Review of The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
By: Luna Lupine
I've been away for about five months, and the other night I had a day off from my real job, so what did I do? I visited The World of Myth! So many new faces and names, Stephanie has done quite well on drawing new talent into the magazine.
As I was there, I was looking at all the contributions that the new version of the magazine had to offer, but it was an old timer that caught my attention. Under the Action/Suspense section, I saw a "Part Sixteen," now to be honest I never read this author's new work, but after some time later, I had read all six parts of Through the Eyes of Madness.
That left me wondering, what was the number one selling murder mystery on the market. After a quick Google search, I found out that Shari Lapena held the title currently with her book, The Couple Next Door.
According to Amazon it said: It all started at a dinner party. . .
A domestic suspense debut about a young couple and their apparently friendly neighbors—a twisty, roller coaster ride of lies, betrayal, and the secrets between husbands and wives. . .
Anne and Marco Conti seem to have it all—a loving relationship, a wonderful home, and their beautiful baby, Cora. But one night, when they are at a dinner party next door, a terrible crime is committed. Suspicion immediately lands on the parents. But the truth is a much more complicated story.
Inside the curtained house, an unsettling account of what actually happened unfolds. Detective Rasbach knows that the panicked couple is hiding something. Both Anne and Marco soon discover that the other is keeping secrets, secrets they've kept for years.
What follows is the nerve–racking unraveling of a family—a chilling tale of deception, duplicity, and unfaithfulness that will keep you breathless until the final shocking twist.
Okay, where do I start.
I found a ton of fantastic things buried in this book! It was indeed a page–turning, unpredictable, nail biter. The story was strong enough to keep me engrossed from chapter to chapter!
With that being said, the writing was, at best, mediocre. The third person narration annoyed the crap out of me! It did not fit the style of storytelling, I found myself wondering continuously why she did not go with a second person narrative approach. Shari points the direction through a single narrator and should have had it in that point of view.
Speaking of the single narrator, there was one character that seemed worth the time to be invested in, which makes it rather tough to get through a book when you cannot connect with the people interacting in it. Now, along the way, there was some unpredictable moments, but in its entirety, it was just the opposite—I guessed the ending.
Reading along, you are waiting for everything to come together, like murder mysteries do, right? I mean that's the fun part, reading through the book missing all the clues and when revealed go back and find them right there in front of your face. That one monthly serial that I mentioned earlier here on The World of Myth, just did something like that and it was impressive how it was done!
This book's plot comes together, and you're left saying, "What the Hell?!" It was just poorly done; I mean how can the dad get away unscathed? The author also creates a bunch of supporting characters, and never does anything with them. Also, I have a list of loose ends, I googled them, and it appears that there are many other readers asking the same questions.
This was the first time I had read anything from Shari, and it is safe to say it will most likely be my last as well. I must ask, how is she the best Action/Suspense writer in 2019? I give you an 'A' for effort, but for Shari Lapena's The Couple Next Door it gets two stars I would much rather keep reading Through the Eyes of Madness here in the magazine, keep up the good work, Dave! Alright, thank you to Stephanie for allowing me to do an impromptu book review for this crazy, overworked, werewo—, uh, lady. Yeah, lady. Thanks again!
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