what a fabulous debut thriller to start off 2024!! I was a little nervous going into this one after reading all of the mediocre reviews, but I firmly enjoyed it!

I’m a super fan of the locked door thriller, so having this one set in the middle of a slowly flooding house in a hurricane was the perfect setting 😮‍💨 it set the tone for paranoia and claustrophobia very well

jia, the narrator, was not my favorite character as literally all of the family drama could have been solved with a single conversation … and her reasoning for “waiting until the right time” was solely because she was trying to minimize the fallback on herself more than anything

that being said, I really loved the drama of a multi-generational indian family!! the dynamics of each character were wonderfully written, that even if there were no thriller elements, I would have still enjoyed it

while the thriller plot played out predictably, I really did enjoy the journey!! if you’re into character focused mysteries, definitely give this one a go!

thank you to netgalley and penguin random house for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review ☺️

rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: sula rasa cabernet sauvignon