Disclosure: Post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn commission. Opinions shared are mine.
The first 2 or 3 chapters of The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena really drew me in. Those bleary-eyed days as a new parent are long gone for me, but well do I remember the absolute exhaustion and stress. I can imagine making a poor judgment call during those weak moments of trying to figure it all out.
So while I was horrified at (mom) Anne’s actions, I understood them for the most part. As the story continued, though, it became more and more preposterous. If the details of the crime were mentioned once, they were rehashed twenty times…..from each character’s viewpoint. UGH. By the end, I was just grateful that the story was wrapping up. I also wish I’d stopped reading at the end of Chapter 36……just don’t even read Chapter 37.
The Couple Next Door had much potential, but it fell short of being a really good book. None of the characters were likable, except maybe Rasbach because he was the only one who had any common sense. Mostly, it was a frustrating look at a pair of spoiled adults (Anne and Marco) who never really grew up, and the parents (Alice and Richard) who enabled the behavior. What kind of adult turns to their parents for the solution to EVERY SINGLE PROBLEM?! On the whole, this was a book I wish I’d skipped.
Sounded like a good book, I guess it wasn;t according to review though