The Family Next Door by Sally Hepworth

*Disclosure of material connection- I received a copy of the book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest thoughts. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated are 100% my own.

About the book-

Small, perfect towns often hold the deepest secrets.

From the outside, Essie’s life looks idyllic: a loving husband, a beautiful house in a good neighborhood, and a nearby mother who dotes on her grandchildren. But few of Essie’s friends know her secret shame: that in a moment of maternal despair, she once walked away from her newborn, asleep in her carriage in a park. Disaster was avoided and Essie got better, but she still fears what lurks inside her, even as her daughter gets older and she has a second baby.

When a new woman named Isabelle moves in next door to Essie, she is an immediate object of curiosity in the neighborhood. Why single, when everyone else is married with children? Why renting, when everyone else owns? What mysterious job does she have? And why is she so fascinated with Essie? As the two women grow closer and Essie’s friends voice their disapproval, it starts to become clear that Isabelle’s choice of neighborhood was no accident. And that her presence threatens to bring shocking secrets to light. 

The Family Next Door is Sally Hepworth at her very best: at once a deeply moving portrait of family drama and a compelling suburban mystery that will keep you hooked until the very last page.

 

My thoughts-

 

The Family Next Door is not at all what I thought it was going to be. I definitely knew there would be secrets exposed about the women in the town, but I didn't see the twist coming that inevitably came- and that is the way I like it. If a book can keep me guessing or be good enough to shock me, I count that as a great book. I thought Sally Hepworth did a great job developing these characters. Even though there were several different storylines going on, I felt as if I knew each of them fairly well and sympathized with the drama each woman was dealing with in her life. I recommend this book to fans of literary fiction, and fans of books by authors like Liane Moriarity.