Book Review: The Family Next Door
Book Summary:
Small towns often seem like the best place to settle down and raise a family. But small towns often hold the deepest secrets.
Essie has a loving husband and two young daughters in a family-friendly neighborhood. Her mother lives in the same small neighborhood and is always there to help her. Essie had problems with postpartum depression. Once she walked away from her newborn when she was asleep in a carriage in a park. She is still shamed by this fact, because she has no explanation for why she did it. And worries that something like it might happen again.
Fran is an attorney who has taken time off to be with her two young daughters. But she has a horrible secret that she fears will destroy her family. Her solace is to go for runs, which seem to get more and more obsessively frequent, and is causing those around her to worry.
Ange is a successful real estate agent, seemingly living a perfect life, always taking the initiative in her sons’ schools and in organizing a neighborhood watch. Her makeup is always perfect. Her home is the prettiest in the neighborhood. But underneath, she fears that life is going to repeat itself within her marriage.
A woman named Isabelle moves in next door to Essie and everyone is curious about her. Why did a single woman move into a neighborhood full of children? And why does she seem to be fascinated by Essie?
Finally all of these women’s secrets will come out, and they will have to make choices they never wanted to make. It was no accident that Isabelle chose this neighborhood and lives in the house right next to Essie. Her moving there starts a domino effect that eventually sheds light on all of their closely held secrets.
I hated to put this book down. Though it is early in the year, I think the last two books I’ve read will go down in my top ten best loved books for 2018.
About The Author:
Sally Hepworth is the bestselling author of The Secrets of Midwives (2015), The Things We Keep (2016) and The Mother’s Promise (2017), and The Family Next Door (Feb 2018). Sally’s books have been labelled “enchanting” by The Herald Sun, “smart and engaging” by Publisher’s Weekly, and New York Times bestselling authors Liane Moriarty and Emily Giffin have praised Sally’s novels as “women’s fiction at its finest” and “totally absorbing”.
Sally’s novels are available worldwide in English and have been translated into 15 languages.
Sally lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three children.
I saw a publisher’s blurb, and it looked intriguing. Your review puts this on my endless to read list. Thanks.
Sounds good, Brenda. Thanks for the revue!
Wow, Brenda! I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed this one so much. I’ve got my copy sitting here on my desk and I can’t wait to read it. More so after reading your review.
Thank you for the recommendation, I’ve just ordered this, along with The Things We Keep, from the library. Have you read The Things We Keep? (Same author)
Another book to add to the list. This one sounds great. And since you give it such a good review, I know that it is well written and the characters are well-developed. Thank you.