I read this book in one sitting, it was that good. Lisa Jewell is the master at pulling you right in, getting you attached to her characters, and then spitting you out at the end of the book leaving you reeling and a little emotional.

Awkward and misunderstood, Owen Pick, thirty-three, lives with his aunt Tessie who he is sure dislikes him. His teenage computer science students mock him, and he’s never had a real relationship. But things only get worse when he is suspended from his teaching job for sexual misconduct. Online, he finds kindred spirits on an incel bulletin board and meets Bryn, a charismatic but radical member of the movement.

The Fours--Roan, a psychoanalyst, Cate, a part-time physiotherapist, Georgia, and Josh, neighbors of Owen--have noticed the strange figure on their street and suspect him of a series of sexual assaults in their area. Georgia Fours is convinced the “creepy” man followed her home from the tube station one evening.

Watching them all is eighteen-year-old Saffyre Maddox, Roan’s former patient. Feeling betrayed when Roan ended their three-year therapeutic relationship, she began following Roan, learning more about him than even his family knows.

On Valentine’s Day, their lives are intertwined and irrevocably changed when Saffyre goes missing. Witness statements and forensic evidence implicate Owen, but he had no prior connection to Saffyre. Cate begins to wonder why Roan’s patient was across from their house and if he is as blameless as he claims.

Told from the alternating perspectives of Saffyre, Cate, and Owen, Invisible Girl is tightly plotted, well-paced, and compelling. As Saffyre narrates the events leading up to Valentine’s Day and her disappearance, you want to reach into the book and shake her. Owen, while definitely guilty of something, may not be the perpetrator of this particular crime, and following his path as he dips into the incel community and is then caught up in the investigation… well, you want to shake him, too, but also hug him. Cate tries her best too keep her family safe, but her protective instincts aren’t always altruistic.

Several times, I found my breath caught in my throat as I worried about the characters and wondered who was responsible for Saffyre’s disappearance as well as the sexual assaults in the neighborhood. I definitely recommend this for thriller lovers!

I've been a Lisa Jewell fan for years and she's reliably good at diving into the depths of the human psyche and it's darkest places. The first 30% of the book slogged but then it really picked up. And then of course you have the final moment of any Jewell book, the one that opens up that nagging last thread and you wish there was a sequel or another chapter. I wish that violence against women wasn't such a recurrent theme but in this case I think the fiction accurately mirrors life. Recommended.

This was just an ok read for me after much anticipation on what was a very hyped must read book for fall. There was nothing super thrilling and plot was mediocre. Disappointing because usually Lisa Jewell writes really decent books. I have high hopes that her next book will be better than this one. Still recommended but I was underwhelmed with this one.

Thanks to Netgalley, Lisa Jewell and Atra Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available" 10/13/20

Invisible Girl is a story about a neighborhood full of secrets and lies, and let me tell you.. this atmospheric, twisted thriller/mystery will keep you up reading into the wee hours of the night. Told in points of view from Saffyre, Cate and Owen, there’s so much going on with each character that I couldn’t put it down. I LOVED it, and it’s hands down my favorite Lisa Jewell book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for giving me this ARC. All opinions are my own.

This is probably my least favorite Lisa Jewell book and it pains me to say that because I have loved every single one of her books! It was told in different points of view and past and present. I really like this writing device and love when it all comes together at the end. But this time, it fell short for me. I didn’t care for any of the characters. This story had secrets, but not enough to be considered a ‘thriller.’ I wasn’t a fan of the ending. Like I said, I am a huge Lisa Jewell fan so I have high expectations and unfortunately, this book didn’t meet them.

My first Lisa Jewell and it did not make me want to read more. I think I hated every single person in this book and the twists weren't really twists? Would not recommend this one.

Book Review:INVISIBLE GIRL by Lisa Jewell

5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pub Date: Oct 20th

This newest thriller is about a few people.  To begin with Saffyre Maddox, a young girl who had a traumatic incident when she was a child and her family put her in therapy with a reputable man named Roan Fours. That is where everything spirals downhill.  Then we have Owen Pick who just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong times. Owen has his own issues but is essentially a victim of circumstance. Saffyre gets herself in a bad situation when she gets discharged from Roan Fours therapy sessions and finds out her favorite therapist is not the man he seems to be.

