Many thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture and Bookouture Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest psychological thriller by Emily Shiner, with the audio perfectly narrated by Ashley Rose Kaplan. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Julie is the nanny for two little girls from different families in the exclusive Blackwood neighborhood. The mothers were best friends until months ago, and now don't speak. But when the little girls go missing on the same night, everyone is suspect.

Wow – what a twisty tale this was! My mouth dropped quite a few times. Everyone has secrets – everyone – and it’s suspenseful waiting to see what will happen to the missing little girls and just who is responsible. Told from multiple POV, all of the characters fall apart in different ways when the girls go missing. A quick read – always look forward to Emily Shiner’s books!

The Nanny Share
by Emily Shiner
Released February 21st

This is the kind of thriller that creeps into your bones and refuses to let go. From the very first page, I was thrown into the eerie, privileged world of Blackwood—a place where perfect lawns and million-dollar homes hide secrets so dark they could swallow you whole.

At the center of it all is the nanny. She loves her job. She adores the two little girls she cares for. But now, Emma and Nealie are missing. Taken from their beds in the dead of night. And she knows—oh, she knows—the police will come looking for her. After all, she had a key to both houses.

Shiner builds tension like a slow-burning fuse, layering every scene with an unsettling sense of paranoia. Nothing is as it seems. The mothers—once best friends—are now barely on speaking terms, their once-shared lives fractured by a fallout no one wants to talk about. Emma’s home is filled with whispered arguments, her father slipping away at odd hours. Nealie’s house has a door that stays locked—always. The nanny notices it all, tucking away these details like pieces of a puzzle she isn’t sure she wants to solve.

Then the twists start rolling in, each one sharper than the last. Just when I thought I had a grip on who to trust, Shiner ripped the rug out from under me. The nanny swears she’s being framed—but why was she so desperate to land this job in the first place? What is she hiding? And if she’s not behind the disappearance, then who is? Because someone in Blackwood is playing a dangerous game.

With its razor-sharp pacing and a plot that keeps tightening its grip, The Nanny Share is a psychological thriller at its best—dark, twisted, and utterly unputdownable. Just when you think you know where it’s going, it takes a sharp left turn, leaving you breathless. Trust me, you’ll want to clear your schedule for this one.

Thank you to Bookouture for this advance copy via NetGalley for my honest, voluntary review.

#TheNannyShare #NetGalley #Bookouture #EmilyShiner

Two young girls go missing in the night, they both share the same nanny, did she take them?
This book starts with the parents waking up to find the girls missing and the police being called. It is told from several points of view, including the detective’s, which I liked as we got a full view of what the characters were thinking.


I liked how the book was paced and how we got to know each character. Although I didn’t particularly like the mothers of the girls and one of the fathers, the nanny, although she had her flaws, I kind of liked her, as did the detective.


I like dark, twisty, suspenseful books, and this had them all, although I felt that the reveal was rushed.

The ending though…What the heck!

Emily Shiner (favorite author) returns following Meet the Parents with her twistiest thriller yet, THE NANNY SHARE. When two little girls go missing in this exclusive neighborhood, the only connection seems to be the Nanny they share. But it gets more complex. Get ready for a WILD roller coaster ride where everyone is hiding secrets, and no one is as they appear.

You will never guess how all the players are connected.

About...

Welcome to the exclusive gated Blackwood neighborhood. It is the nicest community in town, and mostly everyone is a doctor, a lawyer, or a trust fund baby.

Two mothers, Alison (Ryan) and Carrie (Daniel), were best friends until three months earlier.
Their four-year-old daughters, Emma and Nealie, go missing.
Not one but two missing girls on the same street.
What is the connection? Is this a coincidence?

The one connection is their shared Nanny, Julie, who is also in a relationship with Theo. This relationship adds a layer of complexity to the situation, as it raises questions about potential conflicts of interest and hidden motives.

Kate (Detective Martin) is on the case. For three years, she has been at the Rockridge department after moving to escape the big city life of Los Angeles. Kids in Blackwood do not go missing. What if every parent's nightmare came true? Was this an inside job? They are innocent little girls, not teens.

The ongoing mystery.
Whodunit it?
Who has the girls?
Where are they?
The motive?
Who is the psychopath?
Who is the orchestrator?
What if they can choose only one girl?
Who will be left standing?

