Great thriller! Sarah Pekkanen's books are sooo easy to get invested in.


About the story itself, it was not the most original - I saw the plot coming from page 10. Very similar to a couple other domestic thrillers I've read. The audio version was awesome and really well done!

Even not being mind-blowing, I was into the story, and that's what matters :)

The House of Glass, by Sarah Pekkanen is a perfect thriller. This audio book sucked me in and kept me riveted all the way to end. I stayed up all because it was that good. The narrator did a fantastic job voicing each unique character. Give this one a listen.

What I loved:
This was a very fun, quick read. If you want a thriller you can binge read, this is worth a try! While the plot of a murdered nanny and creepy child isn’t necessarily the most original out there, I still found it very interesting and engaging. I was intrigued by the discussions of grief, traumatic mutism, and how to get help. I listened to this on audio, and enjoyed the narration.

What I didn’t love:
The pacing. I felt like the first 25% was a whirlwind of information and discoveries, then nothing terribly interesting happened again until the 80-85% mark. Also, the separate plots. I was interested in the Barclays and the potential murder, but the plot line about Stella’s past felt completely separate and never really felt that relevant to the current storyline. I would have liked to get more suspense and development in the current investigation and cut out most of the past.

House of Glass
Sarah Pekkanen
Pub: 8/6/24
4.5☆

On the outside they were the golden family with the perfect life. On the inside they built the perfect lie.

I love thrillers that completely throw me for a loop, and House of Glass did that in spades!

Sarah Pekkanen absolutely knocked it out of the park with this one! It was a well written, all consuming, slow-burn read that had me furiously flipping pages, and not wanting to stop the audio because I just had to know the truth. I loved how Pekkanen had me questioning and second guessing every single character (including Rose) to the very end! Such a well developed and utterly suspect cast of characters.

I also really enjoyed the unique perspective of a best-interest attorney and found the topic of traumatic mutism really interesting.

What I loved;
✨ Twisty Thriller
✨ Atmospheric Mystery
✨ Tense & Suspenseful
✨ Past/Present Storylines

Absolutely would recommend.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for the gifted ALC in exchange for my honest review. Laura Benanti did such a fantastic job building the suspense and bringing this story to life with her outstanding narration. Such an immersive listen.

I enjoyed this audio so much.
The story kept me engaged and invested. The narrator did a great job keeping my attention. I enjoyed the author’s last book. So glad she is keeping up with the well written stories.

This book will keep you guessing. After Rose Barclay's nanny falls to her death and her parents announce their divorce, a child advocated Stella Hudson is sent to determine what is in the best interest of the child. Was the nanny murdered or did she fall to her death? Is one of the adults in Rose's life responsible for the nanny's death or is this a case of "the bad seed". As Stella gets more involved in the case, issues in her own life threaten to interfere. Just as I thought I had everything figured out, the book would take a twist. I listened to the audio version and Laura Bennati's narration is pitch perfect.

HOUSE OF GLASS by Sarah Pekkanen ✨
ARC/ALC review • pub date 08.06.24

I devoured this book! After the nanny plunges to her death, a lawyer is sent to the home to help figure out what happened, and also who the young girl in the family should go to live with since the parents are getting a divorce.

She immediately notices something eerie about the house: there is no glass inside it whatsoever. She’s on a mission to figure out the truth.

This one was truly a page turner, and the narration was great! Would absolutely recommend for suspense/whodunnit fans!

4⭐️

Thanks so much to @netgalley, @stmartinspress, and @macmillan.audio for my advanced copies!

#MacAudio2024

Can children be born evil? Nine year old Rose Barclay witnesses (or causes) her Nanny’s death. After the incident, she develops traumatic mutism. Attorney Stella Hudson is a Guardian Ad Litem and is called to work with Rose. Stella has suffered her own childhood trauma. She will discover the truth of what really happened to the Nanny and unravel the mysteries of her own childhood. Lying, cheating, twists and turns, this is a fast paced thriller! Audio narration performed by Tony award-winning Laura Benanti. Sit back and listen to the story unfold. Pub date is August 6, 2024.

This might be my favorite listen of June! It kept me on my toes the whole time and was definitely engaging. I listened to it in two days (which is quick for me), and felt satisfied by the ending and how everything wrapped up (which hasn’t happened in QUITE a while for me!)

This was an entertaining new release from Sarah Pekkanen. It had an eerie vibe to it, and anything with a creepy child gives me shivers. The beginning definitely hooked me right away as it starts off strong. I'll say that the middle of the book did drag quite a bit unfortunately. It did keep my attention enough, but at times, I would find my mind wandering quite a bit. Towards the middle, I started to get a theory of the "whodunnit" and I wasn't shocked at the end with the big reveal. It felt pretty obvious and was hinted at, so my mind was not blown at the twist. I think a lot of others will enjoy this one, but it won't be a memorable one for me.

I totally thought that this story was going to end differently. Sarah Pekkanen did a great job making me think I had it all figured out. Looking forward to reading more of Sarah's work in the future.

Laura Benanti did a great job narrating, she kept a great pace and an even tone. I wasn't a huge fan of the voice Laura assigned to the mother (Beth) but the rest of the voices were great.

While I enjoyed this book, I found that it was a little slow in the beginning. The resolution was worth it, but getting to the last hundred or so pages was a chore. I enjoy Sarah Pekkanen's writing: her characters are always top notch and well developed.
The narrator for this title was very good.

