*****Takes One to Know One draws readers in with humor, then keeps them engaged as surfacing suspicions begin to become a full blown thriller. Corie left full time FBI work when she married, but remains a contract agent, unbeknownst to her neighbors. A former member of the terrorism task force, her training and gut instinct tell her there is something off base about one of the members of the lunch group she belongs to. Unable to resist the urge she begins a little investigation on her own. What she finds will be...will be...classic Susan Isaacs (think Compromising Positions and Shining Through) a good mystery, well defined characters, and excellent writing skills, along with the author’s descriptive ability that enables readers to clearly visualize who, where and what. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

Corie Geller leaves the Joint Terrorism Task Force in the FBI to settle down with the perfect guy - a widow - and his daughter. Life seems pretty perfect. She and her stepdaughter enjoy a good relationship, her husband is a judge, they have a comfortable, wealthy life, and she gave up her job as a translator to enjoy all this. She's feeling a little unfulfilled though, and begins to notice that something is a little *off* about the guy in the lunch group she's joined to get herself out of the house every Wednesday. He always sits in the same place, obsessively watches his vehicle, uses cash, has a different cell phone, and is just....cold. Her investigative instinct is pinging hard.

The story goes on in excruciating detail from here, from her pulling her retired NYPD dad in to help her, to every single stage of effort she goes through to track him down, EVERY SINGLE CONVERSATION she's ever had with anyone ever about who this guy is, it really just goes on and on and on. The middle third of this book could probably have been reduced by half and still told a great story.

The last 3rd of this book saved it. It would require a lot of spoilers, but the action finally gets intense, Corie's true potential and character finally shine, and the plot gets really interesting, really quick. This part of it almost ended too fast after all the ho hum of the middle. I genuinely almost gave up because of how bad the middle dragged on. Fairly good read if you can make it through the middle of the book.

This is a good read, filled with excellent writing and dialogue as I’ve come to expect from this author. I found it hard to connect to the lead character of Corie, however, and there was way too much detail about the character of Pete, or not even HIS character, but I got too bogged down in the details of the workings of Corie’s mind about Pete. I would also have liked to know a bit more about Sami a lot sooner. That would have kept my interest much more And I think it would’ve made me relate Corie more as well if I’d known more about their relationship sooner.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Takes One to Know One by author Susan Isaacs is a great, twisty mystery/thriller! I’m glad to have read a copy early! It will not disappoint! Full review to come closer to release date.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Susan Issacs' Takes One to Know One starts with the premise of what happens when a (mostly) retired counter-terrorism expert finds herself exiled to the bucolic life of the suburbs. While she has the hot and loving husband she's always wanted and a devoted relationship with her adopted daughter, she's still living in the shadow of her husband's deceased first wife and is no longer busting terrorists around the world.

Corie Geller's life is in a word...fine.

So, when she starts noticing aberrant behaviors from one of her weekly lunch companions from her freelancers meetup group, she's intrigued. What's up for question is if she's making a case out of nothing or if she's stumbled upon a man who is trying way too hard to be normal in Pete Delaney.

What I enjoyed most about this book was the way in which Corie interacted with her dad and her best friend. She brings them into her investigation in ways that add to the quality of the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

I have read several of the author’s books and always liked them. This light mystery is about Corie, currently a book reviewer, with a work history at the FBI. I like the tongue-in-cheek writing style. The dialogue is humorous and smart, and the characters are relatable and likable. Her descriptions of Queens and Long Island are spot-on.

Isaacs does what she does best, using humor to sharpen dialog and create a mystery that keeps you reading. Corie Geller is ex FBI, now married to Josh, a widower and Dad to Eliza. Corie is unsure whether her suspicion about a man in her networking group is due to her honed instincts, or a feeling of boredom in her new, more staid life. I enjoyed the book, and recommend as a good summer read.

received an advance copy of this mildly diverting mystery from the publisher via NetGalley and found it a pleasant summer read. It will be published by Atlantic Monthly Press in October 2019.

Corie Geller is a former FBI agent who left her career interrogating terrorists when she married a judge, moved to Long Island and adopted his teenage daughter. When we first meet Corie, she's feeling unfulfilled and longing for more excitement, even though she takes on occasional freelance projects and works as a literary scout for publishers.

Corie's professional instincts are roused by Pete, a member of her local home-based business group. She decides to do some quiet spying on the side, and quickly suspects that he is up to no good and planning some nefarious activities. We follow Corie as she builds a case against Pete and manages to put herself in some serious danger.

