This psychological thriller is fast paced with twist and turns until the very end. The reader is never sure of what the truth is, nor how much of the truth each character is aware of. The characters do not have much depth, and the story is a bit jerky in its telling, but it still was an enjoyable read, thank you NetGalley for this opportunity!

Gina the victim of a crime many years ago
Owen her new boyfriend
Marta and her hubby, Owens parents meeting Gina for the first time

We know pretty much from the beginning how most of them ‘fit in the puzzle’ and so there’s no faffing around why they all work it out, they mostly know….but how much do they know and how much are they going to act in what they know is the question

Marta plays the thin lipped all powerful Mum who adores the ground Owen walks on, naturally she despises Gina and there are some great moments when the pair converse and try to out do each other

Gina plans revenge, and gets more than she bargained for

A good psychological thriller that ticks all the boxes needed to make a dramatic read with the added plus of a boooom of an ending that will shock

Good writing and characters and a title that brings nothing to do with book memories of a great film 😎

Stay-at-home mother Marta lives in her successful husband's shadow, overlooked by him ever since her darling son Owen went to medical school. She's not about to let the beautiful Gina take Owen away from her. Marta will play nice, get Gina to trust her. And then she has a plan of her own. Owen is already certain he wants to marry Gina. She's perfect. They just have to get through this weekend and then he'll propose. Sure, his mum can be overprotective. But Owen knows why. He knows what she's hiding.

After reading the premise for this book, all I wanted to do was devour it. I could not put it down. There was so much going on in this descriptively written story. We get a few small reveals throughout. Marta is a bit over-obsessed with her son Owen, he's forty-one. When he brings Gina to meet his parents, he really wants their approval of his girlfriend. But they are all hiding secrets, secrets they hope will stay buried. There are hidden agendas which are uncovered along the way. I loved the way the story ended.

Published 28th August 2024

I would like to thank #NetGalley #Bookouture and the author #EmilyShiner for my ARC of #MeetTheParents in exchange for an honest review.

This was a psychological domestic thriller about a son going to visit his parents to let his girlfriend meet them for the first time. The premise of the book is setup fairly quickly and you start to feel some tension between the girlfriend and the mother. It also features flashbacks to an event in the girlfriend's childhood which explains her motives for also wanting to meet the parents.

What I liked: the opening premise and the ending. I was gripped from the beginning and did not see the ending coming. I really loved the flashback POVs and the short chapters helped to keep a pace moving throughout. I liked how there were limited characters to keep track of, I always appreciate that in my books. I liked how there was an open ending left up to the readers' interpretations.

What I didn't enjoy: After the first tense/awkward moment between girlfriend and mother, it became so repetitive that it lost all tension for me. I found myself rolling my eyes as these situations kept occurring. It then took until 4 chapters before the end before we get a full on confrontation that was building for so long by which point I just wanted to finish the book. In terms of writing choices, the need to use unnatural words in Marta's POV was unnecessary. I didn't know what they meant and had no interest in having to look them up as I was reading.

I felt there was so much more potential if the events at the end had started to happen earlier and we got more drama and confrontational dialogue between characters rather than just being passive aggressive when each character knew what was going on around them.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookcouture for an advanced copy in return for my honest feedback.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!

What a great book!! Such a good thriller/mystery! Perfect writing style and that plot twist!! PERFECT!!

This seems a very simple story on the surface.
The parents hate the girlfriend, the girlfriend hates the parents. Son brings girlfriend for a visit to the parents. Let the games begin.
However, a backstory soon emerges, and everyone has their own plans and secrets.
But I did NOT see the twist at the end coming!

Wow! Emily Shiner doesn’t disappoint. Duelling POV, fast paced, quick chapters make this one of those guilty reads that has you turning the pages as fast as you can while shaking your head at the appalling nature of human behaviour. I liked it.
Thank You to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Emily Shiner for the opportunity to enjoy this ARC.

the suspense!! so thick you could cut it with a knife. im not a big thriller reader so i dont have the highest of expectations. all i care about is if the story grips my attention and i dont guess the plot twist. this one did just that! could not put this down

A twisty novel with characters you will not be able to stand.

This was a fast paced read and once I started it I didn’t stop until I finished.

