My Highly Caffeinated Thought: A positively addictive read pushing the boundaries of what is just a dream and what is a memory.

UNDER MY SKIN is the dark and twisty gift which keeps on giving. Having never disappointed me in the past, I had a suspicion this book would be good. However, the level of suspense and intensity within these pages surpassed my expectations.

What I love about this book so much is how the author plays with grief and manipulates Poppy's perceptions through the uncertainty of her memories. As each layer is peeled back, the reader gets a piece of what is really going on only to be thrown another twist. The beauty of this story is that we are never given too much at one time which heightens the anticipation of what could come next. I was constantly trying to figure out what was a real memory and what was a hallucination.

I can't even describe how all-consuming this book was for me while I was in the thick of it. Unger has completely outdone herself with this story. If you are looking for a psychological thriller to keep you guessing until the end, then this is your book.

I liked the synopsis of this book but hated the main character. She was incredibly annoying and by the end I really didn't care if she was killed or not, I just wanted to escape her inner monologue. Between the drugs and not knowing if things were real or not, the story dragged on and on. I am all for unreliable narrators but this one was felt like it was going nowhere and reading ALL her thoughts on repeat drove me nuts.

It feels like I haven't finished a book in weeks. Under My Skin had the unfortunate luck of being read during my reading slump and busy work month. This may have contributed to my lackluster feelings about the book; I'm not sure. I do know that I struggled with the first half of the book, and I found part of the ending a little over the top, but overall it was an enjoyable read.

I have an issue with books that use insomnia or pill popping to make an unreliable character. I'm just not a fan of that manic, hazy, is-this-or-isn't-this real frame of mind. When we first meet Poppy she is in the middle of this crazed state, one year after the murder of her husband. No one knows who killed him, and Poppy can't remember anything about the days following his funeral, so the majority of the time she is running around trying find out what happened all the while dealing with the effects of being doped up and sleep deprived. There are plenty of times when you are left questioning reality right along side Poppy.

Once everything started coming together I felt that pacing picked up and I became more invested in the outcome. I will say that [spoiler] was very odd to me and also the [spoiler] seemed cheap and unnecessary.

I can see a lot of people liking this more than me as it is well-written and contains a certain amount of thrill. I just prefer my thrillers more steeped in reality over the dream-like state of Poppy's.

Thank you to HARLEQUIN - Hanover Square Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Under My Skin by Lisa Unger. In exchange for the ARC, I am offering my unbiased review.

This was truly a pleasant surprise. For starters, this book was the first thriller I read in a very long time, which was actually thrilling. It was also my first time reading a Lisa Unger novel, so now I have an entire backlog to read through.

While the premise and tropewas not entirely original, I enjoyed the characters and believed in their choices, actions and decisions. There was good dialogue, twisty turns and enough genuine suspense to keep me turning the pages.

Poppy's husband is killed while out for a run. While the crime has been ruled a senseless random act, Poppy can't shake the feeling that there is something more sinister at play. Add in a nervous breakdown, prescription pills, and a fuzzy memory of dreams and reality and you are left with a nagging sense of confusion.

A haunting psychological thriller about the wife of a viciously murdered man and her search for clues to what happened - not just to him but to her. Poppy doesn't remember where she went after Jack's funeral - when she turns up at her best friend's apartment days later, disheveled and distraught, she's unable to account for her whereabouts. And when she realizes she's being followed, her grief turns to fear, and she begins to wonder whether Jack's killer is stalking her, too, and why. The secondary characters - Poppy's best friends and the detective assigned to the still unsolved murder -are interesting and well-drawn, and the narrative drives to a satisfying denouement with enough twists in the plot to keep the reader going until the last page.

Very compelling tale here - I went through this one pretty quickly & enjoyed the storyline & character development. Thanks to netgalley for the opportunity!

Under My Skin is a tense, dark and thrilling psychological drama. At first, I have to admit that I wondered if it was too fractured in relating Poppy's story. Very quickly, though, I realized that as both the first-person narrator and the woman who lost her love, her husband and days of her memories, of course the retelling was fractured - her memories were fractured, even her whole life. Then, I got it, and it was brilliant! When I love into the story, seeing everything through Poppy's eyes, I was completely mesmerized! Compelling and engrossing - highly recommend! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. My review is entirely my honest opinion. #NetGalley #UnderMySkin

Under My Skin

A intentional confusing psychological thriller that may just get under your skin

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


SUMMARY
Poppy‘s husband, Jack, was brutally murdered during a morning run in Manhattan. In the immediate aftermath, Poppy spirals into a dark depression and disappears for several days, only to turn up disheveled and confused wearing a tight red dress she didn’t recognize. She can’t remember where she was or who she was with. She was hospitalized with a nervous breakdown. As her depression continues she is unable to tell the difference between what is real and what she is imagining. She believes a hooded man is following her, she remembers a night club, an a woman covered in blood, but she may be hallucinating. And there may be drugs involved. She is determined to resolve the mystery of her husband’s murder but things are just so confusing.