4.5/5

I found this one quite enjoyable! I was confident that I had it all figured out half way through the story. However, I started doubting myself, and although some of my suspicions were right, I did not anticipate the ending.

Eight-year-old Rose Barclay remains silent following the tragic passing of her nanny during her parents' bitter divorce. Attorney Stella Hudson is assigned to determine the best custody arrangement for Rose. Stories don’t add up, Stella is determined to help Rose find her voice and uncover the truth. Delving into the Barclay family's hidden truths, Stella uncovers a collision of past and present with startling outcomes. In this murder mystery, everyone is a potential suspect, including young Rose. Could the one Stella is meant to defend be the very person she needs protection from?

The characters were well-developed, each with their own distinct personalities and motivations. The plot twists were masterfully executed, keeping me on the edge of my seat until the very last page. The author’s ability to weave suspense and emotion into the narrative made for an unforgettable reading experience. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good psychological thriller/murder mystery!

If you enjoyed The Silent Patient, you would definitely appreciate this one!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced reading copy of House of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen. I can't wait to start this book.

Stella Hudson is a best interest attorney, appointed to serve a nine year old girl named Rose Barclay. Rose comes from a rich and highly established family. Rose has what would seem to be the perfect life, two devoted parents and a caring grandmother. That is until Rose goes mute after the trauma of being the only witness to the death of her nanny. Stella has to battled her own childhood trauma, after the tragic death of both of her parents, in order to help uncover the truth of what really happened to Rose’s nanny.

I love Sarah Pekkanen’s atmospheric writing style and perfect descriptions. This book quickly grasped my attention from the first page. I can’t wait to read the next Pekkanen novel. This is so full of twists and turns.

When 9 year old girl Rose Barclay witnesses the death of her nanny falling through a window, she immediately stops speaking. Did her nanny jump? Fall? Was she pushed? Stella Hudson is the lawyer who's job it is to figure out the truth and which parent Rose should live with amidst their bitter divorce. But how can Stella know who the real victim is? And who, if anyone, is the murderer? And why does Rose continue to collect sharp objects?

I liked the premise of this book and I was looking forward to it. But it just didn't hit the mark for me. I can't quite put my finger on what was missing, but it fell flat for me.

I did enjoy the emotions that each character was feeling and found them to be very well written. I just didn't find myself connecting with them or feeling what they were feeling.

Overall, I'm glad I read it and think many will really love this book! It was just a miss for me.

In an effort to prevent my views from being skewed, I generally wait to read reviews until after finishing a book-- and boy was I surprised to see the high scores on this one. Now, many books are far better in print, so I'll leave room for the possibility that I just didn't connect with the melodramatic vocal performance of the audiobook. But the book felt overcooked to me and under-seasoned to me, like it was churned out rather than rendered with any attempt at artistry, with one-dimensional characters, predictable twists, pacing issues, and a plot that was giving Lifetime Original Movie.
I know Sarah Pekkanen is a talented writer, and I know she can deliver a better book. I will still read her next release, but I'm hoping the literary-industrial complex hasn't gobbled her up and that she is still allowed to take the time necessary to put her work through a rigorous development process.

2.5 stars, rounded down
Sarah Pekkanen writes slow burn psychological thrillers which I usually like. But this one was a big miss for me. I spent way too much time rolling my eyes and utterly disgusted noises.
House of Glass concerns Stella, a young lawyer who acts as a “best interest attorney”. In other words, she works to determine what’s best for a child in a custody case. This time, she’s representing a nine year old precocious child who lost her ability to speak after witnessing the death of her nanny. A death that remains unresolved as it’s unclear if she was murdered or had an accident. Stella is uniquely qualified for this assignment as she also lost her ability to speak for a time after the death of her mother. Although I kept thinking she was exactly the wrong person for the job, as her own experiences would naturally bleed through (especially as the circumstances around her mom’s death remains a mystery). My major problem with this book was that Stella seemed determined to go way above and beyond the constraints of her job. She acted more like a detective than an ad litem attorney. And I am so tired of main characters making idiotic decisions that knowingly put themselves and others in danger.
Pekkanen moves the plot along at a brisk pace which helped somewhat. She does her best to keep the reader off balance as to who was behind the suspicious death by throwing in plenty of red herrings. But I thought it was obvious from early on. And the ending was way too OTT for my taste.
There is also a subplot concerning the death of Stella’s mom. This one was also obvious from early on.
I listened to this and Laura Benanti did a fine job as the narrator other than she made the mid60s grandmother sound like she was in her 80s.
My thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for an advance copy of this book.

the audio was very good, thanks to the publisher for my free copy. Maybe I’m an outlier but this was fine, not as good as her last one. Some mystery/tension but not enough IMO. Easy enough to listen to, but if you have dozens of books on your tbr I’m not sure I’d go out of my way to recommend this one.

Thank you NetGalley for letting me listen to the audiobook of this story in exchange for an honest review. I really liked the narrator for this one and she did a good job bringing some tension to the story. Overall I enjoyed this book as I do most books for this author. Though some parts were a little predictable I loved seeing how things turned out. Definitely would read more by this author.

I'd call this one a decent beach read. House of Glass has a well-constructed and interesting plot, a couple significant but predictable twists, and features a surprisingly likeable attorney giving the main POV for the story. At the end, it comes together wrapped in a highly satisfying package, which I always appreciate.

This wasn't the best book I've read this season, but it's enjoyable and a fast, easy read, despite the taboo topic of evil in child form. I give it three and a half stars, rounded up. I'm sure I'll see plenty of women reading it at the pool and on the beach this summer.