Highly recommended for those who like noir and twists and turns a plenty.

This was a hook you from the beginning book. It stayed that way and definitely kept you on your toes! Totally did not see the twist at the end!! But that end is why it got three stars instead of four. I need complete closure. Overall it’s a fantastic read.

I have been devouring thrillers this year. However, Meet The Parents didn’t do it for me. The plot was expressed very early on in the book. The “suspense” felt extremely slow and hard to read. The plot did not quicken until near 75% into the book.

Meet The Parents has all the elements of a great domestic thriller – truly horrible characters, a love story and a claustrophobic feeling that keeps you tearing through the pages. Revenge and a mother’s obsessive love, lies at the heart of this book and all the characters had their own horrible motives. Although we’re meant to be rooting for Gina, even the main protagonist is a deeply complicated, flawed and rather unpleasant heroine. I raced through this book as I love Emily’s style of writing. The ending wasn’t my favourite due to the unbelievability, but all in all I really enjoyed this thriller.

Thank you to Emily Shiner, Bookouture and Netgalley for my advance copy.

Meet The Parents was my second read from Emily Shiner. Marta and Grant were very unlikeable characters for me. It was suspenseful and keep me guessing about the back story for a while. I felt that some parts were far fetched and contrived but the twist at the end, I did not see coming. I look forward to other Emily Shiner books in the future.

Thank you Net Galley, Emily Shiner and Bookouture for the opportunity to preview this title and the opinions expressed are my own.
The expected release date is Aug. 28, 2024.

This was a good mystery/thriller book full of twists and turns and one I really enjoyed it, and would recommend it

Meet the parents by Emily Shiner is a brilliant read. Two separate families after revenge or an ending. I absolutely loved it.

I was kindly sent this book by NetGalley and Bookouture for an honest review.

I thought the concept was great but it just didn’t really work for me. I felt like the book wrote Gina’s character as just as vile as the parents, but that just didn’t sit right with me- I feel she should have been more ‘hero’. There was no likeable character to get behind. The relationship between Gina and Owen seemed too intense and in depth for only being seven weeks and the book seemed to just go round in circles where everyone actually knew what each other was up to but still put themselves in risky situations! Also, the serial killer aspect wasn’t really explored or given enough depth to be an intriguing element.
For a light read it was ok and I was keen to keep reading to find out what happened, but i didn’t love it.

I'll start with saying I blew through this book so that must mean it was incredibly engaging. I will say, though, that the characters felt very one dimensional with the mail female character making some insanely amateur juvenile mistakes while sleuthing in her in-laws home. I think the author wanted to move the story along quickly but some of her choices were pretty unwise. Then you have the love interest who was just kind of cringey to me the whole way through. He acted like he was 24 and not 41. Also, the twist is basically given to you in the first couple chapters of the book. There was no surprise for me at the end. I did enjoy the fast paced writing but the story could have used a bit more developing and detail. Still, I am glad I read it. I can tell the author has great thriller writing skills. I just think this one was a bit of a miss. Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

OMG. This book was not at all what I expected. It started as a slow burn...I wasn't sure where it was going. But WOW. The twists and turns are insane, make your head spin insane. Great book! I'm looking forward to more from this author.
Thanks to netgalley, the publisher and author for the chance to read this advanced copy.

Gina and Owen are newly dating and in love. Owen takes Gina to meet his parents, Marta and Grant, for the first time. Owen is their only child and Marta’s point of obsession. As soon as Gina arrives at the fancy house in the middle of nowhere, she is immediately uncomfortable with the way she is treated by Owen’s parents. This is a story of revenge and hidden agendas told from Gina and Marta’s point of view, fluctuating between the “then” & “now”. Absolutely a page turner full of suspense, tension, and a shocking ending!
Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC! "Meet the Parents" by Emily Shiner is a gripping psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The story follows Gina, who meets her boyfriend Owen's parents under suspicious circumstances, only to uncover hidden secrets within the family. As the tension escalates, the weekend at Owen's secluded family home takes a dark turn, culminating in a deadly conclusion. Shiner's masterful storytelling and well-developed characters make this an unputdownable read, perfect for fans of intense and twisty thrillers. This book is a must-read for anyone who loves a good suspenseful page-turner.