House on the water

What The Vibes Are

Frenemies — Secret Affairs — A Woman Scorned —
Revenge Plot — Unreliable Narrators

What It’s About

From the author of Buried Deep comes a brand new thriller about a summer vacation turned deadly, and a group of friends trapped together until they can determine who among them is capable of murder.

Every year, Caroline Reed takes a trip with her best friend, Esme Lamont. They’re usually accompanied by their spouses—but this year, everything’s changed. Esme has just gone through a bitter divorce, and Caroline is wondering if her own marriage is reaching its breaking point, as she and her husband, John, cope with the discovery that their nineteen-year-old son has been abusing drugs. Still, the inseparable duo books a week-long stay at a beachfront home in Shoreham, Florida, inviting Esme’s brother, Nick, and his new husband, Ford, in hopes that the additional guests will help lighten the mood.

After a blissful first night in the vacation home, tragedy strikes, and one of the houseguests is found dead. While it’s assumed at first to be a horrific accident, it quickly becomes clear that there’s something more sinister at play, and over the course of this fast-paced, deeply chilling novella, the potential motives of each guest are revealed—until a shocking conclusion is reached.

Progress Thoughts & Rants

I wish I had said I saw the ending coming, but I never thought it’d take this rare turn. Loved it!

Also adored that it was narrated by Taylor Schilling!

What I thought about it

***MASSIVE Spoilers below

Caroline and her college best friend, Esme, go on annual trips together with their husbands in tow, but things were different this year. Esme and her narcissistic ex-husband, David, went through a nasty divorce, so instead of bringing him along, Esme invited her brother, Nick, and his husband, Ford. Caroline and her husband, John, were also having marital problems regarding their 19-year-old son, who was in rehab and faced felony charges.

Esme and Nick were estranged, part of it being because of Esme’s distrust of Ford. The siblings were trust fund babies who each stood to inherit 10 million dollars when their father inevitably died from his cancer. That being said, Esme saw Ford as a gold digger who was evasive and aloof.

After the group picked their rooms and got settled, the night carried on, filled with drinking, dancing, and the occasional sibling spat. As Esme got more and more trashed, she began dancing and even flirting with John…

The group decided to call it a night as Nick and Ford helped Esme to her room, and the rest went to sleep. The following morning, each member of the group woke up at different times throughout the morning, but when Esme still hadn’t come down, Caroline went to check on her.

Caroline found Esme on the bed on her back, with her eyes looking up lifelessly at the ceiling. Her mouth was agape. Caroline began to scream, which prompted Nick to come rushing in. Hysterical, they called the cops. As the police asked questions, the group began to point fingers. At first, they thought that David had snuck in and killed Esme after everyone went to bed. The security system hadn’t sent off or been rearmed at any point during the night, negating that possibility. Now, everyone in the house was a suspect, and all had motives. Nick and Esme were estranged, and with her out of the picture, he would’ve inherited all 20 million dollars of the inheritance. Ford had a secret record with a past in insurance fraud. Nick and Caroline were having intimacy and marital issues.

After the police got all the answers they could and the investigation ensued, loads of secrets came to light. The biggest one was that John and Esme were having an affair. It began during the last trip together when Esme and David were at the tail end of their marriage. The police were the ones who informed Caroline of the betrayal. Her response was strange, but I saw it as her shutting down. As soon as the police told her, Caroline got up and got a glass of water; the interview was conducted in the kitchen of the rental. Caroline remained stony and calm as she read over the printed screenshots of John and Esme’s text messages. Texts where John expressed his love for Esme, and promised her a future, as well as many dirty texts. Esme wanted to confess to Caroline, but John shut that down quickly. He wanted to wait until things with their son blew over before he asked Caroline for a divorce.

When Esme’s toxicology came back, the police discovered that Esme had four times the normal dose of Insulin in her system as well as Rohypnol. The police deduced that Caroline had killed Esme and arrested her. As they took her away, her inner monologue told us that she was behind the murder. She went on to explain to the reader how it all happened. Caroline found out about the affair three months before the trip because, while visiting Esme, she noticed notifications popping up from John and went through Esme’s phone. Caroline planned this thoroughly. The novella ended as she feigned innocence during her interview, confident that the police didn’t have enough evidence to convict her. Brutal.

Conclusion

House on the Water was enthralling, dramatic in the best way, and it fueled the ego of every scorned woman! Love, Love, Loved! Bravo to Taylor Schilling for another amazing performance! If you haven’t given this book a listen, or even a read, haha! If you’ve already listened to or read this book, leave a comment! I’d love to chat about it!

♡ G&P