When Esther was five years old her mother took her away from her home and father to live in an old World War 2 style bunker in the middle of nowhere. This was ostensibly to keep Esther safe as she was asthmatic and the bunker had been adapted to include its ow.n air filtration system and water supply. Esther had been living this isolated life for 16 years until one day when her mother had gone on her annual trip for supplies, Esther was shocked to see a young man approaching the house.. The young man, Tom, had some information for Esther that would turn her world upside down and make her question everything her mother had told her over the years.

A very enjoyable story which kept my interest throughout.

I loved the short chapters and the small cliffhangers at the end of most of them. For awhile I was anxious to keep going, but by the end even that didn’t save this one for me. It took me two full weeks to make it through this book. Part of that was due to my lack of a lot of downtime recently, but a lot of it was because I just simply wasn’t dying to get back into it in the free time I did have.

It started off strong, and then just sort of fizzled out for me. Some of the MC’s reactions were unbelievable for a person who has been living in a bunker for almost her entire life. The twists were okay, but I honestly wasn’t invested in the characters or the story enough to really be wowed by them.

Thank you to #netgalley and HQ Digital for the advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

The world is poisonous and decaying so Hannah has taken her 5 year old daughter to live in a bunker she had prepped. 16 years later the life they have lived is shattered when they see a man walking towards The House from the woods.
Really enjoyed this book, with shades of M Night Shyamalan.

If you’re into dooms day pepper's this book is for you
Overall, The Safe House is a post-apocalyptic-like thriller that you won't be able to put down. One highlight of this book is how original it is. I haven't read any thrillers with a similar premise before. I did take off 1 star, because I'm not really a fan of books about doomsday preppers, and so, I didn't find the plot that exciting or gripping

3.5 stars

I sped through this book, which is a good indication of how much I enjoyed it.
I'd guessed what was going on fairly early on, but knew there had to be more surprises.
There were, and they were good.
A book, that for me was split into thirds, and I much more enjoyed the first and final thirds.
Overall though, it felt a bit like a wild ride, with secrets, lies, and a whole world being turned on its head.
A very satisfying read.

Ester lives with her Mother in an underground bunker to be safe.

After 16 years she sees a man when her mother has gone out for supplies. She then gets told that its not bad to be outside.

The story is intersting and easy to read.

Asthma sufferer, Esther Albright lives in an adapted Cold War-era bunker and has done since she was five because her mother thinks it best. Now she is twenty-one and her mother goes on her annual shopping trip for supplies that they can't produce themselves, without taking her daughter. While she's away, Esther sees somebody outside. The man, called Tom, injures himself so Ether helps and she learns some information from him that turns her life upside down.

Louise Mumford demonstrates a great command of ambiguity and misdirection that certainly keeps the reader invested. The plotting is great and the writing is vivid and engaging. All of the characters are well portrayed and subtle humour adds dimension. Very highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from HQ Digital via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

“The Safe House” is by Louise Mumford. I read this book thinking “this is something like Josh Malerman would write,” which is pretty high praise from me. It’s an interesting idea - living off the grid to protect someone from the outside world, though caged as protecting from “the air one breathes.” How far is one willing to go … and how fine is the line between protection and madness? The first part of this book I greatly enjoyed - reading Esther’s POV and reading why her mother, Hannah, did what she did - it all made sense and I was quite enjoying the story. And I give shout-out to Mr. Wiffles’s humor in all its dryness and delight. Then suddenly there’s a shift and Esther, this innocent and sheltered woman, suddenly feels like she needs to live life and explore and discover everything … when literally five chapters previously she was suited up and having panic attacks. It just seemed to move a bit too quickly for my taste. The writing style was interesting - until the second half, especially as I felt that the last quarter was rushed (a lot is told in the final quarter, when the first half of the book was a nice pace). I’d give this book four stars for the first half, but then three stars for the second half (which is disappointing). So, an average of 3.5.

I really enjoyed this book right from the start it was nothing like I've ever read before so it grabbed my interest and I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen. For sixteen years our main character Ester has been living with her mother in an underground bunker because it is unsafe for them to be outside, or at least that is what she is told. She never questions her mother and goes along with what is being told to her until one day, sixteen years after they make a home in the bunker a man approaches her when she is out gathering supplies. The man knows her whole name and proceeds to inform her that her mother has been lying to her whole life. This story wasn't like most captive books that I've read before and I think that it was because our main character was so naive in what was actually happening to her. It made it a much better read especially since it was told through her point of view. I found our main character Ester to be very interesting and very well written. She was like most teenage girls reliant on her mother and listened to her mother's warnings however she was determined to push the envelope and see things for herself so it was a little bit of rebellion that was nice to see. I really enjoyed all the characters in this book. I found them to be very well written and very three dimensional. And the best part about this book was it mainly focused on the three main characters and their story line there wasn't a lot of side characters and I felt that there wasn't a lot of unnecessary details. Very great story unlike anything I've read before. This thriller is one that really kept you on the edge of your seat just screaming to figure out what was going to happen in the end. I never wanted this book to end it was so good. Great read and I'm very glad that I got the chance to check it out.

