Shari Lapena's latest book hooked me from the very first chapter and refused to let go! The tension built at just the right pace with twists that made me rethink everything I thought I knew. I loved how the characters felt layered and believable, each one adding to the creeping sense of unease. The writing was immersive, making it easy to lose track of time while reading. This was gripping and clever in a lot of way, with just a few minor complaints. Thank you, NetGalley!

This one was kind of meh for me. I think fans of this author will be satisfied but it did not rise to the top of her books for me.

I loved the way it was written, in the present tense and from the POV of many different characters. It made the story seem urgent, and I was eager to find out what happened. There was no big twist or amazing ending, but I enjoyed the journey.

She Didn’t See It Coming by Shari Lapena is a tense, twisty thriller about a woman’s sudden disappearance from her home. Secrets and suspicion ripple through her community, with short chapters that keep you hooked until the shocking end. Shari Lapena does not disappoint.

This book got me out of my reading slump and made me excited about thrillers again! I really enjoyed this and couldn’t stop. It immediately had me hooked. There were so many flawed characters and each one could easily have been the killer.
It really will give you whiplash on who you think did it. It was twisty all the way until through to the very last sentence. This one is worth the read!

Bryden and Sam have it all - a happy marriage, thriving careers, a sweet three-year-old daughter, and a gorgeous apartment. But when Bryden suddenly disappears without a trace one day, that perfect life starts to unravel fast. As the search for what happened heats up, suspicion flies in every direction - her husband, a stranger from a fender bender, her sister, her best friend… even her own parents. Turns out, everyone's hiding something - and more than one person might have wanted Bryden gone.

I could NOT put this book down - and when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. Shari Lapena's writing is sharp and straightforward, making it incredibly easy to fly through. The story is told from multiple POVs, and I really liked that the perspectives didn't just switch at the start of each chapter. I enjoyed getting little glimpses into each person's life and inner thoughts. So many secrets came out, which kept things intriguing. I often found myself itching for the author to jump back to a certain POV whenever their last section ended on a cliffhanger.

This book also kept me guessing up until the end. I read a lot of thrillers and sometimes it's easy to suspect someone early on, but that wasn't the case here. Overall, I highly recommend this book! It's the first one I've read in a while where I truly felt sucked in. An easy five-star read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Viking for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

This well-constructed domestic suspense novel kept my interest throughout with lots of plausible suspects in the murder of a young mother. The police investigation is very well done--I particularly liked how they were able to figure out who was in the elevator. The resolution, with a few twists along the way, is satisfying, and there are good explanations for the suspicious behaviors of the other suspects, leaving no frustrating loose ends. All in all, well done, as have been all the Shari Lapena novels I've read. Many thanks to Viking Penguin/Pamela Dorman Books for an e-ARC of this book.

She didn’t see it coming. And you won’t see the twist coming either. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat wondering who is the killer

Amazing job with keeping the story engaging with a smaller number of characters. Looking forward to sharing this title with our shoppers.

My thriller book club read this for June and it was well-loved by our members! Shari Lapena's books are always high on my radar with each new release.

SHE DIDN'T SEE IT COMING was a fast-paced mystery that I devoured in less than 2 days. I never really wanted to put it down, but I was often annoyed by how many times the author tried to throw the reader off the scent. There were just too many possible suspects that I didn't quite believe as being the real perpetrator. In addition, the ending wasn't shocking and felt like a bit of a let down.

So many of my fellow book club members loved this one, so I know it's another Shari Lapena banger! Just didn't quite hit the mark how I wanted it to.

Full transparency: this was for a book club or I may not have gravitated towards it, only because I don't generally love more procedural books. But I'm so glad I was "forced" to read this because I truly enjoyed it! Short chapters, lots of red herrings, nothing overly procedural-y in the procedural chapters, and a couple of things that shocked me. I should've known to trust Shari Lapena!

Binge-worthy, suspenseful, and twisty in the extreme, She Didn’t See It Coming was yet about powerhouse of a novel from the unstoppable Shari Lapena. From the multiple POVs—all of whom were thoroughly suspicious—to the oodles of increasingly shocking secrets, I couldn’t put this book down and read it in only a matter of hours. After all, not only did it start and end with a bang, but the middle delivered a doozy of a investigation that showed the dark side of each of the suspects. Like a fly on the wall, I ate up every word until the twisted conclusion arrived on the scene. Cunning, well-timed, and easily plausible, it was a finale that left me with a Cheshire-like grin.

