This book had a lot A LOT of stuff happening at the same time and I have to say that it impacted my enjoyment of the main plot line.
I’ll start by saying that “Secluded cabin sleeps 6” is not about a cabin sleeping six people. The cabin is just a place, and what happens inside the cabin could happen anywhere without any impact on the plot. In fact, the important things that happen in the story aren’t even linked to the cabin. Bracken, the cabin owner, is also just an accessory that adds word count instead of plot, nothing else. I was expecting him to be involved in some way, but he was just in the way…
The actual plot of the book was very interesting though, and this I really enjoyed, even if it was not clear in the blurb. The story was well constructed and the convergence of the dual lines was very well done.
The characters weren’t all likable, which was great. The emphasis on their flaws made the book interesting and highlighted the main plot. One thing I didn’t enjoy in the first half of the book was the physical descriptions of the characters - they sounded too focused on beauty standards and the need for prettiness for the female characters, as if being pretty and thin (or the opposite) was the defining part of their personalities.
Overall this book was a 3.5 stars - interesting after you go through the context for the characters and if you disregard the noise in the plot that tries to distract you. This was my first book by this author and I’d read their work again.
Thanks Netgalley and Legend Press for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Hannah and Bruce recently had a baby, but are invited by Hannah''s brother Mako to join them for a weekend at a beautiful enormous cabin in the middle of nowhere. They are joined by Mako's wife Liza, Hannah's best friend Cricket, and her new boyfriend Joshua. All of them come with baggage and secrets to Bracken's cabin. However, the weekend becomes chaos as their past and secrets confront them. Alongside this story, the reader is introduced to Henry, a boy travelling around the country with the single mother, and we follow the next two decades of his life.
I enjoyed this book overall. The Henry plotline slowed the momentum of the book at times, even though it was interesting and strong on its own, it was just so separate until the end. There was almost too much going on at times, and the central themes and ideas the book was exploring got lost in the more generic thriller elements of the book. There were a few things happening in the final act that I felt like I was not properly prepared for because they were lost among the other details going on. The beginning was slow since there were so many elements to lay down, but if you keep going there are a lot of interesting ideas and compelling characters in the cabin.
I was provided an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a book I couldn't put down.

Mako, who likes to show his worth, wants to treat those closest to him to a weekend in a lavish cabin. His sister Hannah, her husband Bruce, a family friend, Cricket with her mysterious friend Joshua, and Liza who is Mako's wife, all meet at the cabin. Unbeknownst to them the owner Bracken likes to "watch" his guests.

The book tells another story of Henry who found out he has a sperm donor as a father and after his mother was killed the Detective West helped locate his mothers sister for him. His Aunt is into family Origins and shows Henry how she has been locating family members. Henry meets Catrina, his half sister and finds out she has a very dark side. This all works into those at the cabin and when it collides, secrets, lies, and so much more gets exposed.

With a large storm hitting the cabin the events will keep you on the edge of your seat.

I recommend this book for those that like a psychological thriller.

Thank you NetGalley for this digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Talk about the edge of your seat! From the first chapter Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six held my attention & the creepy kept coming! 4 stars!

#SecludedCabinSleepsSix #NetGalley Grab a blanket and a hot toddy. It's a perfect snow daybook. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out!

This was a 3.5 star read. I had to let the story marinate after finishing. This story addresses family, its definition, and how DNA ties into a family legacy.

This was on my most anticipated 5-star 2022 read list. It was a good read and I would recommend it. Unfortunately, the ending prevented me from giving it a 5-star read. Isolated tropes, secrets, and hidden identity are some of my favorite tropes. You had a group of ppl, with a bunch of secrets, at an Isolated location. What happens when those secrets are slowly exposed? The story started strong and had an easy flow. Around the last third of the book, the story kinda started to go in a different direction. I got what the author was trying to do, it just didn't come together. The ending felt like I was reading two different stories. If a separate story was written based on the ending, it would have been a fascinating read.

#secludedcabinsleepssix #thriller #lisaunger

This thriller was interesting but not my favorite. It tells the story from the perspective of Hannah, sister of Mako, another principal character in the story. There are two different storylines--one from view of Hannah and one from the view of Henry. You don't see how these storylines relate until the end of the book. I found Henry's story to be awkward in the middle of Hannah's and I had a tough time with the transitions. Additionally, I found some of Hannah's characteristics surprising based on how her mom was depicted and how Hannah was depicted in various scenes. I didn't feel that they aligned well. Overall, interesting but I only feel so-so about the story, how the storylines bisected, and how it all resolved.

