This was exactly what I was looking for and didn't even realize until I was reading. Many reviewers are upset with the comparison of Fixer Upper meets Gone Girl, because it's not. But it is a loosely based idea of those things combined to make this book. The reader gets more of a behind the scenes look at a reality home renovation show. We get to the know the people behind the show and their deep, dark secrets. Which leads us to the similarities to Gone Girl.
I found <i>The Perfect Home</i> very entertaining. I could picture these characters and easily follow along with all the drama that ensued. This was very much a family drama/physchological thriller. A situation that under normal circumstances would on affect that people it directly involved, but because of the shows popularity, social media and the public were invested. And that just causes a lot more chaos so that the situation snowballs into more people believing in potential lies.
This was a solid start to my reading list for the new year.

It was probably not a good idea to read this book before bed. This one definitely gave me nightmares. The book starts pretty lovely and I was wondering how it was going to twist into a thriller. It does. It's definitely got fixer upper vibes in the home tv reality show world. If this had been a movie I would have covered my eyes throughout it. It was scary for me. Especially when children are involved. I'm a big chicken. If scary thrillers are your vibe, check out this book.

Thank you to Dart Frogg Communications, Scribner and Simon Audio for the gifted copies to review.

Oh my, I loved this one, it was quite the wild, crazy ride. Wyatt and Dawn Decker are the home renovation reality TV stars of the south, really it is mostly Wyatt and his charm, Dawn is his attention-to-detail sidekick wife, and their show is The Perfect Home. They are in love, just over the moon, and nothing could possibly go wrong with this scenario. Right? Right… Then the couple learns they have infertility issues, on Wyatt’s side, so he orders experimental drugs on the down low, as one does, and she finds herself pregnant with twins not too long after.

I mean, nothing can stop these two, not even infertility! But wait… Wyatt’s personality takes a dark turn, but Dawn seems to be the only one that notices, the only one receiving the brunt of it. She then discovers he is coming up with a tragic plot to become even more famous, and so she flees with the twins for their own safety. Problem is, he’s so slick he convinces everyone she’s the problem and stole their babies due to her drinking and depression issues.

That’s all you get, you’ll have to read this one yourself to know any more (but really you should read this book)! Told in dual POVs, I loved both perspectives of Dawn and Wyatt, and the audio for this was delightfully creepy with Wyatt. It was suspenseful and intense, I was not sure how it was going to end, but I sure did enjoy it, I mean really I enjoyed it the whole way through. This was such a satisfying read, and I loved the play on how fame can get to someone and keep them wanting more, and my goodness, I am glad I have better friends than these.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I liked the premise of this, an HGTV-style couple with some dark secrets. It was pretty well-written, easy to read, and kept me interested. A solid thriller for fans of the genre!

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this book!

I enjoyed this book. It kept my interest and had me turning pages to find out if Dawn would overcome. I admit there were a couple times where I said WHOA to myself, especially concerning Wyatt. Overall I liked it.

What exactly is Wyatt Decker willing to do to boost ratings? This man, with narcissistic tendencies, is constantly coming up with scenarios to take his home improvement show to new viewership levels. Everyone is just collateral damage. No one is safe from his schemes. This story leaves you on edge until Dawn figures out how to get control back.
The story is good. I think there was some space for the turnaround to be more intense. This was just a slow twist. The dad story was slid into the story but seemed anticlimactic.

This started strong and had a great premise, but near the end of the book I unfortunately could not wait to finish it. Dawn was a very relatable and dimensional character I was rooting for, but the plot of the book felt too close to Gone Girl to enjoy.

The writing and pacing in the book was great however, and I would read another book by this author. This one just didn’t work for me!

If you are fans of HGTV and all those 'flipper' reality show, this book is for you! It tells the story of a reality super couple, Dawn and Wyatt, who reminded me of the 'The Flipping El Moussas', picture perfect and camera ready. In their desperate attempt to have a baby, they find out that Wyatt has a low sperm count, so he goes to extreme lengths to rectify that with various prescription medications that alter his personality significantly. As he attempts to increase their ratings by fabricating certain events, Dawn flees with the baby, and Wyatt pits the audience against her for dramatic effect. It's the ultimate reality show gone wrong. Dawn is running for her life and even her closest friends don't know who to believe. This is a easy, quick read, that goes pretty fast. A good palate cleanser if you've recently read a heavy book. Not much to discuss or linger on here, but a unique twist on our obsession with home improvement shows. A great first debut for this author that would make a very dramatic movie.

An original story line that is a sure winner if you're an HGTV addict. In a market where the shows draw millions and the "stars" become house hold names, Wyatt Decker has become the celebrity he thinks he deserves. He's charming, good looking and knows how to play to the camera.....so what's missing. On the other hand, there's his wife and costar, Dawn, who's there to get the job done and has no problem putting Wyatt in his place. Sounds familiar, right? But is it real or scripted?
Wyatt decides the couple needs a baby, but his infertility is a problem. Wyatt is very much a man who worries about his reputation, so starts taking infertility drugs, with success. Dawn begins to see the side effects of the drug soon after. She's always know Wyatt had a side he didn't show in public but now he has lost control, and he's still not on the A list.
From this point, the tension ratchets up as Dawn protects the babies while Wyatt is more concerned with his status. His character becomes Dark.....note the capital D.....and the story races. This is one heck of a debut from Daniel Kenitz. It's going to be interesting to see is he can top THE PERFECT HOME.

