Sandra Jones puts her young daughter, Ree, to bed and goes to her own bed. Then she hears a sound coming from the stairs...When her husband, Jason, comes home from his night shift job at the newspaper, Sandra is gone.

Sgt. Det. D. D. Warren, last seen in Gardner's 2007 novel, Hide" knows that the spouse is always the prime suspect when the second spouse goes missing or is killed. When she attempts to interview Jason, he is uncooperative, almost nonshalant.

Is it her husband, who is guilty for whatever happened to Sandra? Is it the neighbor, Adrian Brewster, whose room overlooks the Jones' bedroom and is a registered sex offender? Could it be Ethan Hastings, a 13 year old high school student with a crush on Sandra? Or, could it be a late comer in the story, Wayne Reynolds, a state police computer analyst who met Sandy at a school basketball game and has been meeting her for the weekly basketball games, since then?

The story continues with Sandra's father, Judge Maxwell Black, entering the scene and demanding he be given visitation priveleges to his granddaughter. Sandra had no relationship with her father and had accused him of mistreatment.

As the story continues, the reader is privileged to know the various character's thoughts and it is difficult to see who might be the guilty character.

It is obvious that the author enjoyed writing this book and her sense of fun with the plot comes through. "The Neighbor" is a well written, fast moving story that would have made Alfred Hitchcock proud in the old TV days. ( )

From a distance Jason and Sandra Jones appear to be the perfect couple. They have a beautiful daughter, a new house and are in the beginning stages of building a life together. Their perfect façade slowly begins to crumble with Sandra goes missing shortly after putting their daughter to bed. Jason immediately turns into the prime suspect when he’s aloof and uncooperative with the police. What exactly is he hiding? Does he want his wife to be found? If he didn't kill her, does he know who did? These questions are what Detective Sergeant D.D. Warren is determined to find out ( )

good, but not great. it is actually a pretty simple plot, the author managed to stretch into a lengthy one. ( )

Not great literature but it held my interest. ( )

Finally - a mystery novel that doesn't rely on stereotypes, tired plot lines, or utilize cheesy dialogue. This book had me guessing up to the big reveal.

A young mother disappears overnight in South Boston. She has left her clothes, purse, and daughter at home. There is no appearance of a break-in at the home. A variety of feasible suspects are immediately apparent. Her husband, a neighboring sex offender, and one of her students are the primary suspects. We are told this story in first person from the victim, suspects', and lead detective's perspective. Gardner jumps between characters' viewpoints frequently yet doesn't confuse the reader. The plots twists in interesting and engaging ways for the reader. The subject matter is very mature and dark. I would say that this book is not appropriate for teen readers or anyone who is sensitive to issues of child abuse. Overall, this was a very satisfying mystery and I was very caught up in the character's personal histories and the unfolding of the crime. ( )

Good read, though the mystery aspect of it wasn't as strong as it could have been. A few more red herrings would have made this a much stronger mystery.

I do applaud Gardner for getting the tone of the four-year old girl correct. Too often the dialog for kids is written phonetically (drives me bats) or the child sounds like they're a well-behaved 15-year old. I believed this kid was four. A smart four, but four. ( )

This is what I'm reading today (Sunday 16th August 2009). I'm at page 50 and my review so far is: by page 50 (end of Chapter 3) I realiesed what I'd been suspecting: I'm in good hands, Lisa Gardner is a class-act author and The Neighbour is unfolding as a wonderfully crafted thriller. She has written this from several different angles, slowly unfolding the story and the character's motivatons. Loving this so far. Keep you posted ...

Full of tension, psychological games and secrets. Gardner gives us just enough lead to wet the imagination and then moves on to another character, scenario or issue. Is Jason guilty (of something, yes, but the disappearance of his wife?)Is Sandra dead?
Is Aidan a red herring? Is Max the culprit? You have to read to the last page to find out, and I did.

I have always been a fan of Lisa Gardner but I had not read anything by her recently. Her latest book, The Neighbor, caught my attention and so off to the library I went. I loved this book! It was an excellent and masterfully written suspense novel. Jason and Sandra Jones are married with a four year old daughter and one night Sandra disappears. But they are not just your average couple. They both have secrets and Jason isn't talking to the police and he is the prime suspect. He is a very enigmatic character and the only thing I knew for sure as I was reading was that he loves his daughter. We hear from Sandra in the past, events leading up to the night of her disappearance. I thought I knew the ending 3/4ths of the way through but then changed my mind several times up until the very end. Gardner does an amazing job of giving parts of the story then moving to another character, and really leaves the reader guessing until the end. Lots of plot twists. Sergeant D.D. Warren, the lead detective on the case is a favorite character of mine and I hope she continues to show up in future Gardner novels. A must read for lovers of suspense novels.
my rating 4.5 stars ( )

I took Lisa Gardner's latest book The Neighbor with me on vacation. Well, rather I took it to kill time during the inevitable airport wait times. And I have to say, this new release from Random House Canada made the time pass pretty quickly!

The Joneses are the perfect family. Young, pretty school teacher mom, bright precocious little girl, handsome, hardworking reporter father.

Jason Jones comes home after a night shift, finds his four year old daughter alone and his wife Sandra gone. He does report it to the police. But when Sergeant D.D. Warren (featured in a previous book Hide) begins to investigate, the perfect picture starts to fade. Jason is less than forthcoming. In fact he seems to be hindering the search, rather than helping. And as D.D. digs further, she can't help but think that Jason is guilty. But their neighbor Aidan is a person of interest as well.