Wow!!!!!!  I loved this newest thriller from Lisa Jewell.  It was an amazing read filled with all kinds of twists & turns that keep you guessing until the wrap up at the end.  If you enjoy Lisa's previous books you will love this one as well. Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster/Atria division for my early review copy

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for an e-arc of Invisible Girl by Lisa Jewell.
3.5
Told through three point of views. The characters lacked something, i didn't see them as likeable character's. The story was a slow burn with twist that I didn't see coming and had me questioning the ending. I'm always looking forward to Lisa's books but this one didn't hit the mark for me. It was still a good read just not the thriller I was expecting

I have enjoyed the Lisa Jewell books that I have read, very much in fact, but this one was just not my favorite. It has an interesting take on sex and relationships but I just could not find myself pulled into the story or the characters. The ending had a bit of a surprise, that is always good.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for an advance copy.

How little we know about our neighbors and how easy it is to label them is the at the center of this novel. When Saffyre disappears, the most likely suspect is the weird guy who lives on the street where the action takes place. 17-year old Saffyre, who is the first-person narrator, is a loner. Her parents have died. She lives with her uncle, who has two jobs to make ends meet. She’s been in counseling with another character in the book, Roan, because of self-harming, but the sessions although helping didn’t get to the origin of her pain. There’s a lot of twists and turns as the story progresses. It’s a character driven mystery, involving the family of the counselor, Owen the weirdo across the street and a mystery person who has been attacking women. As the story moves from Saffyre’s first person point of view to Cate, the wife of Roan and mother of two teens to Owen’s point of view, much is revealed as the reader is presented with the clues needed, along with misdirection. I found the ending very satisfying, with vindication for the people who deserve it.

After 17 year old Saffyre's sessions with child psychologist Dr. Roan Fours end, she begins following him... and his family: wife Cate, 15 year old daughter Georgia, and 14 year old son Josh. What does she learn about him and his habits? And how does "creepy" neighbor Owen, who was recently dismissed from his job for sexual misconduct, play into the story?

"I was the Invisible Girl. Invisibility was my favorite state of existence."

I've enjoyed many books by this author but Invisible Girl and The Family Upstairs (3 stars) were definitely exceptions. Even though Girl was dark like my favorite, Then She Was Gone (4.5 stars), it just didn't sit right with me. There were so many unreliable narrators/characters, and I slogged through the first 3/4 until it finally, FINALLY became suspenseful enough to hold my interest. Most likely I'll be in the minority for saying this, but I felt bad for poor, awkward Owen and never believed the awful things said about him. The last 1/4, including the ending, were solid and satisfying but, overall, it wasn't worth my time.

Location: London

I received an advance copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Was just an okay read for me. I started off really liking it but then it kinda fell a bit flat. Still entertaining enough to finish though.

Invisible Girl is another hit of a thriller for Lisa Jewell, who is slowly becoming one of my favorite authors. Told in multiple POV's about a missing girl in a village of London who has become obsessed with her former therapist. There are multiple characters in the book, so be sure to pay attention! I did enjoy how the book came together, Be sure to pick up your copy on October 13th! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Another hit for Lisa Jewell. The twisted way the lives of these unlikely neighbors became intertwined was masterful.

I definitely was left guessing whodunit until the end. A great thriller/murder mystery.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC.

Thank you to @atriabooks and @netgalley for a copy of this book. It tells the story of Saffrye who goes missing. The story is broken down to before, during and after she is missing and told from her perspective, Cates (Saffrye’s psychologists wife) and Owen (the creepy neighbor).
I finished this book a few days ago. I took a day or two to think about my review. It was more of a slow burn psychological suspense/fiction more than a thriller. There was a definite slow burn or build up to the book but I was curious/confused as to where the story was going. Overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!

Tl;dr: Looking for a brilliant forget-everything-because-you-can't-stop-reading novel? This is it.

Invisible Girl isn't Lisa Jewell's first foray into psychological thrillers, but it is one of her best. It's her standard formula: people in a neighborhood see each other (or think they do), think they know themselves and their world, and a series of events show that most of these perceptions are wrong.

It sounds dry like this, I know, but it is a great formula and when it's as well written as Invisible Girl is, it creates a novel you can't stop reading. And as I write this, in October 2020, that is an amazing gift.

So do yourself a favor: spend some time with Saffyre, Owen, and Cate. Get to know them and their families, especially Cate's husband Roan and son Josh. The way they all connect, especially with Saffyre, is so incredibly well done, as is Cate's slow realization that the blinders she's willingly put on have ricocheted through her family and rippled out. I also loved the way Lisa Jewell writes about Owen who manages to go from fairly pathetic to scary to someone who is changing for the better for himself over the course of Invisible Girl.