But someone has to pay for their sins.

My thoughts...

Oh, my, THE NANNY SHARE is a riveting and twisty psychological whodunit cat-and-mouse domestic thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat!

Shiner shines with her skillful misdirection and unreliable narrators. With unlikable characters, you will have to decide which is more despicable. You think the book is going one way, but BAM— the author keeps adding twists, layers, unexpected turns, and surprising twists, making this a complex and layered suspense thriller.

Told from POVs: Alison, Carrie, Julie, Kate, and Ryan, everyone is hiding secrets, leaving the readers to suspect many. An anonymous texter adds to the suspense by sending cryptic messages to a character, further complicating the situation and leaving the reader guessing about their identity and motives.

Fast-paced and full of action, each wife and husband is hiding something, and the nanny and her boyfriend are not exempt from this. The husbands, in particular, play a significant role in the unfolding mystery, as their past actions and current behavior raise questions about their involvement in the girls' disappearance. And, of course, the nanny and the boyfriend. What about the wives? Is this a revenge plan gone wrong?

We know something went wrong between the husbands who previously worked together. When something happened, the wives were no more extended friends.

With short, snappy, clever cliffhanger chapters, the author keeps you hooked in this multi-layered, complex game of cat and mouse.

From blackmail, embezzlement, lies, family dysfunction, money, greed, revenge, infidelity, obsession, and dark secrets—when the past meets the present, it is explosive! Tension mounts as a sinister undercurrent runs throughout, and while the reader is privy to each narrator's thoughts, with an undertone of menace.

THE NANNY SHARE is a tantalizing suspense in which everyone's secrets lead to danger, murder, and a mind-blowing ending. Trust no one! Who is the biggest liar of all?

All these questions and more will be answered in this gripping psychological thriller. If you are looking for an entertaining popcorn thriller, you have found it.

I am a massive fan of the author and think I have read all her books. You can be assured of being entertained by the queen of revenge plots.

Audiobook...

I had the honor of reading the book and listening to the audiobook narrated by the talented Ashley Rose Kaplan, elevating the story with the voice of this large, diverse cast, providing an engaging and suspenseful performance.

Blog tour stop...

Join me on my blog on pub day (2/21) for a Blog Tour Stop with Bookouture Books On Tour and learn more about the book and the talented author.

Recs...

THE NANNY SHARE is for fans of the author and those who enjoy twisty thrillers from Freida McFadden, Kaira Rouda, Jenova Rose, K.L. Slater, John Marrs, Daniel Hurst, Keri Beevis, and Miranda Rijks.

Thanks to Bookouture for the honor of reading an advanced review and a listening copy via NetGalley in exchange for my honest thoughts.

blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 5 Stars
Pub Date: Feb 21, 2025
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Feb 2025 Must-Read Books
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I enjoyed the book. It had a good story line with a great hook. I did feel all the points of view (there were 8 or 9 I think) sometimes made it difficult to keep track of who was who and what was happening. I do feel that was a little overwhelming at times. It is because of this that it took me a bit longer to be able to read, but it was also a book that hooked you and sank it's teeth into you.

Rounding up from 4.5 stars

Having read the books in her Freya Sinclair series, I was very excited to have the opportunity to read this standalone thriller of hers. Emily Shiner did not disappoint! This book starts of fast-paced and never slows down. It took me a bit to catch on to who was who at the beginning because there was never a chance to catch my breath and think about it! This is the kind of book where everyone has ulterior motives and secrets and you spend a majority of the book trying to figure out what they are. I read this cover to cover because there simply never was a good stopping point in the action. Eh! Who needs sleep?

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Release date 2/21/25

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Interesting thriller with lots of twists and turns. I don’t think there was a single character i liked, and i didn’t like how the book ended. There was so much build up and then it just kind of ended abruptly. Overall a decent read.

The Nanny Share is now the fourth book I've read by Emily Shiner and she knows how to write 'em as it's also the fourth five-star!

Two missing girls. One nanny. Is she to blame?

This thriller is literally just a whole messy web of diabolical characters with hidden drama and features multiple twists along the way - of course I loved it! Purposefully written, there was only one character I enjoyed but I could always empathize with the others (to a point)! And right from the start, there was also only one character I trusted, not necessarily meaning that the others were unreliable, just very very untrustworthy!