A really great and easy read! I kept wondering about the characters and what they would do next when I had to take breaks for life. I would recommend for anyone who is looking for an atmospheric thriller.

A dreamy weekend for three couples in a beautiful, remote luxury cabin turns into a nightmare for all the guests. Unfortunately, a locked-room thriller with an interesting premise turns into a big, muddled mess of a nightmare for the reader.
An ever changing timeline that bounces between multiple story lines just doesn't work. Just as the main story line picks up steam and momentum, the pages turning quicker, the timeline shifts, stopping all momentum in the story. Halfway through the book, it became beyond frustrating. I kept asking myself, why? What was the point?
The plot had great potential, but the alternating timeline and the multiple points of view characters, turned the story into a convoluted mess. You will have a hard time identifying with any of the characters, who lack depth, and are all unlikeable.
Too many throw-away storylines that struggle to serve much purpose in moving the story forward.
This book had so much potential and the title sounded so interesting, but overall, this story misses badly.
I was provided an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

~ Quick Summary ~

Three couples have a weekend getaway to a secluded cabin. But, how well do they know each other?

~ Pick this up if you enjoy/don’t mind the following ~

🧑‍🤝‍🧑Many POVs and sometimes explores the past timeline

🕵️‍♂️ Locked room mystery: set in/around the cabin

~ What I didn’t enjoy ~

There were way too many POVs, about 5 from memory and a few of them were definitely not necessary as they didn’t add anything to the story whatsoever. The POVs can be summed up with the following:

The cabin owner - Not sure what his purpose was, he didn’t really add anything to the story.

Few of the 3 couples that go to the cabin - we explore their relationships with each other. They were quite superficial to me and I didn’t connect with any of them.

1 mystery stalker

1 mystery POV where we explore his life from childhood to adulthood

Overall it felt really slow, there was too much jumping around to different POVs and there weren't enough hooks throughout to keep me interested. I finished this because this is an ARC else I would have DNFed this one.

Thanks to Netgalley and Legend Press for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Legend Press for allowing me to read this ARC for an honest review.

I work in bio-tech and for a company that makes DNA testing kits so when the book opened with the Origins kits I was immediately sucked in. I could not put this book down and right when you think you may have things figured out there is another twist. Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six kept me on the edge of my seat and I really enjoyed this book!

The are multiple points of view so you do need to keep track, At the beginning I was a bit confused but as I got more into the book things began to flow together beautifully, I am rounding this book up to 4 stars as I really enjoyed the DNA aspects of this book which I feel set it apart from other books about creepy cabins in the woods.

This book was a solid 3 for me. I enjoy a good mystery thriller, and this was that, but nothing exceptional, mostly because there were too many story lines to follow. That aside, it did the job, I will not be renting a secluded cabin anytime soon.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Legend Press!

I love locked room mysteries! This one has multiple POVs and some DNA twists. I sometimes struggle with multiple POVs because it can get confusing. This one wasn't my favorite. It was still a decent read and this author is fantastic, but I was glad when I was done with this!

I am so thankful to NetGalley for the ARC of Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger, she is one of my favorite authors
This was an amazing novel, lots of twists, wondering who dun it and how will these characters end up connected at the end of the novel. Lisa has written an awesome story woven around DNA testing and who we might be related to.
Mako and his wife Liza are "enjoying" dinner with his parents and his sister Hannah and her husband Bruce. They have all received a mysterious DNA test kit for Christmas. Will they all send in their kits for the results? Meanwhile, Mako has planned a weekend getaway for his family, Hannah's family and and a long time friend of their's Cricket with her boyfriend Josh. This will be some much needed family time, no kids, a chef to cook for them at a beautiful cabin in the woods.
They all arrive and start to enjoy a lovely weekend, they are greeted by their host and settle in for dinner on their first night.
There are a lot of characters but Lisa does a good job with introducing them and I was able to keep track of who was who, there is also past and present and it did take me a bit to figure this out and how the other story line fit in, it all comes together towards the end of the novel. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, I know reviews are all over the place, but don't let the negative reviews keep you from reading it, just might not be for everyone. I would recommend this novel especially if you are a fan of psychological thrillers. I will be waiting for Lisa Ungers next novel

Thank you so much to @netgalley @legendpress.rs and the author for a digital arc of SECLUDED CABIN SLEEPS SIX! This one is out in the UK Feb 16, 2023! (It’s already out in Canada/US!)

