Lena is out in the garden one evening, trying to record night-time sounds for her son's music project, when she picks up a heated discussion being had by her neighbours. Lena is convinced they're up to something illegal... and makes it her mission to find out. What could go wrong?!
********
Some of the scenes were TENSE! Like, my heart was racing far too quickly! Claire is so good at creating creepy, tense and chilling moments in her stories and this book was no exception.

I liked the son and the best friend’s characters as well. They were the sensible ones in the story!

I really, REALLY wanted to love this book, but unfortunately it didn’t quite do it for me.

Why? I felt like it was slow to start and we were given too much information. There were also times throughout the book when it felt sluggish.

I found some of the characters quite annoying, especially the main character Lena.

And finally, I felt the storyline was too far-fetched. I just couldn't connect with it like I have with some of Claire’s other books.

This book is still worth the read if you like crime and mysteries. I’ve seen loads of 5-star reviews already and Claire definitely knows how to write a 5-star book, so you might find it’s the perfect read for you!

I would like to thank NetGalley and Claire for the opportunity to read this as an ARC. I am a big fan of Claire’s work and I wish her all the best with the launch of The New Neighbours.

Bits are brilliant and bits aren’t! It was so full of suspense in the beginning , a slow build up, suggestions and hints of what was to come. Then it all happened so quickly, too quickly. A resolution that didn’t quite fit!
I enjoyed it but it was almost too simple(not that I’ve ever managed to write a book) and. my criticism may be unfair?
One to read but not as suspenseful as maybe it could have been.

This book is just lush! It's one of those where you can't resist saying ' just one more chapter' and then Hey Presto you're half way through the whole book. I just couldn't put it down. The tension and pace were perfect. Lena is a character you can't help but shout at to mind her own business because you know no good can come from her nosiness! Every page seems to throw up a new twist or a red herring to trip you up. Claire Douglas has done it again and I hope she has the success she deserves with this book. 5* from me.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars

I was having a bit of a reading slump before this, picking books up but struggling to get through them, none of them were holding my attention. And so I turned to this, knowing full well that it would be exactly what I needed.

This one is very much more of a psychological thriller than a crime one, in my opinion. Are you hearing things, can you trust what you're hearing, who can you trust, is anyone telling the truth? It also looks at family matters, separations, divorces, empty nests, being alone.

You hear the POV of a few characters but Lena is our main one. She's a bit lost, stressed, hurting, and paranoid, but she cares and just wants things to be right, which is why she gets so involved in her suspicions. Then Henry and Marielle, the next door neighbours, are the perfect creations. I won't give them away, but Claire has pitched them so well. They're not angels but nor are they pantomime villains.

Where this book excels is in its layered storytelling. We have the main story going on with Lena and her neighbours, but there's also sub stories going on - missing people, divorces, issues at work. And at first you don't really see how they all fit, but slowly, slowly they get there and you realise how obvious it is, and I think that's very good. To weave multiple narratives together to come to a satisfying conclusion is impressive.

I was a bit on the fence at times. It seems the whole book is based on the main character of Lena thinking something is going on with the neighbours. And all this stems from one broken overheard conversation that doesn't really tell her anything, but then she overthinks it and it grows and grows, until she's obsessed with it. Which to begin with I felt was a bit of a stretch. But by the end, I understood why she did that and it all makes perfect sense, so I'd advise you let go of that question you might have in your mind about it.

Like all good thrillers, I spent my time trying to work it out, guessing bits here and there. One theory of mine was right, another was half right, but then the rest was a real surprise. And given the amount of thrillers I read, I'm always amazed that I can never guess the outcome and it frustrates me.

Claire is always an auto-read for me and this book proves why she will continue to be so. You'd think that after writing so many thrillers that she'd run out of ideas or talent, but it's still there. It's fast paced and I read it in a matter of hours, like I do all her books.

A fabulously written gripping story that was a pleasure to read. I would absolutely recommend this book, it was brilliant

Claire Douglas is one of my go to authors . Lena finds herself with new neighbours. Are they who they seem to? Lena overhears a conversation picked up by Audio equipment. Will Lena put herself in danger to uncover ?

A fast paced page turner that will keep you hooked and guessing.

Woah twists I didn’t see coming and Claire does it once again.

An intriguing plot to keep the reader on the edge of their seat- Lena finds herself embroiled in the mystery of her new neighbours. The book has a

When Lena overhears a suspicious conversation between her new next-door neighbours, she wants to investigate more fully.
Very soon, present events tie up with Lena’s past, when an incident at a hospital caused her to give up her training as a midwife.

Narrated from multiple points-of-view and two timelines. Plenty of red herrings and a couple of twists. Great characters. Another page-turner from Claire Douglas.

A quick and easy read that i finished within a couple of hours. Well paced with a good amount of suspense and tension and a good amount of twists

This was a quick undemand8ng read for me- plenty to like such as relatable characters, teenage son, relationship difficulties, money worries, intriguing new neighbours and a fun best friend.
I was gripped until about the last third of the book when it all started to feel a bit contrived and a bit unlikely. No spoilers, but fir me the ending was ridiculous and didn't match the first part of the book at all which i found very frustrating.

