This is the first book I’ve read in the Kate Bradley series. But I will definitely go back and read the first two. The characters are well developed and I enjoyed getting to know them developed and I enjoyed getting to know them better as I flipped through the pages. The “good” things happening in New York City was so heartwarming. And the way the positive aspect spread was encouraging. In a way, I almost wished we didn’t know who was behind the good stranger. But finding out the stories behind the stranger was so touching. This was a great book in so many ways…people choosing to touch lives in selfless way, mystery and intrigue, seeing peoples’ lives changed in small and huge ways, relationships developing, etc. Random acts of kindness. I hope this book encourages every reader to be a participant in random acts of kindness.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

This book is the third in the series and even though I haven't read the others I really enjoyed it. It is suspenseful and entertaining.

This is the third book in the series, and even though I haven't read the previous books, I really enjoyed this book. It was a great mystery read, and can't wait to read some more by this very talented author.

This author really wrote an intriguing memorable entertaining suspenseful and thought-provoking book. I found this book to be very well written.

Kate Bradley is a reporter who moved to New York from LA. Her dad is a politician, but she doesn't want to be in his shadow. She reported on huge stories in LA, but a new type of story has caught her eye right away. Someone or some people are doing huge random acts of kindness for strangers, and Kate is determined to figure out who is behind all of it.

It's nice to read about good that is happening, but I tend to read thrillers with more excitement to them. It was an interesting idea though.

This was a wonderful feel good story with a little but of suspense, mystery, and romance thrown in. It was he third in a trilogy but can be read as a stand alone.

Kate Bradley comes to New York thinking she “made it big” as a reporter only to be assigned to the political page due to her family ties. When a huge power outage presents a new story - someone leaving anonymous gifts all over the city - Kate decides that this is a story that needs to be covered and tries to track down the benefactor at the risk of losing her new job. While doing so she partners with TV host Scott Jameson. As the gifts get larger and Kate starts to get threatening nets telling her to stop looking, she gets more and more determined to find the story behind all the generosity.

Dete does a great job keeping the reader engaged throughout the book and rooting for Kate to find the story behind all of the generosity. When you find the true reason and see Kate’s own actions, this book really gives you a good feeling about people and the good they can do. The impact these gifts have, especially as they get more and more personal, is so inspirational.
4/5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Suzy Approved Book Tours and Dete Meserve for the review copy of this book.

I felt this book was a great story for the current times. Amongst the massive amounts of negativity everywhere on the internet and especially around the country, it feels like the a good samaritan story would definitely go far. That said, I hadn't read the previous books in the series, but it seemed like a continuing theme and the only things that seemed to change were that she moved to New York and started work at a network. And while it seemed like this story would be fun to read and delve into, it actually reflected a lot of the issues that I personally was dealing with and it was not fun to dive into a world that was exactly my own. I was going through a power-outage when I read the book, and a couple days later our water pressure was half than normal. The story seemed more depressive to me than anyone else I guess. Otherwise the book was good and a great addition to the series I guess.
*Thank you to the publishers, Lake Union Publishing, the author, Dete Meserve, and Netgalley for my free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Of course this would be the best book of this fantastic feel good series. I loved every second of this read. Can't wait to read more from this author.

Wow-sers! This was a fantastic book. I loved every part of it. The writing flowed so smoothly and the story had me from the beginning. A great weekend read!

Another excellent book by Dete Meserve. He mysteries leave you with such a good feeling that's needed in these times. I recommend this book as well as her others.

What first grabbed my attention was the fact this novel was being made into a feature film on Netflix. From the beginning I instantly cared for reporter Kate Bradley as she leaves her life and friends in L.A. and moves to Manhattan N.Y. The realization hits her, there would be a whole “new” learning curve about this city that never sleeps. Readers get that from the first page, “I raced into the hallway, where the alarms wailed, louder now, slamming into my eardrums.” What has happening?

First purple and white balloons start showing up and magical things begin to happen in and around Manhattan. I loved the creativity of the giver. The giving was intentional and thoughtful.

Scott (a young, handsome, TV series host) wants to work with Kate in getting to the bottom of these random acts of kindness, both Kate and Scott are moved by how these acts of kindness have affected people and compelled them to do the same for someone else.

