The quiet, bucolic community of Sycamore Glen is about to get shaken up when a new family comes to town and a young woman disappears. Katie Sise sets us up for a twisty novel of suspense that will leave readers wondering if anyone in the small town is who they seem to be.

Sloane Thompson has been an active member in the community, volunteering at numerous fundraising events at school. But after ten years in the area, she hasn’t had any acquaintances she could call a true friend. That is until Harper and Ben Wilson move in next door to her and daughter Daisy.

Sloane and Harper become instant friends, spending all their free time together and becoming close confidantes. But when Daisy’s dependable babysitter, Margaret, fails to show one afternoon, the inexplicable disappearance becomes a cause for concern. As hours turn into days, suspicion builds and tension grows. What happened to Margaret, and is Sloane’s new friend the prime suspect?

This was a fun, engaging novel that had me turning pages. While it moved at a slower pace than I would have liked, the author did an excellent job of building tension and developing the characters in the novel. It was the perfect read for my week away at the beach.

Thank you to Katie Sise, Little A and NetGalley for a digital copy of the book for an honest review.

In a seemingly laid-back community of Sycamore Glen, two women-Sloane Thompson and Clara Gartner, tell a story. A story about a teenager called Margaret who is connected to both of them through their children. Margaret works as a part time babysitter for Sloane’s daughter Daisy who is suffering from poor health since childhood and requires special attention despite her age. In the case of Clara, Margaret is dating her son.

Sloane is still settling in this town and finds it difficult to build any real connections with anyone from the local community. This changes as soon as Harper and Ben Wilson move in as her next-door neighbors. Sloane is drawn to them almost immediately especially towards Harper who seems cold, calculated and eccentric from the outside. But as the story progresses we get to see her chequered past and how those experiences have shaped her relationship with Ben.

On the other side of the town, Clara is busy being a perfect hostess, wife and mother. She has built a solid reputation for herself and her family in the local community. It’s more to do with her influential husband- Evan Gartner and his social status among the upper middle-class people of this town. So, Clara tries to complement him by being socially active with various fundraisers and committees for different benefit projects. Moreover, she is actively involved in her children’s lives to raise them with appropriate values and respect as a devoted mother.

Clara is also acutely aware of her husband- Evan’s secret life and how he has stepped outside the boundaries of their marriage to have one or multiple affairs over the period of their marriage. Still she is shocked to hear about her husband’s transgressions from at least two women in Sycamore Glen, one of them happens to be her close friend. That unnerves her and pushes her towards separation from her husband. But before she could act on it, Margaret’s sudden disappearance puts a break on her plans as Clara’s son becomes a prime suspect.

So, it’s interesting to read how these seemingly parallel narratives come together to form a consistent story and how their realities collide when the truth behind Margaret’s unfortunate disappearance comes to light. By the end of it, both Sloane Thompson and Clara Gartner bond over their shared trauma and consequences resulting from Margaret’s untimely demise.

Although this book is touted as a puzzling murder mystery, you will be able to unravel the truth if you are used to reading such small-town crime thrillers. Even if the mystery part falters in execution, what stands out is author’s style of building characters and giving them depth with solid backstories. For bringing forth difficult topics like domestic abuse and building substantial plot around a complicated subject, we certainly have to admire author’s writing expertise. It makes a worthy addition for a breezy reading experience. So, do check it out!!

What a twisty, suspenseful story told with multiple points of view that just drags you further into the story. The cast of characters includes Sloan and her daughter Daisy, new neighbors Ben and Harper, who have a sordid history, and Clara, Evan and their kids. When a girl is found murdered and secrets start to be revealed nothing is quite as it seems.
This story was so good with it keeping me engaged the whole time and with an ending that just tied everything together so well.
Thank you for Netgalley and to the publishers for allowing me to read this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little A for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

Does anyone ever really know the people who live next door?

The cast:

Sloane Thompson and her young daughter, Daisy. Her ex-husband, Dave, visits the house every day, but there are hints that something significant ended their relationship.

Harper and Ben- the new neighbours who seem to be a little too eager to immerse themselves in everyone's lives.

Margaret- Daisy's babysitter, an A+ student, well-liked by many, but nothing is good enough for her high-achieving parents. Margaret hopes to ease their worries with her acceptance into Princeton, but she never returns home.

Clara- PTA mother with three teenage children- Cole( Margaret's boyfriend) and twin daughters. She and her husband, Evan, have a strained marriage. Cole's recent behaviour has worried Clara, and she wonders if she can keep her family together.

As the investigation into Margaret's disappearance heats up, it soon becomes clear that a lot well kept secrets in the neighbourhood are about to explode.


* Sigh* A good popcorn thriller, but it didn't get good until halfway through the narrative. I think what made it great was that EVERYONE seemed to have a good motive to hurt Margaret, even if I couldn't figure out the why.

That being said, some plot points were weird to me. I don't want to spoil anything, but as I write this review, they hover too much in my brain to go higher than a 2-star rating.


