The New Neighbours by Claire Douglas book review: Another un-put-down-able domestic thriller
Claire Douglas delivers another fantastic thriller with The New Neighbours.
The New Neighbours by Claire Douglas: The key details
- Publish date: 13th March 2025
- Genre: Thriller
- Publisher: Penguin
- Series/standalone: Standalone
- No. of pages: 400
Blurb: Do you trust the couple next door?
When Lena overhears a conversation between her next-door neighbours, she thinks she must have misheard. After all, the Morgans are a kind, retired couple who have moved to a suburban street in Bristol where nothing ever happens.
But it sounded like they were planning a crime.
Her family and friends tell her she’s made a mistake. Yet the more Lena looks into the Morgans, the darker things seem. And the more she fears it might be linked to a secret from her own past.
Because, if her suspicions are true, then someone is in real danger. And it might just be her…
The New Neighbours by Claire Douglas: The review
I should preface this by saying Claire Douglas is one of my favourite authors. Her books are so easy to digest, like popcorn thrillers, but in the best sort of way. They are straightforward without ever having confusing twists and convoluted plots — but they have just the right amount of thrill to keep you gripped to every page.
The New Neighbours certainly fits that bill, but it feels a little different from the rest of Claire’s books — in a good way. It focuses on Lena, who becomes obsessed with her new next door neighbours after accidentally overhearing part of a suspicious-sounding conversation. Are the Morgans up to something, or is Lena just letting her imagination run away with her? But the more she learns about her neighbours, the stranger things become…
This is a real page-turner, even if for three quarters of the book little happens other than Lena chasing her whims. At times I found myself rolling my eyes, wanting to tell Lena to just stay out of their business — some of her actions really do cross a line, but thanks to Claire Douglas’ effortlessly brilliant writing, I simply couldn’t put it down.
I had to know what the Morgans were hiding… if anything. I think the early parts of the book, although slow, work really well at getting you wondering if Lena is just clutching at straws or if something nefarious really is happening with her neighbours. The New Neighbours almost tries to posit her as an unreliable narrator, but really, she’s the only one you can trust. Throw in a few chapters from new perspectives – the neighbour Henry Morgan and the mysterious Natalie – and you’ll be even more gripped as to what on earth is going on.
I didn’t see the ending unfolding in quite the way it did, and even if I felt some of it was more far-fetched than Claire’s usual work, I loved it just as much. Another excellent read that I don’t hesitate to recommend. If you’ve read and enjoyed Claire Douglas before, or you like lighter domestic thrillers, you won’t regret picking up The New Neighbours.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This review is based on a digital ARC kindly supplied by Netgalley.
