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Melissa a Hester žijú roky vedľa seba v dobrej štvrti v severnom Londýne. Atraktívna Melissa je vydatá za úspešného lekára s televíznou kariérou, má dospievajúcu dcéru Tilly a navonok vedie spokojný život. Keď bola Tilly malá, bezdetná vdova Hester sa o ňu často starala a s Melissou boli priateľky. Lenže časom ich vzťah ochladol a osamelá Hester zúfalo túži opäť sa stať súčasťou Melissinho života. Keď sa jej naskytne príležitosť susedke pomôcť, okamžite sa jej chopí. No rozhodnutie prijať pomoc od Hester zavedie obidve ženy na desivú a nebezpečnú cestu, ktorá odhalí temné tajomstvá a trhliny v ich starostlivo udržiavanom imidži.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published July 22, 2016
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About the author
Cass Green
5 books358 followersCass Green is the pseudonym of Caroline Green, an award-winning author of fiction for young people. Her first novel, Dark Ride won the Rona Young Adult Book of the Year and the Waverton Good Read Award. Cracks and Hold Your Breath garnered rave reviews and were shortlisted for eleven awards between them. She is the Writer in Residence at East Barnet School and teaches Writing for Children at City University. The Woman Next Door is her first novel for adults.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 501 reviews
July 25, 2016
There's always a worry when you move house due to the fact that your neighbours can really make or break how well you settle into your new home! The term "neighbours from hell" is now a now a well-known phrase, an awful predicament to find yourself in and usually an expensive one to extricate yourself from. But sometimes, the dangers you face can be slightly less obvious!
Told from the points of view of two neighbours, Hester and Melissa, this is a slow burner of a psychological suspense that gradually becomes so gripping that by the end, you're pretty much a nervous wreck. Hester is a lonely older woman, on her own and its obvious that she has become quite bitter about the fact she hasn't been able to have children and therefore grandchildren. Having lost her job in a nursery, she trys to become a permanent fixture in Melissa's family by looking after her daughter but that has stopped now that Tilly is a teenager. She's such a strange and standoffish woman that I did actually feel very sorry for her. She only has her much adored Cavalier king Charles spaniel Bertie (I know!!! I hate it when there are animals involved in these types of books!) for company, but her attitude towards others drives them away and she is a bit of a laughing stock amongst her neighbours. Melissa on the other hand seems to have it all! A gorgeous and famous husband, beautiful home but all is not rosy in The Garden of Eden and her husband's affair and her daughter growing up have sent her spiralling into a depression and to question her role in life.
My feelings about these two women chopped and changed throughout the course of reading this book. I started by disliking Melissa but gradually things from her past start to come to light and I understood a little more about why she acted the way she did. And the same with Hester, my personal favourite type of narrator-an unreliable one!! Half way through I realised that the relationship between Hester and Melissa reminded me of Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller, a favourite book of mine, but things aren't always quite what they seem.
I was drawn to the blurb for this one but after I had started it I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it! All the characters were unlikable and seemed self obsessed and positively vile! But about a third of the way through, I found myself being gradually drawn into the Thelma and Louise style journey that they find themselves on and from that point I couldn't put it down. There are a few shocking twists along the way and the ending was a little unbelievable but perfectly handled.
The Woman Next Door is a compelling and gripping piece of contemporary crime fiction and if this is a debut then I am pretty excited about what is still to come from this author.
I received a copy of this book via netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
Told from the points of view of two neighbours, Hester and Melissa, this is a slow burner of a psychological suspense that gradually becomes so gripping that by the end, you're pretty much a nervous wreck. Hester is a lonely older woman, on her own and its obvious that she has become quite bitter about the fact she hasn't been able to have children and therefore grandchildren. Having lost her job in a nursery, she trys to become a permanent fixture in Melissa's family by looking after her daughter but that has stopped now that Tilly is a teenager. She's such a strange and standoffish woman that I did actually feel very sorry for her. She only has her much adored Cavalier king Charles spaniel Bertie (I know!!! I hate it when there are animals involved in these types of books!) for company, but her attitude towards others drives them away and she is a bit of a laughing stock amongst her neighbours. Melissa on the other hand seems to have it all! A gorgeous and famous husband, beautiful home but all is not rosy in The Garden of Eden and her husband's affair and her daughter growing up have sent her spiralling into a depression and to question her role in life.
