books_by_bethany 's review for:

The Safe Place by Anna Downes

4.0

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After getting fired from her job, Emily is broke and desperate for something new. When her former boss, Scott, offers her a job as a housekeeper and au pair for his 6-year-old daughter at their home in France, it seems too good to be true. Emily arrives at the remote home, Querencia, and meets Scott’s seemingly perfect wife, Nina, and their incredibly peculiar daughter, Aurelia. Upon arrival at the French estate, Emily is overwhelmed by its beauty, but soon realizes how isolated they are. Emily is without cell phone service, and alone with just Nina and Aurelia, and their stoic, unpleasant handyman Yves. While Nina is friendly to Emily, there is something off about her, and quiet Aurelia can flip the switch at any second to violent tantrums. The family is obviously hiding something, and as time goes on Emily grows more and more suspicious.

As a character, Emily is naïve and senseless at times, which was frustrating but also expected in a thriller. The book is told from multiple perspectives, primarily by Emily, but also from Scott’s and Nina’s points of view. The book was an incredibly fast read, and I enjoyed the weird dynamic and relationships between the characters. Overall, the novel was a little predictable, but still suspenseful. This is a definitely one of those “can’t put it down” books!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.