The Cleaner is a well-written book with good descriptions and a slow, steady build-up. The twist at the end was a nice surprise and probably the best part of the story.
That said, I found it hard to get into. The slow pace made it a bit boring at times, especially in the beginning. On top of that, I didn’t feel much for the characters—they just didn’t seem relatable or interesting enough to care about and I struggled to engage with them..

Overall, it’s a decent read if you like slow-burn stories with a strong finish, but it wasn’t really my cup of tea.

I found this book very slow paced and I didn’t connect or find the characters very relatable.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Mary Watson for the advanced copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

Hi hopes but not fulfilled.
I didn’t like any character, feeling no empathy made the book drag. I finished but felt disappointed.
My opinion only

This book began with promise. The premise was original, and there was some good scene setting, but it somehow lost its way. I found the characters hard to empathise with, even when our protagonist almost begged us to see them as two-dimensional as the story progressed. From about two-thirds in, I lost interest in the outcome, which was a surprise even the promising start

Esmie is a cleaner. A cleaner who is invisible to everyone so long as the job is done. It also allows her to watch and listen to what is going on around her.
Someone, one of her clients, has changed her life forever and she is determined to find out who.
When she does what revenge will she take

I just felt no empathy at all with any of the characters, none....saying that, there is a nice twist towards the end of the book...but that didn't pull the book up much above average....lots have enjoyed it though, so maybe that's just my personal feelings? Many thanks for the opportunity to read and review the ARC. 2.5/5

The Cleaner is about a lady named Esmie who's basically a ghost in plain sight - you know, one of those workers that rich people look right through. She's got this whole "innocent cleaner" thing going on with her leggings and duster, but don't let that fool you.

Esmie works in this fancy gated community called Woodlands, but instead of just dusting and vacuuming, she's playing detective. While these rich folks aren't paying attention, she's picking up all sorts of tea - failed marriages, secret affairs, all the mess-ups they try to hide behind their perfect houses. And get this - she's not just being nosy. Turns out someone in there hurt someone she really cares about, and now she's collecting all their dirty laundry (pun intended!) for some sweet, sweet revenge.

I managed to knock this book out super quick - devoured it in a few hours! It drags a bit here and there, but then it just hits and another twist keeps you hooked. The characters aren't exactly going to be your new best friends, but they keep things interesting enough. Could've used a bit more oomph in that department and maybe filled out the story a bit more, but hey, still had a good time with it.

If you're into Harriet Tyce or Lisa Jewell's stuff, you'll probably really enjoy this. It's got that whole "eat the rich" vibe going on, you know?

I’m giving it 3.5 stars - like, it's not going to change your life or anything, but it's a fun ride and worth the read! Perfect holiday book if I’m being honest.

A slow burn with not much to grab your interest. I’m not sure why anyon3 would pay someone to do so little cleaning and also I didn’t feel empathy towards any of the characters.

This book was laid out in 3 voices. Esmie in the now, Esmie's past and a story in a secret diary. To be honest I didn't care about the flashbacks and the diary story until they merged with the Esmie of now. I did get to the end but flicked through the non-now parts.

Slow burn but great plot twist ending.
Seeking revenge can be difficult sometimes but Esmie becomes a cleaner for this gated community.
There are so many layers to this story. It takes some time to build up but once it all comes together , it was really good.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

A psychological revenge thriller about Esmie, a young woman taking on a cleaning job with three households who she believes are responsible for the death of her brother Nico. As well as pinning down the individual responsible for Nico’s death, Esmie becomes a witness to a whole lot more intrigue and deception in their lives, and contributes to a fair bit herself. A well constructed and compelling plot which is let down by a host of generally dislikeable characters.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

Unfortunately I just couldn’t get into this one.
We meet Esmie, our lead character, who fakes an accident to give her an ‘in’ to get a cleaning job, in a quiet secluded area. Cleaning for several households who could be responsible for her brother failing to continue his university course and arriving home a broken person.
It’s made very clear that she is there for retribution from the start.
Unfortunately I couldn’t engage with any of the characters, none of them were particularly likeable and everything just seemed a bit disjointed and slow, also repetitive in nature.
The characters needed more depth and you needed to be able to feel something for the people in this book.

A faked accident gets Esmeralda (Call me Esmie) Lorenzo the job of cleaner to a group of houses owned by three sisters, somewhere near Cork in the Irish Republic. The families are pleased because their regular cleaner has suddenly gone off on holiday for a month. Needless to say, Esmie, has an ulterior motive, which is to determine which of the three seduced her brother, Nico, got him addicted to drugs, and got his PhD Scholarship cancelled, causing him to return to his home country, a disgraced failure. His decline thereafter has led to a situation where he is now in a coma. Esmie loves her brother, as does her friend, Simone, who is engaged to Nico, and a borderline psychopath. By having unfettered access to the homes, Esmie hopes to find clues to the false lover and information to destroy her.
The book is quite well written, but is fairly dull and cyclic (search house, find something, nearly get caught, repeat). She leaves the houses spotless, but seems to have spent very little time on the actual cleaning. All of the characters seem to be dreadful and unlikeable, and the sub plots are not helpful one way or the other. Interactions between the cast are, in the main, unlikely. However, there is a major twist which will likely take many readers (not this one) by surprise.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

The Cleaner Mary Watson

2 stars

I choose this book to read as the plot synopsis seemed really interesting.