As for the characters, they were mostly as unlikeable as they were suspect. From the missing woman’s husband to her incredibly odd sister, the idea that they could’ve played a part in her disappearance never strayed far from my thoughts. You see, this locked room mystery premise only had so many answers. Despite my initial inkling at who the bad guy was, however, a spate of red herrings kept me completely off balance. Was I right or wrong with my first guess? Well, I’m happy to report that I was able to pat myself on the back by the end, even if I almost thought I’d gotten it 100% wrong due to a last minute twist. Cheers, Ms. Lapena, on messing with my head.

All said and done, I absolutely loved this smart, original take on a missing persons thriller. With a police procedural edge alongside plenty of family drama, there was a bit of everything there for my fellow lovers of long-buried secrets, manipulative lies, and dastardly schemes. Composed of short, punchy chapters that had me reading far too late into the night, there wasn’t a thing that could’ve stopped me from finishing this book in one sitting. After all, it was both compelling and eerily true-to-life like an addictive true-crime series. So if you also love an onion-like plot complete with a tangled web of lies and half-truths, this is one book you need in your life. Rating of 4.5 stars.

Thank you to Shari Lapena, Pamela Dorman Books, and NetGalley for my complimentary digital and physical copies. All opinions are my own.

When a happily married woman with a child disappears from her apartment, the missing person case becomes a murder case. No one seems to have a motive. There is no visual evidence of a person coming into the apartment building on CCTV, but then agaain it isn't working in the underground parking garage.

Behind door 804 of the luxury condominiums at 100 Constitution Avenue live Bryden, Sam and little Clara Frost. This is the home from where Bryden has disappeared and where the investigation into understanding why begins.

She Didn’t See It Coming was such a quick and entertaining story as person after person, and possibility after possibility, appeared on the police radar. Personally, this was one of my all time favorite “aha” final clues. We are all so very connected, and in this case, the reason can be Bitter Sweet!

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Viking Penguin/ Pamela Dorman Books for providing me the opportunity to read the advanced e-copy of; She Didn't See It Coming by Shari Lapena.

4.5* I stayed up way too late on this one to finish it and solve this thriller. This thriller hit all the highlights which I love about Shari Lapena's books. She sets the mood by giving the audience a heightened feeling of suspense, anticipation and all those twists. The book began with Bryden heading to her daughter's daycare late. Traffic is at a standstill and when she glanced down at her phone because the daycare was calling her and rammed a Tesla in front of her causing extensive damage. The handsome driver takes her information down and will be in touch. She vows to pay him and leave it out of the insurance gamble. I was tense at this moment knowing we exchange information to strangers all the time.
The next time the daycare calls her husband, Sam, because she never showed up to pick up their daughter and will not answer her phone. When he arrives at the luxurious condo, he sees her car in the parking garage, her phone and purse inside the condo.
When Det Jayne arrives with questions, the first suspect is the husband. Then it shifted to a guy in the condo building that has been accused of attacking a girl. At this point, there were several suspects, when it becomes a murder investigation. This is very engaging with each procedure I changed my mind. I had trust issues with most of the characters...cleverly done. Great job again, Shari Lapena! I absolutely love the cover...it says a lot! By that final page, you will realize she didn't see it coming.
Thank you NetGalley and Pamela Dorman Books for this ARC in exchange for my review.

I really enjoyed this fast paced read! I received an eArc with my book club and the physical book this past week. I definitely recommend it for any Shari reader! To be honest, it was my first book that I've read by Shari and I will definitely pick up her back log.

Another excellent suburban thriller, fast paced book with unreliable characters and cliffhanger chapters! Tragedy strikes the perfect couple, or are they? Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin- Pamela Dorman Books for an advanced copy for a honest review.

This twisty domestic thriller begins with a woman’s sudden disappearance from her upscale condo, unraveling the picture-perfect life she shared with her husband and daughter. What starts as a missing person case soon escalates into a murder investigation filled with shifting suspicions and buried secrets. Just when the mystery seems solved, more hidden truths come to light—suggesting the story isn’t quite over.

I enjoyed the ride of this one, but there were so many red herrings that I kind of lost the plot along the way at points, but overall this was a very quick, fun read.

Sam and Bryden Frost seem to have the perfect marriage. Until one day when Bryden does not pick up their 3 year old daughter from daycare. When Sam and their daughter arrive home to a clean house, and all of Bryden’s personal belongings still in place, worry sets in. Where did Bryden disappear to?

This was a fun one! Lapena writes a high-paced bingeable thriller that keeps the reader guessing who was the culprit, sprinkling some hints along the way in a way that made me excited to see how it was going to turn out