Wednesday 13 March 2019

The Neighbour by Fiona Cummins

The Neighbour 
By Fiona Cummins
Published by Pan Macmillan (4 April 2019)
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher



Publisher's description
FOR SALE: A lovely family home with good-sized garden and treehouse occupying a plot close to woodland. Perfect for kids, fitness enthusiasts, dog walkers . . .
And, it seems, the perfect hunting ground for a serial killer.
On a hot July day, Garrick and Olivia Lockwood and their two children move into 25 The Avenue looking for a fresh start. They arrive in the midst of a media frenzy: they’d heard about the local murders in the press, but Garrick was certain the killer would be caught and it would all be over in no time. Besides, they’d got the house at a steal and he was convinced he could flip it for a fortune.
The neighbours seemed to be the very picture of community spirit. But everyone has secrets, and the residents in The Avenue are no exception.
After six months on the case with no real leads, the most recent murder has turned DC Wildeve Stanton’s life upside down, and now she has her own motive for hunting down the killer – quickly.

My verdict
The Neighbour is creepy and twisty, gripping and shocking - exactly as I would expect from author Fiona Cummins, having read and loved her two previous books, Rattle and The Collector.

The Neighbour is yet another serial killer thriller but this time a standalone. It focuses on one particular suburban street, with its eclectic array of residents, all seemingly hiding secrets and 'not-so-perfect' lives behind their closed doors. And then there's the body count ... which keeps rising.

Short snappy 'just one more' chapters keep the story moving at a cracking pace, with plenty of new revelations to add to the intrigue. Fiona Cummins writes beautiful prose with some gruesome descriptions, and certainly manages to get right inside the minds of all of her characters - good or bad! There's a strong sense of unease throughout the book.

Just like the serial killer, I felt that I was snooping on these households. The Neighbour reminded me of a theatrical production, with each character getting their time in the spotlight. Keep an eye on the chapter headings, as these indicate which neighbour or neighbours are currently taking centre stage.

The Neighbour is certainly a chilling read and one that made me think about the claustrophobic nature of suburban life and how easy it is to know very little about the people around us. I don't think I'll trust my own neighbours ever again!

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