The New Neighbours by Claire Douglas

 

When Lena accidentally overhears a conversation between the new neighbours she's convinced they are about to commit a crime. Everyone around her is skeptical; why would two elderly, well-off, professionals do anything wrong? Lena is determined to find out more about her new neighbours.

In The New Neighbours author Claire Douglas has written a suburban thriller that anyone could identify with, after all, we've probably all listened in to conversations we shouldn't have and let our mind run wild.

From the intriguing opening pages, your interest is piqued; there are hints at an intense relationship and wrong-doing. An obsession that has become impossible to control anymore. From this provocative opening, we then meet Lena and her new neighbours, Marielle and Henry. Lena is recently separated, a separation of her own doing and something she's still unsure about. Lena lives with her seventeen-year-old son, Rufus, in a leafy suburb of Bristol. The new neighbours seem perfect until Lena overhears a conversation between them and convinces herself they are going to kidnap someone - and not for the first time. 

Determined to learn more, Lena begins to take risks and sneaks into the neighbours house. What she discovers reinforces her belief the the couple are up to no good. When she begins to uncover links to both her current job and her life twenty years ago fear sets in. 

As I read on I could feel my own apprehension increasing, uneasy about what was about to happen. Lena's son is doing a media studies course and at regular intervals throughout the story, the author cleverly uses references to iconic film noir movies where neighbours act suspiciously. These references increased the suspense and I found my pulse racing and my heart pounding as Lena puts her life at risk to expose the threat posed by her new neighbours.

The New Neighbours by Claire Douglas will be published on 13th March 2025 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for a review copy.

Author Details

Claire Douglas worked as a journalist for fifteen years, writing features for women's magazines and national newspapers, but had dreamed of being a novelist since the age of seven. She finally got her wish after winning the Marie Claire Debut Novel Award with her first novel, The Sisters.
She is a Sunday Times bestseller and a frequent Richard & Judy Book Club pick. Her books have sold over two million copies in the UK alone.
She lives in Bath with her husband and two children.