REVIEW
A psychological thriller that will intentional make you as confused as Poppy feels. The book appears to be a scattered mess. Timelines are confusing, I couldn’t tell what was real, what was imagined, or what was just part of a dream. And then you figure out that it’s an amazing twist on the reader by author Lisa Unger. She wants us to feel Poppy’s confusion. She wants us to know what Poppy felt like. I did feel just as lost and confused as Poppy. Well done, Lisa!

The story, while intentional confusing, keeps you on the edge of your seat with unrelenting tension. The book is filled with many flawed characters who are just perfect for the story. Thanks to Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Publisher Park Row
Published October 1, 2018
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

Admittedly it took me a little bit to get into Under My Skin. There are points of the story that dragged for me, and there are parts that were a bit confusing, but in the end this is a story that will really get you thinking and finishes strong. I was honestly guessing until the very end. I think what truly makes this story great is that it feels real. You’re really able to put yourself in the characters shoes.

All in all this was a great thriller mystery read, and I will definitely check out more from this author!

It is approaching the one year anniversary of Poppy’s husband’s murder. She continues to struggle with her grief and has been keeping a dream journal to try and understand them. There are several days after his death that she disappeared and she still can't remember anything about that time. The case is nowhere nearer to being solved and Poppy still struggles to understand that period in her life. She is now experiencing what she believes are hallucinations. Are Poppy’s nightmares really memories? Will she ever discover what happened to her husband?

Under My Skin is a psychological thriller that will keep readers turning the pages whenever they can. Unger has developed a protagonist that is pushing through her hardships while also attempting to understand the unexplainable. The book is of a moderate length; so many readers will find themselves finishing it over a long weekend. I felt the storyline was completely believable and wondered what I would do in a similar situation. Under My Skin should be added to every thriller fan’s TBR list.

One year ago, Poppy Lang's husband Jack was murdered while out running in a Manhattan park. Poppy had a nervous breakdown after Jack died there are days that she can't even remember. She's now trying to move on from this tragedy, but disturbing dreams and the feeling she's being followed are keeping Poppy from healing.

This standalone thriller by Lisa Unger is narrated by Poppy in the first person. It opens with Poppy on a date with someone she met online from a profile her best friend set up for her which doesn't go as expected. It then moves to Poppy in a session with her therapist, then switches to scenes of Poppy at work, at home, and spending time with her friend Layla. Mixed in with Poppy's life now are dreams Poppy has which unfold like something that is really happening and others that Poppy realizes are dreams that she describes to her friends and therapist. Since Poppy isn't always sure what's a dream and what's reality, the reader is also not always sure what to believe. This technique in a thriller can become confusing and frustrating, but in Unger's capable hands, I was on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next.

At the heart of the story is what really happened to Jack and where was Poppy during the missing hours lost from her memory. So many of her friends and acquaintances can be hard to take that I suspected nearly everyone of potentially killing Jack and betraying Poppy. I would have enjoyed the book more if there had been someone, other than her therapist, that I thought clearly had Poppy's back. Everything comes out at the end, but it was hard to find many likable characters. In spite of this, I was very engaged in the story and by the end, didn't want to put the book down. The issue with the person following Poppy had a strange resolution, but overall, the ending was tense and scary and came with twists I never saw coming. I was sometimes confused, but was always entertained by this thriller.

I received this book from NetGalley, through the courtesy of Harlequin-Hanover Square Press. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.

Poppys husband is murdered. She is having a difficult time moving on. Drugs and alcohol have left her confused and affected her memory. Who could have murdered her husband. Was it Noah, who could be a savior or a stalker. Her best friend, Layla, or Lsylas husband Mac. Or was this just a random crime?

All the characters are believable. This story will keep you guessing all the way through.