My feelings about these two women chopped and changed throughout the course of reading this book. I started by disliking Melissa but gradually things from her past start to come to light and I understood a little more about why she acted the way she did. And the same with Hester, my personal favourite type of narrator-an unreliable one!! Half way through I realised that the relationship between Hester and Melissa reminded me of Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller, a favourite book of mine, but things aren't always quite what they seem.
I was drawn to the blurb for this one but after I had started it I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it! All the characters were unlikable and seemed self obsessed and positively vile! But about a third of the way through, I found myself being gradually drawn into the Thelma and Louise style journey that they find themselves on and from that point I couldn't put it down. There are a few shocking twists along the way and the ending was a little unbelievable but perfectly handled.
The Woman Next Door is a compelling and gripping piece of contemporary crime fiction and if this is a debut then I am pretty excited about what is still to come from this author.
I received a copy of this book via netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
December 28, 2016
The Woman Next Door is about just that..... two women living next to each other with very different lives that have intermingled over the years.
Melissa is a polished, self assured mother with a seemingly outward perfect life. Living next door to Hester; a woman in her sixties; retired, along with her dog and a world apart from Melissa. Over the years Hester has helped out Melissa helping to look after Melissa's daughter when she was a small child. Unfortunately, the overbearing Hester had to ruin things by becoming a little too overbearing for Melissa's tastes and the two women had a fallout........ until one day..... and that's all I can really say about the storyline.
What follows is a detailed continuation of what happens on that fateful day and how the two women are thrown together threw circumstances that neither woman expected. It's a different kind of story with narratives led from both women through alternating chapters which works very well. Melissa and Hester are fascinating characters and you do get a feel of their backgrounds and what brought them to this juncture.
At times the plotline feels a little over the top especially towards the end hence the star rating but all in all I came away having enjoyed it for the most part. Especially Hester and her busy body ways. If only she had better guidance in her younger years! Recommended.
Melissa is a polished, self assured mother with a seemingly outward perfect life. Living next door to Hester; a woman in her sixties; retired, along with her dog and a world apart from Melissa. Over the years Hester has helped out Melissa helping to look after Melissa's daughter when she was a small child. Unfortunately, the overbearing Hester had to ruin things by becoming a little too overbearing for Melissa's tastes and the two women had a fallout........ until one day..... and that's all I can really say about the storyline.
What follows is a detailed continuation of what happens on that fateful day and how the two women are thrown together threw circumstances that neither woman expected. It's a different kind of story with narratives led from both women through alternating chapters which works very well. Melissa and Hester are fascinating characters and you do get a feel of their backgrounds and what brought them to this juncture.
At times the plotline feels a little over the top especially towards the end hence the star rating but all in all I came away having enjoyed it for the most part. Especially Hester and her busy body ways. If only she had better guidance in her younger years! Recommended.
February 9, 2017
Excellent. I loved reading every page. The Woman Next Door is the first book for adults by Cass Green and I hope that Cass Green will write many more books for adults. Crime thriller fans I highly recommend that you read The Woman Next Door. Cass Green is the pseudonym of Carolyn Green an award winning author of fiction for young people. I am so glad that I bought my copy of this first crime fiction for adults. I will most certainly buy another one of her book for adults as soon as Cass Green publishes it.
December 31, 2022
**sigh**
It was an effort to finish this tale...supremely disappointing because the first couple of chapters really drew me in.
The main issue is that the characters are all so horrible, I soon realized I really didn't care what happened to any of them. We have Hester, a 62 yr old widow who is very attached to her dog and is quite possibly a sociopath. She narrates her chapters in first person, which is how I can type, with 99.9% certainty, that she is very annoying and quite mad.
Melissa is Hester's rich, doctor's-wife neighbor; and while her childhood was quite dysfunctional, it wasn't enough to make like her or even feel sorry for her. Her bit is told by third-person, and I still haven't figured out why the two alternating styles were chosen for their chapters.