Wyatt and Dawn Decker are married and have a home improvement show together which has made them semi famous. Wyatt wants more fame and more money however. After they have some fertility issues Wyatt takes illegal medication to help them conceive. After the birth of their twins, Dawn discovers something shocking on the Wyatt’s computer indicating his plans for a way to get what he most wants. Terrified she takes the twins and runs.

I meant to post this yesterday as it was published yesterday! This is tagged as Fixer Up meets Gone Girl but unfortunately that’s not accurate. I liked the premise and I liked the look of how public perception is manipulated in the media. Wyatt is the good looking, charming star of the show and quickly puts out lies to get the public on his side. I like home improvement shows but there wasn’t much of this in the story itself. It’s a bunch of unlikable characters again. The pace was too slow and some of the details just didn’t make sense. I mean who doesn’t take pictures of evidence they find or take the document with them? It’s not illegal to take your kids somewhere when you’re their guardian…. It’s a popcorn thriller debut with some flaws. However, I did enjoy the ending.

The Perfect Home, by Daniel Kenitz, is a domestic thriller encased in the world of reality home improvement TV. The story is a bit slow to start as attention focuses on the main husband and wife characters and the "reality" of reality TV. You may never want to watch again. Nonetheless, both characters are well developed and very nuanced. POV shifts between the two. Tension dramatically mounts as their lives become more complicated with the birth of children and escalating success of their show. I really enjoyed this novel and the many twists and turns as it moved towards resolution. However, too many of the supporting characters came out of nowhere, and took action that seemed contrary to their history. Nonetheless, this was a fun book with which to start the year, and I am happy to recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley and Scribner publishers for the opportunity to read a digital ARC.

Domestic thrillers have quickly become a genre that I devour, and The Perfect Home by Daniel Kenitz lived up to those expectations!

First and foremost: this book is being compared to Gone Girl (my OG favourite thriller, the one I've read at least four times, the one I compare all other thrillers to), so know that this comparison was in the back of my head as I read.

The Perfect Home, broken down into its five parts:

Part One lured me in with a false sense of security and that hook was all I needed! I was utterly addicted to where the story was heading next. Gone Girl comparison, indeed!

Part Two had the wheels falling off! Could I trust what I believed in Part One, or were my emotions being toyed with again? Who do I side with? All I know is that I'm beyond addicted!

Part Three messed with my thoughts and emotions even further; mixed up is an understatement! Every side is believable, every side is completely wrong! Still absolutely addicted!

Part Four ramped up the action and my perceived perception pivoted once more! I finally know what team I'm on, and I need to stay up to finish this book!

Part Five ended this game of cat and mouse in the perfect way!

Overall: yes, I can see the similarities between The Perfect Home and Gone Girl (and know I would have come to that conclusion even if it wasn't being presented to me)!

If you love emotional manipulation, questioning the truth (though not forced by unreliable narrators), and succinct endings that leave no doubt - this one is for you!

Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for the complimentary copy to read and review.

This was another early 2025 read that I couldn’t put down. I didn’t really read the synopsis other than “Fixer Upper meets Gone Girl” so I had no idea what to expect. Now, I don’t think either of those is a true comparison but I enjoyed this nonetheless. This was twisty, suspenseful and There was one part that made my jaw drop (if you’ve read this it’s when a certain computer file is found!) This was a fun debut and I’ll be interested to see what Kenitz writes next.

The Perfect Home is one of the top home renovation shows on HLTV. It stars husband and wife Wyatt and Dawn Decker. Wyatt is the muscle, and Dawn is the decorator. He comes up with crazy ideas, like taking down a load-bearing wall, and she rolls her eyes at him and tries to bring him back down to earth. Originally, the show was just Wyatt, but once he started dating Dawn, he brought her on the show, and the fans immediately loved her. Their relationship, their wedding, their honeymoon trip were televised, and their fans went crazy.

Wyatt and Dawn have built their dream house in Nashville, and next they want to add kids. But they’re struggling to get pregnant. A visit to a fertility specialist informs them that the struggle to get pregnant is on Wyatt’s end. He decides to try a fertility drug that is not legal in America, ordering it from Germany through a dark part of the internet. And it works. Dawn gets pregnant with twins in months. But Wyatt isn’t quite himself on the drugs. Dawn wants him to wean himself off it, and he tells her that he will. Instead, he throws them out.