I really really enjoyed this book. It hooked me from the very beginning and kept me hooked the entire time.

Thank you NetGalley and HQ for the copy of TheSafe House. Loved the beginning of this book.because it was atmospheric and creepy. It was hard to get to know Esther and Hannah as they weren’t really fleshed out. I could tell enough about Esther to feel sorry for her and how she was being raised, but Hannah remained a mystery until the very end. The story was intriguing and I wondered where it was going, but when the focus of the book moved outside of the house the story became less compelling. The writing was good enough to keep me reading but the book seemed to run out of steam. If all you are looking for is twists, this book might not be for you. But if you like good writing and a unique storyline you should try this one out.

Safe House was a quick, fast paced read. The character development was a little lacking to me personally, but overall I enjoyed this read and there were some twists I did not see coming.

An ok read.

Esther is safe, safe in the house and must give thanks to it. She’s been kept safe in a bunker for 16 years, from the age of 5 and unbeknownst to her, someone is looking for her.
It’s a slow, claustrophobic read and I struggled with it, but, it’s an ok read as there are some twists.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview.

When Esther had her first asthma attack & nearly very died Hannah decided that she had to protect her child at all costs. Since she was five Esther has lived with her mother in The House. It is hermetically sealed, the air purified. They grow their own food as far as possible. Hannah has told her that the pollution outside the house would kill her. For sixteen years she has gone along with this believing everything her mother has said. Once a year Hannah goes for a supply run for the things they can't produce themselves. Although she begs to go too Hannah is having none of it. Whilst she is away Esther sees somebody outside. On his approach to the House he springs a trap & when Esther braves 'Outside' to help he tells her that her father is still alive & although there is some pollution it is not as dangerous as she has been led to believe.

Whilst being quite horrified by Hannah's treatment of Esther, it was guided by her total belief that only what she was doing could keep her safe. She was obviously a very disturbed soul. This was an unusual read. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

Thank you HQ, NetGalley and Louise Mumford for giving me the opportunity to read The Safe House

The book is told from two POV’s. Esther and her mother Hannah.
I did not remember much from the description, so my first thought went straight to Doomsday Preppers, Apocalypse and Zombies. I did not get neither of these and was really glad about it.

Esther suffered from asthma ever since she turned five years old. We find Hannah obsessing about keeping her daughter safe and healthy. And boy, she becomes obsessed and drastic about it. So much that the duo lives in a house turned bunker, inside green house and all. They live there until Esther turns 21 and naturally her curiosity is turned on.
“Breakfast the next morning was served with a side order of suspicion and a garnished of exhaustion.” I loved that line.

The author had a way with words, how she describes their word. You can imagine being there, in the bunker. In a way, it’s very organic, a lot of metaphors.

Did I like the book? Yes. No. Ut was a. It out of my comfort zone, not my usual read. But I like to push my boundaries and expand my point of views. So I am glad I got to read this.
I liked Hannah’s part a lot better than Esther’s. Esther is very naive, an adult with the mind of a child. I always had a problem with these naive heroines. I understand why she was written this way, but it’s not my favourite at all. I also appreciated the twist and turns. Nothing is as it seems.

The premise of this book is so unusual that I didn’t know what to expect.

A slow burn at the start but I think because of this, you’re invested in the story and I couldn’t wait to find out what had happened and what was going to happen.

The characters are well written and the ending is very good.

Hannah will do anything to keep her daughter safe. Esther suffers from asthma and her husband doesn't understand how much danger she is in. It's up to Hannah to save her daughter no matter the cost.

The Safe House is a slow burner with familiar themes, but with enough of a twist to make it interesting.

Hannah and Ned have a beautiful daughter called Esther.... One day their world changes when at a birthday party Esther has an asthma attack, she's never had one before and ends up in the back of an ambulance. Hannah changes after this and becomes obsessed with keeping Esther 'safe' unfortunately that means keeping her indoors a lot and away from other people. Hannah gets left a substantial amount of money and sets about building a 'safe house' underground with it, the only thing is she didn't tell Ned about it! He finds the plans and they argue, but the steelworks where he works nearby goes up in flames and he rushes to help. Ned comes back to find Hannah and Esther gone, he didn't know where they'd gone only had the plans to go from and they didn't give any address. Will be be able to find them or have they go from his life forever?

Many thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this boo . It's amazing to think how far mums will go to protect their children, but how far is too far?? Will be recommending to friends and family, a must read for this year!

Thank you Netgalley and Louise Mumford for the ARC of this book

This was a great thriller that intrigued me from the start. I feel the chapters were easy to read and the plot was interesting enough to keep me wanting to know more and more as it progressed.

I love a good twist and this book delivered! Without giving too much all I can say is that this book is worth the read!

I did enjoy this book up to a point but for some reason it just quite didn’t hit the spot for me. I loved the concept, and the writing but it didn’t quite fulfil its promise at the end.