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𝙎𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙖 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧. 𝙒𝙝𝙤 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙝𝙚’𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙣𝙚?

📍 Read if you like:
• Psychological Thrillers
• Morally Grey Characters
• Thrilling Surprises
• Books About Revenge

This was my second A.R. Torre book and while I enjoy them for the most part, the endings are always so far-fetched and not my thing.

This was a short and super quick read, it’s full of morally gray characters and I loved that the whole time I didn’t know who to trust. There were some surprises I didn’t see coming and some that were predictable, but the ending wasn’t my kind of thing.

I can’t go into why I didn’t love the ending as it’s a major spoiler, but if you read it then you’ll know it was sort of “extreme”.

This author’s thrillers are always quick to read with unlikable and unreliable characters. The twists are something you’ll either love or hate, and they can be predictable at times. I did enjoy the aspect of revenge in this one, but overall it was just fine.

Thank you so much NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Alcoholism, infidelity, murder, drug use, mental illness, addiction

Absolutely amazing! I have literally no words to describe how utterly captivating this book was to read. It offered numerous perspectives, from an interesting bunch of individuals, and left you with the inability to figure out (till the end) who may have done it nor root for anyone in particular. I don't want to spoil anything, but so many things throughout the story kept showing up making the thread for the plot increase more and more. I truly enjoyed figuring it all out as I continued reading. If you like mysterious and thrilling stories with double lives, then I definitely recommend picking up and checking this book out.

I was in love with this book, then it took a turn. I wasn't really fond of the turn it took. I won't reveal anything. I'm sure maybe it was just fine with some. It's a fast easy read, well written, even the "turn" it took was well written just not my kind of thing. That said, I would recommend it.
Thanks to netgalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to read this advanced copy for a fair review.

Well this was a twisty read. There is a lot of shocking reveals through the whole book, enough to keep you page turning and attention focused.
If you were given the opportunity to write your own obituary, would you? Lillian has made her life out of writing obituaries, which I had no clue was an actual thing. I didn’t know that the writers actually take time to sit down with families and learn about the deceased, picking what to write about them. It takes a special kind of person to be able to do that. And if I had that job, I would totally have my obit already written up and ready.
There are so many lies to expose, and completely out of the park twists toward the end of the book. I had my suspicions, and sort of figured out where the book was going, until the husband ruined everything! Wait til you get to that point, lol. Ur going to feel like that one jumped out in front of you and you hit it at 60 mph.
You’re going to like this one. It’s the second I’ve read by this author, and I enjoyed it. I’m officially hooked on AR Torre

I love every single one of Torre's books. This one was so different from all of her others that I wasn't sure if what I was reading was correct. But wow! What a twist. Heartfelt and full of energy and twists and turns that you won't see it coming! Thank you for the advanced copy of this book. I recommend it to everyone!

What a wild ride! Many twists and turns that I didn't see coming. Follows a typical thriller trope along the lines of infidelity but puts a new spin on things. Good characters. Excellent writing. Any thriller fan will easily enjoy this book.

This story sucked me in completely! Holy moly!! There is so much going on in this book. Just do yourself a favor and read it. All of Torre's books are unputdownable! Get this one now!

I’m a little unsure how to rate this one. I love A.R. Torre books and I didn’t dislike this one, but it definitely wasn’t one of my favorites by her.

I think the thing that sticks most with me is the ending and my hatred for one of the characters! I mean, I guess if I’m honest none of the characters were all that likable. But I did feel for Lillian. I just felt that she always got the raw end of everything and felt her reasons for backlash were warranted.

Overall I would give this 3.5 stars. The writing was still good, like always but the overall story didn’t hit a home run with me.

Juicy, engrossing read. I have yet to meet an AR Torre book I don't like! I will be anxiously awaiting the next one. Great characters, excellent point of view and fast-paced plot.

AR Torre books do not disappoint and this is no exception. Absolutely beautiful story and will pull at every emotion. I loved it.

This book is told in 1st person from multiple POVs but the majority being Lillian and Mike. The chapters are short and leave you wanting more. The storyline was easy to follow despite the multiple POVs. I was really into this in book for about 70-75% of it and couldn’t put it down but then I lost interest. I also wasn’t a fan of the abrupt ending however I did enjoy the book and recommend you checking it out for yourself!

