I was excited to receive a copy of Jessica Strawsers newest book from Netgalley!
I loved her last book so much....
This book was a tough one for me to get through if I’m honest. I thought the idea of it was awesome, however I just couldn’t get pulled in. I found Molly’s issues to be so repetitive, and I struggled with this right through to the end.
I will definitely check out Jessica’s next book as I loved her last one so much.

A story of friendship and honesty.

We follow Liza's life in chapters that alternate with Molly's life. The ups & downs, the good days and bad days, all lending input to coming to terms with the past, the present while looking forward to a better future.

Single in Chicago, Lisa's attempt to reconnect with her BFF in Cincinnati, Molly, requires a Skype call. When Liza witnesses a masked man entering Molly's house while Molly is upstairs looking after her daughter, Liza phones the police. When Liza doesn't hear back from Molly she calls her Chicago BFF, Max, and they race off by car overnight only to have Molly close the door in Liza's face.

Molly is a chronic pain sufferer chasing any and all promised treatments to regain a pain-free life. Financially in trouble she hasn't told her accountant husband, Daniel, about the mess she is in.

The story got a bit bogged down in Molly's mess but it made Molly all it all that more a believable character. Liza's determination to cope with the terror from her situation had me cheering Henry to not give up on her.

I'm between 3 and 3.5 stars.

Liza and Molly have been best friends since childhood. Even when Molly was dating, and then married, Daniel, Liza was still a part of their lives, sharing stories of disastrous dates and her real lack of ambition. But when Liza moved from Cincinnati to Chicago for a job, it put a real strain on their friendship, and that strain began working its way into Molly and Daniel's marriage as well.

But one night while Daniel was on business travel, Molly and Liza are determined to remedy their lack of connection. Once Molly's kids are asleep the two settle down to a long Skype chat, complete with wine. For a few minutes, things seem like they used to—and then one of the kids begins crying for Molly. While she attends to her daughter, Liza finds herself staring at the blank computer screen...and then suddenly she sees a masked man, dressed all in black, come into the frame. Liza screams for Molly, tries calling her cell phone, but the intruder closes the computer screen.

Liza is at her wits' end. She is in a panic, constantly trying to reach Molly, and then eventually calling 911 to see if they can make sure everything is okay. But when Molly finally responds—via text, no less—her replies are curt, leaving Liza confused. Suspecting something more complicated is occurring, Liza decides to drive to Cincinnati to see Molly herself, but after driving all night, she is sent away following an angry confrontation that Liza doesn't understand at all.

Meanwhile, Daniel, who returned early from his business trip, doesn't understand why Molly didn't even call him about the intruder, nor can he figure out why Molly would have sent Liza away with such anger. What is she hiding from him? He's curious to know, although he isn't without secrets of his own, secrets which could upend all of their lives.

When Liza returns home and discovers she narrowly avoided a brush with disaster, it sends her into a tailspin when coupled with the apparent dissolution of her and Molly's friendship. She's still determined to find out what Molly is hiding from her, but she also needs to pull her own life together, as everything seems to be spinning out of control.

I had been under the impression that Forget You Know Me was a thriller, but while it has a tension-filled, pulse-pounding start, it becomes an exploration of the stresses, the secrets, and the lies that threaten to tear our relationships apart. It's a book about marriage and friendship, of fear and bravery, of giving voice to the things that threaten to destroy us.

While many of the problems facing the characters become obvious, the mystery of the masked man lingers, although many may figure out his identity. For me, it almost was a distraction once it became apparent that the book wasn't really focused on that incident as much as everyone's problems. At times I felt that the book wasn't quite sure what it wanted to be, and I wondered whether one incident in Liza's life would wind up coming back into the plot as well.

I like the way Jessica Strawser writes, and really enjoyed her last novel, Not That I Could Tell, which was released earlier this year. I didn't feel that this book was as strong, because the characters aren't all that likable, and because I really didn't know what to expect from the overall story. However, even though it was a tiny bit slow at times, I couldn't stop reading it, because I needed to know where she was going to take the story.

Once you understand this isn't a thriller, you may be able to enjoy the book for its storytelling, and for the twists and turns Strawser throws in. She's definitely a talented writer, one who can take ordinary situations and turn them into drama.

NetGalley and St. Martin's Press provided me an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!

Relationships are complicated. Whether it's a marriage, a friendship between two women, or a friendship between a man and a woman, there are intricacies that defy expectations and often surprise--and sometimes hurt--those involved. I absolutely love novels that explore these dichotomies and Strawser does just that in her newest novel. Having loved Not That I Could Tell, I was anticipating the same poignant observations and depth, and I was not disappointed. Starting with a botched Skype conversation, the relationship between once-best-friends Liza and Molly begins to go off the rails and continues on a downward spiral as Molly is keeping secrets, and Liza's life is saved by coincidence. Compounding things are Molly and Daniel's floundering marriage and Molly's attraction to neighbor, Rick.
What I loved best about this book was the fact that I couldn't predict where any of it was going--which is of course, what happens in sticky relationships; one can never predict what the other will do or say--much less think! Strawser delves deep into the psyche of her characters and reiterates the fact that none of us is one-dimensional; we all have flaws, we all keep things buried, and as we grow up sometimes we grow apart from others--whether it's deliberate or not. Nothing is tied up in a neat little bow at the end, but I certainly enjoyed the look at these flawed characters who resemble each of us as we navigate this often-brutal existence with those we love and admire.