I'm a big fan of how Shiner writes female characters! Having standout women to root for or against makes for a quick-reading thriller as I was always desperate to know if my hunches were correct!

Ashley Rose Kaplan delivered a believably emotional audiobook performance. Various voices were created for the multiple points of view, making it easy to get caught up in the unfolding drama rather than focus on remembering who's perspective a chapter was written from.

I can't wait to read Shiner's next release as I'm betting this five-star streak will continue!

(Please note: Shiner approaches this two-missing-preschooler plot with love - always mindfully and sensitively.)

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture and Bookouture Audio for the complimentary copies to read and review.

Quite enjoyable but I got a confused near the end. Too much in one go! A good author though. Thanks for opportunity to read this book.

Sweet little Emma and Nealie, both just four years old, live on the same block in the exclusive, gated Blackwood neighborhood—miles from my cramped studio apartment. I go between each family’s home to care for the girls. And I know all their secrets…

Their mothers were best friends until three months ago, when everything fell apart. There’s a door that’s always locked at Nealie’s house. And Emma’s house is filled with whispered arguments. I’m sure her father is having an affair.

Lies, lies everywhere. I have never seen so many dishonest characters in one story before. Secrets and lies abound and then continue to multiply.

Two little girls have simply disappeared from their bedroom overnight. They have vanished without a trace. These things do not happen in this ritzy, gated community in Blackwood. The whispers are starting to get loud and the finger pointing will begin as well. Two families and a nanny are hiding something. You just do not know exactly what that something is. I just knew they were all dirty, rotten liars. Somebody knows something, but they will have to air their dirty secrets before you can know the truth.

Detective Kate Martin can spot a liar a mile away, and she knows each and every person she has interviewed is lying, but knowing and proving it are two different things. She will have her work cut out for her in this messy investigation and two little girls lives are depending on her.

The revelations will leave you slack-jawed thinking to myself that did not just happen, but it did. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, it went another direction. This is a technique that Emily Shiner uses in her writing, and does it well. Prepare to chase rabbits into holes until you find a snake, because there is one in their midst.

This author knows how to hook the reader into her story without letting go until you scream uncle. Forget about your chores or sleep once you start this one because you will be thinking of nothing but finishing this book.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I was really excited to get into this ARC as I read "Meet the Family" and was OBSESSED with it. This one sadly fell very flat to me. I think there was over explanation of the event and thought processes. I was just not very invested in any of the characters or the mystery of where the girls were and who took them. I guessed the twist at about 40%. It was a quick read, so if you're looking for a quick introductory thriller, this may be your book. If you read a lot of thrillers, I would recommend other books of Shiner's over this one.

This book was much more involved than the plot synopsis let on.
Two little girls are missing but that’s just the surface costing.
Knifing into the heart of the book there is multiple betrayals, lying, deceit, and scheming galore.
I didn’t think my eyebrows could raise any higher as each new revelation appeared.
Even the most innocent harbor deep secrets.
This one is s a doozie!

This is my third book by this author. this story kept me on the edge of my seat, this one had some darker elements. so thank you netgalley for the arc.

The Nanny Share caught my eye as a person who not only loves thrillers, but also works as a nanny! This is a multi-POV story following primarily Julie, Allison, Carrie, and Kate. Julie is a nanny working for two families to watch both of their little girls, but it's clear from the very beginning that Julie harbors a lot of guilt for the secrets she keeps. Allison is the mother of one of the missing girls, living in a gated community and married to a big-shot lawyer, but she too carries guilt for her past wrong doings. Carrie is the mother of the other missing girl, she too lives in the gated community but her family is struggling financially after her husband lost his job. Kate is the detective assigned to the girls case, with an unfortunate conflict of interest that she simply can't move past. The fact is, if they want these girls home safe, Kate is the best option.

I enjoyed the many many twists and turns this book threw at me. There was a lot going on with each of the characters narrating the story, it was never quite clear which direction it would go in, who was innocent and who was guilty of something. The dialogue in this book was very well written and realistic, which I was eating up. The one thing that I would recommend for this one is the editing, I think with better editing this could go from a good read to a great one. There were a few points where I felt like I was waiting for them to get to the point, when I read a thriller I'm looking for a real page turner that keeps my attention so locked on the story that I can't put it down. This plot had every element of suspense needed to do just that, but there were too many moments that removed me from the story as a reader which were hard to ignore.

