The Guest House: Silicon Valley Series, Book 2

Silicon Valley #2

by Bonnie Traymore

He holds out his business card, and she plucks it from his fingers without touching them. “Hope to see you around, Allie Dawson,” he says. That was over a month ago. It seemed too good to be true, but Allie told herself to ignore the nagging feeling in her gut. That was her first mistake. She saw Laura Foster’s email welcoming her into a cohort of grant recipients, Allie literally jumped for joy. She was headed to Silicon Valley with a chance to bring her innovative product to market. She’s deaf with a cochlear implant, and she’s developed a screen that can clip onto eyeglasses and caption speech in real time.

But she had no idea how tight the rental market would be, or how cutthroat the competition is for everything from housing to venture capital. So, after a futile search to find a short-term apartment she could afford, she rented a guest house from a chummy real estate agent who approached her at a coffee shop.But it’s clear now that she should have trusted her instincts. Because there’s something off about her landlord. And his moody wife. And the cryptic Hungarian guy renting his master suite. Are they after her technology?

She knows what it feels like to see her life flash before her eyes, and she doesn't need that kind of stress right now.

So why is she still living there? And has she already seen too much?

Genres: Thriller, Fiction

Audible Audio

Published August 7, 2024

Reviews

[B · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried my best to read this but had a difficult time following the different characters. I did not read the first book in the series and may have been able to appreciate this more if I had. This book just wasn't for me overall.

I received a digital ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Kay Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Allie was a great and unique character I so enjoyed reading. This story was riveting, and I couldn't put this down. I will be looking for more from this author, including the first book in this series.

[Veronica P · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first read from Bonnie Traymore and it certainly will not be my last. Seeing the dueling perspectives of both Laura and Allie were incredible. I actually felt my heart race when Allie's was racing in the book. I would love to see a sequel to this if it were to go that way because there is so much family dynamic to unpack for Laura. As for Allie, her representation for the D/deaf or hard of hearing community was fantastic. Bonnie Traymore spoke from personal experience on the matter and really did a great job explaining things in detail. The Guest House was very easy to follow as I can get lost within a Mystery/Thriller and the explanations, but throughout the entire novel that I binged in one day, I felt involved, invested, and thoroughly entertained. I give this an EASY 4 stars. I think it wrapped up a bit too perfectly for me to give it a 5 stars, but again, this book is for every Mystery/Thriller reader and should absolutely be on their bookshelf.

Wonderful thank you to Netgalley for this advanced copy!

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

I missed Book 1 - with this being my first read by Bonnie Traymore - I will be checking into Book 1! I enjoyed the plot - a few storylines going on to keep track of - sometimes I can get a bit ‘lost’ if too many characters - but I found it easy to follow without backtracking. Included lovely imagery that paints the scene - and helps to take in the feeling of the moment. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced opportunity!

[Stephanie Farmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up. The premise of this book was a cool one- I just don’t think it was done correctly. The pacing of the plot line was very strange. Allie just seemed to be a girl in a lot of unfortunately odd situations for most of the story. The book seemed to end 20 pages before it actually ended. There were also far too many loose ends like the Tabernakys and Barnat. Overall- the crumbs kept me turning the pages, but it missed the mark.

[Shawna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story was extra special for me, as it was primarily set in the same area where I grew up!

Second in a series, but new to me - a very enjoyable novel. These characters were well developed and I could see them fitting right into the culture of the bay area. Allie is an entrepreneur, with a new product idea in the field of technology and assistive devices, and is connected with Laura who becomes a mentor and helps female entrepreneurs get started. There are some seriously complicated family dynamics for Laura.

Allie comes across as a wide eyed Midwesterner, new to the intense competitiveness of Silicon Valley. It was fascinating to learn more about how she handles hear hearing impairment, with the help of technology.

This story had a number of plot twists, and I didn't see the end coming, although I had some suspicions in that direction. As soon as I thought I had things worked out, something threw me off the path. Definitely a page turner, and extra fun for those that have ties to the San Francisco Peninsula.

