In all honesty, I was considering setting this aside early on but I am so glad that I decided to keep reading because I ended up really enjoying this one! I liked how the details were slowly revealed throughout the story and felt it was quite a suspenseful buildup overall. I know there are many mixed reviews on this book and maybe I enjoyed it more since I haven’t read the author’s previous work (All the Missing Girls), but I would recommend The Perfect Stranger to mystery readers.

*Thank you to the publisher for providing an eARC through NetGalley.

The very first novels by Megan Miranda I ever read were ONLY THE SURVIVORS (her newest) and THE LAST TO VANISH (next to newest) and I devoured both. So I was excited to start an earlier-published novel: THE PERFECT STRANGER. I did not devour it, much to my dismay.
There are serious themes in this book, which need to be addressed but make reading often painful and disconcerting. Worse for me was the MC; I mean, several characters in THE PERFECT STRANGER were horrible people, in one way or another; but despite all the pressures on her, her background, her quest always for Truth....I could not summon one iota of empathy for her. I didn't want her to suffer, but I just couldn't empathize or relate.

I knew I was going to be hooked on Megan Miranda's books after the reading the unique suspense style that she used in All The Missing Girls. While this is another good mystery it didn't have quite the same magic. I will still be looking forward to more from this author though!

Good mystery and overall plot, but very slow in places. Psychological thrillers are still my jam, though, and I found The Perfect Stranger to be good at keeping me guessing.

I really could not get into this book. I found it dull, hard to connect with and with a total lack of gripping storyline that I was hoping for.

I think there is a general consensus that All the Missing Girls was an amazing book. I know I loved it. When Megan Miranda released The Perfect Stranger, I had high hopes. For me, The Perfect Stranger was suspenseful and really set Megan Miranda in the top tier of authors where no matter what, I'll read whatever she releases. She has yet to fail me!

This was a book I’ve been wanting to read for awhile and I guessed the twist a bit early how and wanted to see how it played out. It was dragging for me at some parts and a character that appeared that didn’t really affect the story and I wondered why they kept getting mentioned. The unraveling of the twist was underwhelming since I had along guessed it earlier. But overall, I enjoyed it.

Well that was creepy! I loved that this story was different and makes you think. I definitely had times I thought Emmy could be crazy vs sane! I rate this book a 4.1

I loved Miranda's other novel and it was hard to separate that one from this one when reading/reviewing. I was not connecting with the characters at all, and felt the story fell a bit flat. However, I truly love this author and it could have been a case of 'wrong time/wrong book' for me.

Unfortunately this is just one of those books that I couldn’t connect with. The story never grabbed me and I didn’t like any of the many characters presented.

I really liked this. I have no idea why it took me so long to read it. I really like this author. You sort of never know where her books are headed until the exact moment that she decides to tell you.

Leah is at a loose end when she runs into her old roommate. When Emmy decides to move to Western PA, Leah thinks this is a good idea and a chance to start over (because she has basically set her current life on fire). When a woman is bludgeoned near her house and she realizes that she hasn't seen her roommate in several days, Leah starts to try and figure out what's going on. This all happens in the first couple of chapters. You'll have to read it to find out how it all works out.

DNF due to content that I did not expect and did not like such as language. The idea of the story sounded wonderful, but it did not hold my attention.

The Perfect Stranger has been on my TBR list for years and I FINALLY got around to reading it. I thoroughly enjoyed Leah's story and the constant guessing about what was really going on behind the scenes. Leah was an interesting narrator to follow, even if at times I felt like she had absolutely no survival instincts. I was hoping for a little more suspense throughout the story. If there had been more suspense, The Perfect Stranger would have definitely gotten 5-stars!

Oh this book is a good one, with great characters and a story that twists and turns and takes you on one heck of a ride. I read this in a couple days and had to force myself to put it down. This is the first Megan Miranda book I've read and I'm excited to read whatever she puts out.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Love me some Megan Miranda. She doesn't disappoint. A page turning, great read. Highly recommended to my book club.

