THE PERFECT FAMILY by Shalini Boland – 5 of 5 stars

Shalini Boland does it again with another heart-stopping, hold-your-breath, can’t-turn-the-pages-fast-enough read!

I’m a huge fan of Ms. Boland’s work and THE PERFECT FAMILY definitely didn’t disappoint. I loved that I knew what was happening long before the protagonist, but was kept in the dark when it came to the who and why. It was the perfect combination of a frantic need to warn the protagonist and desperation to learn the culprit’s identity / reasoning. I had my suspicions and it seemed I was right, until the gut-punching twist at the very end.

Okay, in all honesty, I did kind of suspect the twist, but since this is a psychological thriller, I’m always looking at every possibility and especially searching for the possible but least likely culprit. I mean, it wouldn’t be a psychological thriller without that twist! It didn’t spoil the ending for me, though. Not in the least.

Like every good book, the pages not only left me breathless, but pulled at my heart strings. I couldn’t help but to feel for this family suffering at the expense of someone else’s psychotic tendencies. Especially since children were involved.

Although the ending left me satisfied, it also played with my emotions in a way that most endings do not. I can’t say much without giving it away, but I was surprised of who I sympathized with when I turned that final page.

Hands down 5 of 5 stars, and highly recommended for any fan of psychological suspense!