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mcipher's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed the characters and the sullen teenager drama made me feel so much less alone! But it all felt a little too pat and manufactured, not like real organic problems - more like she picked some issues she wanted to talk about and built things around that. Still a good read.
luvbooks4vr7's review against another edition
mysterious
4.5
I adore this author! This book was a bit different, had twists and turns but I gulped and savored it in a day!Perfect Neighbors takes us into the homes of an idyllic suburban neighborhood where we discover the burning secrets hiding just below the surface.
Bucolic Newport Cove, where spontaneous block parties occur on balmy nights and all of the streets are named for flowers, is proud of its distinction of being named one the top twenty safest neighborhoods in the US.
It’s also one of the most secret-filled.
Kellie Scott has just returned to work after a decade of being a stay-at-home mom. She’s adjusting to high heels, scrambling to cook dinner for her family after a day at the office—and soaking in the dangerous attention of a very handsome, very married male colleague. Kellie’s neighbor Susan Barrett begins every day with fresh resolutions: she won’t eat any carbs. She’ll go to bed at a reasonable hour. And she’ll stop stalking her ex-husband and his new girlfriend. Gigi Kennedy seems to have it all together—except her teenage daughter has turned into a hostile stranger and her husband is running for Congress, which means her old skeletons are in danger of being brought into the light.
Then a new family moves to this quiet, tree-lined cul-de-sac. Tessa Campbell seems friendly enough to the other mothers, if a bit reserved. Then the neighbors notice that no one is ever invited to Tessa’s house. And soon, it becomes clear Tessa is hiding the biggest secret of all. (less)
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nicsbooksandnooks's review against another edition
2.0
Not a fan of the slow moving plot and mediocre payoff of the mystery aspect of the book.
sp3cia1j's review against another edition
2.0
The only reason I finished reading this book was to figure out the "secret"...suffice it to say I was underwhelmed. This novel is like a poor version of Liane Moriarty - the characters are well to do and seem great on the outside, but the characters are nowhere near as nuanced or interesting. The author overexplains and over-describes, but the chosen words are not sophisticated. Overall, I would not recommend.
waysquared's review against another edition
3.0
Enjoyable enough read. Very true-to-life (I could see all of these scenarios happening within my own community). I thought the listserv emails were pretty funny, and I think the resolution of each woman was satisfying.
lizakessler's review against another edition
3.0
Picked this up off the communal bookshelf at work. I'm curious who left it there. It was much better than I expected with very well done characters.
bookbosomed_jess's review against another edition
2.0
Let me start by saying I hate the term “women’s fiction”, as if women’s brains are so different from men’s that we need our own shelves at the bookstores so we know what we’ll actually like. If this is typical “chick lit” then I may need to have a sex change because this was not for me. This is definitely the closest I’ve gotten to a DNF in a very long time.
In the town of Newport Cove, voted one of the top 20 safest towns in America, four women bear their for the most part incredibly mundane secrets. Gigi’s husband is running for Congress but something in her past may muck it up. Kellie is just going back to work and is apparently desperate for attention and develops a crush on a married coworker. Susan is the most functional of them but a divorced single mother who runs a successful business who may or may not be stalking her ex. And Tessa is new to the neighborhood, moving her family to escape a mysterious incident in their past.
I was never given a reason to care about any of the characters, except maybe Susan. They were shallow and way too much time was spent describing what was happening as opposed to letting us into their heads, in extremely passive writing no less. The only intrigue was what happened with Tessa’s family but after we got a name and little else, it took so dang long to reveal who the guy was let alone what happened to him, that I just didn’t care by the end.
This was Desperate Housewives on sedatives. It was like lying in a puddle of water with not enough energy to get up. The saving grace was a little bit of comic relief provided by the listserv, specifically Frank Fitzgibbons. I finished it so it gets 2 stars but I would not read again, would not recommend, and would not trust the opinion of anyone who rated this highly. I get that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and taste but holy snooze fest was this incredibly boring.
In the town of Newport Cove, voted one of the top 20 safest towns in America, four women bear their for the most part incredibly mundane secrets. Gigi’s husband is running for Congress but something in her past may muck it up. Kellie is just going back to work and is apparently desperate for attention and develops a crush on a married coworker. Susan is the most functional of them but a divorced single mother who runs a successful business who may or may not be stalking her ex. And Tessa is new to the neighborhood, moving her family to escape a mysterious incident in their past.
I was never given a reason to care about any of the characters, except maybe Susan. They were shallow and way too much time was spent describing what was happening as opposed to letting us into their heads, in extremely passive writing no less. The only intrigue was what happened with Tessa’s family but after we got a name and little else, it took so dang long to reveal who the guy was let alone what happened to him, that I just didn’t care by the end.
This was Desperate Housewives on sedatives. It was like lying in a puddle of water with not enough energy to get up. The saving grace was a little bit of comic relief provided by the listserv, specifically Frank Fitzgibbons. I finished it so it gets 2 stars but I would not read again, would not recommend, and would not trust the opinion of anyone who rated this highly. I get that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and taste but holy snooze fest was this incredibly boring.
morgans_lit_life's review against another edition
2.0
If you like thrillers where lots of things happen, you may be disappointed. The pages were dripping with suspense, but I was left high and dry. I'm really debating as to whether I want 2 or 3 stars. Maybe 2.5. The characters' lives were interesting, but as a whole I was also disappointed because I was promised more and some of the plotlines were handled badly. Actually, this isn't the thriller it was marketed as. It's purely suspense with a side dish of nothing happening.