You're thrown into a hot mess with these two nut jobs pretty quickly into the story. Most of the rest of the book consists of them bitching and moaning about anything and everything. Literally one whole section is dedicated to them driving around the English countryside, crying and acting psycho.
The plot was farcical, but I won't spoil anything. Just imagine the most ridiculous duo of women who have created their own problems bemoaning themselves for about 50 chapters. I don't know why I finished it but I think I had some small hope something amazing would happen.
I actually laughed at parts of this book but realized that probably wasn't the intent of the author, given that this is thrown into the psychological thriller category...which only made me laugh harder.
I don't know how this got so many good ratings, and I don't know to whom on earth I recommend it . There is no substance here, no gratification, no emotional response I could evoke.
oh my god.
Am I turning into Hester?! **
It was an effort to finish this tale...supremely disappointing because the first couple of chapters really drew me in.
The main issue is that the characters are all so horrible, I soon realized I really didn't care what happened to any of them. We have Hester, a 62 yr old widow who is very attached to her dog and is quite possibly a sociopath. She narrates her chapters in first person, which is how I can type, with 99.9% certainty, that she is very annoying and quite mad.
Melissa is Hester's rich, doctor's-wife neighbor; and while her childhood was quite dysfunctional, it wasn't enough to make like her or even feel sorry for her. Her bit is told by third-person, and I still haven't figured out why the two alternating styles were chosen for their chapters.
You're thrown into a hot mess with these two nut jobs pretty quickly into the story. Most of the rest of the book consists of them bitching and moaning about anything and everything. Literally one whole section is dedicated to them driving around the English countryside, crying and acting psycho.
The plot was farcical, but I won't spoil anything. Just imagine the most ridiculous duo of women who have created their own problems bemoaning themselves for about 50 chapters. I don't know why I finished it but I think I had some small hope something amazing would happen.
I actually laughed at parts of this book but realized that probably wasn't the intent of the author, given that this is thrown into the psychological thriller category...which only made me laugh harder.
I don't know how this got so many good ratings, and I don't know to whom on earth I recommend it . There is no substance here, no gratification, no emotional response I could evoke.
oh my god.
Am I turning into Hester?! **
July 17, 2016
Hester and Melissa have lived next door to each other for years. Hester used to look after Melissa's daughter when she was younger and Hester was almost like a grandmother to her. Hester does not have children of her own.nThe women both have dark secrets unknown to anyone.
There is a lot of events happen in this dark twisted phycological thriller. Some pretty obvious and others I never saw coming. It is a well written novel but a little disappointing in the last couple of chapters.
I would like to thank Net Galley, Harper Collins UK Harper Fiction and the author Cass Green for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
There is a lot of events happen in this dark twisted phycological thriller. Some pretty obvious and others I never saw coming. It is a well written novel but a little disappointing in the last couple of chapters.
I would like to thank Net Galley, Harper Collins UK Harper Fiction and the author Cass Green for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
February 22, 2017
Firstly I listened to this book via audible and thought the narrators were wonderful. This story starts off brilliantly with Hester, a 60 something lonely widow who seems to be the definition of a nosey neighbour and Melissa a married mother of one and the glamorous wife of a TV doctor. Each chapter is told through these 2 characters in a slow burning psychological thriller. These 2 neighbours are thrown together in an almost dark comedic scenario when they find themselves with a dead body. Personally I felt that Melissa's past secrets and the guilt she carried could have been much darker and that whole back story was disappointing. I did however thoroughly enjoy Hester's chapters and thought she should have her own book! 3.5 stars.
June 9, 2016
Really impressive debut from Cass Green. A beautifully written and twisted tale based around an unlikely partnership, with one of the most gloriously dark protagonists in the genre. Green is definitely one to watch.
April 18, 2018
This is the story of Melissa, whose facade of a perfect life masks a guilty secret and her neighbour Hester, a lonely and obsessive woman in her sixties and what happens when Melissa's past catches up with her.
I really enjoyed this book, mainly because of the character Hester. She reminds me so much of Vivian in The Night Visitor in her obsession with Melissa and coincidentally she too, has a little dog called Bertie.
