This book was a complete and pleasant surprise. It was obvious where it was going but Brown is a good enough writer that you just move forward with the story, enjoying the writing and the plot. I'm old enough to recognise much of the inspiration for the father. I found him likeable though misguided and that made him human. The daughter also is human going through a range of emotions once she is introduced to the wider world. She wasn't quite as likeable but very realistic.
I'll read more of this author.

I always enjoy a book by Janelle Brown, but this one took me by surprise--and utterly captured my attention. It did, in fact, break me out of a reading slump. Growing up in an isolated cabin in Montana with only her father in the 1990s, Jane has lived a relatively simple life. She watches a wolf through the window, tends to the wood stove, grows vegetables. But her father brings home a computer one day, which changes everything. Her father, who has serious views about how the world should be (less technology, more 'real') directs her to learn HTML and build a website for his beliefs. But along the way, Jane connects with a young man and realizes how much of the world she's missed out on. When she accidentally is involved in a serious crime her father commits, she goes on the run, out in the world for the first time, and very alone. What I loved about this book was that it was a combination of great external plot--you won't be able to stop turning the pages--but also realistic, understandable change in Jane's character. It was a fabulous read, the sort I'll certainly be buying a hard copy of when it's out. Thanks NetGalley for an early version in exchange for an honest review.

This book is intense & engaging leaving you suspicions about a-lot and ends up being an addicting page turner. This coming of age story blends with how technology evolving from the 90s has influenced our lives. This book has very meaningful & deep themes making this story epic. The protagonist, Jane starts to uncover things that are truly mind blowing, her journey is unique to me. I recommend you add this to your summer reading.
Thank you @penguinrandomhouse for the #gifted E-ARC

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC. Jane and her father live off the grid. This is all Jane knows. She has been homeschooled, they grow their own food, she doesn't have any friends. They also have a contingency plan when the Feds come for them but Jane doesn't understand why. Now that she is 17, she needs more answers. Her Harvard, genius dad has a trip planned and she sees her chance to escape but doesn't know she becomes an accomplice to her dad's final plan. She is on the run and alone. What does she do next? The book similar to Ted Kaczynski's life, is fascinating. #WhatKindofParadise #JanelleBrown #RandomHouse #June2025

This book was a journey and it starts as soon as you get to the end of the first chapter. That was all it took for me to get hooked by what this story was about to bring! And what a whirlwind of a story!

Here you have a main character who has only ever truly known one person in the world, her father. He’s the one she spends everyday with, the one to educate her, the one to shape her views of a world she barely gets to glance at. And then all of a sudden, her curiosity starts to shake the foundations of the world she knows and the version of the father she believes in. As the reader you get to understand the mind of a young woman who is suddenly struck by the fact that the person she loves the most in the world is a liar and potentially a monster, who made her complicit to his crimes. Not only that, but she now has to decide if her loyalty has been misplaced this whole time and turn her own father in, or stay complicit and believe he’s doing it all for the right reasons.

The most interesting part of this book is navigating Jane’s point of view, while also looking at the world we live in and seeing the future that these characters either feared or wanted so bad! The only thing I will say is that I wish we got to see more of her after it all happened, how she made a life for herself.

I am excited to get to read more of this author!

What Kind of Paradise had me hooked from the first chapter! The story is from the perspective of Jane, a teenager living in a cabin in the woods with her recluse father. He has always been secretive about his past including information about her mother but Jane soon begins to unravel the lies her father has fed her which raises more questions than answers. Jane’s journey of discovering who she really was read a bit as a thriller but more a coming-of-age story as she navigates a new world and trying to find her place in it.

Sections of the book felt more like essays on the state of the world and how technology has taken over and therefore the book was a bit clunky at times for me. But the theories in the book did have me questioning what the world will look like in another 20 years for the next generation and whether AI will ultimately improve humanity or do the opposite.

This was my first time reading a book by Janelle Brown but I will definitely pick up other novels from her. Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for providing this book for consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

3.5🌟 (rounded up to 4)

What kind of weird social commentary did I just read?

A few things about this book seemed interesting to me, I have really enjoyed the setting of a parent and child living in isolation from the rest of society for various readings (These silent woods) and I was hoping for a similar vibe. Janelle Brown was giving me that the first 20% or so. I was really enjoy reliving the early 90's through Jane/Esme's eyes (Chat rooms, dial up, Buffy, Friends...) I kept reading, and was really excited that this was going t be a thriller, but to be honest, a whole bunch of what the fudge-sicle.
It turns into this manifesto against technology. Not the action, twisty Thriller I was hoping (and expecting). I began to lose interest the last 40% or so of the novel, it just dragged on, and when I looked down and realized i was at 82% it did not follow the typical formula a thriller follows. Usually that is the climax of the book..it just kept "preaching".
It was interesting to go back to the early 90s before we all had iphones and computers. Was life really paradise? In someways, yes for sure. You could go to your kid's sporting event or a concert and actually watch it, not be filming it on your phone. You had to wait a whole week for your favorite show to come on....but also NOW we dont have to rely on paper maps to get us places, if we need a book for book club overnight Amazon will deliver it to my doorstep by 4 am the next day. So which is better?
I just felt so confused because the opening chapter sets the reader up for something the book does not follow through on.
Ultimately the book was just, pointless.
This book will not add anything to your life, it will just takeaway precious moments you could be reading any other book.

