The Suspect Next Door

by Rachel Astor

I’m stalking him
…for research!

My bestselling-mystery-author career had come to a standstill, and I was plagued with writer's block. So I asked What would my favorite fictional girl detective do? She would find a suspect to inspire her to finish the case, of course! Luckily, I have a new, mysterious and very dreamy private investigator next door to follow. I'm going to help him solve the case and finally finish this book of mine. Then maybe the two of us can pursue The Case of the Perfect Couple…

Genres: Romantic Suspense

280 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 20, 2024

About the author

Rachel Astor is a twin (yes, probably the evil one), a stepmother (not as wicked as you'd think), and a USA Today Bestselling Author who spends a suspiciously large portion of her days correcting the word "the".

She's had a lot of jobs (bookseller, realtor, 834 assorted admin roles), but none as, ahem, interesting, as when she waitressed at a small-town bar named after a dog. 🐶

When she’s not crafting romantic comedies that blend heat, humor, and heart, Rachel splits her time between the city, the lake, and as many made-up worlds as possible.

Reviews

[Tina Loves To Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a Romantic Suspense. This book is heavy on the mystery/suspense, and WOW...I really loved the plot and suspense in this book. I am normally all about the characters, but this book pulled me right into the plot/mystery/suspense. I did love the characters in this book. I really loved the ending in this book. This book does not have a ton of action, but I felt there was the perfect amount of action in this book. I received an ARC of this book. This review is my own honest opinion about the book like all my reviews are.

[Lacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bestselling-mystery-author Petra is experiencing writer’s block on her new sophomore novel while trying to write a kick-ass heroine in Rachel Astor’s The Suspect Next Door. Petra steps into the shoes of her favorite fictional girl detective for inspiration. Unfortunately for Private Investigator Ryan, her across-the-hall neighbor, she chooses him as a suspect to follow to help her finish her (case) story. Petra stalks him for research to help her finish her book, throws herself into the middle of his case, and tries to help him solve it. But she ends up complicating his case and life instead.

I can’t remember ever reading a Harlequin Romantic Suspense romance written in the first-person POV. It’s an interesting choice. But as we get to know Petra, it’s obviously the best choice to tell her story. Petra is a socially awkward mystery buff who does a lot of things that take up her time and distract her from getting her writing done, like taking all kinds of classes. While she is clever and possesses interesting skills from her various classes that come in handy, she makes so many poor life choices that get her into so many dangerous and ridiculous situations. Words cannot express how incredibly frustrating she is as a POV character because she’s so chaotic. For 90 percent of the novel, I just wanted to jump into the book and help her find a therapist and get some help with whatever was going on with her. There were so many times I thought, “She might be crazy!” I found myself wanting to ask her friends and Ryan whether they’ve thought about helping her find a therapist or something.

When Ryan moves into the building, Petra takes note right away. Ryan’s mysterious, sexy, and gorgeous. A PI, Ryan is Petra’s dream man with her dream job. Ryan is a badass with a sexy voice and exceptional fighting skills. It probably isn’t surprising to anyone that she chose him of all people to follow as her suspect to help inspire her writing. When Ryan realizes she’s following him, he keeps asking her to stop following him and interfering in his cases, but she’s persistent and won’t until he agrees she can help him.‌ As frustrating as Petra is, and how she complicated his life and investigation, you really have to appreciate how patient Ryan is and what a good guy he is.

I love how helpful Petra’s classes wind up being despite interfering with her writing. That’s one of my favorite things about the novel. Petra ultimately becomes a beneficial ally and partner to Ryan in his investigation because of the skills she develops from her classes. They have solid chemistry when Petra stops forcing her way into his investigations and listens to Ryan and they work together. The novel is better too in the moments when Petra is not excessively chaotic and stubbornly storming into danger. The scenes with less of that are fun and filled with chemistry. I love the interactions between Petra and her friends/neighbors and Ryan.

Astor's writing style is quirky, offbeat, and easily accessible. Her characters are complex, original, fascinating, conflicted, messy, and fallible. She develops them excellently through humorous, chemistry-filled, suspenseful, and action-packed interactions. Astor’s action and suspense scenes are nicely constructed and keep you on the edge of your seat.

Without a doubt one of the weirdest Harlequin Romantic Suspense novels I’ve ever read, The Suspect Next Door is hilarious, suspenseful, action-packed, fast-paced, and a little over-the-top with the quirkiness, yet entertaining. It’s perfect for readers who like humorous, offbeat romances with messy characters.

An advanced review copy was provided by HARLEQUIN - Romance via NetGalley for review.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was highly frustrating for me to read. Petra is the author of a bestselling mystery novel and is having trouble getting started on a new book. She decides to follow her private investigator neighbor around to get ideas. She ignores that she's putting herself and him in danger, interfering with his work, and making herself look like a fool. Petra is one of those people who takes classes in anything that interests her and then thinks she's an expert at whatever it is. She also uses the fictional girl detective Nancy Drew as her role model, constantly asking herself, "WWND (What Would Nancy Do)." Despite Ryan asking her not to interfere, she just plowed on anyway.