At times I thought the story was a little long winded but it was enjoyable nonetheless. The characters were interesting and Hester's ending made me laugh, it was perfect for her.
I really enjoyed this book, mainly because of the character Hester. She reminds me so much of Vivian in The Night Visitor in her obsession with Melissa and coincidentally she too, has a little dog called Bertie.
At times I thought the story was a little long winded but it was enjoyable nonetheless. The characters were interesting and Hester's ending made me laugh, it was perfect for her.
March 27, 2018
A thoroughly enjoyable experience.
Full 4 stars for the way it gripped me from the beginning and didn't let go of me till the end.
And the end was refreshingly different.
There are two women - neighbours.. one is obsessed with the other, who is trying to maintain her distance.
Due to peculiar circumstances the women are thrown together and things start bubbling up.
There' are a few skeletons in the cupboard, a dead body to be disposed off, obligations, innocent children .. and reminiscences of the past.
I would never forget Hester for a long time to come. She is one hell of a lady.
Full 4 stars for the way it gripped me from the beginning and didn't let go of me till the end.
And the end was refreshingly different.
There are two women - neighbours.. one is obsessed with the other, who is trying to maintain her distance.
Due to peculiar circumstances the women are thrown together and things start bubbling up.
There' are a few skeletons in the cupboard, a dead body to be disposed off, obligations, innocent children .. and reminiscences of the past.
I would never forget Hester for a long time to come. She is one hell of a lady.
December 21, 2016
Very good writing but the story just isn't solid. I kept waiting and waiting for something really amazing to happen....but it didn't. The author is a solid writer who needs to work on her endings.
October 14, 2020
Just blah blah blah
Read
July 3, 2016DNF
Hester and Melissa are neighbours,they used to be friends, at least that's what Hester thought but Melissa saw things differently and slowly distanced herself away from Hester.Now an event has occurred in Melissa's life and the only person who can help is Hester,only taking help from Hester might only make things worse because Hester has dark secrets of her own.
Sorry,I have really tried but I can't finish this book,a event has happened that has overstepped the realistic line,I mean what mother in her right mind would do what this so called mother has just done.I was struggling as soon as I started the book as it was,the two female main characters are annoying,very very annoying,Its hard to connect with any character when their attitudes and behaviour constantly irritate you and you don't care what happens to them.
Hester obviously had serious mental problems and was a very dark,creepy character,it's not too difficult to work out why she was on her own with only her dog for company.What I have read was well written,I just think the climax of the story could have been set up differently and more realistically.
Many thanks to HarperCollins uk HarperFiction for an ARC of this book via Netgalley
Hester and Melissa are neighbours,they used to be friends, at least that's what Hester thought but Melissa saw things differently and slowly distanced herself away from Hester.Now an event has occurred in Melissa's life and the only person who can help is Hester,only taking help from Hester might only make things worse because Hester has dark secrets of her own.
Sorry,I have really tried but I can't finish this book,a event has happened that has overstepped the realistic line,I mean what mother in her right mind would do what this so called mother has just done.I was struggling as soon as I started the book as it was,the two female main characters are annoying,very very annoying,Its hard to connect with any character when their attitudes and behaviour constantly irritate you and you don't care what happens to them.
Hester obviously had serious mental problems and was a very dark,creepy character,it's not too difficult to work out why she was on her own with only her dog for company.What I have read was well written,I just think the climax of the story could have been set up differently and more realistically.
Many thanks to HarperCollins uk HarperFiction for an ARC of this book via Netgalley
October 10, 2016
You can choose your friends but you cannot choose your family. Same goes for neighbours I guess. I certainly wouldn't want to suffer Hester as the woman next door. Come to that, I wouldn't be too thrilled to live next door to Melissa! We have had The Couple Next Door; now we have Cass Green's The Woman Next Door and this really is a killer read! Two women, two dark secrets and the almost perfect murder. Almost? On page #76 it really kicks off! "The rest of my sentence is whisked away in an out-breath that seems to go on and on. I am aware of the thud and whoosh of my own blood...." What has happened was not at all what I was expecting and it really did take my breath away, with something of an hysterical laugh. Now it's fasten your seatbelt time and hunker down for a race through a terrific psychological thriller with an ending that left me gasping! Never expected that!