Side Note: This author is a great writer, her language and prose was excellent. I have not had to read a book and look up words in the dictionary since college....her vocabulary is Sesquipedalian brilliance--hehe look that up yourself chief!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for allowing me to read and review "What Kind of Paradise" I was not influenced or paid in exchange for my honest thoughts which are my own.

What Kind of Paradise is about one woman looking back at her childhood, being raised in almost isolation by her father. Home schooled and taught only her father's curriculum, Jane doesn't see any problem with this until she is almost eighteen. At that point she sees that she needs to get away from his controlling ways and that is where the real story begins.
I expected a thriller (which it is not) but the plot was still engaging and intense enough to make this a quick read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

Thank you, #Partner @penguinrandomhouse and @NetGalley, for my #gifted (free) copy. Pub date 6/10/25.

I went into this was completely blind, and for some reason, I was expecting a thriller, but I was pleasantly surprised with this coming-of-age novel. The ending was phenomenal. This is my first book by #JanelleBrown, and it will not be my last!

Set in the 1990s, Jane has lived a sheltered life living in a cabin in the woods with her father. She is 17 years old, and she is starting to feel there is more to life than the woods. Her father leaves her alone for days at a time, and she has no idea what he is doing. Then, he comes back with a computer, and he needs Jane's help building a website. While he is away, Jane gets sucked down a rabbit hole, trying to find out what happened to her mother. There is so much more to the story, but I'm keeping my synopsis simple to avoid any spoilers. Make sure to pre-order and add this one to your WL!

Fantastic book. A haunting journey from Montana wilderness to 1990s San Francisco, exploring identity, family secrets, and technology's promise amid isolation. Will rec for sure.

In case this saves one person, from not necessarily wasting their time, but preventing them from reading what they thought was a thriller/suspense book if that’s what they’re actually after & realizing mid book it’s not even close.

This book is not suspense.

First off I want to mention that if I based my rating solely on the writing & story, in my opinion it’s very deserving of 4 stars. Janelle Brown is a very strong writer, she actually really impressed me with the writing in this book. This is the third book I have read by this author & her writing has noticeably advanced! The story was overall pretty fluid & consistent in its progression. There were a lot more big words than this girl is used to haha…this probably has the record for how many times I had to look up what a word meant in just one book. I do mean that as a compliment to the author though, they were used in proper context & imo not forced. Although some readers might find all of the large words ‘bombastic’ ..ha, she would definitely have used the word bombastic. Makes her sound smart 🤷‍♀️😜 I actually do not mean that as a dig I just am being (trying to be) funny. She’s clearly incredibly intelligent & I was quite impressed with her large vocabulary.

I feel like this book is much more psychological fiction/domestic drama than thriller. I personally don’t think it should be categorized anywhere near the thriller/suspense category. The very beginning of the story caught my attention immediately & I felt was indicative of it maybe being a suspenseful book but the rest of it was written more like a domestic drama or possible even a far fetched memoir.

I feel like if the book These Silent Woods & the movie ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ had a baby it would be this book, but sprinkle in some terrorist aspects. These Silent Woods because of the wilderness & father/daughter duo, plus their questionable past. The Wolf of Wall Street because when I pictured the employees at Signal I kept picturing Leonardo DiCaprio & the rest of his employees in the movie (I don’t know why of all things that’s what came to mind🤷‍♀️😂)😂

I did enjoy reading about Jane, from her experience in the secluded woods with her Dad to when she experienced being in the big city alone for the first time, similar to seeing through a child’s eyes when they experience things for the first time. All of it was very descriptive & it was like you were there in the book with her.