Thanks to NetGalley, Pathways Publishing and Bonnie Traymore for the ARC copy.

[sadie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC!

This is a thriller novel, told in a dual pov. It’s second in the series but can be read as a standalone! (I have not read the first book.)

Laura wants to help women entrepreneurs and to do so she gave out grants to different women. In addition to working, she is also a new mom- who has suffered traumatically over the last year. While trying to figure out her own life, she also is very supportive of Allie.

Allie, one of the grant recipients, is deaf, and working to create a device for the D/deaf community. She randomly meets a man who offers to rent out his guest house to her and although Allie is weary of him, she doesn’t have many housing options. She accepts the house and learns that he has another entrepreneur renting from him. Strange things start happening and Allie begins questioning those she lives with. Are they after her technology?

The story was good and I also really enjoyed the characters! I loved the representation of the deaf community.

The reason I gave 3 stars is because I like my thrillers to keep me on the edge of my seat. Although the story was good, the thrilling aspect wasn’t there for me.

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. I was hooked from the beginning and didn’t want it to end, I was enjoying it so much. The dual pov made it even more fast paced. Both Allie and Laura were well developed and likable characters.

Allie is deaf, and represented really well and I loved reading from her perspective. Allie is launching a product where a screen can be inserted into any eyeglasses and can translate in multiple languages that appear as captions through that screen. She’s really inspiring the way she never gives up no matter what obstacle she is facing.

There were twists and turns, suspense and everything I want in a thriller. I wish I knew about book one before reading, but it didn’t take away from the book at all. I will be reading more from Bonnie Traymore starting with the book I missed.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Bonnie Traymore for this ARC

[Calsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first read by author Bonnie Traymore. I was unaware this was story two in a series until just now, so you don’t need to have read the first to enjoy the second.

New in town digital entrepreneur Allie heads to the valley to get her captioning device off the ground. I love that Traymore utilized a character with hearing limitations and used this to build her storyline. Hopping from two different perspectives, Allie and her mentor Laura, you learn the complicated pasts of both main characters and watch the two begin to collide and intermingle.

This was a quick and easy read for me. As a reader who loves a psychological thriller it’s sometimes easy to see through the plots, but this story had me guessing for the most part until the end. Just the right level of spooky for me without the blood and gore that some authors choose to use. Would definitely recommend.

[Brenda Moser · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well written psychological thriller with strong characters and an intriguing storyline. The author does a great job developing the story and pulled me in with all the suspense, lies and twists and turns and moves the story fluidly with her detailed and descriptive scenes, delivering a terrific read.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and are freely given.

[Nanette Fandino-Diaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story was a formulaic thriller that was well-written with a few mandatory twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. The story starts off slow and seems to drag on at the end even after the main storyline is finished. Allie's character was well-developed. There was particular attention paid to getting her disability described authentically.

This is a standalone novel and I did not feel like I was missing something because I did not read the first book.

[Kirsty Hoggons · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book from NetGalley.

This story is a very slow read. I'm 30% in and barely anything has happened. I appreciate a good amount of detail but I feel like there's nothing gripping and really making me want to come back to the book.

Allie mentions Barnat's language problems more than once but he is living and working in the States and when he speaks English it appears to be decent, so it's weird that this is an issue.

Overall this book was okay but I feel like the end part, with Willa, could have been so much more dramatic considering it was nearing the end of the book and pieced things together. Also, the bit about Barnat working for Interpol was a bit random, real or not. Who was he really and what was he doing?

[cottonblossom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the book. Loved the story plot and twists. Approachable characters, realistic situations. Some descriptions or story „fillers” were tiny bit too long, but in overall - very good book and I’d read more by the author. Thank you, great job!

