Wow, oh wow!! What a read.

Told by two protagonists, Cassie, the loving wife of Jon and Amy, who is a life saver for Cassie as Cassie starts her new life in her husband’s family home and her new job. Cassie has high hopes for this fresh start as she felt threatened in their old, very isolated home, especially as Jon is quite an absent husband and father between work and golf. Cassie is sure she will make new friends and hopes to get to know her neighbours, so why is Becca, the first neighbour she meets, so hostile? What history does she share with Jon? Also, unknown to Cassie, Amy has an ulterior motive for wanting to be her friend. The more Cassie finds out about her new friend the more danger she finds herself in.

This is one of those books that just builds and builds until you get to the point where it is impossible to stop reading. The last couple of chapters are the equivalent to peeking through your fingers whilst watching a horror film. I love Maria Frankland’s books and with this one she has taken psychological thriller to a whole new level.

I Let Her In by Maria Frankland

Published: March 19, 2024
Bookouture
Pages: 320
Genre: Domestic Thriller
KKECReads Rating: 5/5
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

This was twisted! I enjoyed this story; the alternating narrators were used well. The character development was beautifully constructed, and the storyline was deviously curated.

The use of memory, forgiveness, trust, and family was brilliant. I found the pacing just intense enough to keep me engaged. I liked how the entire story was entwined and how things unraveled.

The last chapters are so fast-paced and intense readers will find themselves sitting on the edges of their seats, trying to read faster to see what happens next!

Thoroughly enjoyed this, great quick read. Would definitely recommend to thriller lovers. Such a page turned and will read more by this author

I Let Her In by Maria Frankland is a gripping, pulse racing thriller.
This book sucked me in pretty quickly and kept me guessing.
It was a brilliant read, perfect amount of twists, endless suspense and a great storyline.
The build for this book was intense. I was on the edge of my seat.
Told in multiple POVs from Cassie, Becca and Amy side. I enjoyed getting all three point of views here. I loved the characters, the writing, and the way this author had me unsure of who to trust throughout the story.
Overall, “I Let Her In” is a compelling read that will keep readers hooked from beginning to end. Frankland’s ability to weave together intricate plots and multifaceted characters is commendable, making this psychological thriller a worthwhile addition to any reading list.

Thank You NetGalley and Bookouture for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This was a fast paced and entertaining thriller. This book has me on the edge of my seat. If there’s one thing Maria knows how to do, it’s grab your attention and keep a firm grip on it.

A new move and a fresh start for Cassie and her family. Except the next door neighbor is very frosty while the girl from the park is too friendly.
I thought Cassie was way too trusting and her husband was a lout.
I kept trying to figure out what secrets were whose and how it led to what I was reading.
The truth is slowly revealed and I admit to perhaps yelling at some of the characters as I read.
Someone still gets away with a major crime but to find out you’ll have to read the book.

Maria Frankland's latest psychological thriller, I LET HER IN, is a twisty, unpredictable domestic suspense with plenty of dark secrets, lies, and deception to keep the pages turning— and two jaw-dropping twists that will have your head spinning!

WELCOME TO CHERRY TREE LANE
Perfect lies can become perfect nightmares.

A dream home becomes a nightmare when past and present secrets converge in this darkly sublime, entertaining thriller.

Edgy, diabolical, and suspenseful! Frankland deftly explores twisted family dynamics and devastating secrets in suburbia in this stunning novel that will shock readers by the final page. INTENSE and entertaining!

Set in England, we meet Cassie, Jon, their son Teddy, 4 years old, and their German shepherd dog Suki.

Jon is in the oil business and comes from money. His parents (Jack & Elsie) died, and the prestigious home (The Tolbeck Cottage) on Cherry Tree Lane was left to the grandson, Teddy; however, the parents were allowed to live there.

Cassie is excited about the new neighborhood and new beginnings. After staying home with Teddy, she is starting a new HR job and is glad to be in a new environment. She felt like someone was watching/following her in their old neighborhood.

Soon after moving in, she meets Amy at the park, hires her as a dog walker, and occasionally watches Teddy. There is also the mysterious neighbor Becca, who lives next door and cares for her elderly mother.

Something seems off. Jon is controlling and seems to spend a lot of time next door. He thinks she hired Amy too quickly without a full background check. Is he having an affair?

Cassie begins investigating Becca, and something seems off with Amy. Then, someone takes Teddy from the daycare without her permission. She must find her son! She is devastated and frantic. Who is Amy, and what is her motive?