I read 'The New Neighbours' in a weekend, keen to see what the mysterious overheard conversation would lead to and where the twists in the tale would take us. Lena is helping her teenage son record some audio for his media school project; her recording picks up her new posh neighbours discussing something very mysterious and quite possibly illegal.

Lena is intrigued by what she's heard and can't forget about it - she is convinced that her new neighbours aren't as squeaky clean as they first seem . She's quite bored now that her son has grown up and has his own life and she uses her suspicions about the neighbours to fill a gap in her life. In her day job, Lena is an advisor at the Citizens' Advice Bureau. I must say I found her approach to her role very unprofessional and crossed a lot of boundaries, especially when it came to one particular client.

The story is also told from the perspective of one of the new neighbours, giving a back story to how they met and what their lives were like before now. I liked the added depth this gave and the extra understanding of the characters.

Overall this was an entertaining read that I enjoyed once I suspended my disbelief about one or two things! 3.5 rounded up

What a twisty story with so many red herrings. The characters were well described, even if Claire managed to not be totally truthful about them but led the reader to differing views. It was a gripping read and as the reader I was left to feel suspicious over everyone, changing all the way through the story. It is a dark thriller depicting the suburbal life very well, however Lena came across as a slightly thoughtless type of person. She wanted to sort things out but did incredibly stupid things and did not think through her actions ever. Having said that I kept wanting her to stop and act sensiblt but it was not to be. It was a gripping read that kept me needing o stay up late to finish reding so that I knew the ending.

This was a really fast-paced and bingeable read.

This thriller was exactly what I needed in a book - I was instantly hooked when the main character overheard a … questionable … conversation between her new neighbours. I did find the main character a tad irritating at times, I just wanted to shout at her to mind her own flipping business!!!

I was so suspicious of pretty much every character at one point or another throughout the book, I couldn’t guess what was going to happen next and each development throughout the plot kept me so hooked.

The plot twist at the end was definitely a shock for me, I couldn’t have guessed it and didn’t expect it at all.

I would definitely recommend this book if you’re a fan of fast-paced and gripping thrillers, like I am!

Lena and her son Rufus have got new neighbours. A couple in their sixties who seem completely normal. That is until one day, when recording sounds for her son’s college project, Lena overhears the couple discussing something that sounds very suspicious and definitely illegal. Lena can’t leave it alone and as more and more things start to stack up against the couple, Lena is determined to find the truth. Especially when she makes links between the couple and her own past when she was training to be a midwife, before a shocking turn of events completely ruined it for her. But is all of this digging going to put her in grave danger?

Every book I read from Claire Douglas, I think this is my new favourite, and this one was no exception! I was completely gripped by the storyline. I loved how the chapters from different characters both past and present left me unsure of what was truly happening, and that I was able to figure it all out alongside Lena. I wanted to scream at her at some points for putting herself in the path of blatant danger!

Gripping, intriguing, dark and compelling - I read this book so fast because I just wanted to keep on reading and reading until I found out what was going on! Henry and Marielle were some truly dark and dangerous characters. The twists towards the end were fantastic and it was overall just a brilliant book to get your teeth into 🤩

Douglas executed the neighbour next door thriller really well, she is clearly a master of plot twists and it was rather enjoyable reading through the layers upon layers of mystery that she set up. I found the plot remarkably unpredictable which made it all the more satisfying watching the puzzle pieces fit together one by one. I loved how well rounded each character and their development was. It felt at all times that ever character was simultaneously innocent and guilty which I think is a testimony to the complexity and depth to Douglas' writing.

I loved how accurately suburban life was captured in this book. All the details from the mundane middle class small talk to the whole plot taking place on one street was so in character with the world of suburbia. In some ways Lena's character felt boring and classic middle class single mum but I also kind of liked how she wasn't trying to be this larger than life eccentric character she almost blended in to the suburban life as if she was born for it.

Charlie's POV, on the other hand, didn't feel as unique as Lena's. He felt a little like a caricature of a stereotypical music loving dad, who had issues with communication and was out of touch with his emotions. This made him feel really one dimensional and quite predictable because even though he was a 'classic dad' in ways that Lena was a 'classic mum' he didn't behave in particularly exciting ways that contradicted my perspective or assumptions of him as that role whereas Lena did push boundaries and test limits which gave her character more complexity. I felt similarly about Rufus' character, he was a classic moody teen which I didn't have a problem with, but going to his room to spend 'the next few hours, texting' felt insanely realistic. No teen just sits on his phone texting, they're probably watching Youtube simultaneously or speaking on the phone to their friends whilst also playing video games it just felt really stereotypical and once again one dimensional. He also goes to a gig with his friends AND his dad - who does that? Also, when Lena thinks 'it's only eleven and Rufus doesn't have to get up for college tomorrow' I remember thinking huh? Only eleven? I feel like eleven is still a late time for Lena to expecting Rufus to be awake enough for a chat - maybe this is just me but it felt a little out of pocket he's a teenager, not a nocturnal animal.