[Anissa Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm rating the guest house 4 stars. The characters were a little hard to tie together at first, this might be because I didn't read the first book in this series, but towards the ending everything tied together nicely! And that ending was INCREDIBLE, such a good cliffhanger. I'm going to read the first book now and hoping for a third in the series!

[Lena · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I could do half stars I would give this a 2.5. It was entertaining but nothing special, I read a lot of thrillers and this was pretty run-of-the-mill. It's an easy read so I'd recommend it if you have some time to kill!

I received a digital ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Nik.The.Nerd · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this book! While it had plenty of twists and kept me guessing all the way through it, I really wouldn't call it a thriller. The writing just lacked "excitement" and I felt a little bored even though I was interested in how it was going to end. Overall I decided to rate it 3 stars, because it held my attention enough to want to know how it ended. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

[T.G. Wolff · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Guest House is psychological thriller. Allie Dawson is on the ride of a lifetime. Her brainchild for a voice-to-caption product has received preliminary funding. But moving from Milwaukee to Silicon Valley has brought more than the expected challenges of getting a new product to market. She’s moved into a guest house where the rent was too good to be true. That should have been the first clue.

Bottom line: The Guest House is for you if you like female-centric stories where thrill and mystery are mechanisms for character growth.

The strengths of the story are also the most unique aspects. Our hero, Allie Dawson is deaf. She uses a cochlear implant that enables her to hear. Without it, she hears nothing. Allie’s deafness is presented in a way that we live it as an ordinary part of her life-which it is-similar to if she had to put in contacts each morning. I especially liked this because it felt natural. It was an important thing for us to understand, especially as to how it affects how Allie communicates, but it isn’t the most important thing to know about Allie. The most important thing is that she is courageous, willing to walk away from her comfortable life to chase a dream.

That leads us into the second strength, navigating the high-stakes and complicated world of the entrepreneur. Allie comes to Silicon Valley with a good idea and a prototype in development. Her job is to find someone to finish the engineering, figure out who can manufacture it, and find a few someones interested in funding all the above. This is not a field that I have seen explored in many stories, giving The Guest House a fresh feel.

Traymore uses a staccato storytelling style that makes you feel as if the character is reporting on their day to you. Take this example from Chapter two: “I’m also hungry and hot. But I’m on a tight schedule, so although I’d like to chill for a while, I need to keep going. I locate the restroom and, thankfully, there’s no line. When I come out, I rush up to the counter to look for my drink order. I pick up a few cups that could be mine and examine them, but my latte’s not ready yet. I let out a long sigh and glance at my watch.”

The Guest House is shown as a psychological thriller on the cover and listed as a techno-thriller on Amazon. The book meets most of the standards for a psychological thriller with the tension coming from mental stressors rather than physical. Overall, I found the tension to be mild as it generated more of a creepy feeling than nail-biting. This can be positive or negative, depending on a reader’s thrill-scale preference.

I had to look up techno-thriller, which is a subgenre where a technology is a dominant part of the story. I do not find this to be a good description. While Allie is trying to bring a technology to market, by her own admission, she doesn’t understand that part. Her engineer brother is working on it away from the story, as is the grad student she hired. While the technology concept is what gets Allie to Silicon Valley, the tech itself is not central to the story.

Overall, I felt The Guest House did not fit well within one genre category but was a combination of women’s fiction, thriller, and mystery. Women’s fiction was most dominant genre to me as the story wove growth of the alternating narrators Allie Dawson and Laura Foster. Allie’s part of the story did carry the thriller element, as she becomes suspicious of her landlords and their other renter. Laura’s part had a mystery feel as she focused on the potential role her stepson played in a supposedly natural death.

The logic of Allie’s action is strong. I did end up with some questions on the resolution of her storyline. The logic of Laura’s action is less clear, but it seems it was rooted in the first story. The Guest House is the 2nd book in the Silicon Valley Series. I would highly recommend reading the first book, The Stepfamily, first. The reason is this new book continues the story of the Foster family some months after the end of first. While there is a connection between Laura and Allie – Laura’s company is providing Allie’s initial funding – the stories are largely independent. Not having read the first one, I kept waiting for the two to intertwine. And so, to get maximum enjoyment out of The Guest House, I recommend starting with The Stepfamily for context and background.

