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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
The Safe Place is a dark thriller with a unique story line that reads very fast. There is no rush in any of the chapters, the ending has been carefully put together piece by piece. The characters supplement the story. Overall a surprisingly gripping thriller since I went in blank!! Don't miss it..
4/5
Thank you Netgalley, Affirm press & Anna Downes for the ARC. This review is my own and is not influenced in any way!
4/5
Thank you Netgalley, Affirm press & Anna Downes for the ARC. This review is my own and is not influenced in any way!
To be completely honest, I’m not sure how to feel about The Safe Place. Initially, the story was a little slow for me, but it picked up quickly and probably from the 20% mark until about the 80% mark, I enjoyed it, and then I feel it kind of went off the rails at the end.
From the synopsis of the book and the clues planted along the way, I thought it was going to be a really creepy story, and as someone who hates anything scary, I guess I’m glad it really wasn’t, but I thought it was going to be a very different story than what I read. I think I was hoping I would really be shocked by the twists in the story, but I just found them to be strange and rushed when you got to them. I think the best word to summarize this book is strange, strange characters, strange house, and strange storyline!
Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
From the synopsis of the book and the clues planted along the way, I thought it was going to be a really creepy story, and as someone who hates anything scary, I guess I’m glad it really wasn’t, but I thought it was going to be a very different story than what I read. I think I was hoping I would really be shocked by the twists in the story, but I just found them to be strange and rushed when you got to them. I think the best word to summarize this book is strange, strange characters, strange house, and strange storyline!
Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley, Anna Downes and St. Martin’s Press for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.
I had heard some mixed reviews on this one, and now that I have read it I can see why. This thriller won’t be for everyone, but I did enjoy the slow build of the suspense and the main character, Emily. I did keep wondering what was going on with this very strange family, but I did love the scenery of the novel. I did enjoy this novel mostly and I enjoyed the twist, but I do have to agree with some of the reviews and say that I just felt like something was missing in the ending. I think I felt like I needed more closure in the ending, especially with Emily’s past. It was still an enjoyable novel!
Out July 14th!
I had heard some mixed reviews on this one, and now that I have read it I can see why. This thriller won’t be for everyone, but I did enjoy the slow build of the suspense and the main character, Emily. I did keep wondering what was going on with this very strange family, but I did love the scenery of the novel. I did enjoy this novel mostly and I enjoyed the twist, but I do have to agree with some of the reviews and say that I just felt like something was missing in the ending. I think I felt like I needed more closure in the ending, especially with Emily’s past. It was still an enjoyable novel!
Out July 14th!
3.8/5.0
This book is entertaining, and has a weird environment. It's a quick read for sure. I wish the whole story was like the second half of the book - It had more action, and it got unputdownable.
I thought some parts got a little slow and dull, but overall I liked it :)
This book is entertaining, and has a weird environment. It's a quick read for sure. I wish the whole story was like the second half of the book - It had more action, and it got unputdownable.
I thought some parts got a little slow and dull, but overall I liked it :)
A bit predictable, but a nice escape from worldwide pandemics nonetheless.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
Emily is a total mess. She just lost her job, her agent AND she's about to be evicted from her apartment. Scott is looking for a solution to his problem - and Emily is perfect. He hires her to live with his wife and daughter at their opulent French estate. Everything seems lovely, and then things begin to unravel...
This book was a total rollercoaster ride for me! We toggle primarily between two perspectives - Emily and Scott. Believe me when I say they are INSUFFERABLE. Emily is a HOT MESS. She can't seem to get it together - she botches her acting auditions, she can't make it to work on time, she can't pay her bills and, honestly, she's super rude to her parents. Like...SUPER rude. Scott? He's your stereotypical arrogant businessman, who is orchestrating...SOMETHING. Something that involves Emily. You'll find out the depths of that situation as you read the book.
Nina and Aurelia are intriguing. Nina seems nice on the surface, but something dark lurks beneath. Aurelia is a slightly creepy kid, but she's also incredibly sweet at times. They're hiding something. But what? I'm also ashamed to say that this book caught me off guard! There are subtle clues throughout but my dumb brain didn't pick up on them until one incident towards the end of the book. And phew, that ending. Was the right choice made? Is it really for the better? I'm honestly not sure.
The Safe Place is sure to be a popular summer thriller (I mean, our characters spend a lot of time lounging by the pool) that a lot of readers will enjoy.
Thank you Minotaur Books for sending me an ARC of The Safe Place!
This book was a total rollercoaster ride for me! We toggle primarily between two perspectives - Emily and Scott. Believe me when I say they are INSUFFERABLE. Emily is a HOT MESS. She can't seem to get it together - she botches her acting auditions, she can't make it to work on time, she can't pay her bills and, honestly, she's super rude to her parents. Like...SUPER rude. Scott? He's your stereotypical arrogant businessman, who is orchestrating...SOMETHING. Something that involves Emily. You'll find out the depths of that situation as you read the book.
Nina and Aurelia are intriguing. Nina seems nice on the surface, but something dark lurks beneath. Aurelia is a slightly creepy kid, but she's also incredibly sweet at times. They're hiding something. But what? I'm also ashamed to say that this book caught me off guard! There are subtle clues throughout but my dumb brain didn't pick up on them until one incident towards the end of the book. And phew, that ending. Was the right choice made? Is it really for the better? I'm honestly not sure.
The Safe Place is sure to be a popular summer thriller (I mean, our characters spend a lot of time lounging by the pool) that a lot of readers will enjoy.
Thank you Minotaur Books for sending me an ARC of The Safe Place!
This was a perfect summer thriller. It was engaging, the pace was good, and while I did find it predictable I still thoroughly enjoyed it!