Esme has always been very close to her brother Nico so when he returns from university a broken man and addicted to drugs she needs to find out why. He had become besotted by one of the women in a family group who all live close together in an area known as The Woodlands. This woman had betrayed him and also got him expelled from university and his addiction to drugs has left him in a coma.

Esme decides to approach the family and manages to get a job as the cleaner for the two couples, Amber and Lincoln Kelly, Paul and Isabelle Blake and Amber's sister Ceanna. These people are all rich with luxurious lives and Esme is able to blend into the background whom no one takes any notice of whilst she is cleaning their houses.

The problem I had with this book however was that I did not feel any sympathy for any of the characters, all of them have secrets and none of them were very likeable. I also felt no real sympathy for the cleaner and as the story unfolds not even much for Nico. Although there were many plot twists they did not really shock me and I found the ending unsatisfactory.

The book was well written and very atmospheric but was spoilt by the lack of depth in the characters for me.


Karen Deborah
Reviewer for Net Galley

I stayed up late to continue reading Mary Watson's #TheCleaner, a page-turning revenge thriller featuring Esmie, a cleaner from overseas searching for the secrets of the upmarket residents of The Woodlands. Twisty, edgy and oh so compelling.

Wow – this book had me gripped! I read this quickly and late into the night as this was such a great page tuner and I could not wait to find out what happened in the end. A dark thriller with lots of suspense.
The plot was fast paced and lots to keep you guessing. I loved how the story unfolded between past and presence and not being able to guess who the ‘villain’ was. There was lots of hidden twists in this book.
Really great and easy read for all book lovers! Great find and highly recommend this!

Esmie is supposed to be invisible in her job as 'The Cleaner' in the big houses of the Woodlands exclusive gated community. It's a job she has landed by being calculated and manipulative, just like those who live there.

Esmie isn't actually interested in cleaning. She is looking for revenge, on whoever bought harm to her Brother, Nico.

Nico was a lodger at the Woodlands, a student at the local University. He was doing well, a model student, until he started taking prescription drugs to help him stay up all night studying and everything started to spiral out of control.

Now Nico is in a coma back home, Esmie distraught and determined to get answers from those who put him there.

It is easy for Esmie to snoop whilst trailing a duster behind her, after all, no one pays any attention to the cleaner. Especially those with wealthy privilege. But then the Woodlands residents aren't exactly like other wealthy people, and soon enough questions begin to be asked about Esmie.

Is she really who she says she is? And if she isn't why is she there, and what does she want?

None of the characters in this novel are particularly likeable, and that's okay, because I don't think they are supposed to be. In fact, I think the plot itself is easier to swallow if you don't like the characters because it would be very difficult to understand some of the things that happen if these people were at all likeable - or normal!

I enjoyed the Cleaner, but I'm not sure it's a novel for everyone, but of course you can be the judge of that!

I really enjoyed reading this. I loved the dual timelines. I found the characters well written, although definitely not always likable!

I loved the slow uncovering of the characters relationships with Nico, and I enjoyed that you get to find out at the same time as the main character.

I was not expecting the twist AT ALL. I had so many theories about what I thought was going to happen and I was completely off the mark!

I think anyone that enjoys mysteries or thrillers will enjoy this.

Argh, this is a tough review to write because sadly I really didn't enjoy this book.
Right from the start I struggled to connect to the plot or the characters and this feeling of disconnection from the story only got worse the more I read.
I found it extremely difficult to tell which character was which. Mainly because they were all so flat and lacked any personality or defining characteristic.
The story felt repetitive and so overwhelmingly dull and so boring, that by 50% of the way in I had lost all interest in the book and I started to skim read. In fact if this hadn't been an ARC I would have DNF'd. And by the end of the book I really wished I had.
I didn't find this in the least bit of a thriller or mystery and it certainly lacked any tension.
Unfortunately I can't think of anything I did like about this book.
This book just did not work for me at all.

Unobtrusive to the point of invisibility, to most of her clients Esmie is just the cleaner. What they don't realise is that her unique access to their homes makes them extremely vulnerable to her snooping.

Because Esmie has an agenda. A very dark one. She wants revenge, and thanks to the carelessness of the spoilt people whose homes she wanders her way through, she will have it...

Delivering suspense on a knife edge this book is a great read. Buckle up and enjoy the ride! It gets 3.5 stars.