Overall, The Guest House was an easy read. Both Allie and Laura were likeable and easy to cheer for. This is a great book for readers who enjoy character driven stories.

[Cath · Rating 4 out of 5]

The main character, Allie Dawson, has moved to Silicon Valley as part of a group of women given grants by Laura Foster, to get their products out there hopefully.
Her product is very personal and is an aid to other deaf people, allowing them to receive text on a screen they can attach to their glasses, as someone speaks to them, and it will also translate different languages in real time. She became deaf at age two after an illness and her parents had a cochlear implant put in whilst she as young, to give her the best chance as she grew up. Her brother is the engineering whizz who has built her protype and she is thinking of hiring someone to help with the programming end, to speed up the text flow. She is looking for investment to get her device out there before some of her competitors, and Laura helps the group with sessions to connect them to people they need to do this and checking on their progress. Allie’s main problem has been trying to find somewhere cheap enough to live whilst she is here. A chance encounter with a real estate agent in a coffee shop, sees her offered the chance to rent his pool house. She has to think about it for a few days, wondering if it was too good to be true, and also to give herself time to check out his background. She finally rents the pool house and there is also a Hungarian man renting part of the house. Her new landlord is a bit odd, but his wife is cold, and hardly even acknowledges her!

When Allie sleeps, she is totally vulnerable, as she takes her implant processor off. Her landlord invites her to a dinner straight after she moves in, with a friend of his who is also a venture capitalist. She loves talking about her device but is warned not to speak about it so much by the other lodger, saying it isn’t safe in this town, as someone could steal her idea out from under her! But something wakes her one night and she walks to the window and sees her landlord walking past dragging a large bag, then hears the voice of a woman, but she can’t tell if it is her landlady or not. She thinks he might have noticed her and if it was something dodgy happening, she could be in danger. The next day, her landlord mentions their dog died unexpectedly and he put them in the shed, out of his wife’s sight, since she was so upset. The venture capitalist from the dinner turns up missing, then found dead soon after, giving her more reasons to want to leave! Her instincts were telling her that something was wrong and so she raises her worries to Laura, who soon gets her accommodated with her stepdaughter Lydia, who is busy preparing for her wedding. Laura married Peter, whose first wife died and brought up his kids, but it was the sudden appearance of a daughter Peter never even knew about, that changed Laura’s life completely just a year ago. This person came to their home and tried to kill Laura, and it was only Lydia arriving at the right time and shooting her, that saved Laura from being killed. This event had led to Laura wanting to help young women entrepreneurs and so set up her foundation. Laura has been left wondering if she can really trust her husband or either of her step kids after a that has happened, and she hires a P.I. to look into matters.

There is lots going on in the background of the story and a few shady things happening between certain characters that add to the intrigue. Trust is hard, and certain odd moments make it harder to come by, as danger follows Allie. Twists and turns make it harder to identify the real killer and clear up questions about the past. The killer is certainly not the person I would have first thought and even the other lodger brought a surprise to the tale. I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout, and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.

[Jacqui · Rating 3 out of 5]

Allie Dawson has been offered an amazing opportunity by Laura Foster and is keen on bringing her entrepreneurial concept to life. Allie lost her hearing at a young age, and together with her brother and a partner, has created a screen that clips onto eyeglasses and captions speech in real-time.

But life in Silicon Valley is expensive and Allie is struggling to find a place to stay. When a gentleman named Mike, claiming to be in real estate, approaches her at Starbucks and offers her a rental in his guest house, she is initially sceptical. But beggars can’t be choosers so Allie takes a chance. Initially, Allie is happy, but when she sees him dragging something across the lawn in the middle of the night, she has questions.

