The House Around the Corner

by Elizabeth Bromke

[Jeff Sexton]

On This Episode Of The Real Housewives Of Apple Hill Lane... The last time I reviewed a book in this series (May 2021's The House With The Blue Front Door), it was my first time reading a book in this series even though it was Book 2 and I noted that it *could* work as a standalone, even as the author notes that you really need to read Book 1 first. This time, I find myself agreeing with the author more - there is enough going on here that to really understand both the "central" narrative (of the family moving around the corner) and the other various plot threads, you really do need to read at *minimum* the prior book and really you probably do need to start at the very beginning. But there is enough connective tissue - both with the mystery girl/ woman who is coming into town and with the various women and their families on Apple Hill Lane - that you're really going to want to have all of the books on hand when you begin reading the first one anyway. Particularly for Desperate Housewives / Real Housewives fans, this is a series that y'all will absolutely eat up. Even for the rest of us, it is a compelling series with a lot going on and several intriguing threads. Each woman gets her own time to shine in the book mostly dedicated to her own issues, but each of the neighbors also has quite a bit going on in their own lives at the same time, and the strength of this series is that we see all of this happening in "real time". Though a bit of a warning, since I've been in discussions lately where it seems that some readers don't enjoy books with multiple perspectives as much: This entire series, this book included, alternates between many different perspectives in each book, though each is distinct enough within their own threads that keeping track of who you're reading at any given moment (aided by the head of the chapter listing the perspective of that chapter) is pretty straightforward. As with Blue Front Door, this one ends on a note such that you're really going to want the next one immediately... and if you're reading these as ARCs, it means that even you are having to wait several weeks for the next one. (One benefit to any who find this series after all of the books publish, but certainly go ahead and read the series as it exists whenever you find it. :D) Very much recommended.