Overall I did like the book, especially the beginning when she was in the Montana forest. When things shifted & the reader isn’t in Montana anymore it was still an enjoyable read, it had my interest for sure, but I think mostly because I was curious where the author was taking the storyline. The ending was satisfactory but it was kind of just that. Not exciting, no wow moment, just an ending to tie things up to where everything comes full circle. For me it just fell flat. It wasn’t interesting enough, like many suspense books that have you on the edge of your seat or a romcom that you’re waiting for one of the main characters to make some bold move…something. It was just meh I guess. As I said earlier it was a good book & very well written, but it was just not interesting enough (for me?) especially when I look back, partially because the ending did not make up for the long road us readers took to get there. To add to this, for lacking the excitement I typically seek in books or the interesting storyline that just grabs you, if I had a do-over I’d likely have skipped this one, especially since now I know it was definitely not even remotely a suspenseful read. Like I told my fellow reading buddy/very good friend of mine, it reminded me of a memoir …a fake memoir, ha. No offense but yeah it was kind of a drama meets not real memoir🤷‍♀️😜

Janelle Brown, you are an excellent writer with an incredibly creative mind..so keep on keeping on. This could very well be an ‘it’s me not you’ issue.

Thank you to both NetGalley & the publisher Random House Publishing Group - Random House for the advanced copy, very appreciative of the opportunity!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I am a big fan of all the Janelle Brown books I've read and her latest was no different! It's thriller like and the plot really centers around digitalism as a big focus is in the 90s dot com bubble, particularly in SF/ the Silicon Valley (which I loved because I always love stories that are set in the areas I grew up). Our MC Jane was raised in an isolated cabin by her zealot father who has restricted her from the rest of the world. I found myself pretty intrigued because I always love a good cult-y like story and was fascinated by our MC Jane's upbringing, how she begins to question her father's ideals, and her eventual journey to find her true identity in a vibrant and new internet age SE. It was pretty quick to read and once I got into the throes of it, it was hard to put down. I did really like how it was quite thought provoking when discussing technology and how it is/ has taken over in so many facets of life and the repercussions of it. Would def recommend if you've like author before!

3.5-4 ⭐️

The first part of this book had major Educated/These Silent Woods vibes, which I very much enjoyed. However, as the story progressed, it started to lose me a bit. I understand what Brown was trying to achieve, but it didn't really work for me. Some of the father's rants were overly verbose (though I suppose that was intentional and true to his character). Even so, it turned me off from the story, rather than drew me in like other readers.

I have been a long time fan of Janelle Brown and was so excited to receive an early copy of her newest - and it did not disappoint! I loved this one so much, wanted to savor it so that I could spend longer with the main character.

I think this is one that is better to go in to without a lot of knowledge about the plot. I found all parts of it fascinating -- I loved reading about Jane's life with her dad off the grid, her discovery of the internet and the world at large. I really loved reading about Esme in San Francisco starting to find herself -- San Francisco is one of my favorite places and I could so vividly picture her there.

This book does a great job and building tension without being a straight thriller -- I wanted to keep reading to find out what happened and felt so invested the entire time.

I would recommend this to everyone -- especially if you love literary fiction and really strong female characters. I am so excited to see what Janelle Brown writes next and I will be telling everyone about this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

This book was good. I enjoyed the character development. I’m not sure I found it realistic but enjoyed it just the same. Thank you NetGalley for the early read.

I struggled with this book, the pacing was all over the place and it had a hard time reeling me in. I did enjoy following the narrator in learning that her father was a wanted man and how the internet opened her eyes to a new world.

Loved this book as it details the life of a man convinced the end is near! He and his daughter, Jane live in Montana in a 700 square foot bunker in the woods where she has no access to phones or any communication except when they go to town and she can see her friend Heidi at the library. But one day dad brings home a computer and she quickly learns everything she can about it; then she discovers his "manifesto" that scares her as she is sure he is up to something--and it can't be good! It's a chilling look at fanatics who are convinced they know what others don't and will attempt to "save" the world by any means they deem necessary!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

I'm a big fan of Janelle Brown's books, Pretty Things is a favorite of mine. What Kind of Paradise was a gripping, interesting read. I really felt for Jane (Esme) as she navigated her relationship with her father and learned her life wasn't what she thought it was. The ending was a little disappointing, I felt like it would have been more rewarding to hear more about her adult life.

This was a fun read that had me racing to the finish but ultimately didn’t leave a strong impression. The writing is excellent and I liked the commentary on the impact of technological advancement on society but overall I just didn’t feel like this book had anything really new to say.

I really enjoyed this gripping novel.

Jane has grown up isolated from the world in a cabin in Montana with her father. She knows little of the outside world or her past. He’s only told her that her mother died when she was four and that they are from the Bay area. She’s been homeschooled and mostly understands the world from long-dead philosophers. But her father seems to be becoming more mentally unstable. When he brings home a computer, she connects to the internet to publish his anti-technology manifesto. For the brief time she has access to the 1990s internet, she gains insight to outside world she previously could only imagine. When her father’s actions implicate her in a horrific crime, she runs away to California to see if she can find any answers.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel, which RELEASES JUNE 10, 2025.