“Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour”

"FOR SALE: A lovely family home with good-sized garden and tree house occupying a plot close to woodland. Quiet, leafy road, good schools, close to the sea and commutable to London. Perfect for kids, fitness enthusiasts, dog walkers …

And, it seems, the perfect hunting ground for a serial killer.

When Garrick and Olivia Lockwood move into the idyllic 25 The Avenue with their two children, they are excited for a fresh start in the suburbs. But with a spate of local murders in the press, and suspiciously friendly neighbours, is there more to perfect suburbia that meets the eye?"

I was kindly sent this book from Pan Macmillan in exchange for an honest review. Firstly I want to say thank you to Pan Macmillan and the wonderful author Fiona Cummins for giving me an early opportunity to read this book.

In the past I was an avid reader of Crime Thrillers so The Neighbour would have been my go to book. However recently I have moved away from this genre and towards Fantasy. When I was given the opportunity to read and review this book I decided it would be nice to have a change. I am so glad that I took this opportunity as I absolutely loved it. I actually read this book in 24 hours because I really struggled to put it down.

I love how this is a slow-burn thriller, I feel they are the best kind of thrillers. Fiona will give you certain pieces to the puzzle, but whilst doing that she also builds the atmosphere and the characters so that you are fully submerged into the book. The tension is slowly built upon throughout which just makes you want to continue reading.

Fiona is fantastic at making you doubt your own theories, which I think is the final ingredient in making a successful crime thriller author. At some point in the book I was convinced a different character was guilty, I think through the duration each character was guilty in my mind at least once. This book really left me guessing and just when I thought one person had done it Fiona threw a curve ball and my theory that I was certain of was shattered into a thousand pieces.

The book is told in different perspectives, those perspectives being from different neighbours. You get to explore their thoughts and feelings which leads you to not only get to know the character and household itself but also helps you to understand what they think thus helping you to create theories that you hadn’t even thought of.

The twist at the end was fantastic, this book really keeps you on your toes until the final chapter. Whilst at some point in the book I did guess what might happen, I was pushed away from the idea with Fiona’s writing style which meant that when the guilty party was revealed I still felt shocked. This was definitely an ending that satisfied me. I find with many thrillers that I am always disappointed with the ending as they feel farfetched and rushed which is why I feel like I have actively chosen not to pick up this genre of book. This book however was like a breath of fresh air and has definitely got me back into wanting to read this genre. I shall be picking up each and every one of Fiona Cummins back list and future releases.

This book had such an impact on me. I finished this book last night and I went to bed and dreamt that our house got broken into and a doll was left behind. I never really dream about books so this is a first. I’ll be honest, I thought I lived in a nice neighbourhood with decent neighbours but I will definitely be keeping an eye on them from now on. The curtains will be permanently shut in my house. You never know what goes on behind closed doors. I’ll leave that thought with you.

I 100% recommend this book to each and everyone of you. It is a quick and fantastic read and it really will leave you thinking “whodunnit” until the very end.

Again, thank you to Pan Macmillan for giving me this fantastic opportunity.