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emilyctrigg 's review for:
The People Next Door
by Keri Beevis
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an advanced audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The people next door is about Ash and Ellie who are thrilled to move into their new house. It may be a fixer upper, but it's just perfect for the couple who are excited to live out in the country where it's quiet. They only have one close neighbor-- a brother and his strange sister. Both seem harmless enough, and Ben is actually quite friendly and helpful. Until he starts to be a little too clingy and his sister Virginia starts to cross from strange to downright creepy.
This book had a lot of twists and turns and I never really knew where the story was going to end up. The author did a great job of keeping me on my toes and throwing me for loops without it being absolutely wild and out of nowhere. I also thoroughly enjoyed the narrator. She did a great job of making the characters sound distinct, and she even does a great Australian accent for Ash.
That being said, I do have a couple complaints and one of those pulled this story down a full star for me.
1. Ellie's best friend Roxanne is the absolute worst best friend you can imagine. She was SO annoying and I found myself wanting her to just implode.
2. We spend quite a lot of time in whiny Ben's head where he's just repeating the same things over and over and over. The book could have probably been a decent bit shorter if Ben's chapters had been shortened or even cut completely.
3. The overall length of the book was too long. The last 30% was absolute breakneck pace, but we had to (almost) suffer through 40% of the book that was painfully slow. The bit in the middle seemed decently paced, but I almost gave up on this book in the first 40% because I was so bored and ready for things to just start happening.
4. SPOILER***** I didn't like the mental health portrayal and how things ended up with Ben/Virginia. People will mental illness are already stigmatized enough and this type of characterization definitely doesn't help. This took the book from a 4 star for me to a 3.
The people next door is about Ash and Ellie who are thrilled to move into their new house. It may be a fixer upper, but it's just perfect for the couple who are excited to live out in the country where it's quiet. They only have one close neighbor-- a brother and his strange sister. Both seem harmless enough, and Ben is actually quite friendly and helpful. Until he starts to be a little too clingy and his sister Virginia starts to cross from strange to downright creepy.
This book had a lot of twists and turns and I never really knew where the story was going to end up. The author did a great job of keeping me on my toes and throwing me for loops without it being absolutely wild and out of nowhere. I also thoroughly enjoyed the narrator. She did a great job of making the characters sound distinct, and she even does a great Australian accent for Ash.
That being said, I do have a couple complaints and one of those pulled this story down a full star for me.
1. Ellie's best friend Roxanne is the absolute worst best friend you can imagine. She was SO annoying and I found myself wanting her to just implode.
2. We spend quite a lot of time in whiny Ben's head where he's just repeating the same things over and over and over. The book could have probably been a decent bit shorter if Ben's chapters had been shortened or even cut completely.
3. The overall length of the book was too long. The last 30% was absolute breakneck pace, but we had to (almost) suffer through 40% of the book that was painfully slow. The bit in the middle seemed decently paced, but I almost gave up on this book in the first 40% because I was so bored and ready for things to just start happening.
4. SPOILER***** I didn't like the mental health portrayal and how things ended up with Ben/Virginia. People will mental illness are already stigmatized enough and this type of characterization definitely doesn't help. This took the book from a 4 star for me to a 3.