A Neighbor's Guide to Murder
A Novel
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Jul 7, 2026
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
"Fiendishly sharp, clever and gripping. Nobody captures the mores of neighborhoods and communities, and multi-generational complexities, like Louise Candlish." —Lisa Jewell, #1 New York Times bestselling author
From internationally bestselling author Louise Candlish, a witty psychological suspense novel in which an older woman's suspicions about her charming new neighbor ignite a dangerous spiral in their luxury apartment building.
In Columbia Mansions, secrets don’t stay behind closed doors for long.
It's rare for a room to open up in London’s storied Columbia Mansions, and lonely Gwen is thrilled when her neighbor’s new subletter, Pixie, brings a friendly breath of fresh air to its stuffy halls. Their unexpected bond soon becomes the bright spot in Gwen’s quiet life. But Gwen can’t help noticing cracks beneath Pixie's cheerful surface—especially when it comes to her questionable financial arrangement with her live-in landlord, Alec.
As suspicions mount, Gwen’s protective instincts go into overdrive, triggering a dangerous chain of events no one is prepared for. The last thing Columbia Mansions wants is a scandal on its hands ... Let alone a murder.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Candlish (Our Holiday) delivers a so-so metafictional standalone about tensions in a British apartment complex. In the prologue, an unnamed woman calls the police to report that her neighbor has been murdered, capping off a year's worth of conflict in London's ritzy Columbia Mansions apartments. The action then transitions to the contents of a manuscript titled A Neighbor's Guide to Murder by Gwen Healy, an elderly resident of Columbia Mansions. Gwen describes interactions with her neighbors, including Alec Pedley, a songwriter who played keyboard for a one-hit-wonder band. Alec has rented a room in his apartment to Pixie, a graceful young woman with whom Gwen feels a natural kinship. That affinity makes Gwen particularly upset when she learns that, rather than charge Pixie rent she can't afford, Alec allows her to live in his flat in exchange for on-demand sex. Candlish does a solid job raising questions about Alec's intentions, Pixie's past, and Gwen's reliability, but too much padding and an underheated ending disappoint. This doesn't quite come together. Agents: Christy Fletcher and Veronica Goldstein, UTA.