Brilliant!
Brilliant!
April 2, 2018
When Melissa's daughter Tillie was small, her silly old neighbor, Hester was always around to help with childcare....but she was just a little "too much." So, as Tillie grew up, Melissa pulled away from Hester and now they just have a nodding acquaintance. Until one night, a stranger from Melissa's past shows up and the two women are bound together in a terrible crime.
This was a wild ride - an entertaining and darkly comic read. Both Hester and Melissa have secrets, but it's impossible not to feel sympathetic towards them as the author slowly reveals details about each of their lives and what brought them to this point. Highly recommend.
A note on the audiobook: There were two narrators, which I really enjoy, and both were excellent. For the woman who voiced Hester, I kept picturing Susan Boyle :)
This was a wild ride - an entertaining and darkly comic read. Both Hester and Melissa have secrets, but it's impossible not to feel sympathetic towards them as the author slowly reveals details about each of their lives and what brought them to this point. Highly recommend.
A note on the audiobook: There were two narrators, which I really enjoy, and both were excellent. For the woman who voiced Hester, I kept picturing Susan Boyle :)
May 20, 2017
I hated this book! Why didn't it get one star? Because those are books that I don't finish and I finished this awful book. I kept waiting for it to get better and it never did. It was predictable, the characters were unlikeable and I just didn't care one way or the other by the time I was done. It's the story of Melissa and Hester, two women that live next to each other. Melissa is a hot mess - she has a colorful past that she has kept from everyone and is putting up a front for everyone around her including her daughter and husband. Hester is a widow that lives next door and, in a word, she is ANNOYING. One day, a man from Melissa's past shows up and everything goes terribly wrong. Because Hester is a nosy Parker, she gets wrapped up in it and uses it to her advantage to get more entwined in Melissa's life. I had so much of it figured out but I was hoping I was wrong so I kept reading. It is told in alternating chapters between Melissa and Hester and while that is an interesting way to do it, it also became confusing in parts. Anyway, I finished this book and promptly threw it in the bushes. If you want to know how it ends, I'll tell you. After all, friends don't let friends read back books.
August 26, 2017
A mousey, obsessive, lonely woman, Hester, has always longed to be a close friend to her neighbour Melissa, but with her peculiar behaviour all Hester has managed to do is alienate Melissa instead.
Melissa appears to have it all, a successful, handsome reality star husband, an attractive, intelligent daughter, and a strikingly decorated home. And when Melissa inadvertently commits murder, Hester sees her chance. She jumps in, convinces Melissa there's nothing to be gained by calling the police & offers to help her dispose of the body. Hester believes that this murder is a golden opportunity to help Melissa and to finally gain her respect and become her best friend.
Ironic & fun, this mystery has notes of a black comedy as the two women embark on their crazy adventure to hide the body. And yes there are numerous twists along the way. Don't let the cheezy bland title of this book put you off - I almost didn't read this because of the awful title - this book throws you into the action quickly and keeps you plowing through the pages. No gruesome or graphic violence, just two oddball, not totally likeable women. 3.75 Stars!
Melissa appears to have it all, a successful, handsome reality star husband, an attractive, intelligent daughter, and a strikingly decorated home. And when Melissa inadvertently commits murder, Hester sees her chance. She jumps in, convinces Melissa there's nothing to be gained by calling the police & offers to help her dispose of the body. Hester believes that this murder is a golden opportunity to help Melissa and to finally gain her respect and become her best friend.
Ironic & fun, this mystery has notes of a black comedy as the two women embark on their crazy adventure to hide the body. And yes there are numerous twists along the way. Don't let the cheezy bland title of this book put you off - I almost didn't read this because of the awful title - this book throws you into the action quickly and keeps you plowing through the pages. No gruesome or graphic violence, just two oddball, not totally likeable women. 3.75 Stars!