And, adding to her questions is the mysterious Hungarian Barnat, who also has a place at the guest house. After meeting a potential investor, Allie is over the moon about the future. But things take an odd turn when she realises that some people will do anything to get their hands on the newest idea.

I read the previous book in the series, which helped to understand some of the characters’ choices in this one as it continues where the previous one ended. However, there were directions some plot lines went in that didn’t seem necessary. For example: why the secret/angry looks from Susan and Willa?

I loved Allie’s concept and her portrayal as D/deaf and to be let into how she experiences the world was very interesting. Lots of things hearing people take for granted are highlighted here.

Laura has grown in this one and I liked the fact that she decided to take care of herself. But did Peter’s story have to go in that direction in order to get the closure she needed on her decision?

Shep was my favourite in the last book and I’m glad his story took a good turn in this one.

I think there were too many leaps to just “accept” in this. For Mike to invite Allie to stay and make her pay for three months meant he knew of the viability of her concept, otherwise what he was up to versus the timeframe is a waste. Barnat’s end story almost felt like a plaster on a plot hole. I also found Lydia’s fantasy oddly disturbing and hinted at something more maybe?

Again, I wouldn’t call this a psychological thriller but more of a suspense. However, the editing was great and the story kept me going. It does end with questions and seems to have been left open somewhat again. Is there another planned in the series? It is an enjoyable read but leaves you with questions and a feeling like it wasn’t quite finished off. I don’t mean things tied up with a bow, I mean loose tangents.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for a chance to review the book.

[Indu · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5⭐
Spice Rating - NIL/5🌶️

I started this book with such high hopes. But the ending, unfortunately, let me down .

It starts with Allie who moves into a rented home in Silicon Valley for R&D as well as finding Venture Capitalists to take on her project. Allie is "deaf with cochlear implant" and the book follows her experiences as she moves into a rental guest house.

First up, this book was easy to read and keep up with. Surprisingly, this is one of the few thrillers in which the protagonist is cautious, careful and does not make rash and foolish decisions. This book provided a good insight into Silicon Valley, Venture Capital, cutthroat competition and technology, corporate and criminal espionage. I loved the author's writing style as well. I enjoyed the book up to the 45% mark, things were moving along albeit slowly.

After that though, the story gets stagnant and draggy for a bit. I was very bummed to find that other than a couple of things, nothing creepy even happens to Allie in the house! What I also found to be a bit odd were that the transition between scenes and time skips seem to have a little hitch, they were not smooth. At 42%, Allie and Laura make a calculated guess as to what could be the reason Mike and Susan were behaving very oddly and that was exactly the reason revealed in the end. The first twist that came at 75% was very hurried, rushed and lacklustre. They did not even give us a concrete motive or reason for whatever happened, rather threw around more speculations. That was very frustrating. Also, there is no closure on Mike, Susan and Bernat?! The characters all seemed very 2D. They were written well but sounded mechanical. Yet, the story, premise were all very interesting.
The second twist was surprising and came out of left field.

All that being said, I find the author's writing style perfect for the kind of thrillers I enjoy and will definitely be reading more by Bonnie Traymore.

Overall, a good thriller that will have you up all night reading another chapter.
Pick it up if you want something quick, involving crime, espionage and smart Silicon Valley folks battling it out for their lives.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Thank you to Netgalley, the Author and the Publisher for providing a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[pawsreadrepeat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you Bonnie Traymore and Partners In Crime Tours. I'm excited to be a part of this tour.

The Guest House, Silicone Valley Series Book 2, a stand-alone sequel to the bestselling book The Stepfamily. In The Guest House, we meet the main character, Allie Dawson. Allie is deaf with a cochlear implant and has developed a screen that can clip onto eyeglasses and captions speech in real time. When she receives a letter from Laura Foster welcoming her into a cohort of grant recipients, Allie is over the moon excited! This is her chance to bring her innovative product to the market. Not truly knowing how tight the rental market is, she eventually settles on renting a guest house from a chummy real estate agent who approached her at the coffee shop.