D.D. Warren is an excellent female protagonist. She's quick, tough, with a smart mouth, but has a vulnerable side too.

The story is told from different viewpoints - D.D.'s, Jason's, Aidan's and Sandra's - although her story is told in flashbacks to her past, so we are never sure if she is alive or dead. As a reader, we know far more of what is happening than the police do.

Gardner keeps us on our toes. This is a fantastic psychological thriller that kept me guessing until the very end with a really, really good twist.

Lisa Gardner started out as a romance writer, but has really come into her own as a suspense author. Guaranteed to keep you reading 'just one more page....' ( )

Another good mystery. The title is very appropriate. Full of mis-direction and suspense. ( )

Jason Jones comes home to find his young wife missing and his 4-year-old daughter alone in their home. He immediately becomes the prime suspect along with a convicted sex offender living close by, a student his wife worked with, and his wife's father. There is lots going on with Jason Jones and his wife, Sandra. Both seem to have many secrets and this adds to the mystery.

This is one creepy story. It starts out creepy and stays creepy! It is a fascinating read with quite a few surprises along the way. I was, however, disappointed by the ending. It just didn't seem plausible and didn't work with the rest of a great story. ( )

Reason for Reading: I enjoyed my first Lisa Gardner book, last year's Say Goodbye, so much I wanted to keep reading her.

Comments: Jason and Sandra Jones seem to have the perfect life. They've figured out the perfect way to raise their four-year-old daughter. Sandra works days and Jason works evenings, this way they can look after their child themselves. One night Jason comes home from work and finds his daughter sleeping safely in bed and his wife missing. The police start to investigate and find Jason's manner very odd, he's obviously hiding something or perhaps he's just hiding. He becomes their person of interest from the beginning but unlike most cases which start off with several suspects which are slowly dropped as evidence and alibis collect, this case starts with one suspect and slowly gathers more, such as the known sex offender five houses down the street and the middle school student genius who is obsessively in love with Sandra, and more until there are too many suspects to know who is telling the truth.

Absolutely riveting book! I enjoyed this even better than my previous read by the author. I can certainly say I'll be going back and reading Ms. Gardner's backlist. This book gave me everything I want in a suspenseful mystery, twists and turns in plot, interesting characters and mostly: I only sort of figured out "whodunit" and that wasn't until near the end. Really not much more to say without gushing. The only thing that bothered me was the main detective's name was "D.D." Now this is just me but I've never met a woman who went around being called by initials and the fact that dd stands for 'darling daughter' in internet speak had my mind calling her that every third or fourth time her name appeared, strange but true. Unlike Say Goodbye, this book is not gruesome, there is a little violence of course but nothing that you can't read and eat at the same time. This was a page-turner, read in a weekend because you just can't put it down book for me. Mystery/thriller fans are sure to love this and if you haven't read Lisa Gardner before The Neighbor is a great place to start. ( )

Now THIS is how suspense should be written! Multiple suspects, well-drawn characters, mysterious pasts, clues pointing in all sorts of directions. The final surprise is revealed in the last couple of pages, and the book is almost impossible to put down in the meantime. ( )

Nothing gets the police and media's attention faster then the disappearance of a woman from her home in the suburbs.

Jason Jones works as a news reporter for the Boston Daily news. He comes home around 2 am to find his four year old daughter, Clarissa "Ree" Jane asleep in her bed but his wife and their cat Mr. Smith are both gone. Jason has no clue where Sandra is other then the fact that something bad has happened. The bed sheets have been stripped off the bed and there is a broken lamp on the floor.

Detective Sergeant D. D Warren is called onto the scene. Warren feels an instant dislike towards Jason from the first moment she meets him. His lack of interest in finding his wife, brings up red flags for Warren. Also, There is something not quite right with Jason Jones. He seems too slick. The deeper Warren investigates she realizes that things are not what they seem at first glance.

Another winner for Lisa Gardner. The Neighbor has all of the making for the perfect best seller. It has drama, intrigue, cutting-edge suspense and an ending that will leave you speechless. I kept trying to figure out who were the bad guys and which ones were the good guys and even I couldn't always tell. One thing I can tell you is that I loved this book. So much that as soon as I was done with it, I had one of my co-workers so curious that she begged me to let her borrow this book. The Neighbor is a great weekend read.
Nothing gets the police and media's attention faster then the disappearance of a woman from her home in the suburbs.

Jason Jones works as a news reporter for the Boston Daily news. He comes home around 2 am to find his four year old daughter, Clarissa "Ree" Jane asleep in her bed but his wife and their cat Mr. Smith are both gone. Jason has no clue where Sandra is other then the fact that something bad has happened. The bed sheets have been stripped off the bed and there is a broken lamp on the floor.

Detective Sergeant D. D Warren is called onto the scene. Warren feels an instant dislike towards Jason from the first moment she meets him. His lack of interest in finding his wife, brings up red flags for Warren. Also, There is something not quite right with Jason Jones. He seems too slick. The deeper Warren investigates she realizes that things are not what they seem at first glance.

Another winner for Lisa Gardner. The Neighbor has all of the making for the perfect best seller. It has drama, intrigue, cutting-edge suspense and an ending that will leave you speechless. I kept trying to figure out who were the bad guys and which ones were the good guys and even I couldn't always tell. One thing I can tell you is that I loved this book. So much that as soon as I was done with it, I had one of my co-workers so curious that she begged me to let her borrow this book. The Neighbor is a great weekend read. ( )