"𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴; 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦." (quoted from advanced copy)


First read of 2025 complete, and it was... okay. 🤷🏻‍♀️

It was a good premise, but I personally thought it was pretty predictable. That could just be on me though and all the other mysteries I've read lol

I also felt like there were a lot of "murder mystery clichés" - some that just felt like they were shoved in there for the heck of it. And after a certain point, it was just a bit much for me.

Ultimately, none of the "twists" really shocked me.

Also, I had the worst time trying to keep track of how old each of the characters were. Some were in their 50s or 60s but had like young kids, it was just a bit confusing at times 🙃
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#bookstagram #booksta #books #booksbooksbooks #avidreader #ilovereading #thetwistedlibrarian #professionalbookworm #besthouseontheblock #trragan #book1of2025 #whatsnikkireading #arc #advancedreadercopy #thomasandmercer #mystery #murdermystery #thriller #neighbors #sacramentoca #california #fabulousforties #everyonehasasecret

Shannon Gibbons and her family have moved into a beautiful house in the Fabulous Forties of East Sacramento, California, where she hopes to begin working on a special project for renowned journalist and neighbour Rosella Marlow. Rosella ends up being a totally different person than Shannon expected and, following their initial meeting, things go from bad to worse.

The Fabulous Forties district is known for its beautiful homes and mix of architecture and 'Best House on the Block' is an annual award presented to - what else? - the best house on this particular block. Not sure if the contest is a real thing but the area is.

Shannon teams up with her neighbour Chloe to investigate what's going on in their neighbourhood as far as a recent murder is concerned and who could've disliked the victim enough to kill her. There are a lot of characters in this book but it wasn't a problem keeping the main ones straight. Everyone in the neighbourhood seems to have a secret and Rosella Marlow is determined to expose their secrets in a tell-all article written by Shannon. A good easy-reading novel with a few twists but nothing jaw-dropping. I didn't enjoy it as much as a couple of others by this author that I've read.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer via Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Publication Date: January 1, 2025

Best House On The Block by TR Ragan is a suspense thriller. The book follows Shannon, a journalist, who moved to a new nice neighborhood with her husband and daughter. But of course everything isn’t what it seems. Its a very fast-paced mystery with twists and turns.
Thank you, NetGalley, for the advanced copy of this book.

Two suburban housewives try to solve the murder of the neighborhood busybody and learn that everybody has their secrets.

**

This book was just a mess to me.

First, a lot of the plot points were just unceremoniously dropped or did not make any logical sense. Thriller novels requires *some* ability to suspend belief, but none of these characters actions or motivations made sense to me at all. Ultimately, this book is more of a domestic drama than any kind of thriller.

Second, the main relationship in this novel was so frustrating. At first, I loved that Shannon and Chloe were becoming this housewife, crime fighting duo. Especially when the police were so clearly biased and bad at their jobs. It felt so weird to find out they were actually 15 years apart but had kids around the same age?? And Shannon being so mad at Chloe towards the end felt like a weird way to drag out this novel while dropping the whole murder thing.
 
Finally, the culprit was so glaringly obvious. When there is a Third POV that does not fit in with the rest of the characters, OBVIOUSLY it's going to be the culprit. And ultimately, that whole POV and part of the novel is not even integral to the novel!!! What was the point?? There had to be a better way to tell a lost and found drama.

Mac is the only redeeming quality in this book. Best daughter of the year award for sure.

If you like a slow burn domestic drama you may like this. But I cannot recommend.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Domestic and suburban thrillers are my favorite so I was definitely drawn to this one. It didn’t wow me, however. The beginning was great, but it seemed to drag a bit as it went on. I still enjoyed it, just not a top read.

Best House on the Block starts off strong and keeps going. I love that this book started with a bang! It definitely took me by surprise and I was completely invested in the story.

A shocking kidnapping of a young boy propels this story into a shocking mystery. Fast forward four years after the kidnapping to the Fabulous Forties District in Sacramento, Ca. The seemingly upscale and safe family neighborhood is loaded with deceptions and secrets that lead to the murder of one of the residents.