I was able to listen to this book all in one day! This was a thriller that worked for me on audio! 👏🏻

I have only read one other book from @launger - The Last Girl Ghosted, and really liked it! SCSS was a twisty, drama and secret filled thriller ,set in an isolated cabin out in the woods. The guests have their own secrets AND so does the cabin and the workers!

This book has the typical rich people/drama/secrets/who can you trust scenario, which leaves the reader not knowing who or what to believe! I didn’t guess the ending, which is always a bonus when reading thrillers!

While I didn’t really like any of the characters in this book (I believe that was intentional!), I did like the setting! Do I want to go to an isolated cabin out in the woods? Maybe not after reading this book 😅

I think fans of Lisa Unger’s books will like this one! Or, if you enjoy secret/Drama filled thrillers, then read this book!

This was my first read by Lisa Unger and overall, I thought this was a fun thriller to read at this time of year. The plot kept my mostly engaged, but I definitely found myself not as motivated to pick this book up in the middle. I also didn’t love the characters and found them difficult to keep track of, at times. But I love locked room mysteries and I liked the ending quite a bit. If you’re looking for a thriller to read in December/during the holiday season, I’d recommend this one.

Thank you to Legend Press for a gifted copy of Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger. All opinions are my own.

Three couples head to a very isolated luxury cabin in the woods. What could possibly go wrong?

When they arrive everything is beautiful and perfect. There's even a private chef. Hannah is nervous about leaving her baby daughter with her mother in law for the weekend. A storm is coming. The roads up and down the mountain flood easily. The wifi isn't perfect. Are they alone?

There are two storylines and multiple POV. Parts of the book I really enjoyed and other parts I felt a bit confused. In the end it all made sense and overall I enjoyed the book. There is definitely a creepy factor with the owner of the cabin and ghost stories.

General Fiction (Adult)
Release Date: February 16, 2023

What could be more restful than a weekend getaway with family and friends? An isolated luxury cabin in the woods, spectacular views, a hot tub and a personal chef. Hannah’s generous brother found the listing online. The reviews are stellar. It'll be three couples on this trip with good food, good company and lots of R & R.

But the dreamy weekend is about to turn into a nightmare.

I was intrigued by the DNA aspect of this story. I thought it was creative way to base the story. There are several POV and it was interested to see how they were all connected. There is a lot of slow burn build up as the characters get to the cabin that added suspense when trouble started.

For me, I think there was too much going on. Two stories with multiple POV of multiple flawed characters. I can completely see how some readers can love or not love this one. I felt like some parts were a little too drawn out, but I was interested and wanted to see it through to the end.

I loved Henry’s part of the story! I think his side of the story would make a great read.

This was an average read for me. The name, setting and premise of the book made me pretty excited since it reminded me a bit of One by One from Ruth Ware, The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley, or Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney (mysteries that take place in an exotic, secluded location where bad weather hits) and I loved all of those books a lot! Unfortunately I don't think that this location really lived up to the hype and wasn't described as vividly as possible to really make the setting as much of a spooky/interesting part of the story as it could have been. What I loved about this book through was the two different storylines that alternated being told throughout the book and you had no clue (or at least I had no clue!) how they were related until the reveal at the climax of the novel. Almost all of the characters in this book had secrets, the DNA testing kit drama was a unique plot point, and there were a few red herrings thrown in to add to the intrigue of this book. The ending seemed a bit too long for me but overall I found the book as a whole enjoyable, just nothing entirely new and notable.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3


This is my first Lisa Unger read and released in Canada last month

Well, there are lots of glowing reviews for this book, please take mine with a grain of salt. This sounded like a intriguing mystery with the secluded cabin, a getaway that sounds perfect and of course there is a storm brewing. This turned into a slow burn read for me, the first 60% had the pov jumping between a number of different characters. The characters did not endear me at all, and I struggled to even like them, the different narratives left me confused, but I try to trust in the process and waited for the author to reveal all.

Once the action started, it got a bit more interesting but the ending just didn’t work for me. I found it over the top and a bit convoluted. Honestly some things just didn't make sense.

Ultimately Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six is a story of family, enabling and ultimately selfishness. I’m glad to have skipped over to the audiobook for the last half. One thing I will commend the author with is the emotions I felt when I finished, which is why this review will be rounded up to 3 stars. The enabling part of the story left me with feelings of frustration and sadness.

My thanks to Legend Press for a digital ARC in exchange for honest review.