It was inspired by something I saw on the internet about a kid breaking into someone’s house in the middle of the night to use their wi-fi. I guess he’d had his own wi-fi restricted at home. It got me thinking about what a teenage boy might do, and what the repercussions might be. I knew the boy had to stumble onto something big—I needed a murder. It’s always easy to come up with a dead body—it’s how that dead body got to be there that’s more difficult, and a lot more interesting. That’s where the story comes in. In many ways, Someone We Know is similar to my other thrillers—it’s fast paced, it’s twisty, and you want to get to the bottom of it all. But this one also focuses on whole families, on parents and sons in particular, rather than focusing only on couples. It feels richer and deeper to me in that way. In a quiet, leafy suburb in upstate New York, a teenager has been sneaking into houses–and into the owners’ computers as well–learning their secrets, and maybe sharing some of them, too. Slyly plotted . . . Lapena skillfully maximizes suspense with her dual story lines that eventually collide, as well as some deft misdirection . . . many fans of domestic suspense will be satisfied.” THERE ARE TOO MANY LIES, SECRETS, CHEATERS ON THIS BOOK! NOBODY IS INNOCENT: Every character lies on this book. Every character has big secrets. Every one of them has different agenda. I was about to blurt out laughing because at some parts the book turned into mysterious tele-novelas, most soap-y operas, you know that ones, the man who sleeps with his own maid, daughter in law at the same time, when his wife’s having a relationship with gardener and her trainer  When his mother Olivia discovers his misdeeds, she feels compelled to put anonymous apology notes in the homes he has violated. Unfortunately, in this tight-knit community, Olivia confides in her friend Glenda that Raleigh has been up to no good, and later comes to the realization that one of Raleigh's targets was the Pierce home itself. As the gossip spreads about Amanda's possible courtships, EVERYONE becomes a suspect, leaving the women with no one to trust. Who is at the epicenter of this tornado...and will the right suspect end up behind bars before they strike again?

Book Review: Someone We Know by Shari Lapena - Criminal Element Book Review: Someone We Know by Shari Lapena - Criminal Element

The setting is mainly confined to one street in a small suburb in upstate New York, a place the reader would never want to live. How will the woman react when they discover that their husbands are suspected by the police of having affairs with the murdered woman and of killing her? Soon another woman is found dead, strangled in her home. Although Shari Lapena has become one of the most successful suspense writers in Canada, none of her stories are set in this country. I wonder if this increases marketplace sales. Linwood Barclay does the same.Your plots have many twists. How do you come up with these plot turns? Do you plan everything out beforehand or do you see where the story takes you? Thank you to Edelweiss and Pamela Dorman Books for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

Someone We Know: A Novel: Lapena, Shari: 9780525557654 Someone We Know: A Novel: Lapena, Shari: 9780525557654

Suspicion and betrayal are a constant thread in Someone We Know. Is anyone in the book true to anyone else? A] well-sculpted domestic thriller . . . highly suspenseful . . . Twists are subtly revealed with aplomb, taking the story to increasingly unpredictable levels.” We know from the very beginning of the book that a horrendous murder has taken place. We know the murder weapon used and the fact that the murderer was male. We also learn the identity of the victim: Amanda Pierce is reported missing by her husband Robert. The murderer is someone who lives in one of these houses. It is in all likelihood someone we know... But to discover who it was and why, we'll have to doubt every single person, no matter how nice and friendly they appear to be.

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I read this novel at one sitting, absolutely riveted by the story line. The suspense was beautifully rendered and unrelenting!”