Upon relocating, Allie quickly learns how cutthroat competition is for everything from housing to venture capital. Soon she also begins to suspect something about her landlord and his moody wife isn’t right. And what is with the Hungarian guy renting the master suite? As she wonders if perhaps this deal is too good to be true, she regrets not trusting her instinct.

With only herself to trust, Allie must figure out who to trust to get her product to market. Will she do this in time?

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are well developed and presented with flaws and all. The details bring the characters to life. The author does an excellent job of building suspense while throwing in twist after twist. At the beginning of the book, Allie is an innocent Midwestern person full of hope and naïve to the intensity of Silicon Valley. The juxtaposition Allie faces of being deaf in a toxic culture was fascinating and kept me engaged while rooting for Allie all the way! Her tenacity to preserve especially in this environment was inspiring.

What I liked most about this story is the deaf protagonist. Having worked with the deaf community in my younger years, I liked being immersed in deaf culture as it brought back many fond memories. Additionally, this dimension is fresh and brought a deeper dimension to the book. I’d love to see more deaf main characters in the books I read.

I highly recommend this book to all psychological thriller readers. This book has it all – danger, greed, and innovation! I’m anxiously awaiting book 3 and I can’t wait to see what direction this series takes.

[Whitney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Initially, I was positive about starting this book. I had just finished the prequel, The Stepfamily and I'm glad I read that before starting this one. The Guest House picks up where The Stepfamily left off and I was excited to see how these characters would further develop. Laura, the protagonist of The Stepfamily, continues her journey in the world of Silicon Valley. We also meet a new protagonist, Allie, a deaf inventor with promising cochlear implant technology, who brings a fresh perspective to the narrative.

I see where Traymore attempted to incorporate diversity in this cast of characters. Allie's struggles with navigating the tech industry are interesting. However, I found the characters lacked depth which would have allowed me to connect with them emotionally.

This is particularly evident with the subplot involving Allie's sudden romance, which feels rushed and detracts from the main narrative. It was an unnecessary detour that could have been used to further develop Allie's journey and her internal conflicts.
The antagonists lacked nuance with predictable twists. I wish there were more complex stakes and conflicts for an exciting thriller. In fact, I would catagorize this as more of a suspense than a psychological thriller.

Despite these shortcomings, "The Guest House" offers glimpses of its potential. The themes of innovation and overcoming personal challenges resonate, and Allie's journey, while underdeveloped, presents a unique perspective. With deeper character development, more nuanced antagonists, and a tighter focus on core themes, the novel could have truly captivated its audience.

Overall, "The Guest House" offers a familiar setting and intriguing themes, but falls short of fully realizing its potential. By diving deeper into its characters' motivations and conflicts, and refining the plot's focus, the story could have delivered a more impactful and engaging experience.

[Kortni Driver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the author and Net Galley for providing me with an e-arc of book #2 in the Silicon Valley series.

Innovation, greed, and danger collide in 'The Guest House', a standalone sequel to Bonnie Traymore's 'The Stepfamily'.

When Allie moves to Silicon Valley to pursue funding for a device she's created to help the D/deaf community, she quickly realizes that Silicon Valley is a cut-throat place to be, especially when you're new in town. With a little help from a familiar face, Laura Foster - our FMC from book #1 in the Silicon Valley series, Allie seems to be on her way to making her device a reality. That is, until she moves into the guest house on a property owned by the Silicon Valley real estate agent she met at Starbucks. Once she's settled into the guest house, Allie quickly realizes that something is off with her new landlords. Is it Mike, the real estate agent? His wife Susan? Or is it Barnat, the other young entrepreneur that's living on the property?

'The Guest House' is a multi-POV psychological thriller with twists, turns, and a little bit of romance. Like the first book, I like that the author doesn't shy away from complicated family dynamics. Unlike book #1, 'The Stepfamily', all POV's in this book are first-person, which I love!