I cannot begin to even tell you how much I am loving Jessica Strawser's novels! I read this one in a day just like her first one! Write more please :) Honestly though, amazing book. She makes her characters come to life and you feel as if you know them. Amazing story plot. Highly recommend!

This book I wanted to love. It has to many descriptive words, unnecessary to the story. It didn't flow, and I just didn't feel for any of the characters. Loved her other book, but this didn't cut it.

Thanks to author,publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free,it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

Forget You Know Me reminded me of Jessica's last novel that I read, Not That I Could Tell. There was a lot of foreplay and excitement, but not much for a climax. Not a lot of bang, IMO. The story-line built up to so much with each page that you turned and it could have went so many ways but ultimately fell flat for me.

The plot was weak at best. Not to mention the many sub-plots that were just as weak. The author made it to where every character had something going on and then didn't give us time and reasoning to fully understand just what was going on. I know that may not make sense to you, but I promise in my head it does.

I do want to say that Jessica's writing is very easy to read (for me) but I can see where others may not enjoy it. I tend to flow through her stories effortlessly because her writing makes it so easy. But for some reason, her writing didn't work this go around in the sense of developing any kind of "connection" with these characters. It's almost hard for me to put into words how hard it was for me to understand what was going on with them or even why.

And then...it all just falls down. I didn't like the way the story was wrapped up. I wish I could give you the reasons why but I think we all know that I don't believe in spoilers. I can appreciate good writing when I see it and every time I pick up one of Jessica's books I know that her writing will be such a treat. For You Know Me was a book that held so much potential but once it was all said and done, I was left unsatisfied.

I thoroughly enjoyed Jessica Strawser’s first two novels so I was so excited to dive into Forget You Know Me! This novel centers around besties Molly and Liza, who have been as close as sisters for years, but have become a little distant as of late. Whether it’s the fact that Molly is married with kids and Liza is single or that Liza took a risk and uprooted her life from Cincinnati to Chicago while Molly stayed put in Cincinnati, the ladies started to drift. Feeling the distance Liza and Molly schedule a video chat “girls night” to reconnected. With Molly’s husband away and her kids in bed the two started talking when Molly’s daughter wakes up. Molly tells Liza to give her a quick minute to re-tuck in her daughter. In the meantime, Liza just hangs out and then she sees a masked man walk in Molly’s house and then slams Molly’s laptop close and disconnects their chat!!!!! Liza calls the police immediately, but after the police arrive they find everything fine and nothing seems amiss. Molly texts when the police leave telling Liza there must have been a computer glitch and that she’s safe and going to bed! What the what!?!?! Liza decide to jump in the car and drives hours to check-in, in person with Molly. From that point, I had to find out what the heck was going on!

Jessica Strawser really knows how to keep your attention! I enjoyed figuring out the who, what, where and how throughout this novel! The characters were well developed, I found myself daydreaming about them after I finished! I flew through this 4 star book in a day and half because I HAD to find out! I am looking forward to reading what Jessica Strawser comes out with next!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an e-ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This one was just "meh" to me. Liza and Molly are childhood friends that now live in different states. They connect one evening on video chat and when Molly leaves the computer for a second to check on her child, Liza sees an intruder. Liza is frantic and scares them away by yelling. Then the screen goes black.

Molly ends up unfazed and Lisa panics and goes to visit her friend. In the meantime, Liza suffers a tragedy back home.

Lisa and Molly have a falling out - Molly and her husband aren't on good terms - where does this masked intruder come into play?

I loved Strawser’s previous novel, so I was very excited about reading this, but it proved very disappointing. The story of lifelong best friends, Molly and Liza, revolves around a frightening SKYPE call which makes Liza believe her friend is in danger. With that as a catalyst a silly, weak and repetitive story involves the women.

The use of coincidences and the movement of the characters made no sense except the desire to push the weak plot ahead.

There is nothing believable about the reasons for Molly’s unrelenting terror. There are so many subplots, all of which are weak, never lead the reader to any closure. The novel moves toward a saccharine ending, which provides no logical closure.

I know that I found this novel a poor follow up to the wonderful NOT THAT I COULD TELL.

Very riveting novel. So full of suspense. Makes you wonder how well you really people.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I've had the pleasure of interacting with the author on social media and she's an extremely pleasant person and a talented writer. With that said, however, I just cannot get into her books but I can definitely see this one being successful like her others. I just don't feel I'm the right audience for her novels.