Publication Date 08/07/25
Goodreads review 14/07/25
#YouMustBeNewHere #NetGalley

No one can accuse this book of moving too slowly; the speed of the action definitely kept the pages turning. There were times, however, when I wondered if I had skipped a few pages - or chapters. There was a lot of telling rather than showing or discovering, and I did not connect with any of the characters.

It was tough to really care about our murdered high school student, Margaret. We are told that she is at the top of her class, has a boyfriend, Cole, fights with her parents and babysits for the neighborhood moms. One such mom is Sloane, a divorcee who lives with her daughter, Daisy. Margaret is babysitting for Daisy the night she disappears, but not before having a heart to heart with Sloane and her new - and kind of strange - neighbors. We meet many, many more characters as the book progresses - Sloane's ex husband, Margaret's boyfriend, her boyfriend's mother and her boyfriend's father, Evan.

When Margaret is found dead, most of the above become suspects. What Sise gets right: the suburban gossip mill and finger pointing. What does not work: there is no tension, no wonder as to whodunit since everything is basically spelled out.

And when an additional character comes in to bring the murderer to justice, there is again no actual discovery shown, just exposition as to what happens next.

It's pretty rare that I wish a book moved at a slower pace, but in this instance, I would have loved to have known - and therefore invested - in our characters a bit more.

Thank you Netgalley for the preview!

This is a good ole fashion summer suspense mystery that kept me entertained and invested. The multiple POV got a little bit confusing and there were red herrings thrown in that ended up giving a lot of extra history that wasn’t pertinent to the story. I liked it though and it was a quick read. 4 stars!

This book had a slow start for me. I didn’t really start to get into it until about 40% in, then I couldn’t put it down. I will be interested to see what else this author does.

I enjoyed it and am thankful for the ARC from NetGalley! I figured out the twist, but, there were many things that had me guessing throughout. Enjoyable and quick read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

This was just ok. Not bad, but not good. There were a lot of characters in this story, and I just didn’t find a lot of them to be especially interesting. The plot is typical and something that has been done many times before, so it doesn’t stick out much compared to all the other books I’ve read this year.

Maybe I read too much, but with all the content out there these days, a book needs to be really interesting with engaging characters in order for me to love it.

2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Little A for an advanced copy of You Must Be New Here.

A young teenage girl disappears from a close right knit community and everyone wants to know what happened to her. Three women from the neighborhood let you into their interactions with her. Who is responsible for her disappearance and why.

This was totally not what I thought it was going to be. I just feel like the author was trying to tell too many different stories and the book felt disjointed.

i was excited and intrigued to see where this book would go and it delivered on everything id wished for it to be going in. even the cover gives you a brilliant sense of this book.the themes explored in this book or done with such tight and clever writing. the characters are told in an equally as smart way.
set in a small town we are given the characters Sloane and Daisy and their new neighbours. at last Sloane might have a friend in this place? and yes! because her and her new neighbour Harper become fast friends.
but there is immediate dark spidy sense kicking off for us readers when one day Daisy's baby sitter fails to sow up. and things are about to get a whole lot darker, deeper and more complex. with secrets and reveal rising to the surface i was completely taken in to what was unfolding. and all through i was delighted in how some of those reveals came about and what we found out about these characters. they are suspicious of each other and so should they be! and we are equally as uncertain of who we should be believing. this small town in this affluent area is hiding more than golf clubs in their closets. and its all coming tumbling out.
i love the unease and tension that rumbled throughout the book its something Katie did a top notch job with.
this is one fantastic put together book. the timeline and POV aspect to it is a win as we get to know so much from it whilst also seamlessly following the story. like Katie at her own will, is constantly feeding you any extra info you might need or those snippets about people's characters or past.
brilliant. just brilliant.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Talk about a thrilling read! The build up of the plot was perfection and I loved the narration from different POVs. I could feel the tension throughout this book. This plot is very relatable when it comes to keeping secrets and balancing friendships. Of course the domestic drama between the couples in this book added a nice touch. This is certainly a book to get lost in!

Katie Sise has been an author I automatically pre-order now. Her domestic dramas are right up my alley. I didn't get as into this one as some of the others but I got the audio so I'm going to try again later.

You Must Be New Here has a gripping premise that pulled me in right away, a glamorous coastal town, a tight-knit clique, and a mysterious disappearance. I was ready for secrets, scandals, and some solid character drama. And while the plot had its moments of suspense, the story didn’t quite deliver the emotional punch I was hoping for.

The pacing is solid, and the setup has Big Little Lies vibes, but I struggled to connect with the characters. They felt a little underdeveloped, and at times it was hard to keep track of who was who. I wanted more depth, more tension, and sharper distinctions between the women at the heart of the story.

That said, this is a quick, popcorn-style thriller that doesn't ask too much of the reader. If you're in the mood for something light and twisty that you can breeze through in a weekend, it might hit the spot. Just temper expectations if you're looking for character-driven suspense.

