Tim Lane (Rules for Becoming a Legend) delivers a fascinating story of solid domestic suspense in The Neighbors We Want. The novel, Lane's second, features characters who live on the same block in a Portland, Ore., neighborhood. They are people whom, in real life, anyone would want to steer clear of, and Lane visits them at their lowest. Adam and Sarah Cooper are at the worst time in their marriage. Adam has become a stay-at-home dad--or, as he likes to put it, a "SAHD with a silent H." It wasn't a family decision that he become full-time parent to their seven-month-old daughter, Maddie; he worked as an ad writer but was fired for viewing explicit videos at the office. Adam doesn't mind being a father but despises staying at home, with its endless feedings, diaper changings, and boredom, which he has tried to alleviate by spying on his neighbor Ali. Sarah, with her myriad secrets, equally resents bringing the sole paycheck, especially because Evie Kemp, the principal at the elementary school where she teaches, sends her inappropriate, sometimes sexual, texts. Evie's harassment includes wondering if her unhinged son, Crispin, prone to obsessing over women, is having an affair with Sarah while also stalking Ali. Adding to the creepiness, Evie spies on Sarah pumping her breast milk.
Lane's tangled web of deceit soars: violence escalates with arson, a possible murder, and ramped-up spying and stalking. The shifting points of view, realistic dialogue, and domestic scenes add to the believability of The Neighbors We Want. --Oline H. Cogdill, freelance reviewer