May 25, 2017
This book started off well enough. It is told from two points of view, that of two women who are neighbors, and with alternating chapters between the both. I was actually digging the Hester character as she did remind me a bit of Barbara Covet in Notes on a Scandal but that alone is not going to save this ridiculous story. The other woman, Melissa, she's just so awful. The choices she makes are completely irrational. Nothing about her or the plot rings true in the least bit. Made it to 55% but it has just become too tedious to continue. Melissa's incessant whining is such a complete book turn off that I had to abandon this one. 2 stars for Hester!
February 27, 2017
3.5 stars. I'm lost for words, for the main reason that I do not want to spoil the contents within this story. 1st let appreciate the gorgeous cover ; -) I love books about nutty neighbors with twisted thoughts that turn into troublesome behaviors. LOL! The book was great, however it was lacking toward the middle but the ending was worth the read.
April 14, 2019
تعيش ميليسا مع زوجها و ابنتها في بيت يقع في ضاحية هادئة. و تعيش في المنزل المجاور هيستر العجوز التي تداوم على صنع الكعك و مجالسة الأطفال. في أحد الأيام يعود ماضي ميليسا لمطاردتها. فتقوم بارتكاب جريمة تشهد عليها هيستر و تقرر مساعدتها.
و لكن الكتاب يخبئ بين صفحاته الكثير من الأسرار, أكثر مما يتضح في البداية.
و لكن الكتاب يخبئ بين صفحاته الكثير من الأسرار, أكثر مما يتضح في البداية.
October 15, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was funny and definitely a different psychological thriller.
I think what makes this book so different from most other thrillers I have read, is that you are following a 60 year old woman. This is definitely a fresh and unique perspective.
Hester is a very judgmental but funny character. But she really made the book in my opinion.
Yes, the plot is a bit silly and far fetched but I really enjoyed it.
I did see the twist coming at the end which is a shame but I caught on to something half way through which meant that I could guess the ending right.
Overall it was a really enjoyable, different thriller. Definitely recommend!
TW: infertility, suicide and violence
I think what makes this book so different from most other thrillers I have read, is that you are following a 60 year old woman. This is definitely a fresh and unique perspective.
Hester is a very judgmental but funny character. But she really made the book in my opinion.
Yes, the plot is a bit silly and far fetched but I really enjoyed it.
I did see the twist coming at the end which is a shame but I caught on to something half way through which meant that I could guess the ending right.
Overall it was a really enjoyable, different thriller. Definitely recommend!
TW: infertility, suicide and violence
April 15, 2019
This is a story about two women living next door.....just like the title states! It is a well written character driven novel that keeps you engaged until the last page!
September 26, 2022
An enjoyable read!
December 15, 2020
Creepy, dismal and disturbing, The Woman Next Door is a solid 4-star read - but take your anti-depressants first!
November 22, 2016
With thanks to Netgalley and Killer Reads for this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.
The Woman Next Door is written by Cass Green who previously wrote young adult fiction under another name.
The book is written from the POVs of Melissa the glamorous wife of a TV doctor and her next door neighbour Hetty a lonely widower of 62.
Hetty always longed for children but her husband could not father a child. She ended up working in a nursery to be around children. When Melissa and husband Mark moved in next door Hetty started to babysit her daughter Tilly.
Melissa was having problems coping with a baby so she was grateful for Hetty's help. However Betty could be a bit overbearing and once suggested she should accompany Melissa and Mark on holiday so she could look.after Tilly. When Tilly started boarding school Melissa saw this as an excuse to stop seeing Hetty so often. Now Hetty is bitter and lonely with no friends apart from a gorgeous spaniel called Bertie.
When Tilly has a party to celebrate her exams Melissa half heartedly invites Hetty. The day after the party Hetty goes around to Melissa's to thank her and finds her standing over a dead body.
Betty desperate to be best friends with Melissa decides to her help her dispose of the body.
My favourite character was Hetty. Although she was unpleasant and had a sense of her own superiority I did like her vulnerable side.
I enjoyed this book and I will definitely read more from Cass Green. However I have only awarded this 4 stars because the story dipped a little when Hetty kidnapped Amber but then picked up again in the last couple of chapters.
