Audiobook Review: The Quiet Neighbor by J.D. Barker and Adam Roach
The Quiet Neighbor
Authors:
J.D. Barker
Adam Roach
Narrator: Morgan Hallett
Published: January 27, 2026
Audiobook: 9 hours 16 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: January 15-21, 2026
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars
Book Description:
A heart-stopping tale of family secrets, buried trauma, and the lengths a mother will go to save her child, even when that child might not want to be saved.
Cynthia Burrows thought she’d built the perfect life—successful law career, loving husband, beautiful daughter. But when eighteen-year-old Tori vanishes without a trace, Cynthia’s carefully constructed world begins to crumble.
The school says Tori was excused by family. Security footage shows her leaving with an older man. And the boy she was supposed to date? His name sends chills down Cynthia’s spine—Alexander Beaufort.
That’s impossible. Alexander Beaufort is the serial killer who destroyed Cynthia’s childhood, murdered her best friend, and forced her into witness protection twenty years ago. He’s supposed to be locked away forever.
But someone is playing a deadly game, leaving clues that drag Cynthia back to her darkest memories. With only three days to find her daughter, she must confront the monster from her past and the shocking secrets Tori has been hiding.
In this quiet suburban neighborhood, everyone has something to conceal. And some neighbors are more dangerous than others.
Jessica’s Review:
J.D. Barker is an author I follow and when I hear he has a new book coming out, whether solely written or co-written, I will look to see what it is about. The Quiet Neighbor is co-written with Adam Roach, and the description of this one intrigued me.
This book has multiple povs and dual timelines: Cynthia’s past and the present. We also have a journal written by an ‘anonymous author’. It’s a race against time as Cynthia only has a few days to find her daughter, and while searching she is learning more about her daughter. How well or little does she know Tori?
There were twists throughout the novel, but the final ‘doozy’ I called very early on. And even though I called it early I still was in for the journey. I know this is fiction, but parts of the novel were far from realistic. Cynthia has a friend who is investigating the case and she all but let Cynthia basically take over. This happening just caused a high lack of believability as time went on. Other than that issue, I did enjoy the novel!
The narrator Morgan Hallett did a good job with her narration. She was extremely creepy when it came to narrating the journal entries.
Thank you to the publisher for granting me a copy to listen to and review!
Book Review: The Engagement Ring Killer by Franklin Christopher
The Engagement Ring Killer
Series: The Killer Series #1
Author: Franklin Christopher
Published: February 1, 2026
Kindle: 252 pages
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: February 3-19, 2026
Jessica’s Rating: 3 stars
Book Description:
28 Days. 28 Chapters. 28 Women.
One killer hiding in plain sight.
The night of her engagement party, Mya’s engagement ring finger is severed in a violent incident. She staggers into the street covered in blood and is thrust into the spotlight. But as Valentine’s Day approaches, she’s not the only one, women across the city begin turning up mutilated—and murdered.
As fear spreads and secrets surface, Mya starts questioning every man in her life. One of them could be the Engagement Ring Killer. Things take a turn for the worst when one of the mutilated women turns up dead on Valentine’s Day, Mya realizes she didn’t just lose a finger, she could possibly lose her life.
This year, Valentine’s Day is all month long.
Jessica’s Review:
A couple of things from the book description that actually aren’t:
- The novel seemingly appears to be an ‘advent calendar’ that lasts the whole month of February: 28 chapters in 28 days. But the novel does not take place as one chapter equals one day. Being it wasn’t actually one day per chapter I saw no point in reading it as an ‘advent book’ even though I started it on February 3rd. I also ended the novel on February 19th.
- The book description also gave this reader the impression that we are going to have a death per chapter, which is a death per day. That doesn’t happen, so I was disappointed. In fact, the first death does not happen until several chapters in, so my expectations were not met and the title wasn’t fully accurate for me. Even in the novel the news calls the villain ‘The Engagement Ring Chopper’ as the first victims were maimed, not killed.
There were also grammar errors and possible formatting issues on my kindle. Normally I won’t let this bother me, but the significant number of these issues took away some of my enjoyment of reading the novel. I even debated on DNFing the book. I decided to continue it since it is shorter and I am glad I did as I overall enjoyed it. I wanted to know what was going to ultimately happen.
The chapters were short which made this a quick read. It was fast paced and I was intrigued with the directions the novel went. There was also a character named Franklin and being that is the author’s name I was debating on if the author was including himself in the novel. There were twists throughout the novel that changed directions for me so many times. There was one open door sex scene. I was not expecting that and for me it wasn’t necessary.
Despite the issues mentioned, I would give the author another chance. It just seemed like he was in a hurry to get the book to readers when it could have used some more editing/proofreading/ advanced readers.
The Engagement Ring Killer receives a strong 3 stars from me.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Blog Tour: A Review of The Heart-Shaped Box by Lucy Kaufman
Today I am helping end the Blog Tour for The Heart-Shaped Box by Lucy Kaufman! I am sharing my review for this novella. If you are lucky enough to be in the UK, there is a giveaway going on! This is a page-turning psychological thriller novella about infatuation, revenge and the lengths we will go to for love.
Novella Description:
Victorian, rural Sussex. When headstrong daughter of a rector, Constance Timothy, receives a flurry of gifts in pretty little boxes from the charming, smouldering student doctor Smith Williams, her whole family anticipates a future betrothal.
Yet beneath the exquisite pastel lids and satin bows lie macabre secrets that entice Constance into a private world of obsession and darkness, where morality becomes blurred, loyalties are tested and unthinkable acts are possible.
One secret will shake the genteel world she knows to the core…
The first book of The Carousel of Curiosities series, this haunting novella is perfect for readers of Sarah Waters, Laura Purcell, and Angela Carter.
The Heart-Shaped Box
Series: Carousel of Curiosities #1
Author: Lucy Kaufman
Published: February 3, 2026
Kindle: 87 pages
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: January 19-29, 2026
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Jessica’s Review:
The Heart-Shaped Box is a short novella, just 87 pages, but it pulls you in! At first you think it’s going to have a little romance with Constance receiving gifts from her suitor Smith Williams, but then what the gifts are… The reader realizes that this novella is in fact, is going down a dark path!
The more gifts Constance receives the further into the macabre Constance goes, and she is seemingly enjoying it. As the novella progresses, there are a few unexpected twists and then the reader was left hanging: I need the second in this series as I need to know what happens! Ms. Kaufman, how many novellas will be in this series? When will novella two be released?
In addition to a potential romance this novella has topics that readers who enjoy ‘darker’ novellas will enjoy: Jealousy, the macabre, obsession, and more!
I received a copy to read and review as a part of the blog tour. I enjoyed reading this one! I just wish I had been able to sit down and read it quicker than I did.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
UK Giveaway
If you live in the UK you can enter this giveaway: Subscribe to Lucy Kaufman’s newsletter at www.sepiaink.co.uk by 15th February 2026 (UK home address only) to win a small heart-shaped box of chocolates!
About the Author:
Lucy Kaufman is an award-winning author, playwright, audio dramatist and poet. 40 of her plays have been performed professionally around the UK and Australia, to critical acclaim. She has lectured in Playwriting and Screenwriting for Pen to Print and Canterbury Christ Church University and is a mentor at The Writing Coach. Originally from London, she now lives by the sea with her husband, sons, dogs and cats.
Contact Lucy:
Instagram: @kaufmanlucy
Instagram: @sepiainkpublishing
Sepia Ink Website