With twists I didn’t see coming, the entertaining who-done-it style mystery, and the unexpected romantic subplot between Allie and her boyfriend, this book was such a fun read!

I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more from the author! I would recommend 'The Guest House' to anyone looking for a fast-paced psychological thriller set in the tech world.

If you're not looking to get into a series, please note that while this book is technically book #2 in the Silicon Valley series, it can be read as a standalone. However, if you struggle with multi-storyline plots that include a variety of characters, reading 'The Stepfamily' first may help.

[Texas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ms. Traymore writes interesting and intriguing stories that are hard to put down. There is always more to her stories with immersing twists. Source: BookSprout.

The Guest House - Another entertaining, interesting, and intriguing story filled with good characters and immersing story lines that are believable making the book hard to put down. TGH picks up after The Stepfamily ends. There is a lot of easy to understand technical information about hearing aids devices for the D/deaf population as well as the difficulties with communication faced by the D/deaf. 4*

Killer Motives - One of those books that must be finished before putting it down. Interesting story lines with a variety of characters with secrets, and then some. Good pacing kept the pages flying with no vulgar language or sex but plenty of intrigue and happenings. Well written. 4*

Little Loose Ends - Continues about seven months after Killer Motives ends. Their past catches up with the Mancusios. There are plenty of twists, players and intrigue as they fight for their family's safety. Well written story lines made this another hard to put down book. 4*

The Stepfamily - Definitely one of the better books I have read lately. Interesting with good story lines. Every time there appears to be an end, there's more and a different story to add to the mess. Many secrets come to light and not all are favorable. Only thing I did not care for was the nose scratching at the end. The scratcher was smarter than that but that story line needed closing, poorly done. 4*

Head Case - I enjoy reading books by Ms. Traymore. Well written page turners that hold my interest and have me thinking while I'm immersed in the story. Good characters, good story lines, nice romances all equal to an entertaining read. Two victims accepted their fates in the same way, only flaw in the story. 4*

[Sandra M. Dethlefsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allie Dawson received a grant to join a group in Silicon Valley where she had the opportunity to launch her product onto the marketplace. Allie was born deaf and had a cochlear implant. She developed a screen that can clip onto eyeglasses and caption speech in real time to make it easier for those with the implant to communicate.
When Allie reached town she was faced with a cutthroat rental market. While shopping in a supermarket she was approached by a man who started a conversation with her. He guessed she was new to town and when she told him she was looking for a rental he offered to rent her his guest house. Reluctantly, she agreed. Little did she know the sequence of events that would follow.
After moving in she became disturbed by the strange behavior of her landlord and his wife. Then she discovered they had bugged the house. Were they after the details of her technology. This was Silicon Valley where nothing was safe. She quickly moved to the house of a friend in town but her life was still in danger. Someone was after her.
I was hooked from the very first page. The twists and turns and spine-tingling events that occurred left me with a book I couldn’t put down until I finished it.
I would like to add that the author has done a great service to those who live with cochlear implants. Her description of Allie’s everyday life in coping with and managing her deafness is beautifully written. I was happy to see there is a Silicon Valley Series Book One which I am anxious to read.

[Gabby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book in the series about Laura a Silicon Valley entrepreneur who leads a team of young women trying to create new products. I wasn’t aware this was the second book, but it can be read as a standalone.

The book starts off strong. Allie, a rising star, creating technology for the dead moves into a new guest house. Things take a turn for the worst right away, from the bizarre landlords to a creepy tenant also staying there. I was hooked the first half trying to make out where her story was going because it was very suspenseful.

Laura has another set of issues with her family and she is weary of trusting anyone. She is trying to help Allie settle her situation but her family keeps getting closer and closer to Allie and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

I loved how the deaf community was represented. The author mentioned her daughter had cochlear implants and it was a big part of the story. I thought the ending finished several chapters too early. A lot of unanswered questions and a little too wrapped up. Like some characters just completely disappeared. It needed about 30-35 more pages to round it out. The last paragraph leaves a major cliffhanger though.