Then Cassie learns about the murder of a young girl. A party from ten years earlier at the home they are now living in. A party Jon had while his parents were away ended in a drug given to a young woman who died. A young girl everyone loved, leaving two grief-stricken parents behind.

Told from POVs: Cassie and Amy and a few chapters by Becca. Everyone is keeping SECRETS! Revenge, obsession, and MURDER.

I LET HER IN is riveting, dark, and sinister. The author cleverly keeps the tension high in this twisty, addictive thriller, keeping you guessing about the characters' relationships and how they are connected. Two unexpected wicked twists in this high-stakes thriller are impressive.

AUDIOBOOK: I enjoyed reading the e-book and listening to the audio narrated by Emma Swan and Kristin Atherton for a chilling performance, making the characters come alive!

My first book by the author, and I look forward to reading more! For fans of Big Little Lies, Freida McFadden, Miranda Rijks, and KL Slater.

Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for gifting ARC and ALC for my honest opinion.

Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Mar 19, 2024
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
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This had me reading into the wee early hours and I have no regrets! It's such a good book, I loved the plot but to be honest since the premise said the kid gets kidnapped then I did spend half the book waiting for that to actually happen which was odd since its one of the main plots highlighted but doesnt happen until about 60% of the way in. But anyways, I enjoyed the story. The characters were well written and there's enough secrets and lies to keep you guessing throughout. I mean they all seem pretty vile or just stupid but it was still a really good story and I was keen to find out what the big secret mention in the blurb actually was!

When Cassie and her husband Jon return to his childhood home, its a fresh start for them and their son Teddy. With a handsome husband and cute son, beautiful home and new job, her life seems idylic. When she meets Amy at the park, it's a great opportunity to make a new friend and to find some much needed support with her dog and son as they settle in. But as Amy pushes boundaries in their lives and Jon's childhood neighbour Becca is anything but friendly, Cassie may find that secrets from the past can't stay hidden forever.

I absolutely LOVED this book! The chapters flit through different character perspectives, allowing you to see the thoughts and viewpoints of the different characters. Cassie especially is a great character that you can really empathise with as she struggles with her husband's unreasonable expectations and her longing for friendship. The motives of the characters are exciting to explore and even until the end I devoured each chapter as more and more truth was revealed.

Thank you to the author Maria Frankland, Bookouture and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC.

I REALLY wanted to like this book as the premise is right up my street but sadly it just wasn't for me. The overall pace just didn't move quick enough for me and I was bored for the first 57% of it. By the time I picked up I was frustrated enough with Cassie ignoring the red flags flying high every other page that I almost DNF'd it.

There was enough going on to keep me reading though to find out how it ended but unfortunately it was just a miss though. I do appreciate the opportunity to have an early look through ARC so thank you for that.

Be careful who you let into your life. This thriller is in the vein of the other books where a stranger enters a person's life with bad intentions. Cassie and Jon have just moved into Jon's childhood home with their four year old son Teddy and dog Suki. The home is large and beautiful and in addition to the move, Cassie is going back to work in a human resources job and has found a good caregiver for her son. The only problem she has is no one will be around to walk the dog; that is until she meets Amy, a young woman who works part-time in a charity shop who Cassie meets at a park. Amy seems like a friend immediately and Cassie hires her to walk the dog twice a day, giving Amy a key and the security code to the house. I can't imagine trusting a stranger to this degree, but Cassie is lacking friends and both Teddy and the dog seem to like Amy. Cassie thinks she has another possible friend in the woman next door, Becca, but Becca is unfriendly for reasons that Cassie can't comprehend.

I enjoyed Cassie as a narrator and some of the chapters are from the viewpoint of Amy. Cassie's husband Jon was a terrible person though and he expected Cassie and the house to be perfect at all times. I couldn't imagine why Cassie would stay with Jon because he is wealthy and handsome but insulting and controlling to her. When Cassie asks him why Becca next door is so unfriendly he gives her vague answers and she suspects something happened to cause Becca to act this way. In Amy's chapters we learn that she has ulterior motives in getting close to Cassie and her family and the scenes of her strolling around their house, trying on Cassie's clothes etc. are scenes I have seen before in other stranger danger type of books. There are some twists in this book that I didn't expect and I found it a quick and fun read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a. copy of this ARC in exchange for a review.

Cassie is excited to have a fresh start, with her husband Jon and their son Teddy. Moving to Cherry Tree Lane is time to out run that fear. Cassie meets a new friend, Amy, straight away, the friend she’s always wanted. Amy offers to look after Suki their GSD, can Cassie trust her with other stuff too, key to their house, picking Teddy up from nursery as an emergency - is Amy someone to trust? Or is she making a terrible mistake?

