The Woman Next Door

by Louise Jensen

Two Neighbours. Two Secrets. One chance at survival.

Running from her past, Meena hopes to find peace in her new home. But her neighbour, Ada, is a mystery. Meena can’t shake the feeling that something about Ada is off.

Ada is delighted to have a new neighbour, but she, too, knows Meena is hiding something.

While Meena and Ada are watching each other, someone is watching them. With danger closing in, they must rely on one another to survive, but when both are lying, trust becomes the deadliest weapon.

What secrets lie next door?

150 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 9, 2026

Reviews

[Erica⭐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two Neighbours. Two Secrets. One chance at survival.

Running from her past, Meena hopes to find peace in her new home. But her neighbour, Ada, is a mystery. Meena can’t shake the feeling that something about Ada is off.

Ada is delighted to have a new neighbour, but she, too, knows Meena is hiding something.

While Meena and Ada are watching each other, someone is watching them. With danger closing in, they must rely on one another to survive, but when both are lying, trust becomes the deadliest weapon.

What secrets lie next door?

[daniela weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

mysterious and very surprising:
this story begins conventionally
but when the focus changes it
ends up revealing something
new and entirely different. ♡

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is how you write a short story! In true Louise Jensen style I was hooked from the prologue. The author keeps the suspense up all the way through with a very good twist at the end.
I loved the authors note at the beginning - really lovely

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short quick read with some very short chapters, I really enjoyed it.

[Maureen Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story which flowed well and made me eager to finish it. Very well written and I was left guessing at how the story would pan out. Might read more of this author’s books.

[Hayley Thorpe · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s been a while since I’ve read a Louise Jensen novel. I instantly pre-ordered it once I saw it was announced. Annoyingly on publication day I read around 30% and then the crazy headaches took over. I had initially expected to finish it in a sitting or two if I was doing on the way to and from work or something.

Now let me ramble a little. I know a lot of people don’t like short reads. Yet I am the opposite – sometimes these are exactly what you need to get you out of a slump or to introduce you to an author. If you have never read anything by Louise then pick up this absolute treat of a read it’s 75p on Kindle or £1.00 for the paperback edition.

The Woman Next Door sure does pack a punch. If you enjoy short chapters that have you asking questions and wanting more then look no further. I don’t want to share too many of my thoughts as I don’t want to spoil the true essence of the story. The intrigue had me hooked. In having read the story now looking back at the blurb I should have questioned more but that also tells me that Louise penned a very powerful short story.

Meena and Ada are both interesting and incredibly intriguing ladies but it’s not until the later stages of this story that we the reader find out the truth. I don’t want to say too much but I honestly loved getting to know them both. Both ladies ultimately have secrets that have shaped their lives and brought them to now.

Louise has tackled a hard-hitting subject matter with grace and in showing that victims can come out of the situation stronger and much more capable humans.

An incredible short story and as I said if you have never read anything by Louise Jensen this is definitely a good snippet and a starting point of what she can do. Louise has a new full length novel out right now that will most definitely be bumped higher up my list.

[HAYLEY_READS_83 · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great quick read!

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25

[Richard Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's hard to write a great short story and there are very few that get it right. Really enjoyed this and what a great twist at the end. The book is £1 and is in the Quick Reads of 2026. Highly recommended.

[Dorothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook version of this story during reading hour on World Book Night. Very well read by the narrator, and it kept my interest for the two hours it took to finish it. Nice little twist towards the end.

[Vicky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this short story. Although it’s only 139 pages long it kept me gripped throughout. It’s a real page turner and for such a short story it’s told in such a brilliant way. There is a twist at the end which I didn’t see coming. Overall a great read that I highly recommend.

[Stephanie Would · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite like these quick read books. I read a couple last year and picked up The Woman Next Door by Louise Jensen mainly because I needed to spend £20 on Amazon for same day delivery.

Don’t judge me. We’ve all been emotionally blackmailed by the checkout basket.

So, the set up: two women, two secrets… whose is worse?

Well, you’ll have to read it to find out because it’s a super quick one and I’m not about to spill the beans and have you lot shouting, “Cheers, now I know the plot.” 😂

I liked that it was told from both Meena and Ada’s perspectives, which kept it ticking along nicely. The chapters are basically about three paragraphs long though, with a new one every other page, which annoyed me more than it probably should have.

Clearly, that’s a me problem. Thoughts and prayers welcome.

Overall, it was decent, easy to get through, and did what it needed to do without making me question my entire existence.

Solid 3 stars ⭐⭐⭐
A good little “I need something quick before I accidentally scroll TikTok for four hours” read.

[Karin Baxter · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the first 50-60% of this novella, I was convinced it would be a 2.5 stars at best; but the latter half changed my position on it (as there were a couple of twists I was caught off guard by).

Overall, this was a well written thriller with good character development and suspense built throughout. However - and this is definitely a spoiler -



I'm SO sick of stories about horrible men who get off on abusing women. I know and understand that the reason there are so many stories about it is because of how prevalent an issue this is in society. But that doesn't make it any less sickening to read about.

[Lindatugby81 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two neighbours .Two secrets . One Chance at survival.

Running from her past Meena hopes to find peace in her new home. But her neighbour, Ada , is a mystery. Meena can’t shake the feeling that something about Ada is off.

Ada is delighted to have a new neighbour, but she , too, knows Meena is hiding something.

While Meena and Ada are watching each other , someone is watching them. Both women are keeping secrets , but with danger closing in, they must trust one another to survive.

What Secrets lie next door ?

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75⭐s
I've been struggling to concentrate on reading lately so decided to try some of these Quick Reads. This didn't grab my attention at first but I persevered and I'm glad I did.
The short chapters make it easily accessible and I enjoyed the switching between POVs.
An interesting little thriller with great twists.

[Nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to this on World Book Night as it was one of the new Reading Agency Quick Reads and available on Spotify.

There are some good red herrings and a twist I absolutely didn't see coming. I did find one moment involving leaving a mobile phone out of reach a bit frustrating and unlikely but that's my only real complaint. Overall well worth two hours of your time if you enjoy thrillers.

[Elizabeth Tolmie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hadn’t realised this was a short read so was very surprised when we it went from introducing the main characters to the main action so quickly. However, it still managed to take a slight turn I wasn’t expecting which is expressive in such a short story. I still enjoyed it.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an interesting quick read and an author I had not read before. I guessed very quickly why Meena was there, however there was a twist at the end for Ada’s character that I hadn’t seen coming. Overall a good short read.

[Elaine M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this, had a lot of atmosphere & was a good story.

[Kim Russell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predictable

I expo more from Louise Jensen. The plot was predictable, the short chapters jarring, and the editing poor. But it was short and an easy read.

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK

[Christine Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent quick read. Story is well written. I would recommend this book

[MRS S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

I really enjoyed this book as I have all Louises books. Keep writing I love the way you keep me wanting to read more.

[Trudie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meena moves into a cottage in the middle of nowhere, there is a cottage next door however where a lady called Ada lives. Meena has a secret but so it seems does Ada. This is an excellent quick read.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice easy read with a great twist I didn't see coming.

[Leigh (Ghost Gia) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Kath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great short story, thrilling, with twists n turns that keep you interested. Thoroughly enjoyed and will read more from this author

[Stacey Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my library book of the week, this quick read was so much better than the last and I was invested the whole time. Nice short book for my reading goal ❤️

[Chloe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great short story loved it but I love her books

[Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first short story/quick read I have read and I did it in one day.

A real page turner.