Lisa Jewell has always written female characters well, but Saffyre is amazing; she's brilliant and damaged and seems fearless (and is, in many ways) but terror always is nipping at her heels. I loved her, and her realization at the end wasn't a surprise* but it made for one of those happy-ending-But that I adore.

I also liked Cate and got everything she did--at first, she's being gaslit, and watching her slowly realize it, deal with the pain it causes her--it is good stuff. The great stuff comes when she refuses to let herself be in dark about herself and her family.

So, Invisible Girl should be on your must read list. It's a great novel that I'm still thinking about, two days after I finished and that--a read so engaging the rest of the world falls away, combined with the gut punch of an ending--makes Invisible Girl not just highly recommended, but one of the best books of 2020.




*So, what about Josh? I've been thinking about the ending a lot, and was Josh's secret life more than it seemed? Yes, two someones did seem awful but Josh showing up in the gear he did, the detail of the attacker's small hands, the location and times of certain events, and that last line....I am more than half convinced that more than one of the monsters of Invisible Girl stayed not just free, but in a place to go even darker. So, what do you think? Josh, sweetheart of a boy. Or Josh, sweet on the outside but master puppeteer/sociopath at the core?

Another delightfully thrilling Lisa Jewell novel, with secrets that keep hiding until the very end. Saffyre is such a stunning unique voice, I really enjoyed her excerpts and following her journey. Keeps you guessing until the very end.

For those concerned about how the incel community is handled, I thought well. While the character finds some semblance of redemption, he also faces the consequences of his actions (but perhaps not quite harshly enough, which is why I knocked off a star.) Still a sensitive and realistic treatment of the issue.

I’m a big fan of Lisa Jewell and oftentimes her books rate among my favorites of the year. Unfortunately, though, I did not really care for Invisible Girl.

Let’s start with what I did like about this book. Jewell always takes a lot of care with character development and she continued to do it really well here. I felt like I got to know all of the characters. I also thought the three different POVs were used really effectively to create suspense.

While I felt like I got to know the characters, I didn’t really care about most of them. I thought Cate was shallow and judgmental, while she she lived in deep denial about her own life and relationship. I felt sad for what Saffyre went through as a child, but really nothing she did in the present made a bit of sense to me. And honestly I found most of her actions incredibly selfish – and some a big overreaction – and I’m upset that she didn’t face any consequences at all for what she’d done. Owen is the only character that I really felt something for. He made me really sad most of the time – and a few times a little disgusted. For the most part, though, Owen was very misunderstood. While we get to see him come to understand how he has misperceived others and how to work on himself, none of the people who frequently labeled him as creepy got the same education and that kind of disappointed me.

I also wasn’t a big fan of the whole incel plotline. It wasn’t as big a part of the plot as I thought it would be based on the synopsis and I was glad for that. But I felt like I wanted them explained a little bit more. While the people described are obviously hateful, I wondered if there was another side of the coin. It’s like when all people on the political left are grouped together with the far-left and all people on the political right are grouped together with the far-right. Not everyone is an extremist. I didn’t like that celibacy was only looked upon as something weird and creepy and not a valid lifestyle. Though, I do suppose these people are “involuntarily” celibate.

Overall, Invisible Girl just wasn’t for me. It took me well over half the book to really feel interested in the story and even then, I felt like there was a big lack of payoff because I didn’t care about most of the characters. However, I’m still a big Lisa Jewell fan and I will look forward to her next book.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 2.5 Stars

I really wanted to love Invisible Girl but I have to say this was probably my least favorite novel I've read by Jewell.

I found it to a bit of a slow burn and just was hard for me to connect with the characters. I was definitely curious to see where the story was going so it kept my attention. There were so many creepy characters in this one and way too many to keep straight was getting myself a tad bit confused.

Lisa Jewell did a slam dunk on her characterization though... talk about creepy men in this book. I would die if I had to live in a neighborhood with this weird and skin crawling characters haha.

There was bit too much going on and felt the storyline was just going in different directions and not in a good way. Ugh... I know made me sad not to enjoy this one more.

I of course tend to be the outlier and have seen many 4 and 5 star reviews. What's new Kendall is always on her outlier island ;).

3.5/5 stars

Thank you so much to Atria and Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Pub date: 10/13/20
Published to GR: 10/4/20