The Stranger Next Door

The completely unputdownable thriller with a jaw-dropping twist

By: Adam Southward

Narrated by: Natalie Pela

Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

When Matt and Imogen move out of the city, they're hoping for a much-needed fresh start. Matt throws himself into his new job, but Imogen struggles to adjust to life in quiet Surrey. She's grateful for the kind welcome from new neighbour Nancy, and they soon become close friends.

So when Nancy makes a shocking accusation, Imogen doesn't know who to trust. This isn't the first time Matt has found himself on the wrong end of a false accusation...but is Nancy hiding secrets of her own?

As simmering tensions threaten to boil over, Imogen is in more danger than she realises. Can she uncover the truth before she loses everything?

An utterly gripping thriller with a jaw-dropping twist, perfect for anyone who loved The Family Upstairs, Here to Stay or An Unwanted Guest.

©2021 Adam Southward (P)2021 Headline Publishing Group Ltd

Critic reviews

"A fascinating and unputdownable thriller with a devious twist." (John Marrs, best-selling author of What Lies Between Us)

"The Stranger Next Door has all the very best ingredients for a perfect thriller! I thoroughly recommend it." (Samantha Hayes, author of The Happy Couple, Date Night and Single Mother)

"Twisty, compelling and incredibly pacy, The Stranger Next Door will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page to the last." (Phoebe Morgan, author of The Doll House and The Girl Next Door)

Spoiler Alert

What a mess of a book. I entitled this review spoiler alert because the author does the spoiling. You know about two chapters in what is going on. Hint: The creepy neighbor keeps feeding her next door neighbor green smoothies that have a bitter taste and the drinker just keeps getting sicker. Oh, also, the creepy neighbor has a daughter who has an ongoing illness that is never revealed, and her symptoms are the same. Could it be ... everyone's favorite bizarre and incredibly rare disorder ... MSBP? So you have supposedly smart and capable characters - the poisonee is a nurse, for godsake - who just don't get it, plus a bunch of plot elements that are held together by ... well, they're not held together. I just skipped chapters to find out how much wasted prose it would take for the aha moment. The frustrating thing is that the writing style is not bad. I'm getting my credit back.

Excellent

Give this book a chance!
It starts off simple enough, a family escaping a scandal after leaving London for picturesque Surrey with their young daughter.
There is tension in the relationship and we aren’t clear as to exactly what had caused this schism.
But as the story develops, as the characters develop, the reader is taken on quite a ride.
A neighbor with motives we can’t quite figure out.
A lovely new home and a fresh start that begins to fall apart almost as soon as they arrive.
Stay with this one, the village is beautifully described and there is a true sense of place established that makes you feel like you are there, descending into this nightmare with this family and this is accentuated by the dual perspectives; the husband and wife at the center of the story see the situation differently almost from the first few pages.
As things progress the reader begins to see that on the fringes and right next door there are some very interesting characters and ultimately a very addictive story to be told.
You find yourself truly rooting for this couple.
There is a certain level of suspension of disbelief required in order to really enjoy this story. Without any spoilers that’s where I’ll leave it.
But I loved this story, didn’t want it to end so quickly, and was quite pleasantly surprised by Adam Southward.
This was the first book of his I’ve ever bought and I’m very pleased that I did.
Definitely worth a credit.
The narration is exceptional by the way, for each character in the story.
I really enjoyed this one.

interesting

Enjoyable story that is easy to follow. Kind of a repeat of many other books but it kept me entertained. The characters were not deep and I will not think of them again.

Dull and Predictable

This was so predictable and unoriginal from beginning to end. Way longer than it should have been. Nothing surprising which made it a struggle to endure.