This is a light read that's unlikely to linger in your memory, but I enjoyed Susan Isaacs' witty writing in passages like these:

"Pete seemed either to have zero baggage or to have put his personality in storage....Maybe I was spending too much time these days in make-believe worlds. I covered ten to fifteen novels a month and sent reports to the literary agencies I worked for. An excess of fiction could make reality seem supremely dull with its lack of coincidences and crappy dialogue. It could lead to an unfulfilled longing for scintillation."

"The following morning on my way to the Italian deli, I kept hearing a moan from my car. Low and husky: erotic in a guy, distressing in the rear axle of a Subaru."

"This was one of those magical times of evening, filled with twinkly stars and intoxicating smells from invasive species pushing up through once-perfect lawns."

"I felt as if I were in another country, the unchanging good America of our communal fantasy."

"A cold heart and troubled times can be a tragedy—but they can also be a business opportunity."

If you relate to feeling restless in the suburbs and wishing you could take on a secret identity now and then, you may relate to Corie and enjoy reading It Takes One to Know One when it's published this fall.

If you're a fan of Susan Isaac's mysteries (I am), rejoice, because this latest novel,"Takes One to Know One," offers a thrilling ride through the Long Island suburbs (North Shore, Nassau County, to be specific, for locals) with new heroine, retired FBI agent Corie Geller. Is Corrie's home-based entrepreneur lunch bunch sheltering someone with a hidden life? With the help of her awesome Dad (retired NYPD), stylish but judgy bestie Wynne, and her top-notch instincts, Corie begins to investigate. Corie is the sleuth Nancy Drew might have become, if she had majored in Arabic Languages in Queens College and married into third generation toddler togs money. A fun and sophisticated mystery. Highly recommended.

It has been ages since I read a Susan Isaacs novel. She is still as good as ever. Funny, laugh out loud funny and irreverent. Great story

Corie Geller, ex-FBI, is quietly living in posh Shorehaven Long Island with her dream of a husband and daughter. However, part of her is always FBI and she notices another local resident who seems “a bit off”, which sets her off and running as she begins her own investigation into the mysteries surrounding this seemingly innocuous man.

With her ex-cop father she sets out to discover his secret life. So with this thin plot, Corrie goes after her neighbor, Pete Delaney to uncover his sinister, hidden life. Of course, this brings her into substantial danger and gives the reader quite a thrilling read.

I am a huge fan of Isaacs, but I found the plot unsubstantial and the setup taking too long. I am unsure that I felt satisfied by the ending.

I love her snappy writing style and enjoyed the book, but it is certainly not up to the standards that Susan Isaacs set in her earlier page turners.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read a novel by one of my favorite authors.

I’m a huge Susan Isaacs fan and Shining through is one of my all time favorites. So I was very excited to read this book. For the first half of the book, I was underwhelmed, and would have stopped reading if it hadn’t been Susan Isaacs.
Corie, at 35, meets, marries, and leaves the FBI for her new husband Josh, and his adorable daughter, Eliza, long after she thought she would ever find somebody. But living in Long Island, and meeting with a weekly lunch group is boring, until she starts focusing on nondescript Pete, who always has to sit in the same seat and keep an eye on his car. Something’s off with him, and finding out what it is becomes Cories obsession. It’s just that the first half of the book felt boring too. I couldn’t become invested in her character or Pete’s. The second half of the book picks up, then quickens with a great last third, and finish that is wonderful, and what I expected from start to finish.

This was a great read, thrilling and compelling in equal measure with a fantastic female lead.
Corie is a retired FBI agent who has traded in her exciting life chasing terrorists for a suburban existence, married to handsome judge Josh and adopted mother to his daughter Eliza. She now works for publishers reading Arabic literature and occasionally consults for the FBI. It’s what she’s always wanted isn’t it?
Every week Corie meets with a group of locals who form a support group for self employed Long Island residents. They meet every Wednesday at a restaurant in town to talk about their current ventures.
However Corie begins to suspect that Pete Delaney, a member of this group, is not all he seems. She thinks he has something to hide and starts to investigate him with the help of her Dad, a retired New York cop. She has kept her FBI background a secret so recognises that Pete has something to hide too- it takes one to know one!
This was a brilliant book, I loved the sassy first person voice of Corie, her self deprecating humour was brilliant and I kept turning the pages, eager to find out if this unusual heroine was really on to something or just yearning for her past exciting life in the FBI.
Her coolness in difficult situations was amazing- she’d certainly be the sort of person I’d want on my side if I was in a fix.
This author knows how to ratchet up the tension but also uses humour to lighten the situation
I truly hope this book will be the first in a series as I’d really like to learn more about a Corie and her family.
A real winner for me and worth every one of the five stars I am giving it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my arc in exchange for an honest review.