This was a very good read it’s has plenty of twists and throughout that make you not want to put the book down.
The story itself was suspenseful and enjoyable. The characters were great and the style of writing was perfect.
Katie Sise masterfully creates an atmosphere of tension and unease, making you question everything and everyone. If you're a fan of twisty, edge-of-your-seat thrillers, this book is a must-read.

Katie Sise returns with another tightly-wound psychological suspense novel in You Must Be New Here, a chilling and sharply observant tale about friendship, trust, and the dark secrets lurking beneath suburban calm. Set in the seemingly idyllic community of Sycamore Glen, this story pulls readers into a web of tension that only grows tighter with each page.

At the heart of the novel is Sloane Thompson—a devoted mother navigating the familiar routines of school drop-offs, co-parenting with her ex, and trying to forge a meaningful connection in a town that has never quite felt like home. When Harper and her husband Ben move in next door, it feels like a long-overdue turning point. Harper is everything Sloane’s been missing in a friend: vibrant, curious, and seemingly open. Their friendship blossoms quickly, almost too quickly—and that intensity becomes one of the novel’s early unsettling beats.

The disappearance of Daisy’s usually reliable babysitter, Margaret, is where the story pivots from quiet suburban drama to chilling suspense. What begins as a routine missed appointment slowly morphs into something far more sinister. As the hours stretch into days, secrets begin to surface—some involving Margaret, and others that hint at deeper rot within the community itself. Sise’s pacing is masterful, letting the mystery unravel with just the right amount of dread, suspicion, and emotional nuance.

What sets You Must Be New Here apart from standard thrillers is its psychological depth. Sise doesn’t just explore what happens when someone disappears—she also explores the fragile alliances between women, the desire for belonging, and the deceptive masks people wear. The novel touches on themes of loneliness, manipulation, and the way trauma can be hidden in plain sight.

Final Thoughts:
Katie Sise delivers another page-turner that is as emotionally resonant as it is gripping. You Must Be New Here is ideal for fans of domestic suspense who enjoy twisty narratives grounded in real, complicated relationships. It’s a haunting reminder that behind every friendly smile might lie something far more dangerous.

📚: You Must Be New Here by Katie Sise
⭐️: 3.5/5 (rounding up on #goodreads)

Ben and Harper Wilson are new to the Sycamore Glen neighborhood. Sloane, their next door neighbor, instantly connects with them, thrilled to finally have friends — real friends — in her neighborhood. But when a girl close to the community goes missing after the Wilson’s moved in only a week before, secrets come unraveled showing that no one is quite as they seem.

This is a popcorn thriller done incredibly well. Tons of twists (my jaw quite literally dropped at 2 points), red herrings, and unreliable narrators had me guessing whodunnit until near the end.

Big thanks to Little A via @netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. You Must Be New Here is out tomorrow, 7/8!

In You Must Be New Here, Katie Sise delivers a sharply written domestic suspense novel steeped in secrets, lies, and the unsettling truths hidden behind perfectly curated lives. Set in a seemingly quiet neighborhood thrown into chaos after one of its own goes missing, the story unravels the dark undercurrents that run beneath the surface of suburban normalcy.

Sise excels at crafting layered characters, each harboring secrets that gradually come to light as the tension escalates. The narrative unfolds with a strong sense of intrigue, keeping readers guessing as shifting perspectives and buried motives slowly converge. Every chapter offers a new revelation, adding to the suspense and deepening the mystery at the heart of the story.

What makes this novel particularly compelling is its ability to keep the reader constantly questioning who to trust. With its unique twists and a cast of suspicious, multi-dimensional characters, You Must Be New Here thrives on psychological tension and the unraveling of a community built on fragile facades.

Katie Sise delivers a smart and engaging thriller that keeps you on edge from beginning to end. It’s a must-read for fans of domestic dramas where appearances deceive and no one is quite who they seem.

This was a quick read and very enjoyable. With new neighbors, new friendships are bound to happen for Sloane, who longs for company. As a busy mom with a sick child, life has been difficult for Sloane. After the disappearance of her daughter's babysitter, many secrets are revealed. As this story is told from different points of view, one emerges in each character's mindset. As the twists in each chapter evolve, bringing the story to a climactic ending. I was expecting it to be a little fast-paced, but in the end it was an enjoyable novel. It just wasn't a page-turner. Thanks to Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC.

I read Open House a few years ago by this author and didn't enjoy it, but I wanted to give her another chance. This one fell flat for me as well. It's about a mother named Sloan who becomes friends with a new neighbour named Harper. One day, Sloan's babysitter, Margaret, doesn't show up, and a search ensues, which causes everyone to become more suspicious of each other.

The lack of character development and individuality made it hard to follow. The pacing was so slow until about the halfway mark, and by then, I didn't care what happened. There are way too many characters to keep track of, and the storyline itself wasn't very engaging. The plot is a typical one, and I figured out the "who" before the big reveal. Once you've figured out the twist, a book becomes pretty boring, and I kept waiting for the main character to catch up. It certainly wasn't the "dark and twisty novel of suspense" (as stated in the blurb) it was made out to be.