this was a strong young adult thriller novel, it had that element that I was looking for and enjoyed from this type of book. The characters were everything that I wanted in this and had that secrets that I was expecting. I enjoyed the suspenseful atmosphere and was glad it was so well written. D. R. Berlin wrote this well and was glad I got to read this.

The Third Estate: Secrets of the Manor by D.R. Berlin is a gripping, high-stakes thriller that wastes no time pulling you into its fast-paced world of espionage, conspiracy, and danger. From a brazen daylight assassination to the intricate power plays of a secretive organization, this novel expertly balances action, suspense, and emotional depth.

Sophie Allard is a standout protagonist—fierce, determined, and smartly written. When her estranged father's sudden and suspicious death shatters her life, Sophie is thrust into a dangerous game she never asked to play. As she unravels the layers of deception surrounding the powerful Third Estate and its enigmatic figurehead, the Grey Lady, Sophie’s personal journey becomes just as compelling as the external threats she faces.

The pacing is quick, but Berlin allows enough space to develop the emotional stakes and craft an atmosphere of growing tension. The blend of espionage, mystery, and personal reckoning keeps the story sharp and the reader fully engaged. The twists are genuinely unpredictable, and the interplay between the assassin, the shadowy employer, and Sophie’s investigation adds satisfying complexity.

Fans of strong female leads, intricate conspiracies, and relentless suspense will find this novel incredibly satisfying. It’s perfect for readers who enjoy stories in the vein of Robert Ludlum or Daniel Silva, but with a refreshing focus on a resilient, layered heroine.

The Third Estate: Secrets of the Manor is a masterfully crafted thriller that seamlessly blends espionage, mystery, and personal stakes. Sophie Allard emerges as a compelling protagonist—resilient, intelligent, and deeply human. Her journey through a labyrinth of secrets and betrayals is both heart-pounding and emotionally resonant. Berlin's background as a U.S. Army veteran and surgeon lends authenticity to the military and investigative aspects of the narrative, enhancing its credibility.

The novel's pacing is brisk, with each chapter unveiling new twists that keep readers on edge. The intricate plot is populated with well-developed characters, each harboring their own secrets and motivations, adding depth to the story. Berlin's prose is vivid, painting scenes that are both cinematic and emotionally charged. The themes of power, corruption, and the search for truth are explored thoughtfully, prompting readers to reflect on the complexities of human nature and societal structures.

I loved this book! I was completely sucked in at the beginning and my interest kept being high while reading. The writing and the pace are prefect and I really loved the main character.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eArc in exchange for my honest opinions.

Sophie Allard is attending a prestigious military academy to become a fighter pilot in hopes that she will finally get her father's attention and love. But when he suddenly dies in a tragic accident, she is forced to return home and confront the past. She learns that all was not what it seemed growing up. Sophie starts to dissect her past, present, and possible change course of her future.

This book was interesting to me. It started out quick, grabbing my attention and sucking me in. The middle seemed a bit overdone to me. There were a lot of things that I don't feel like needed to be part of the story, but maybe this information will be more useful in the following books. It is hard to say. There is a plot twist that I absolutely loved. The beginning and end of the book were amazing but the middle lost me for a bit. I am very curious about the second book and if it ties things together better.

I’m struggling to know where to start on my praise for this book. Brilliantly crafted, I’m stunned that this is a debut novel. Espionage, aviation, complex characters and lovely unexpected twists. I love the human storyline and the overlap of the “victims” and “professionals”. This author is on my list and I can’t wait for more.

Imagine how one decision can alter your whole life.. Sophie is on a path towards greatness. She’s determined to win the Stockton Cup and graduate first in her class - at least until she is informed her adoptive father has died. She goes back to the home she grew up in for the memorial and starts uncovering secrets.

Overall, a good story. I’d love to know the backstory of how The Third Estate came to be though.

Thanks Netgalley for the copy!

Maximalist Cadet Sopbhe Allard is on the brink of earning her stripes as a military pilot, but encounters a storm on a test flight. When her fellow cadet Parker has his plane downed by the same storm Allard goes out to find the wreckage near a dangerous precipive, pulls him out and rescues him..

That surely should have earned her a medal, only this is the military, and it doesn't work that way. Sophie disobeyed an order not to look for her fellow cadet. And now, her fitness and character are being called into question. At the same time, Sophie discovers that her adoptive father, abscientist inventor, has been killed in an explosion in his laboratory. Her employer expects her to return home to attend the funeral, only now, Cadet Allard is told that her only remmsini g family may be a traitor.

With her character being further besmirched, the former star student is being told from all quarters to pull herself together.