Yes, Tessa's story was interesting. But I was able to get a good idea of what happened, and there was no big reveal to the other women about the crime she committed. So what's the point then, of showing us three or four different women if their stories don't even really intertwine and there are no reveals to them? And then there was the matter of it being a cold case. So her problem just disappears, 1 2 3 poof? I was also disappointed that after we watch one character harbor nasty thoughts about her husband's new wife, she randomly wakes up one day and decides to forgive them! That's how her story is basically solved. I was hoping for a lot more bad behavior from her (for story purposes). Rather than just her stewing over it.
I really wanted to like this and it had a ton of potential. But alas, it wasn't that way.
Yes, Tessa's story was interesting. But I was able to get a good idea of what happened, and there was no big reveal to the other women about the crime she committed. So what's the point then, of showing us three or four different women if their stories don't even really intertwine and there are no reveals to them? And then there was the matter of it being a cold case. So her problem just disappears, 1 2 3 poof? I was also disappointed that after we watch one character harbor nasty thoughts about her husband's new wife, she randomly wakes up one day and decides to forgive them! That's how her story is basically solved. I was hoping for a lot more bad behavior from her (for story purposes). Rather than just her stewing over it.
I really wanted to like this and it had a ton of potential. But alas, it wasn't that way.
gleeful_vector_of_chaos's review against another edition
4.0
This was surprisingly enjoyable considering the plot was pretty much just: domestic drama of rich people. But it was surprisingly funny at times, all the characters were thoroughly engaging, and all had nice growth.
whatsheread's review against another edition
I have had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Pekkanen once or twice, and she is truly the loveliest person. So, it always slays me when I am not able to gush about one of her novels. I do not want to hurt her feelings in any way, but I have to be honest. Such is the case with The Perfect Neighbors.
In all honesty, The Perfect Neighbors is not her best novel. There is a lack of mystery and action throughout the story that lessens the pleasure one gains from reading it. The entire premise is a bit tedious. After all, it should be no surprise to anyone that we never really know what is happening in other people’s lives, whether they are our best friends or passing acquaintances. The secrets that the neighbors of Newport Cove keep are also no great surprise, as they touch on the same tropes we see in almost every women’s fiction novel. The entire novel feels flat and just a bit bored with itself, and there are even times where it feels as if Ms. Pekkanen threw in a problem because she did not know what else to write.
What Ms. Pekkanen does do well in all of her novels, and The Perfect Neighbors is no exception, is capture the emotional realities of life. Most readers will be able to relate to surly teenagers and the chaos of the morning routine. Working moms will recognize the guilt and pressure to be a supermom. All of her characters are enjoyable and honest.
Yet, in The Perfect Neighbors, her characters are not very relatable to the general public. The general wealth of the neighborhood and their collective successes at whatever they set out to do makes this more a fairy tale than real life for most readers. There are none of the sticky issues the main readership faces – like being able to pay the bills or buy groceries, nasty divorce proceedings, not being able to find employment, etc. While Tessa has the most realistic problems of the bunch, the reveal is anticlimactic. The fact that she is able to get away with her actions makes for a good story but forces the story to lose any gravitas gained by the serious nature of her particular secret.
At the end of the day, The Perfect Neighbors is escapist literature and nothing more. No one is going to have an epiphany reading it. Instead, readers are going to read it and pretend that their biggest problems in life are as relatively simple as Kellie’s, Susan’s, and Gigi’s. In Tessa, Ms. Pekkanen tries to bring in a more serious note but fails due to the offhanded method by which she resolves that particular crisis. In short, the novel is wishful thinking at its finest. If you love that sort of thing, then The Perfect Neighbors is an excellent choice for a summer read.
In all honesty, The Perfect Neighbors is not her best novel. There is a lack of mystery and action throughout the story that lessens the pleasure one gains from reading it. The entire premise is a bit tedious. After all, it should be no surprise to anyone that we never really know what is happening in other people’s lives, whether they are our best friends or passing acquaintances. The secrets that the neighbors of Newport Cove keep are also no great surprise, as they touch on the same tropes we see in almost every women’s fiction novel. The entire novel feels flat and just a bit bored with itself, and there are even times where it feels as if Ms. Pekkanen threw in a problem because she did not know what else to write.
What Ms. Pekkanen does do well in all of her novels, and The Perfect Neighbors is no exception, is capture the emotional realities of life. Most readers will be able to relate to surly teenagers and the chaos of the morning routine. Working moms will recognize the guilt and pressure to be a supermom. All of her characters are enjoyable and honest.
Yet, in The Perfect Neighbors, her characters are not very relatable to the general public. The general wealth of the neighborhood and their collective successes at whatever they set out to do makes this more a fairy tale than real life for most readers. There are none of the sticky issues the main readership faces – like being able to pay the bills or buy groceries, nasty divorce proceedings, not being able to find employment, etc. While Tessa has the most realistic problems of the bunch, the reveal is anticlimactic. The fact that she is able to get away with her actions makes for a good story but forces the story to lose any gravitas gained by the serious nature of her particular secret.
At the end of the day, The Perfect Neighbors is escapist literature and nothing more. No one is going to have an epiphany reading it. Instead, readers are going to read it and pretend that their biggest problems in life are as relatively simple as Kellie’s, Susan’s, and Gigi’s. In Tessa, Ms. Pekkanen tries to bring in a more serious note but fails due to the offhanded method by which she resolves that particular crisis. In short, the novel is wishful thinking at its finest. If you love that sort of thing, then The Perfect Neighbors is an excellent choice for a summer read.