I loved how the characters had connections I never could have guessed. I kept getting shock after shock as I flipped each page. The book did get somewhat confusing with the amount of characters but wrapped up nicely at the end. I would definitely like to read more work from this author.

Lastly, I’d like to comment on the note from the author at the beginning of the book. It was touching and inspiring of her to share her writing journey.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publisher, Thomas & Mercer, and the author, T.R. Ragan, for sharing an early digital copy with me.

📚: Best House on the Block by TR Ragan
⭐️: 3/5

The Fabulous Forties is a gorgeous neighborhood in Sacramento. With a close knit neighborhood, everyone knows each other — and one resident in particular, may just happen to know everyone’s darkest secrets.

This read held my interest and, at moments, was a page-turner until its final quarter or so when it felt like the plot jumped the shark and fell apart right when I had hoped for it to come together.

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer via @netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Best House on the Block is out now.

This was a very intense read that kept my interest with its secrets, lies and danger, very addictive read overall.

Best House on the Block by T.R. Ragan was suspenseful from start to finish, this is well written with a few twists and turns that seem to pop expecting it. As with all this author's previous books, the story line is intriguing and the characters outstanding.

Happy (day late) Pub Day!

**Why I enjoyed the book:**
I loved The Best House on the Block by T.R. Ragan because the twists and turns kept me hooked, and the neighborhood’s secrets unraveled in such an engaging way. The characters were well written, noting all had secrets they'd prefer not to get out, and their tangled relationships made the story even more compelling.

**Summary of the book:**
Shannon Gibbons, an aspiring investigative journalist, moves with her family to the Fabulous Forties in East Sacramento and starts working as an assistant to Rosella Marlow, a famous but bitter journalist. Rosella is fixated on uncovering her neighbors' darkest secrets, dragging Shannon into her schemes. When Rosella is murdered, Shannon begins her own investigation, only to discover shocking truths about the people in this seemingly perfect community.

T.R. Ragan has several series I've read and absolutely loved! She writes about fierce and independent women who overcome obstacles no matter what. I highly recommend checking out this four star read then binging her other books!

Thank you NetGalley, T.R. Ragan, and Thomas and Mercer for the opportunity to read this ahead of its release in exchange for a candid review. It was sincerely a delight!

I had such high hopes for Best House on the Block. It sounded incredibly promising, but alas…

Don’t let my three-star rating put you off though. Mystery buffs and amateur sleuths will have a field day reading this book. It’s filled to the brim with drama and suspense. The pacing is rapid, and the plot is inventive, with everyone being a potential suspect. Though I didn’t have the whodunit figured out halfway in, at 83% into the story I knew exactly the who and the why. Still, there were several other twists I couldn’t figure out.

The big issue I had was that I couldn’t connect with any of the characters. They were all rather superficial and though it was obvious the author tried for emotional depth, it just didn’t work. The one reveal about Shannon’s life was so ridiculous, it made the rest of her storyline after that particular reveal absolutely unbelievable. The “villain” in this story was incredibly one-dimensional, it was clear very little thought was put into her character. Combine this with the fact that I found the majority of characters superficial, a few gaping plot holes, not to mention the stilted, unrealistic dialogue, and the eye-rolling ending, this was clearly not what I had expected when I read the very intriguing book description.

However, I do think readers who have read any of this author’s previous books and loved it, will probably also enjoy this one. I also recommend it to fans of Frieda McFadden’s books as this is very similar to her style of writing and plot development. It’s an overall easy read, so if you’re looking for a pallet cleanser after having read something heavy, this would be a great choice.

Shannon and her family have moved into a prestigious party of town and she's been offered an opportunity to with with Rosella, a renowned journalist.

But when Shannon meets Rosella, her impression is that she is an angry, bitter and paranoid woman, especially since the death of her son. Rosella thinks all the neighbours are out to get her as she knows all their secrets. When Rosella is found dead soon after, Shannon is determined to get to the truth and realises all her neighbours have something to hide and therefore there are many potential suspects.

