Our House by Louise Candlish

Happy Book Birthday to Louise Candlish whose US debut, Our House, hits shelves this week!

When Fiona and her husband, Bram, split due to his infidelity, Fi agrees to a different sort of arrangement for the kids' sake. It's called a bird's nest agreement, one in which the kids will stay in the family home and Fi and Bram will alternate time between that home and the kids and a flat that they'll share for the off days. Fi asks that no new significant others be brought to the family home, but otherwise it's an agreeable arrangement that allows Bram to stay in their sons' lives without - hopefully - too much upheaval for the children. 

But when Fi arrives at the house on one of her off days to find moving trucks and a new couple taking up residence in the house and Bram and the boys have gone missing, it becomes clear something has gone very wrong. 

This tale of psychological suspense plays out in four main storylines - the timeline that begins with Fi's discovery of the house being sold, Bram's parallel storyline in that same timeframe, Fi's story as part of a podcast called The Victim, and a Word doc Bram has prepared to explain everything as a final confession.

As the four storylines progress, Bram's infidelity is revealed to be just the tip of the iceberg. His lies secrets have snowballed to the point that this final, massive betrayal was the only way he thought he could get out. And Fi is completely in the dark!

The story took more than a few twists I didn't see coming and my own suspicion about what might be coming next made the story that much more fun to read. The pacing is purposeful, slower due to the way the story plays out, which could be agonizing to some but built the tension quite nicely for me personally.

Candlish has a pretty big backlist in the UK, so it's somewhat surprising that this is the first release to make its way to the States. I've actually had one of her older titles in my own wishlist for quite some time, so I was definitely excited to get my hands on a copy of Our House and will be seeking out some of her older titles now for sure!