This is a feel good, fun, compelling story with characters I enjoyed hanging out with. I liked the fact there was no foul language or steamy love scenes. It is a clean, thought provoking read I couldn’t put down. I liked celebrating with the people who received these selfless gifts.

With what the world is in the middle of right now this was a delightful read as it reminded me of the random acts of kindness done during our most recent lock down with Covid 19. Kate wanted to discover the source of these gifts. Was this done with unconditional kindness. Or was it a big business’s ploy to get more likes and/or fame? Publicity? I loved how the author kept the readers guessing right up till the end as to who was behind these acts, and why they were happening.

I liked that the reporter fought to report this “feel good” story to readers. She felt there was too much time spent on stories about politics, murders, and other bad things. Kate stands up to her boss at AMC (American News Channel) She did not want to investigate the latest Homeland Security bill or why the govt shut down.

This was a great blend of mystery, suspense, family drama and a wave of love flowing all around and not in a corny way. Of course, I liked the mystery and suspense when somebody tries to stop Kate from digging too deep to uncover the giver of these gifts. It kept me turning the pages. It will have you look at people and things around you a little differently. I also enjoyed how Scott and Kate worked together and how they were fighting their feelings they had for each other.

This book will be a great book club pick as it is a fun mystery with a message of hope. The author includes ten book club questions to help with your book club discussion time. This is a book you do not want to miss. It’s the first book I’ve read by this author it won’t be the last.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Nora St. Laurent
TBCN Where Book Fun Begins!
The Book Club Network blog www.bookfun.org

***Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing!***

I am not sure just what I expected when I got this book to read. Obviously I had heard of the book Good Sam, but I have not read it. Readig the synopsis for both books they seem pretty similar to be honest. In the end I liked this one fine, but it didn’t blow me away.

I had a bit of a problem with just how naive Kate was throughout the book. Granted, she had just moved to New York City and it can take some adjusting to become accustomed to the flavor of a new city. But she had been a crime reporter for years in Los Angeles, surely that should have jaded her a little bit with regard to human nature right? Instead, she is surprised when people in the street largely ignore her. Seemed constantly surprised that the news station seemed more interested with stories on crimes and politics than on people doing nice things for each other. And she steadfastly refused to believe that all the good deeds had some kind of ulterior motive. It didn’t seem very realistic to me, it’s not like she was a sheltered small town girl or something here. Her father is a senator, she was raised around the absolute bottom of the filth pit with regard to humanity, and she used to live in Hollywood…the neighbor of politicians in the bottom of the filth pit. It was kind of annoying.

At a certain point I also felt like the story got repetitive. Good things happen, Kate and Scott try to find a lead to the source of it, they fail, they argue about why the station shouldn’t kill the story, and repeat. I also felt like the vaguely threatening messages Kate kept getting of “Stop looking for these people!” was not needed. It ended up leading her to the people that the individual was trying to warn her to stay away from in the first place. Talk about a fail.

The story was sweet and nice. The romance was sweet and nice. And at the end of the day it was a feel good story and not much more. I’m okay with that.

Kate Bradley, a TV news reporter has moved from L.A. to New York to take up a position at ANC, a leading national news network. Initially, she feels lost and alone in the new city, more so when her long time fire fighter boyfriend Eric back in L.A. decides to end their relationship. Things don't look promising for her and she questions her decision to uproot her life completely until one night when a major blackout occurs. At first, Kate thinks she will be covering the usual coverage of looting and violence that normally occurs during such an incident but it turns out to be the exact opposite.

It all starts out with a massive bunch of purple and white balloons and flowers being left across the city for people. This is followed by people finding random gift cards being left on their cars, their bills & rents being paid, homeless people getting gifted clothes, etc. A sudden wave of goodness and generosity seems to have spread across the city and its effects are clearly shown in the positive way the people react to it. Kate is intrigued and wants to leave no stone unturned to find out the who and why aspects behind this movement, even when she begins to receive notes and messages basically telling her to stop her pursuit. As she continues with her search, she realises that the feeling of goodwill and being connected that this movement has generated amongst the people in general is more far reaching than she could have imagined--it even touches her personal life for the better.

