment.

I always appreciate that her thrillers are psychology-heavy and often talk about the masks people display outwardly and how it doesn't always match what's going on underneath.

I like Stella as a character and would read further books featuring her either as a main or side character.

We’re having so much fun discussing HOUSE OF GLASS over on Amazon Book Clubs. Join us!

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced copy!

HOUSE OF GLASS…⭐⭐⭐⭐

Unfortunately this one was not a win for me. Main character was unlikable and I just didn’t find myself caring about what happened. There’s a little side mystery too that doesn’t matter at all to the story.

Will try another book by this author but as for this one, I didn’t love it.

⭐️⭐️

Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this psychological thriller! There’s murder, family drama, trauma, and suspense! What’s not to love? The main characters, a custody lawyer and a nine-year old girl, have connected trauma that is explored through both past and present experiences. The plot is somewhat predictable, but that doesn’t necessarily turn me off to the story. I was hooked from the start and appreciated the extra twist thrown in towards the end.

Thank you to Sarah Pekkanen, MacMillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!

Well well well…Sarah, you’ve knocked it out the park with this one. 🏟️. I stayed up all night to finish it.

This book has a ton of characters that all had a suspicious vibe about them, yet I liked all of them, a rarity for me. I was intrigued by everyone, because they all had their own story…and motives. Plus you’ll want to find out why Beth doesn’t allow glass in the house (I never knew a fear of glass was a thing).

There was a surprising amount of character depth packed into these 352 pages.

Love that Stella is a Miranda Lambert fan too! I don’t really like country music that much but I love her music.

The twists were fun and easy to follow too which I loved. I hate when authors write something so twisty that it becomes convoluted and ruins the book. You won’t have any of that in this book.

Added bonus - I live in Maryland and love taking day trips to DC and since SP lives in my neck of the woods it’s always a treat to have places I’ve been referenced in her books.

Read this if you like mysterious books with odd/creepy kids. It’s got a similar atmospheric vibe to Baby Teeth.