This alternates between three perspectives Emily a down on her luck actress who can't seem to hold a job, Scott a powerful businessman who seems to have everything all figured out, and Nina's diary entries which give us insight into events of the past. I found Emily to be annoying at times because she seemed unrealistically gullible, naive, confused by the simplest of task, and the ability to make every bad choice presented to her. This was all blamed on a bad childhood she can't remember, despite being saved from said childhood and raised with solid, loving adoptive parents from a very young age. Scott and Nina were very much in love at one point, but they live apart much of the time. Nina raises their sick daughter and is working restoring their French home with grand plans to turn it into a vacation home of sorts while Scott funds her escapades from England. Nina is lonely and needs help with the restoration and upkeep of the property, so when Emily is conveniently fired as a temp from Scott's company, her acting career goes belly up, Scott swoops in with an offer she can't refuse. Desperate to make some cash, Emily finds herself taking a position as a housekeeper, groundskeeper, jack of all trades, and possibly aupair to help Nina with whatever she needs. Emily finds herself immediately drawn to Nina and her daughter Aurelia and in love with the French home. Everytime she finds something amiss she dismisses it as something she doesn't understand or part of Aurelia's illness.
The more the story unfolds the more Emily starts to see that something strange is happening at the house. Determined to unravel the mystery, she sets out to find out the truth behind all of the weird things that have happened since she arrived in France. What she discovers is more than she expected, and hits closer to her own story than she planned.
Thank you to Minotaur Books for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
This alternates between three perspectives Emily a down on her luck actress who can't seem to hold a job, Scott a powerful businessman who seems to have everything all figured out, and Nina's diary entries which give us insight into events of the past. I found Emily to be annoying at times because she seemed unrealistically gullible, naive, confused by the simplest of task, and the ability to make every bad choice presented to her. This was all blamed on a bad childhood she can't remember, despite being saved from said childhood and raised with solid, loving adoptive parents from a very young age. Scott and Nina were very much in love at one point, but they live apart much of the time. Nina raises their sick daughter and is working restoring their French home with grand plans to turn it into a vacation home of sorts while Scott funds her escapades from England. Nina is lonely and needs help with the restoration and upkeep of the property, so when Emily is conveniently fired as a temp from Scott's company, her acting career goes belly up, Scott swoops in with an offer she can't refuse. Desperate to make some cash, Emily finds herself taking a position as a housekeeper, groundskeeper, jack of all trades, and possibly aupair to help Nina with whatever she needs. Emily finds herself immediately drawn to Nina and her daughter Aurelia and in love with the French home. Everytime she finds something amiss she dismisses it as something she doesn't understand or part of Aurelia's illness.
The more the story unfolds the more Emily starts to see that something strange is happening at the house. Determined to unravel the mystery, she sets out to find out the truth behind all of the weird things that have happened since she arrived in France. What she discovers is more than she expected, and hits closer to her own story than she planned.
Thank you to Minotaur Books for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
"Of course, he'd had moments of doubt. Moments where he'd questioned his own judgment. But then, as he'd watched Emily play hide-and-seek in reception with the little boy, the final piece fell into place. She was the right choice; he was sure of it."
Do you find yourself under stay-at-home orders wishing you could be isolating somewhere nicer? Maybe the French coast? Let Anna Downes disavow you of the notion. Emily is an aspiring actress who just cannot catch a break nor can she fully engage in her work as a receptionist at a well-regarded London company. Scott is the head of the company and through a series of confusing events secretly has Emily fired so that he can set her up to accept a different position, personal assistant to his wife who is caring for their young daughter at a secluded estate on the French coast.
Rich parents leaving relative strangers alone with their young children appears to be a growing thriller sub-genre and I am here for it. Emily knows something is off, but she just can't put her finger on it until she does and the entire book snaps into focus. Told from three different perspectives we, the reader, are left to decide where our allegiances lie as more of the truth emerges. If I ever get to read by the pool again, this is the book I would like to take with me.
Content Warnings: self-harm, child endangerment, unfavorable discussions of adoption, complications surrounding pregnancy and childbirth, postpartum mood disorders, very triggering events involving young children (please use care if this is a trigger for you)
Thanks to the publisher for providing this book for review!
Do you find yourself under stay-at-home orders wishing you could be isolating somewhere nicer? Maybe the French coast? Let Anna Downes disavow you of the notion. Emily is an aspiring actress who just cannot catch a break nor can she fully engage in her work as a receptionist at a well-regarded London company. Scott is the head of the company and through a series of confusing events secretly has Emily fired so that he can set her up to accept a different position, personal assistant to his wife who is caring for their young daughter at a secluded estate on the French coast.
Rich parents leaving relative strangers alone with their young children appears to be a growing thriller sub-genre and I am here for it. Emily knows something is off, but she just can't put her finger on it until she does and the entire book snaps into focus. Told from three different perspectives we, the reader, are left to decide where our allegiances lie as more of the truth emerges. If I ever get to read by the pool again, this is the book I would like to take with me.
Content Warnings: self-harm, child endangerment, unfavorable discussions of adoption, complications surrounding pregnancy and childbirth, postpartum mood disorders, very triggering events involving young children (please use care if this is a trigger for you)
Thanks to the publisher for providing this book for review!
I don't mind unlikable characters in thrillers,but all of the ones in this book are just horrible.
Emily gets the (much-needed) job of a lifetime to live and work on a beautiful private estate in rural France. Downes paints a sweeping picture of idyllic gardening, crafty renovations, trips to the local farmers market, and long swims in the ocean. But behind all of the pristine decor and carefully curated grounds, dark questions are mounting: who lives like this, why would anyone want to be so isolated, why is Emily really here?
I absolutely loved & devoured this book. 9.5/10
I absolutely loved & devoured this book. 9.5/10