The Woman Next Door is written by Cass Green who previously wrote young adult fiction under another name.
The book is written from the POVs of Melissa the glamorous wife of a TV doctor and her next door neighbour Hetty a lonely widower of 62.
Hetty always longed for children but her husband could not father a child. She ended up working in a nursery to be around children. When Melissa and husband Mark moved in next door Hetty started to babysit her daughter Tilly.
Melissa was having problems coping with a baby so she was grateful for Hetty's help. However Betty could be a bit overbearing and once suggested she should accompany Melissa and Mark on holiday so she could look.after Tilly. When Tilly started boarding school Melissa saw this as an excuse to stop seeing Hetty so often. Now Hetty is bitter and lonely with no friends apart from a gorgeous spaniel called Bertie.
When Tilly has a party to celebrate her exams Melissa half heartedly invites Hetty. The day after the party Hetty goes around to Melissa's to thank her and finds her standing over a dead body.
Betty desperate to be best friends with Melissa decides to her help her dispose of the body.
My favourite character was Hetty. Although she was unpleasant and had a sense of her own superiority I did like her vulnerable side.
I enjoyed this book and I will definitely read more from Cass Green. However I have only awarded this 4 stars because the story dipped a little when Hetty kidnapped Amber but then picked up again in the last couple of chapters.
July 20, 2016
4.5 stars
Really, really liked this! Again it follows in a similar vein to a lot of thrillers around at the moment...women, their lives and what happens when things turn sour. The first half was really very gripping and I was so invested in the characters. The second half took a different direction that I wasn't expecting but was nicely surprised by.
The author does a great job of making you feel uncomfortable and leaving you wondering how well you know people. Especially your neighbours!
Definitely an author to keep an eye out for...I predict big things!
Really, really liked this! Again it follows in a similar vein to a lot of thrillers around at the moment...women, their lives and what happens when things turn sour. The first half was really very gripping and I was so invested in the characters. The second half took a different direction that I wasn't expecting but was nicely surprised by.
The author does a great job of making you feel uncomfortable and leaving you wondering how well you know people. Especially your neighbours!
Definitely an author to keep an eye out for...I predict big things!
did-not-finish
April 3, 2017Another dud. DNF.
Is it me, or is it the books I'm picking?
Is it me, or is it the books I'm picking?
April 1, 2018
This was brilliant but a couple of whopping errors cost it the 5* !! Such a pity but they were mistakes that any proper editor should've noticed if I spotted them.
It was a clever story and you had to wonder at these two madzers ending up living next-door to each other. For me, both women were more than a bit unhinged, although both from differing generations and backgrounds. There were a lot of surprises throughout and I really enjoyed it. I was up into the early hours reading as I was dying to know what happened. For some of it I lived it in real time along with them as a large portion took place in the space of one day, the time it took me to read about the same 24 hours. Some behaviour in this was shocking to me although at times it did make me giggle. I actually laughed aloud when Hester mentioned rigor mortis in the motorway service station. That really tickled me. However, at its heart it is quite a sad story as well, really. I preferred Hester to Melissa, she held a lot of the same world views I do, although I found I worried more about Bertie than any other character !!
Even in the chapter headings' list, it's all laid out well till the chapter titled 'Five Months LaterMELISSA'. HOW that got past any self-respecting editor or proofreader is beyond me. The remainder of the titles weren't written all in capitals at all so it smacks you in the face. So pretty sloppy from the word go. She has also gone with Americanised (not Americanized) spellings throughout so we were treated to patronizing, anaesthetized and materialize, etc. Moniker is not spelt monica (ouch) nor sanitary wear as ware. Sleepover needed a space in the context it was written as well. Ladies needed an apostrophe and "Yes, a grandma Jamie" needed another comma to make proper sense.
Now the real whoppers....."I'm sick, Tams"......would be fine and dandy IF there was a character called Tams or Tamsin in the story but the girl she was speaking to was called bloody Saskia !! Then Amber is described as a perfectly adequate mother when Amber is the child !! Getting your own characters' names wrong is a massive no-no for me.....unforgiveable.
