Buyer Beware by Catherine Ryan Howard @cathryanhoward @ayoolasmart @simon.audio @simonaudio.bsky.social #BookSky #BuyerBeware

the setup…
What do three women and 1 Delaney Row, a house in Dundrum outside of Dublin have in common? There’s Ellie in present day who’s just moved into the house, down on her luck with nothing but that place. We meet Erin in 2000 when she’s graduating from high school and clear on her next steps, until she meets Jason O’Reardon who changes that course. Then there’s Hannah Flynn who in 2015 owns her own business and is happy with her life…until she meets the charming Jason. But it’s Ellie who guides this story as she is confronted with danger in her new home, not sure if the threats are ethereal or real. Is it haunted, cursed or attracting someone who represents a true threat?

the heart of the story…
The multiple timelines added so much texture to this story as I tried to figure out Ellie’s backstory and how Hannah and Erin would intersect. I was never sure of the deal with that house as the story unraveled and more was revealed. Jason is integral in the lives of all the women but even that was murky.

the narration…
Ayoola Smart did a wonderful job of storytelling here, giving away nothing but a sense of something impending. I appreciated her understated performance…until it wasn’t!

the bottom line…
Twisty isn’t the right way to describe what happens here…more like a long, winding road that I’m driving in reverse on. I sort of guessed Ellie’s backstory but not fully and that’s part of the mystery. Buyer beware might apply to that house or to the people you let into your lives. No matter, this was mind bending in a very good way.

Book Info

• Release Date: July 28, 2026
• Narrator: Ayoola Smart
• Audio Length: 9 hours, 34 minutes
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

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(Thanks to Simon & Schuster Audio and Libro.fm for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)