This book was a great read, if you are a fan of Lisa Jewel style thrillers then this one is for you! I read it in just under two days, it’s truly gripping.

This was my first book by Maria Frankland and I'll definitely be back for more!
Very gripping storyline from the very beginning! Some amazing twists too!
Highly recommend

Another great book by Maria Frankland, however I did not enjoy this as much as her other books. I felt a little let down at the end and needed more to end it with. With that being said, I did enjoy the storyline and got extremely angry with the horrid hubby and felt very anxious for Cassie and Teddy. The other characters were interesting and I would have liked to hear more about Becca and her life in the story. Anyway, I have given this a 4 star - and hope that Maria isn't too upset with my review.

This is an addictive, domestic psychological thriller. The kind of book you read straight through and are exhausted at the end. All of the emotions are present – love, hate, frustration, sadness and revenge/justification. The characters are unlikeable and unreliable and you could have a love/hate relationship with them. Multiple POV’s allow you to see all sides to the story and ‘try’ to predict the outcome. This was a super fun read and my first by this author. I will continue to follow her career.

Cassie and Jon's son Teddy gets Jon's former childhood as a form of inheritance and so the whole family moves into the house. Cassie believes that moving in is paving her way to start a new life and getting back to her job, although her husband Jon wanted her to be the typical wife. After they moved in a woman named Amy comes into their life. Amy works as a dog sitter for Cassie but Amy has her own agenda as she secretly enters into Cassie's home as she has a score that she wanted to settle.

This was actually a fast-paced thriller. The story is told in multiple POVs--Cassie, Amy and Becca who is the next-door neighbor of Cassie. In the beginning, we don't know what Amy's vendetta against Cassie and Jon is as she secretly enters into their house and also stalks them. But it was during the middle of the book and towards the end that we get to find the real reason why Amy is hell bent in taking revenge from Cassie and Jon. The story outline was great, although I have to say, the whole story line as a whole was slightly predictable. Except for Cassie, the characters are unreliable which make them perfect in thrillers. Nonetheless, the writing was great, and this book is actually a page turner and unputdownable. If you are looking for a thriller that you wouldn't want to put down, then this book is highly recommended--worth 4.5 stars.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Jon and Cassie move back to Jon's childhood home with their son Teddy. Becca, their next door neighbour, doesn't seem pleased that Jon is back. Cassie meets Amy while walking their dog and taking Teddy to the park. It becomes clear Jon, Becca, and Cassie have history, and Cassie plans to figure it out.

The book builds suspense as it goes, leaving you unable to put it down until you figure out what's going on. It certainly makes you think about who you let in to your life. I didn't particularly like any of the characters, although I despised Jon. He was an overbearing, arrogant man.

This was my first book by Maria Frankland and I'd happily read more by her. I'd happily recommend this book.

While I enjoyed the first ARC I got by this author, I did not enjoy this one. I tried really hard to like this was but was bored. The characters were annoying. Amy with her constant thought “I have to pretend to be her friend” became old after the 3rd time she thought. Cassie was weak. She left her husband gaslight her and just never admitted he was awful. Not even going to start on the husband….I’ll never stop. Thank you for the arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Have you ever met someone where it seems the two of you hit it off right away? Would you let them become your dog-walker or watch your child after meeting them just one time?

Cassie meets Amy in the park after moving in to a her new neighborhood. She is in dire need of a dog-walker when she starts her new job, but she didn't realize what she was getting herself into at the time.

I Let Her In is a psychological thriller that is a fast read. It is told through two POVS: Cassie and Amy's. I love books that show both sides of a story as you try to figure out the mystery of what actually happened in the prologue.

I didn't really like the characters, except for Suki, the dog, and Teddy, Cassie's four-year-old son. However, even though I didn't really like Cassie nor Amy, I still cheered them on throughout the book. It's like when you cheer on the antagonist in a good movie.

There were some good twists at the end, which I always appreciate. At times, I felt like the hints were a little too strong, but I still wanted to read to find out if I was right or not.

I gave this book four out of five stars. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for sharing this book with me for my honest review.

I Let Her In by Maria Frankland is a fast paced thriller that had me on the edge of my seat! With losing an hour sleep with daylight savings time and not wanting to put this book down, I feel like I lost more than an hour. (In a great way!) Cassie, her husband John and their son all move into his childhood home. She needs to find a dog walker and finds Amy but is Amy who she says she is? There are a few twists thrown in that I did not see coming. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my honest review. To be published March 19, 2024.