This was a different kind of of mystery. Here we find the protagonist trying to uncover the identity of a mysterious person or a group of people who is spreading goodness and kindness instead of violence. And really, wouldn't we all love to one day wake up and be a recipient of this level of generosity & kindness?? When we look at the current scenario of things happening in the world, a bit of kindness is dearly and direly needed.

This is the 3rd book in the Kate Bradley series by Dete Meserve, but I had no problem reading it as a standalone.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Lake Union Publishing and the author Dete Meserve for the e-Arc of the book.

Rating: 3.5 ⭐

This book was published on 19th May, 2020.

I don't think that The Good Stranger could have been published at a better time. It's the perfect book to remind us that sometimes the bleakest and darkest of times (both literally and figuratively) can bring out the best in humankind (and also the worst, but we should focus on the positive rather than dwell on negative). It serves as a testament to how kindness can change people's lives for the better, as well as the everyday power of gestures both big and small.

The Good Stranger was my first Dete Meserve novel, and I can guarantee it won't be my last. I devoured the book in a number of hours. It's just one of those feel-good books that leaves you feeling lighter and more optimistic than when you started it. And at present, it serves as the perfect reminder that there is kindness and love in the time of Corona. I recommend it to anyone who's been feeling down and isolated during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Random acts of kindness has always intrigued me. A story based on strangers getting together in NYC for bringing kindness and charity to strangers' lives, evoked warmth in my heart and a journalist investigating to know the truth.
My second book by the author, the writing brought out the feels. The entire book had a feel good vibe which was so needed in these times of stress.
A lovely heart warming read.

I received this book "The Good Stranger" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. I have not read Good Sam but now I would like to. I looked forward to reading this book each day. The story was really good and kept my interests. The story really flowed nicely and gave you such positivity. The kindness of strangers and random acts of kindness are such a great message, very uplifting.

I love everything about The Good Stranger! Dete Meserve is an amazing author who writes about the giving of strangers and one woman who wants so badly to find that Good Stranger. Yet they are one step ahead of her. How many times have you been that person who’s done a random act of kindness without the person knowing it was you? Now more than ever is the time to make someone’s day even in a small way. This book will leave you wanting to do more good in the world for others. 🎉

The Good Stranger is a feel good mystery that showcases what happens when strangers get together and perform random acts of kindness all over New York City.

TV reporter Kate Bradley moves from LA to NYC for a job covering crime and justice at ANC, a national news outlet. Recently single and adjusting to the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, Kate is intrigued when mysterious acts of charity start happening all over the city. She convinces her employer to let her pursue this news story, even though it's not in line with ANC's typical cycle of crisis, chaos and crime. Colleague TV host Scott Jameson joins Kate in the hunt for the mastermind behind the mysterious gifts.

I can't wait to read more from Dete Meserve!

Have you ever been surprised by a stranger with a random act of kindness or even better, paid it forward yourself? ⁣
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I’m a big believer that everything happens for a reason and right now, I feel like we could all use a healthy dose of kind actions. ⁣
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The Good Stranger delivers just that and so much more. ⁣ The mystery aspect was great as well.

While this book is part of a series, I didn’t feel like I was missing out by reading it as a stand alone. ⁣ Also NYC, both people and vibe, are depicted perfectly.

Kate moves to New York to work as a reporter for a national news channel and is struggling to adjust to the new city/job. Being the daughter of a senator, she is expected to pick up political news stories but her heart is set on something else. She finds an interesting new mysterious wave of good deeds by strangers and starts to follow up on that and it breaks into a huge mystery story for all the new channels. Gift cards appear mysteriously and people get monetary help from strangers without even asking and so on. And everyone wants to know who is behind these good deeds and why.

Especially now with all that is going on, it is easy for our minds to focus on the negative and have difficulty pulling out the positives. But this book simply reiterates the fact it is okay to take a leap and also reminds us to see kindness all around which is highly required now.

I like that it is an uplifting story with some great writing and some suspense is also included. There is some romance as well. There were some casual events in the book about how showing concern towards a stranger can help them enormously in some situations. I guess the author just wants to remind readers that almost everyone in this world is personally grappling with some or the other issue, so let's all be kind to each other. And believe that miracles do occur. I am waiting for a miracle in my life as well!