I enjoyed "All the Missing Girls" by Megan Miranda, so wanted to catch up on her other books before her new one comes out. I grabbed this one and was ready to settle down with another twisty suspenseful story. Well, I did enjoy this book, but it left me wanting somewhat. This is the story of Leah Stevens and Emmy Grey. Leah runs into an old friend, Emmy at the perfect time. She needs to get out of Boston after losing her job as a journalist and having a restraining order taken out against her. Emmy wants to get away from a toxic relationship. It's the answer for both of them, so they move to rural Pennsylvania, to start over. Leah starts her job as a teacher and Emmy seems to work a few odd jobs here and there. Then, things start happening. A woman is beaten and left to die. Leah is being stalked and Emmy has disappeared. What is going on and how is Leah involved in it all.

I was definitely interested in this story. I wanted to know who Emmy really was and what she was trying to set Leah up for. Being a retired teacher, I was also interested in how the students fit into all of it. There seemed to be something sinister going on with some of the students that would have had me looking over my shoulders. As Leah uncovered more and more clues and pieces, the feeling of dread built up and the tension ratcheted up. What gave me pause, was some of the decisions and choices Leah made. She seemed to be a bit reckless at times and I wanted to reach out and slap her a few times, especially when it came to her budding relationship with Detective Kyle Donovan. Megan Miranda presents a story with plenty of twists. Just when I thought I had figured it all out, she sent me off in another direction.The author has an easy flow to her writing style as the plot was what I would have expected for a suspense story. I found myself wanting to read just one more chapter. The main reason, I only rated this one four stars was the main character. As I stated earlier, there were times I really questioned what she was doing and wanted her to step back a bit. She was definitely a flawed character, but it was also hard to like her, even though I really wanted to. Overall, I recommend this story as I did enjoy it, but if you have read "All The Missing Girls" this one doesn't quite measure up.

Thank you to Megan Miranda and Simon & Schuster for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Confronted by a restraining order and the threat of a lawsuit, failed journalist Leah Stevens needs to get out of Boston when she runs into an old friend, Emmy Grey, who has just left a troubled relationship. Emmy proposes they move to rural Pennsylvania, where Leah can get a teaching position and both women can start again. But their new start is threatened when a woman with an eerie resemblance to Leah is assaulted by the lake, and Emmy disappears days later.

Determined to find Emmy, Leah cooperates with Kyle Donovan, a handsome young police officer on the case. As they investigate her friend’s life for clues, Leah begins to wonder: did she ever really know Emmy at all? With no friends, family, or a digital footprint, the police begin to suspect that there is no Emmy Grey. Soon Leah’s credibility is at stake, and she is forced to revisit her past: the article that ruined her career. To save herself, Leah must uncover the truth about Emmy Grey—and along the way, confront her old demons, find out who she can really trust, and clear her own name.

Everyone in this rural Pennsylvanian town has something to hide—including Leah herself. How do you uncover the truth when you are busy hiding your own?

I did enjoy this one, and it was one of the books that I loved the way it was written maybe even more than the story itself.

This one was kinda disappointing.

A relatively unremarkable and quite forgettable mystery, where disgraced journalist Leah Stevens moves to Pennsylvania, to start a new life as a teacher at the local high school and soon becomes involved in the disappearance of her roommate Emily.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing a digital copy in return for an honest, unbiased review.

I've only read one other Miranda book (All The Missing Girls) and I liked this a lot more, probably because it followed a normal timeline. This had me suspecting everyone, especially the unreliable narrator, more than once.

I haven't read All The Missing Girls yet so I can't really compare this to that as the others did. But with all the buzz surrounding that book, I have a somewhat high expectations with this one. But then I was left a little disappointed. I had a hard time connecting with the characters and can't even find someone I can root for. At times I even had a hard time following the story. It is definitely well-written, no doubt about that. But the build-up is just too slow for my liking. The plot is interesting but I feel like it wasn't use to its potential. But despite all that, I still think it turns out to be better than okay. A decent read nonetheless. And the cover is lovely. I'd give it a 3.5 stars.