It’s not until after their babies are born, a boy and a girl, both healthy, that Dawn starts to worry about Wyatt’s behavior. He threatens her on the set, but in a way only she could hear. He stands in the twins’ room for hours, not moving, in the dark. But when she finds his secret plans for her and the twins, Dawn knows that her children are in genuine danger. She does the only thing she can think of. She packs up her children and leaves. But she doesn’t have anywhere to go. And it doesn’t take long before Wyatt is all over the news, telling everyone that his wife is suffering from postpartum depression and has taken off with their kids.

Can Dawn figure out a way to save her children, and herself, from one of the most beloved, charming men in the home renovation reality tv space? Or will she just get cancelled, pushed out of her marriage, pushed off of the show, homeless, and having to watch other people raise her children?

The Perfect Home is a debut novel that blends the best of reality home and garden television with an edge-of-your-seat domestic thriller. Told in alternating perspectives between husband and wife, this suspenseful story accelerates as the character voices become more strained. The more pressure these reality stars come up against, the more desperate their decisions. Which makes it all a win for the reader.

I devoured this book. I have watched my fair share of home renovation shows, so I knew what I was getting into with their reality show. But for everything else, I was taken on quite the ride until the end. This book goes in directions I was not expecting, but I loved it all. This is a smart thriller with genuine surprises along the way and well-defined characters that drive the story off a cliff. If you’re a fan of those HGTV shows and love a good thriller, you will want to dive right into this one.

Egalleys for The Perfect Home were provided by Scribner through NetGalley, with many thanks.

The Perfect Home by Daniel Kenitz was a compelling domestic suspense novel.
A very well-written story and quite twisty. The storyline itself was extremely compelling and gripping.
The characters are engaging and interesting.
So many twists and turns that I was literally holding my breath.
A tense thriller that will take you up and down like a wild roller coaster ride. You are constantly questioning, and you continually trying to understand what the hell is going on.

Thank You NetGalley and Scribner for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I am a huge fan of Fixer Upper and Gone Girl, so I decided to read this little gem.
I really was hoping it would be fun. It wasn't your normal thriller. More of a domestic disturbance but nothing really jumped out as Thriller. With that being said once I changed my expectations I fell in love with the book and Dawn. (Well, Tim, too)

The premise of the book was great. I always was told that once a person reaches fame they always want more and I think that is what happened to Wyatt. <spoiler> I don't buy the bit about the illegal, Germany fertility drugs and felt that was just an excuse. The man was absolutely NUTS. I don't believe for one bit he was the way he was because of these psychotic drugs </spoiler>. I hated the way people turned against Dawn and thought she was a Little too nice letting the ones who let her down back in her life but in the end the story was great and I want to read more from this author.

Thank you Netgalley and Scribner for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Dawn and Wyatt Decker are home improvement television stars who seemingly are living the perfect life. Living in a large beautiful home and hosting their show "The Perfect Home," the trials of their marriage can't be seen from the outside. Dawn desperately wants to become a mom, but when fertility tests show that Wyatt has a low sperm count, he resorts to an authorized foreign medication to help boost his sperm. The medicine helps them become pregnant, but also causes Wyatt to be come moody and cruel. The hits don't stop there and the "perfect home" Dawn and Wyatt have been living in really begins to crumble all around them. Told from a dual perspective of both Wyatt and Dawn this was a fun thriller and easy enough to read, but nothing that I will remember in a few weeks from now.

The Perfect Home by Daniel Kenitz follows Dawn and Wyatt, the married couple stars of a popular home renovation reality show. I was really intrigued by the premise of the book: Fixer Upper meets Gone Girl. Unfortunately i didnt like any of characters. I still can recommend this book for fans of HGTV.
Thank you, NetGalley, for the advanced copy of this book.

Thank you Simon Audio, Scribner and Daniel Kenitz for the ARC/ALC!

”The thing about liars is they lie to themselves too…”

Wyatt and Dawn seem to have it all - fame, fortune and a good relationship. They just are missing one thing - a baby they desperately want. Wyatt, our MMC, is willing to go to any lengths to make that dream reality, even if it includes buying medication from another country that's not legal in the US. I could relate to his desperation but boy was he not very likeable! His smug, entitled attitude was the complete opposite of his wife, Dawn, our FMC. I enjoy home renovation type shows so the fact that a good portion of this book was centered around a husband and wife who flip houses was fun for me to read about.

As Wyatt got deeper into his medication, seeing the side effects change his personality, it reminded me a bit of symptoms of PPD in mothers. Although I’m not sure how intentional that was, I really appreciated this unique portrayal.
In Wyatt’s case though, I think it just was harder for him to hide his true personality. Though you kind of need to suspend belief a bit towards the end, the author pulled it off beautifully and this book had me on the edge of my seat!
Part domestic suspense, part psychological thriller, this book was hard to put down! I was grateful for the audio so I could keep listening.

“There is a place inside every human being, somewhere hidden and prime evil that is disappointed when the magician reveals the invisible thread in his thumb…”

”The Perfect Home” is out now. This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my gifted copy.

This book sounded so good and I was so excited to read it. Unfortunately it just was not the book for me. I was actually confused, so maybe it was just me. I would definitely read more from this author in the future.