Couple details nagged me slightly. Firstly, how would Lena know the exact bus times for Rufus? I know this isn't a crazy detail or plot point but it just felt unrealistic that a mum with a million things to do would remember something as insignificant as the bus times of a specific bus stop when she drives everywhere! Also another continuity point, when Lena meets Harry he is described as holding a watering can, which he then proceeds to walk into the house with when welcoming her in, which also feels unrealistic - surely you'd put down the watering can? Another minor detail that felt unrealistic was when Savannah shares with Lena that Artie was her 'paternal great grandfathers name', this felt like a plot point and otherwise quite unrealistic and a specific personal detail to tell someone during your first encounter with them.

I also wasn't crazy about Natalie's POV, it felt the weakest and least thought out of all of the POVS. I found the introduction of her POV abrupt and confusing. It also stole momentum from Lena's POV at times and as a silent character in the plot, I honestly could've done without it. After I finished the book, it was the one thing that I think brought the overall quality of my reading experience down a little as. I felt like her POV, unlike the other characters, was left loose at the end and not resolved properly. Drew and his lost sister also grated on me a little. It felt jarring that Drew's involvement in the plot didn't really contribute much to the overall conclusion and it felt like a red herring for the sake of a plot twist which I didn't really enjoy. Marielle and Henry getting a cat also felt like something that happened to push the plot because neither mentioned a love for cats and the cat kind of randomly appeared there was no scene involving the acquisition of the cat which felt like a pretty big life decision, getting a pet. The introduction of Lena's ex, Oliver, also felt random and could've been set up better. Charlie is the main man in Lena's life and it felt a little rushed that Oliver was then introduced as this important character randomly.

I'm also not sure if it was intentional, but Lena's POV being from first person perspective and Henry's being from third person felt a little clunky to read and also never seemed to make sense. There was no point at which it was revealed why the story was being told from third person for Henry and first person for Lena. There was also a couple times wording slipped me up as either confusing or nonsensical ('I'm all fingers and thumbs' - I didn't like how this read; 'also I wish we'd just rowed' read more like rowing rather than arguing).

Another thing that I found difficult was imagining Marianne and Henry as elderly. There is such a large time jump between Lena's POV in current day and Henry's POV decades before that the whole time I was picturing Marianne and Henry as a middle aged couple and had to remind myself to imagine Henry as a grandfather. I think this is partly due to the structure, the timelines ran next to each other rather than being structured as a whole section of present day and then a part two of 20 years ago so it did feel like when Henry was recalling meeting Marielle for the first time that it didn't occur that long before the present day. There were also no hallmarks or tell-tale signs of Henry and Marielle age, I never would've marked them as approaching seventy from their behaviour or POVs. For instance, a seventy year old restraining a middle age woman just doesn't feel like the most plausible image.

Ultimately a great crime/thriller with wonderful suspense building throughout. The positioning of the POVs was so clever, it created certain illusions and expectations in the plot and throughout the book I had to keep picking my jaw off the floor and saying 'no way!' It covers the theme of family and captures its complexities across a variety of perspectives and situations so there really is something for every crime reader to enjoy in it. If you like plotwist after plotwist, you'll have a hard time putting this book down!

A really good read with a cracking start. Characters are introduced early and - while you know they'll undoubtedly be linked in some way - there's no obvious connection so you're quickly engaged.

Plenty of twists and turns, but nothing ridiculously unbelievable, and a good few "oh, don't do it!" moments for the heroine Lena when you know she might just end up in big trouble!

Douglas reveals her story well and with a good tempo, and her characters are well fleshed-out without the reader being bogged down with detail. Perhaps it's not the most original story, but it's well executed. I also feel there's enough mileage in the characters for another book; it definitely leaves you wondering what they'll all get up to next!

Another excellent book by Claire Douglas, who never disappoints. The story is compelling and I almost finished it in one sitting. I loved the Bristol setting.

This twisty psychological thriller kept me up late finishing it. There are a couple of loose ends, which I always find irritating, but the writing and characters are fabulous. I especially liked the character of Charlie.

The New Neighbours is the latest psychological thriller from the Queen of Twists Claire Douglas, and it is one not to be missed. I was kept awake in the nights lying to myself with "just one more chapter" with this gripping thriller that quickly became one of my favourites.
Lena overhears a worrying conversation between her new neighbours Marielle and Henry, one which sets off a chain of events that makes Lena's present and past collide. Already going through a tough time, Lena can't help but get involved even after everyone's warnings to stay out of it. This dark thriller explores family, dark pasts and intense wants. Can you really trust your new neighbours? How far would they go to get what they want?

Thanks to the publishers and net galley for an advance ecopy in exchange for a review.
This isn’t the first Claire Douglas book I have read and certainly won’t be the last.
The book is well written and very suspenseful with a dark undertone throughout.
We begin by meeting Lena in the present day who meets new neighbours Marielle and Henry. As the book continues we discover all seem to have a past with secrets gradually coming out.
This was a page turner and I really enjoyed reading this thriller. I enjoyed the plot storyline as well as the characters. I will be recommending to others.