Overall it was an entertaining read but I wish the end was better. I was left wanting more. It’s a quick, entertaining read.

[Shy Gawerecki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook Review:

This was another good psychological thriller from Bonnie Traymore. This was my second book from her and from the same series but after this I feel I can safely say I wouldn’t mind venturing out to other books of hers, outside this series. Especially if she uses this amazing narrator again. I loved how this story alternates between two main points of view and not only did the narrator give them two very distinctly different tones, but she manages to give many of the other characters different tones as well. I always appreciate that in a performer. I enjoyed the pacing of the story even as it shifted back and forth between points of view. I did wish we had a bit more concrete resolution on a few things, but just like I feel more things got answered here in book two that were left open in book one, maybe there will be a book three to do the same. I found myself surprised by certain turns of events, but I enjoy being surprised in my books. I especially liked that the author wrote a character like Allie who experiences the world differently than I do. I don’t know much about that community, but I always appreciate an opportunity to learn more, even through works of fiction. I really enjoyed this story overall and would definitely recommend it to other psychological thriller fans.

[Shauntelle (myglamorousreads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my second book by this author, and I am definitely a fan. I loved that Traymore wrote a book with a main character that is part of the D/deaf or hard of hearing community and wears a cochlear implant. I loved the premise of this book. It was narrated from two different POVs - Laura (who was my fave in the 1st book) and Allie. I read this suspenseful book in one sitting, and it did not disappoint. As someone that reads a ton of thrillers every year, I can say that I didn’t guess right on this one.

We see Laura come into her own from the 1st book, and I loved that she stood up for herself and followed her heart. She found her voice in this book, and I enjoyed watching her develop. I also loved Allie. It was great getting to know her in this book. Traymore did a great job with character development in this novel.

The suspense was at an all time high and I devoured this book in a few hours. The twists were twisting in this one! I was invested and very entertained while reading this. Traymore did a great job weaving a tale that was gripping while also educating me on the D/deaf or hard of hearing community.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

[Brenda Gibbons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome Book! Audiobook Review 🎧
This 2nd book in the series captured my attention right from the start.  I listened to this first book when it came out so I knew the background of what happened to Laura and her family, which I found helpful.  This book catches you up on that along the way, so you are fine if you didn’t listen to The “Stepfamily” first.  There was a lot of suspense and twists and turns in this book as you had to figure out who were the people to watch out for. It was nice to have the characters from the last book in this book and continue that story, as well as meet Allie and the new characters.  Allie was new in Silicon Valley and looking for a place to stay to work with Laura’s new company with her grant money.  After a short stay at the Guest House, was it really the place for her to live?  What was going on there? I really loved this book and enjoyed keeping up with the characters and am hoping there will be a next one in the series.  I started listening to this series because of Meghan Kelly performing the narration.  She is such a talented narrator and is great with all the different voices and bringing them to life.  She makes the story so great to listen to.

[Katie Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️

I really was enjoying this book up until the “twist.” I liked the premise of a young entrepreneur in Silicon Valley trying to make a product to benefit a community who sometimes struggles to communicate in this world. It was a unique storyline that could have been so much more.

Where this book lost me was when Allie was attacked, randomly, in another random location, for completely unknown reasons. It felt like the attack came out of left field. We had a tiny bit of foreshadowing with Barnat warning her about the potential of her technology being stolen, but otherwise, it literally came out of thin air and felt misplaced. And then to find out who was behind it… what??? And Barnat’s involvement….??? The whole thing was just completely unbelievable.

I also felt that the storyline with Laura and Peter was unnecessary. It just didn’t fit in this book at all.

This book had so much potential, but ultimately fell short for me. The “twist”/ending was rushed, unbelievable, and had way too many loose ends. That said, I generally enjoyed it up until that point and would be willing to give this author another go.