Sophie's adoptive family are rich, lab and manor maintained by the mysterious caretaker couple. The Komeas. She is chaperoned by her employer for the duration of the funeral, having not yet graduated. But in the mean time, Sophie is beginning to suspect the fire might not be all it seems....

Indeed, her adoptive father is still alive, but as they attempt to escape, an assassin starts sniping at them. Sophie then ends up sight up in a deadly cat-and-mouse chase with the hit man, one who, it seems, has struck at her family before. But why?

Answers are not that forthcoming, but Sophie's adoptive father does tell about a mysterious organisation that seeks to create a more egalitarian world, called The Third Estate.

This then, is a tautly-written espionage thriller with a hugely feisty heroine, desperate to prove herself. She is equipped with skills ranging from flying and martial art proficiency to cooking, but will these be enough to save her? Is her father really a traitor, or does the military itself have something to hide? Sophie is to find that nothing about her background is quite what it seems.

The story ends rather abruptly, and one of the biggest twists comes practically in the last paragraph of the book. Possibly this book is just the first in what is planned to be a whole series? For those who like a strong heroine, action and plenty of nail-biting tension, this novel should be a treat.

It's been a few hours since I finished the book, and I still have conflicting emotions about it.

I can't say the book is bad, because it isn't. Would I recommend it to others? Yes. Can I say I liked it? Maybe.

The pacing felt a bit off to me at the beginning. At times, I felt the narrative was like Sophie, spitting out facts just to prove she knew them. In those moments, I inevitably skipped the descriptions of flying, piloting, fighting, and the military interactions constantly belittling Sophie.

By the end of the book, it still feels like the beginning, and some questions remain unanswered. We don’t really know who is who anymore, if there is a hero, what Lovac’s mission was really about, why Sophie needed to be saved (and why was she raised in such a way. Was it really the Professor's choice or was it forced upon by the third state), or why the Grey Lady speaks both to Lovac, the professor, and the military officer. Did they all merge into one? What are they really trying to accomplish?

Maybe there will be a second book? Maybe.

DNF was not a thrill book I was not a fan. it didn’t grab my attention as much as I like and started off rather slow. All in all not my cup of tea but there are some redeeming qualities hence the 2/5

Cadet Sophie Allard expects to graduate at the top of her class at the prestigious Stockton Military Institute. Days before graduation, she learns of the death of her adopted father in a lab explosion. She has no clue what he was working on, but some dangerous people think that she knows more than she really does, and will stop at nothing, even murder, to find the missing research on the secret project.

This book is hard to categorize -- part mystery, part espionage, part thriller -- but all of it enjoyable. It had the flavor of a James Bond movie where it's sometimes hard to distinguish between the good guys and the bad guys. Even at the end of the book, I wasn't sure, and kept trying to turn non-existent pages at the end to have all the loose ends tied up. Nevertheless, a great read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

**Thank you to Outskirts Press for giving me a free copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my honest thoughts!**

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were really fun to read about (though I sometimes found the main character to be annoying). It's pretty clean in terms of curse words and very clean in terms of romance. I loved that the romance wasn't a super main part of the plot, but the author just let it complement what was going on in the story.

I think the writing style wasn't quite for me, and I found myself confused by the plot (and I think there were some small plot holes). I can't tell if me getting confused is a me problem or that the book is just slightly too short to cover what it was trying to cover. I'm glad it wasn't drawn out, and it was really engaging and fast-paced, I just needed a little more explanation than was given. The plot is also slightly boring in the beginning, but it does pick up (and the characters are interesting enough to make up for it).

★★★

A contract killing in a busy market at midday. Twelve years later, the assassin has a new assignment—and his target looks far too familiar.

Sophie Allard is attending a prestigious military academy, training to become a fighter pilot. Top of her class, with numerous accomplishments and recognitions under her belt, all she ever wanted was her father’s approval, his praise, and his affection. When he dies in a tragic explosion, Sophie is forced to return to The Manor, her childhood home, and confront her past. Caught between past and present, she begins to question whether her childhood recollections are accurate. As she unravels a web of lies and deception, she is forced to consider whether her father was a traitor—or if he was set up.

The story starts with a bang before slowing down as we explore Sophie’s upbringing and childhood. I enjoyed the combination of suspense, mystery, military espionage, and even a touch of romance. Unfortunately, the Grey Lady wasn’t much of a mystery to me, which made the suspense less impactful as the story progressed.

Overall, this is a solid debut—and based on the ending, perhaps the start of a great series!

Thank you NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, and D.R. Berlin for a copy. All opinions are my own.