Good. God. This book was amazing! I could not turn the pages fast enough to get through the twists and turns of this psychological thriller. The characters are very real, even as they may not actually exist, and the plot is very well-crafted. The reader is essentially in Poppy’s shoes as she navigates her increasingly mysterious life. The author did an incredible job with tone and atmosphere, as there were times where I could literally feel Poppy’s panic as my own. The revelations that begin to clear up the mystery are well-done, and timely within the plot. I especially liked how the author kept me off balance; just when I thought I had something or someone figured out, something else would occur to make me doubt what I knew. This was extremely effective, because it mirrored Poppy’s experiences. And the “what the heck” moment that comes in every psych thriller? Yeah…didn’t see it coming at all. Incredible story, with excellent resolution. Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin-Hanover Square Press, and the author for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book left you guessing until the end what actually happened. Had the 3.5 been available I would have chosen that option because I certainly didn't hate the story but it seemed to drag at some points. I didn't have the feeling that I couldn't put the book down, and sometimes felt as if the story didn't move along. That being said, I didn't see the ending coming and the ending did leave me feeling as if all the loose ends were tied up. I did want to finish reading the story, but it seemed like forever to get there!

I would first like to thank NetGalley and Park Row Books for an ARC for my honest review.

I was hooked right from the beginning as Lisa Unger's writing drew me in and I had no idea what was real and what was a figment of one of Poppy Lang's dreams. Her husband was brutally murdered a year ago and since then Poppy has been lost and confused in her grief. The police have no clues and Poppy is trying to remember her last days with her husband. As she is trying to solve the mystery she senses someone is following her. She begins to feel like she never really knew her husband. The suspense continues to build as Unger takes us on a wild ride with this psychological thriller that will twist and turn you around until the very end. I would highly recommend this book to those who love psychological mystery/thrillers.

Lisa Unger has written sixteen novels and it's a travesty that I have only read three of them. Because OMFG this was really good! It literally competed with waiting for the Quebec election results. Not an easy task since I love my politics. Also, whom ever is responsible for selecting book covers for Unger needs a nice vacation or a raise because suspense books shouldn't be this eye catching gorgeous but these definitely are.

No need to rehash the plot as it's quite well explained in the blurb. Poppy, our main protagonist, goes through a whole gambit of emotions over her husband's death while also struggling to fit in missing pieces of her memory. I didn't feel confusion, but I totally questioned how reliable the narrative was going to be. Lisa Unger makes it seem like everyone around Poppy is either lying or she might be. What a maze to work through! I just know that I really enjoyed the journey, but I still have a few things I would like to say to Poppy.

Under My Skin takes us along with Poppy Lang as she struggles to accept the murder of her husband Jack, and come to terms with his death.

Though Poppy and her BFF since childhood Layla, had been raised in a small country town, they both now live in Manhattan. Jack & Layla had started the successful firm Lang & Lang, a boutique agency representing photographers, and Layla & her husband Mac (a hedge fund financier) are living an even higher class life with their children Izzy and Slade.

Told in Poppy's voice, it is now approaching a year after Jack's brutal murder while jogging in Central Park. The case has become cold and is largely believed to have been a random killing. Detective Greystone and Poppy, however, each think there might be more to it than that; especially when Poppy begins to believe that she is being followed and, shortly after, finds an orchid delivered to her Manhattan apartment, and one of the large pictures hanging in her living room shattered after having apparently been thrown. Poppy wants answers and won't stop until she has them.

Poppy's grief caused a nervous breakdown shortly after Jack's death, with days lost to her, and friends and family frantic for her return. Now it seems, she is struggling with reality again. Self-medicating, and heavily drinking, her life becomes an ever-shifting panoramic of bright colors and sounds, fantastical dreams and hallucinations. It is no wonder she has a hard time knowing what is real and what is not! Yet, as her therapist Dr. Nash told her might happen, she feels that she is recovering bits of memories from the days lost to her during her breakdown. She just can't seem to put the pieces together. And there are those who don't want her to do so. How far are they willing to go to hide the truth? Will Poppy and the detective figure out the truth behind Jack's death?

I must admit that Poppy's confusion as to what is real and what's not was equally as confusing to this reader. I expect that is exactly what Lisa Unger skillfully intended. An entertaining read!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Hanover Square Park Row for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this mystery.

Exactly my kind of read, psychological thriller, fast paced and keeps you guessing about what is really real. There a sense of urgency to read ire and continue the story, and I read this one quickly as I wanted to know more!

Looking for your next twisty psychological thriller? You have found it! Under My Skin is character-driven and one that builds up a faster pace as you read on. It falls on the unpredictable side and has a solid ending. Overall, a very compelling read. Highly recommended to readers who enjoy psychological thrillers.

This story was confusing. The main character, Poppy, has suffered some sort of psychotic break after the death of her husband. We then follow her through a series of dreams/not dreams while she tries to pull her life back together. It's disjointed and, at times, doesn't make much sense.