#shari lapena

[bookpaula]

New Download

[ursaepolaris]

Books I did read in January.

"Don't let the forest in" written by CG Drews.

"A stranger in the house" written by Shari Lapena, one of my favorite author.

Haven't read a lot this month. But the most important thing is to have fun.

[reallivething]

this book is KILLING ME im on the edge of my seat!!!! who the fuck took avery!!!! I refuse to believe its Ryan aND EXCUSE ME AL KNEW ABOUT THE AFFAIR?!?

stg best free little library find so far

[myhikari21things]

Read of What Have You Done? by Shari Lapena (2024) (306pgs)

[thebookstan]

Mas não temos 22 anos para sempre. A gente cresce. As coisas mudam.

— O Casal Que Mora Ao Lado

[litandlifequotes]

How dangerous people can become when they’re scared…

An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena

[the-lost-get-loud]

[libertyreads]

Book Review #26 of 2023--

Not a Happy Family by Shari Lapena. Rating: 3 stars.

Read from March 2nd to 4th.

The best place to start this review is by admitting that I don’t read a ton of Mysteries and that the ones I read and really enjoy tend to be YA, not Adult. See the Truly Devious series, the Naturals series, the Inheritance Games series. So, maybe take this review with a pinch of salt. I will still try to explain this middle of the road rating from me.

I felt like the author intentionally put the reader at a distance from their characters. I never felt like I really got to know or get emotionally invested with any characters despite the fact that there are a lot of them and that we get everyone’s point of view at least once in this story. I am such a character based reader that this put the story at a disadvantage almost immediately. But I like murder mysteries and seeing how the information is uncovered. The problem extends to that aspect of the story as well. It felt like each new piece of evidence was delivered with a whimper instead of a bang. The characters have bounced back and forth about who they think did it so many times that nothing felt shocking anymore. Even when we found out who the murderer was it felt like no big deal.

I will say that something I didn’t expect, but absolutely loved, in this novel was how the different relationships in this family were tested. When you have such a strong bond but have to wonder if your spouse murdered their own parents. And how the relationships grew stronger or more estranged as the investigation went on. And how it changed as new evidence was brought to light. That was all really fun to explore in this one. Also, this was such a quick and easy read. It felt like I was flying through this novel. I think the writing style is just so straight forward that it helps propel the reader further into the story.

Overall, I’m not impressed, but I’m not so let down that I would never pick up another book by this author. I think it’ll just have to be a synopsis that I’m really excited about.