Everything you want in a thriller! Cannot wait to read more by this author. Great character development and kept me wanting to come back for more! After a bit of a reading slump this was a pleasant surprise.

Thank you NetGalley for this book and opportunity to review!

Buckle up for these plot twists and prepare for some whiplash.
This debut thriller really keeps you on your toes.
Cadet Sophie Allard, a talented fighter pilot, is preparing for her final flight at a prestigious military academy that will determine her future in the military. However when her adoptive father dies in an explosion she returns home briefly to lay her last family member to rest, and learn what happened.

Berlin does a wonderful job immersing the reader into the settings from the Military Institute to the Grand Lake Manor, but they also make sure to keep the story moving so you’re never overwhelmed with too much world building.

The side characters support the plot wonderfully giving you relief, increasing the suspense, and building your rage in some instances.

I was holding my breath multiple times throughout the book wondering what would happen next, then screaming the next because what the heck!!

This was a great read and I look forward to reading more by Berlin.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7253292279

The book wasn't bad at all, but could have been better.
The cover art was amazing, the name intriguing, but the story itself didn't meet up to the expectations its genre demand (i.e the mystery, thriller, action, and adventure genre.)
The story lacked the necessary depths needed to have given its build up a more satisfactory “suspense” effect. The build up to twisters weren't very strong or impactful so my reaction upon the revelation that Grey Lady was Madam Komea wasn't an “oh my gosh” but a very dramatic eye roll like “seriously”!

The plot was interesting though. I would have given this book a 3.5 out of 5 but changed my mind a few pages to the end. The drama was too much and a bit on the unrealistic side because tell me why Professor Anderson died in a fire only to not have been dead but faked his death only to then fall of a cliff and be termed dead again ONLY (the last one) to survive the fall and still be alive? That's very dramatic and wasn't suspense-y or thrilling in any way.
It sure was more dramatic than gripping if you ask me!

One thing I didn't like, besides the font used, was how frequently the author tried to provide some backstory through the use of flashbacks. A couple would have been okay but the frequent times Sophie kept having flashbacks became annoying. I believe there are other ways to have provided backstory other than the use of flashbacks considering the story wasn't even written in the first person perspective.

The characters were diverse and okay, but it wasn't clear what each character was bringing to the story and not just the roles they played in Sophie's life… that is except Lovac. He was a well developed character unlike most of the others. Another thing was the lack of individualism and diversity in the tone of each character. They all sounded similar with no clear distinction between any of the characters tone of voice except the different words used in each dialogue.

Overall it wasn't a bad book at all. It had a pretty good writing style, a plot with potentials, but it wasn't the best I've read.

I saw this book a few days ago, and it sounded interesting. Luckily for me, I was able to start reading right away, and it sure did mot disappoint! It came out last December and I received a copy from BooksGoSocial via Netgalley.

The Third Estate: Secrets of the Manor by D.R. Berlin is a thrilling rollercoaster ride that expertly combines espionage, mystery, and suspense. The story kicks off with an intense moment—a seemingly ordinary woman is killed in broad daylight by a professional assassin—and then propels the reader twelve years forward, where the killer is back with a new target.

Sophie Allard, a talented military cadet, is thrust into a dangerous web of deception when she learns of her estranged father’s death in a mysterious lab explosion. As she investigates, Sophie uncovers unsettling truths about her father’s connection to a secretive organization, the Third Estate, and soon finds herself hunted by an assassin. With high stakes, a mysterious employer, and constant threats looming over her, Sophie’s journey is full of twists and turns that keep you guessing.

Berlin crafts a fast-paced, high-stakes narrative that doesn’t disappoint, with complex characters, unexpected betrayals, and a sinister plot that unfolds with gripping intensity. The Third Estate is an edge-of-your-seat read that will leave you eager for more. And, hopefully, there will be more in the future!

5/5 ⭐️

A gripping, high-stakes thriller that seamlessly blends espionage, mystery, and intense suspense, The Third Estate: Secrets of the Manor will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish! Good book! This book had suspense, murder, mystery, intrigue, action, espionage, dark secrets, and some wild twists and turns! The story was interesting! I definitely recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

This was a interesting story. The action starts immediately and doesn't really stop. Thete are several layers of secrets yo be exposed. By the end of this book, we gain some answers, it leaves us wanting more. I am looking forward to the next book, to get more answers. It is well written with relatively good character development. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me ghe opportunity to read this.

This was a great book she was like a pilot who few planes I had to learn a lot about aviation reading this from the beginning, and there was a lot of twists in this book. I love the title it makes it mysterious. Her father dies and she has to find out what happened there is a assassin that is hunting her. There was a lot of adventure and action in this book. it seems to me might be a sequel.