The Family Next Door
She kept the pram moving constantly otherwise her 8-week-old daughter, Mia cried. Essie wanted to cry too. Today would be the day when it just got to be too much, the day when Essie decided it wasn’t worth it. Essie strolled Mia to the park in her pram where she sat on a bench keeping the pram moving while taking in the scene around her. Essie decided that she wanted some tea, so she walked to the coffee shop, enjoyed two cups of tea and headed home. Essie’s mom was coming up the walk and inquired about Mia’s whereabouts. Yes, Essie had left her at the park. It was a simple statement, nothing extortionary about it, nothing seemed out-of-place until Essie’s mother took charge of the situation.
Luckily Essie was diagnosed with post-partum depression and no harm was done to Mia the day her mother left her in the park. Years have passed, the family has grown and grandmother has now moved next door to the family in this quaint neighborhood.
Everyone seems to know each other in this family-occupied neighborhood yet they are not close friends. Essie would love to have some close friends but nothing has materialized yet. When a single woman moves in across the street, her appearance sends a ripple through the area. Her life brings surprises to the neighborhood which was once calm and tranquil. It seems that many individuals on this street had something hidden in their closet that they wanted to keep locked up but since Isabelle’s appearance, the doors have been swung open and secrets are coming out. It’s funny how one person can affect so many.
I really enjoyed this novel as I felt it was a story that kept building in intensity as the story continued. I loved how there were different stories occurring at different levels of intensity as I read. I had a feeling that something unique was going to transpire in this novel but I didn’t expect what the novel delivered. There were characters that I liked and some that I didn’t but in all, it was a fantastic mix. What a great novel and I’m glad that I read it.
I received a copy of this novel from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.
