Good Neighbors by Joanne Serling ~ A Review

by Susan Roberts

Good Neighbors is a novel about four families of neighbors in an upscale suburb. They all become friends due to their proximity to each other and probably wouldn't be friends for any other reason because they are all so different. This is a mainly a story of the women in this exclusive clique - the husbands are definitely part of the background and don't play much of a role in the neighborhood dramas and dynamics.
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February 2018; Twelve; 978-1455541911
audio, ebook, print (256 pages); family life

Nicole, Paige, Lorraine, and Nela are the women in the neighborhood who bond together - they all have kids about the same age and that is their main link. Nicole is the narrator and the first to notice a problem when Paige and her husband adopt a 4-year-old from Russia. Since Paige lives in the nicest and most expensive house in the neighborhood, it seems that all of the other women are reluctant to point out the possible problems with the adopted child and the ways Paige and her husband have changed. As the three friends begin to question the treatment of the child, the friendships begin to unravel. The book is full of twists and turns about whether the women stay friends or speak up about the possible mistreatment.

In her Author’s Note, Joanne Serling states that she chose to write, “about the themes of community, parenting, and adoption as a way of discovering my own beliefs about family, the ones we create and the ones we inherit”. She did just that and more.

Buy Good Neighbors at Amazon

About the Author:  

Joanne Serling’s fiction has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and has appeared in New Ohio Review and North American Review. She is a graduate of Cornell University and studied and taught fiction at The Writers Studio in New York City. She lives outside of New York with her husband and children and is at work on her second book.

Connect with Joanne
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Susan Roberts lives in North Carolina when she isn't traveling. She and her husband enjoy traveling, gardening and spending time with their family and friends. She reads almost anything (and the piles of books in her house prove that) but her favorite genres are Southern fiction, women's fiction, and thrillers. Susan is a top 1% Goodreads Reviewer. You can connect with Susan on Facebook, Goodreads,  or Twitter. 

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