‘Someone We Know’ by Shari Lapena
Genre: Thriller/ Suspense
Published: July 2019, Random House Uk, Transworld Publishing
Swathi’s Rating: 4/5
I have just read and devoured two domestic psychological thrillers from brilliant female authors and I am so excited in sharing my thoughts on one of them now!
Someone We Know by Shari Lapena is a highly recommended suspense thriller that will keep you awake all night until you’ve reached the very last page. Enjoy the blurb and read my thoughts on the book. Happy reading!! xx
Plot:
Maybe you don’t know your neighbors as well as you thought you did . . .
“This is a very difficult letter to write. I hope you will not hate us too much. . . My son broke into your home recently while you were out.”
In a quiet, leafy suburb in upstate New York, a teenager has been sneaking into houses–and into the owners’ computers as well–learning their secrets, and maybe sharing some of them, too.
Who is he, and what might he have uncovered? After two anonymous letters are received, whispers start to circulate, and suspicion mounts. And when a woman down the street is found murdered, the tension reaches the breaking point. Who killed her? Who knows more than they’re telling? And how far will all these very nice people go to protect their own secrets?
In this neighborhood, it’s not just the husbands and wives who play games. Here, everyone in the family has something to hide . . .
You never really know what people are capable of.
Swathi’s Thoughts:
The story starts with a murder of a women in a close knit community and the police investigating the residents to solve the case. So, the chapters shuffle between the various characters of the community along with a peek into the police investigation. You can imagine how intriguing it could be, to feel like an insider when everyone else in the book has no idea what’s going on around them!
There are several families involved obviously. A teenage boy who’s obsessed in hacking into his neighbour’s home computers, meddling with their emails and browser history, just for the thrill of it. The boy’s mother decides to write an apology letter to those houses her son cracked into. Soon she realises her mistake as people start talking/gossiping about it and her son’s future is on high risk. The late woman’s husband is rude, but handsome and the police’s prime suspect. Meanwhile, there is a bookclub where the woman gossip and spread rumors.
Amidst secrets, lies, betrayals, deciets, infidelities, adulteries, and a murder, Shari takes into an absorbing journey through this closely knit community whose lives are entangled forever. This book was totally addictive and engrossing as I strode through the crisp sharp chapters with a lighting speed. Credits to Shari on her utterly brilliant plot, and clearly labeled chapter names which saves her readers from getting confused upon several of the characters in the book.
Highly recommended for the fans of domestic thrillers like Big Little Lies. All opinions are mine. I received an E-Galley in exchange for my honest opinion.
Meet the Author:
Shari Lapena was a lawyer and English teacher before turning to writing fiction. Her work has been shortlisted for the CBC Literary Awards and in 2004 she won the Great Toronto Literary Project. Things Go Flying was shortlisted for the 2009 Sunburst Award. She has been featured in The Dalhousie Review, The Globe and Mail and is an alumnus of the Humber School for Writers. She makes her home in Toronto.
Genres: Mystery, General Fiction, Literary Fiction