This is my first official A.R. Torre read and I loved it!! I like the multidimensional writing and all the detail without taking away from the actual storyline. You think this book is about Lillian's infidelity when her marriage is on the rocks but it is about so much more. Lillian for a little while fulfills her needs through her double life until it all collides and leads to uncovering more deceptions and lies with eventual death (won't give that spoiler) lurking around the corner when it all comes crashing down. I didn't think this book would go where it did until the end started to reveal itself and the unexpected added to loving this even more!
Halfway through you find out who died and then the detour down the dark path begins. This is told from many POV's but most from Lillian and then a good amount from her husband Mike. I felt like this was a multidimensional mystery with so many crossing points to how it ended up where it did and it was so smooth to read through. I loved how different this was than what I could've ever expected. Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC copy and now I have to get more of Torre's books to my TBR list immediately!
I give this 4.5 stars!

This was such a good book. I went into this book having just read the short description and thought it sounded like a good domestic drama but, it was way more complicated than that and then before you know it there is a murder investigation and I was blown away by the rest of the story. Interesting and addictive!

First, I am extremely thankful for the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy of this book. However, this was a miss for me. It started out great, fast-paced, and turning the pages, but somewhere in the middle fell flat. Almost like it just didn’t fit together? I’m not going to judge the author based off the only book I’ve read, so I’ll read more from Torre!

Lillian leads what she thinks is a pretty ordinary life. Mom to a teenaged boy, wife to an organized and predictable man, her job is a writer of obits at the LA Times. She does, however, have a true crime mystery Twitter account to add some spice in her seemingly otherwise boring life. That is until she suspects her husband is having an affair. Suddenly, she wants to do something outrageous - she catches the eye of a stranger in a coffee shop and decides to take on an alter-ego and have an affair of her own. Until things start to get a bit out of control....

In spite of some less than stellar reviews, I found that I very much enjoyed this book! I enjoyed the delicious twists and unreliable narrators (there were many). I wasn't sure who to trust, who was being honest, and who was the possible bad guy. Without spoilers, I rather enjoyed the "switch" of Lillian's POV in the latter part of the book. It gave it an interesting perspective and one you rarely see in novels. Overall I liked it, enjoyed the writing style and the way the author unfolded the details of the story. I'll definitely read this author again!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review.

I'm not gonna lie, I keep waiting for A. R. Torre to release something that rocks my world the way The Ghostwriter did, and I am always just a little let down that when it doesn't happen. BUT - fair being fair, The Ghostwriter seriously knocked my socks off, and would be hard to beat. Something not living up to that is like comparing a kindergarten valedictorian to Einstein - this is not apples to apples here.

Lillian is one of the freaking weirdest characters I think I have ever encountered, and that's saying something I enjoyed the snark, and found her hot mess of a life to be just on the outer edges of believable. I loathed both her husband and her best friend from beginning to end. At the end of the day this book definitely broke the suspense/drama mold in some major ways, and it really worked. I did NOT see... *gestures* any of that coming. At all. I really enjoyed this. I think my one note is that I really can't understand the reason for the title. Which is weird.

This was an ok thriller. After reading the synopsis I think I expected more. I would put this at a three star in the middle read for me.

my second a.r. Torre and a tale as old as time. lately I've been reading quite a few stories about the docile wife with a secret past. This one felt a little flat. I felt like the past was not nearly as intimidating as we were led to believe.

Domestic thriller with double lives and bored housewives (that rhymed) set us up for a lot of promise here. The first part of the book comes in hot but then there is a lot of time spent on…? Could’ve been executed much better.

Headlines:
Double lives
Stale relationships
Who dunnit?

A Familiar Stranger was a joy of an easy thriller. AR Torre serves up unlikeable characters as ever and as a reader, you suck it up like a delicious feast. This dysfunctional family at the centre, their cold connection but reluctance to make change made for early investment. As things got wilder, I couldn't put it down.

There were a number of POVs but they weren't overused, nor were they confusing. Mostly this was told from Lillian's seemingly (but not) mundane perspective with the occasional Mike thrown in. Mike was a character who seemed without feeling, calculating and unfathomable in ways. Jacob was the sad victim of circumstances.

I didn't like David but I did like the life Lillian found in the marina. I have no words for Sam. The mental illness exploitation was uncomfortable but not unrealistic in this plot; that element saddened me. I didn't like how Lillian's POVs turned out but I guess it kept a train of events in a way that would have otherwise been difficult.

Overall, I find AR Torre's thrillers to be her sweet spot and they almost always work for me.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer for the eARC.