I know that with some proper tidying up by the publisher this would easily make 5* so I hope in any revision they sort these sloppy mistakes out. I'll be trying her other book for sure.
(I couldn't find what RoNA stands for at the end, in the About The Author section. Google couldn't even enlighten me there.)
It was a clever story and you had to wonder at these two madzers ending up living next-door to each other. For me, both women were more than a bit unhinged, although both from differing generations and backgrounds. There were a lot of surprises throughout and I really enjoyed it. I was up into the early hours reading as I was dying to know what happened. For some of it I lived it in real time along with them as a large portion took place in the space of one day, the time it took me to read about the same 24 hours. Some behaviour in this was shocking to me although at times it did make me giggle. I actually laughed aloud when Hester mentioned rigor mortis in the motorway service station. That really tickled me. However, at its heart it is quite a sad story as well, really. I preferred Hester to Melissa, she held a lot of the same world views I do, although I found I worried more about Bertie than any other character !!
Even in the chapter headings' list, it's all laid out well till the chapter titled 'Five Months LaterMELISSA'. HOW that got past any self-respecting editor or proofreader is beyond me. The remainder of the titles weren't written all in capitals at all so it smacks you in the face. So pretty sloppy from the word go. She has also gone with Americanised (not Americanized) spellings throughout so we were treated to patronizing, anaesthetized and materialize, etc. Moniker is not spelt monica (ouch) nor sanitary wear as ware. Sleepover needed a space in the context it was written as well. Ladies needed an apostrophe and "Yes, a grandma Jamie" needed another comma to make proper sense.
Now the real whoppers....."I'm sick, Tams"......would be fine and dandy IF there was a character called Tams or Tamsin in the story but the girl she was speaking to was called bloody Saskia !! Then Amber is described as a perfectly adequate mother when Amber is the child !! Getting your own characters' names wrong is a massive no-no for me.....unforgiveable.
I know that with some proper tidying up by the publisher this would easily make 5* so I hope in any revision they sort these sloppy mistakes out. I'll be trying her other book for sure.
(I couldn't find what RoNA stands for at the end, in the About The Author section. Google couldn't even enlighten me there.)
February 13, 2021
The Woman Next Door is a well written page turner of a book. I read the majority of it in one sitting, I needed to know what happened to these two crazy women in the end.
Melissa is a rich, beautiful woman who has turned her life around from a bad start. She has married well and has a good life. Her neighbour Hester is the opposite. She had a lovely childhood but a disastrous adult life and married badly. Nothing worked out how she wanted it to. She is sad and lonely and feels out of place in the world. She used to be more friendly with her neighbour but has been shut out of her life over the past few years.
A shocking event at a party Hester forced Melissa to invite her too at Melissa’s house turns the fortunes of these two women and the lives become entangled again with consequences for both of them. Consequences that could outlive the story contained within the pages. I loved this book, the first one in adult fiction from this writer and will definitely read more of her books as they become available.
Melissa is a rich, beautiful woman who has turned her life around from a bad start. She has married well and has a good life. Her neighbour Hester is the opposite. She had a lovely childhood but a disastrous adult life and married badly. Nothing worked out how she wanted it to. She is sad and lonely and feels out of place in the world. She used to be more friendly with her neighbour but has been shut out of her life over the past few years.
A shocking event at a party Hester forced Melissa to invite her too at Melissa’s house turns the fortunes of these two women and the lives become entangled again with consequences for both of them. Consequences that could outlive the story contained within the pages. I loved this book, the first one in adult fiction from this writer and will definitely read more of her books as they become available.
September 8, 2021
Listened to audiobook via Libby
I’m surprised at how much I loved this book, considering the average ratings and reviews suggested it would be quite mediocre.
Maybe it was the narration, which by the way was perfect! But the story itself had me hooked. The ending felt a little flat compared to the rest of the book but I will definitely be checking out Cass Green’s other novels.
I’m surprised at how much I loved this book, considering the average ratings and reviews suggested it would be quite mediocre.
Maybe it was the narration, which by the way was perfect! But the story itself had me hooked. The ending felt a little flat compared to the rest of the book but I will definitely be checking out Cass Green’s other novels.
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