I didn't get much of a romantic feel in the book. Petra was attracted to Ryan, but there was no indication that he felt the same way until the end. It was hard to tell if his determination to keep her out of danger was general protectiveness, frustration at her interference, or growing feelings.

The suspense had a good premise: finding a missing girl suspected of being taken by sex traffickers. There was enough action and uncertainty to keep me interested in the mystery, though my frustration with Petra frequently pulled me out of the story. A couple of twists at the end complicated things, but the final confrontation was well done.

I did not like that the book was written entirely in the first person from Petra's point of view. Nothing showed Ryan's thoughts, feelings, or actions except when he was with Petra. I felt like I was missing half the story. I may try another book by this author, but it will depend significantly on how it is written.

#netgalley

[Sarah Cudlipp · Rating 5 out of 5]

If it's a Harlequin novel, sign me up! Because they never disappoint and this one was no exception to the rule. It also introduced me to the author, Rachel Astor, who has proven to be incredible with this book! I will say this one focused a little more on the suspense than the romance, but I mean that in a positive way. I love a suspense heavy book with romance on the side. And the romance that was on the side was pretty great!

Petra is a bestselling author of mystery books and is stuck on her next one. She just needed some inspiration to get her creative juices flowing again. And who better to help her with that then her new next door neighbor, Ryan. Because not only is he tall, dark, and handsome but he's also a private investigator who is working on a case of his own. So she teams up with him and while the two of them get deeper into the mystery along with the danger, they also discover that they have some pretty great chemistry. I won't give anything away but I will say I definitely recommend this book!

[Paige Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, this is Nancy Drew inspired, and while it name drops the infamous character, I feel like it kinda misses its mark on harnessing that same energy. Mostly because at the heart of Nancy Drew is an inquisitive character. She's just naturally curious, and I didn't pick up on that at the beginning of this story. The heroine kinda haphazardly finds herself in these different situations because she's an author and not because she's actively seeking them out with a little elbow grease and ingenuity. And when that does happen, instead of coming off as strong, she comes across as bumbling. Also theirs some sticky parts with the police procedural part with the first suicide murder that's not quite accurate. But both the hero and heroine are cute together, and I did enjoy their scenes. It kinda reminded me of grumpy/Sunshine. And she was no slouch. She was a fighter, and I always like that in a heroine.

[Monae Doyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a Harlequin romantic suspense story but there was no romance in this story. There was suspense in this story.

This story is about a woman named Petra Jackson. She is a bestselling mystery author whose career has come to a standstill. She is plagued by writer’s block. She asks herself what would her favorite fictional girl detective Nancy Drew would do. Petra is obsessed with Nancy Drew. Nancy Drew would find a suspect to inspire her to finish the case. Petra has a new mysterious and very dreamy private investigator next door to follow named Ryan. She is going to help him solve a case and finally finish her book. Then may be they can solve the case of the perfect couple. This book had good suspense but there wasn’t any romance to be found in this story in my opinion. I wanted more out of the book.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Petra is dealing with writers block and decides to follow a neighbor and lands herself in more then she ever expected. So I enjoyed the book there was plenty of mystery and suspense. I wouldn't say there was much of romance to make this a romantic suspense though. Also I kinda really disliked Petra she was kinda annoying and pretty reckless getting herself into pretty dangerous situations with her meddling ways. But then again if she wasn't there wouldn't be much of a story. There was so much going on with plenty of twists and turns and I really enjoyed that. Overall pretty good book.

[Valeri Sullivan (vsulvn29) · Rating 5 out of 5]

What would Nancy Do?

If Nancy Drew were in her early twenties, a tad bit flighty and more than a little self absorbed she’d be Petra Jackson and that’s okay. I really enjoyed the humor and her antics, however painful they were at times although I might not classify it as a typical romantic suspense. There was next to no romance until you reach the last few pages and the suspense...was more Scooby Doo inspired hijinks yet I loved every page and would to see more of this couple down the road.

[Liz F · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun romcom-ey romance! An author with writers block follows a private investigator for “research purposes” and ends up getting herself into heaps of trouble everywhere she goes. This one took me a little bit longer than usual to get through and it wasn’t what I expected for a romantic suspense but I enjoyed the banter, shenanigans and fun (even in life threatening scenarios) that ensued.

Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin for the opportunity to read and review this book

[JoAnn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Suspect Next Door is a well written romantic suspense. The action packed plot pulled me in immediately. I recommend this book. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot could have been different to make it great but it entertained

[Vera · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nah. Joining a drug and sex trafficking ring just „for the plot“, and then being like „oops, I have to get out of here somehow, wow what a MYSTERY“?!

[Hsiau Wei · Rating 3 out of 5]

Petra, a successful mystery writer, faces writer's block and decides to shadow her neighbor, a private investigator, for ideas, despite the dangers and her tendency to act foolishly. She disregards his warnings and idolizes Nancy Drew, causing tension between them. The novel's suspenseful plot centers on the search for a missing girl, although Petra's interference occasionally disrupts the narrative flow. The romantic subplot between Petra and Ryan is subtle, leaving readers guessing about his true feelings. Despite this, the book delivers a satisfying conclusion, prioritizing mystery and suspense over character development.