One thing I really loved was that I've never read a story like this before, and writing a unique plot in a world of so many many books is incredibly rare these days. Emily Shiner did a fantastic job of painting the narrators emotions, no matter whose POV I was reading. I could feel the level of anxiety each woman felt as the clock ticked down on the girls being missing. The sense of foreboding that hung over each of them, wondering if any of their individual mistakes contributed to the nightmare they were living. Overall, I would recommend this to thriller readers looking for a unique story with an unexpected twist!

Two four year old girls living just down the road from each other go missing on the same night. Their parents had until recently been very good friends and some of them had been work colleagues. They are all hiding secrets which may or may not have impacted on why the girls have disappeared.
A really well written and plotted book with three dimensional characters and a believable story. I particularly liked the different narrators for each chapter, written in the first person so we were privy to that particular character’s thoughts and actions but they were unaware of what had happened to others or what other characters’ motives and, more importantly, secrets were. A very difficult book to put down. I kept thinking ‘just one more chapter’ very late into the evening to the point that I did finish this book in one day. Emily Shiner is one to watch out for.

For fans of The Housemaid series, this is the perfect book for you. Edge of seat, jaw dropping, twists and turns on every page, and best roller coaster ride you have ever been on.
Two four year old girls go missing during the night and two sets of parents who are suppose to be best friends with ine nanny that nannies both girls,turn into page turning secrets, lies, and drama that happens all in the span of one day. Just when you think you have it completely figured out another twist is thrown in there.
You'll love and hate all the characters at once.
Run to your newest store and pick this up, you won't regret it, especially if you are a Riley Sager, Freida McFadden. Shari Lapena, John Marrs fan than you are sure to love Emily Shiner, who if not as good may even be better!

I am so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have received an advanced copy of The Nanny Share from the author and NetGalley! 🫶

“If a kid was taken in Blackwood, that means only one thing. It was an inside job.”

The Nanny Share is such a wild story and it had me absolutely hooked! 😱 I devoured this story within 48 hours and it brought me on such a wild rollercoaster ride! 🙀😤😢 Two four year old girls are kidnapped and there is a whole mystery of what happened to them and trying to bring them back home. This story has multiple POVs and all of the characters are so morally grey that you have no idea who to trust and it made it so much fun! 🖤🐍 There were so many twists and turns that I wasn’t expecting and it was so hard to pick one favorite character because all of them go through their own struggles and difficulties as this story progresses. If you love psychological thrillers, multiple POVs, police investigations, morally grey characters, and mystery be sure to pick it up and read! 🫶

ow that was a ride! I’m not sure I’ve ever read a thriller where so much happens in just one day. There were many reveals throughout, and I did find myself confused at times. I think that might have been because there were quite a few characters to get used to, so I ended up writing down each one and how they related to one another to keep track. This was especially helpful in the early chapters.

I didn’t like any of the characters; there wasn’t a single one with any redeemable qualities. The detective behaved unlike any detective I’ve ever read about before—asking questions in such an unofficial capacity that I can’t believe anyone could be successfully sentenced in a court of law!

The most unbelievable part, though, was how the parents acted while their young daughters were missing. They were all so selfish. At times, it even seemed like they had completely forgotten that their children were gone. Because of this, I had to suspend my disbelief in order to enjoy the story.

The author included a lot of dialogue, and by the end, I felt like I really got to know the characters. I just wish as much attention had been paid to the settings of the book.

That said, if you’re looking for a popcorn thriller with lots of twists, turns, and intrigue among a large cast of characters, you could do worse than this novel. If you’re an audiobook listener, definitely give this one a try.

Thanks to @netgalley, @bookouture, and @emilyshiner for the ARC of this novel.

Two four-year-old girls, Emily and Nealie, are missing, taken from their homes in the the middle of the night. They live in the same gated community. their parents used to be friends. Detective Kate Martin is on the case, determined to get the girls back to their parents as soon as possible.

For people that were supposed to be friends, there were lots of secrets and lies being kept from each other. There were times when the adults were all about saving themselves rather than their children. I was quickly pulled into this story. It kept my interest until the end. The characters were well-developed, the story is told from multiple points of view. and the pace is steady.

Published 21st February 2025

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