This was a book filled with neighbourhood drama! Although it was a very easy read, I couldn't connect with the characters as I felt they were a little superficial and didn't find any of them particularly empathetic. The plotline came together neatly and a little predictably in the end with a twist I suspected.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was an incredible book! I thought it was a fun read and had a good amount of thrill and fun in it. I really enjoyed it!

I really enjoyed the premise of this but felt there was something missing throughout. While the mystery and the story were very easy to get into, the characters seemed stiff and two dimensional. They felt likes names on a page and lacked a backstory. There was also a side plot of I felt was inserted randomly and ramped up towards the ending. IMO, this took away from the momentum of finding out the who murderer was and seemed a bit unnecessary. All in all, kind of weak in the thrills department but not the worst I’ve read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this advanced copy!

This book kept my attention and was well paced. It was a little disjointed, though, and the big twist was odd…the ages didn’t seem to make a lot of sense. And there were a lot of threads to follow with this one! But I did enjoy it.

Best House on the Block
by T.R. Ragan
Pub Date: Jan 01 2025

"Best House on the Block" has an intriguing storyline with so many twists, turns and lies! It's very well developed with interesting characters. With a short 282 pages, a fast easy read! This is my first book I've read by author T.R. Ragan and I'm so looking forward to reading more of her books in the future!

Synopsis: Aspiring investigative journalist Shannon Gibbons and her family have moved into a beautiful house in the Fabulous Forties of East Sacramento, where Shannon finds a fast connection with a new neighbor. Renowned journalist Rosella Marlow appears to have a genuine interest in giving Shannon’s own career a boost—as personal assistant on Rosella’s new project. Appearances are deceiving. Revealing a neighbor’s deep secrets and dark obsessions turns to murder.

Many thanks to #BestHouseontheBlock #NetGalley & #Thomas&MercerPulishing for providing me with an E-ARC of this exciting read!

I liked this book, however, this is more of a cozy mystery than a thriller/psychological thriller. Figuring out who the culprit was a little difficult, but I was a bit underwhelmed with the reveal. Apart from that, the characters were interesting and relatable. This was more of a 3.8 thriller for me.

I wanted to love this book so badly, but I just couldn’t. As a whole, it was just underwhelming. I didn’t particularly care for any of the characters, though there were MANY of them. I wasn’t entirely sure what the purpose of our story was. It felt like we strayed off the focus of solving Rosella’s murder and instead just followed Shannon and Chloe when they hung out.

Nothing was particularly “shocking” or “thrilling.” It felt like most of the story was telling, not showing, which I think can be done well but did not particularly work for this story. I also wasn’t a fan of how the characters spoke. There was one instance when Mac, a teen, spoke to her mom, but the way she spoke was very unnatural. It took me out of the story because it was so jarring.

All in all, I’m not really sure what the point of the story was. It started off great in the prologue, but it fell off so far that I genuinely forgot the prologue was apart of this story.

2 stars

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer, T. R. Ragan and NetGalley for my copy!

Shannon Gibbons has just moved to a highly desirable neighborhood in Sacramento, drawn there by the promise of working with renowned journalist Rosella Marlow, who is also one of her new neighbors. But their first meeting doesn't go well: Rosella is a snoopy, bitter, vindictive woman who recently lost her husband and only child in a car accident and she seems bent on ruining the lives of everyone around her. Rosella wants Shannon to help do her "dirty work", uncovering the secrets of her new neighbors. But someone has a secret worth killing for, and after someone on the block is murdered, Shannon's task shifts to finding the killer, with plenty of suspects to choose from. Who is hiding the biggest secret of all? The story focuses on the perspectives of Shannon and one of her neighbors, Chloe, as they work together to identify the killer and restore security to their neighborhood. The story held my attention from the first chapter and although I was pretty sure I knew "whodunnit" early on, there were enough red herrings that I wasn't sure and learning everyone's secrets along the way kept the plot humming.

I really struggled with this book. I was never pulled in, and I felt no connection to any of the characters. There are number of characters, and sometimes they are used incorrectly. Perhaps this will change in final copy as I read an advanced copy of the book. Some dialogue felt stilted or unrealistic. The book started out strong, but it fell apart for me as it went on.