Married couple Emily and Adrian, living with their toddler son Josh and baby bump, find themselves in a difficult life situation.
Dani (Danielle) and her husband Marcus, are the couple with everything, living the opulent life.
Marcus is Adrian’s employer. He owns a prestigious car garage.
Emily and Adrian have some major decisions to make about their lifestyle.

My opinion of this book;
I started this book and was immediately drawn right into it, in fact I was reading this until the wee small hours, resuming with gusto this morning.
It had a fast psychological pace. Twists and turns, keeping me wanting to know more.
I enjoyed reading this book, and although it has been the first book I have read from the author Shalini Boland, it has made me want to read more.
I enjoyed the twist at the end of this too. A good psychological thriller.
Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for an e-book, In return of an honest review.

Another great book from Shalini Boland.
Thanks to the to NetGalley and the publishers for the advance copy.

What did I just read?!? The Perfect Stranger was a wild ride, full of turns and jaw-dropping twists you never see coming. WOW!

Another cracker of a read! Great storyline, lots of twists and turns, I loved it! Thanks for the chance to review

I was so excited to read this book, and i wasn’t disappointed. The plot twisted and turned spectacularly and i was very satisfied by the end.

Wow Shalini has done it again. Yet another fantastic read with twists that you didn’t see coming. Make sure you’re got time to read as I guarantee that you’ll struggle to put it down once you start. Yet again there are amazing characters that drag you in to their lives as soon as you pick up the book. If psychological thrillers are your thing then I can highly recommend this book. A five star read⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’m always thankful for the opportunity to read another Boland book!

Boland examines the ripple effect of breaking a promise and the danger of putting our future in another’s hands. She highlights the secrets we keep from each other and how they become hurdles, not only for ourselves, but for those we love.

I was surprised how difficult it was to become engrossed in this novel as I’m usually swept away within pages. I think the large cast of characters might have had something to do with it. I also wonder if my lack of attachment to the characters added to my difficulty in keeping them straight. I also had to push myself several times to accept the unbelievable. Like other reviewers, I do agree that the prologue gave too much away.

While I appreciated the secrets, the twist and the insightful cottage name, I’ll admit that this one wasn’t one of my favourites by this author.

3.5 stars rounded up.

I was gifted this advance copy by Shalini Boland, Bookouture and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

I’ve always enjoyed books by this author and this one is no exception. It’s told from two point of views, Emily and Dani. Emily has always dreamed of having her own home for her, her husband Aidan, their son Josh and the baby they’re expecting. But when Aidan gives up his job as a luxury car salesman, Emily thinks there’s something he’s not telling her. Meanwhile Aidan’s boss Marcus has his own difficulties. He’s trying to placate wife Dani who is desperate for a baby whilst dealing with the associates now involved with running his car dealership. This is a tale of secrets and lies. It had me hooked from the prologue and entertained with each turn of the page. Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the chance to review.

I enjoyed Boland's The Secret Mother, so I was excited to be approved for her latest upcoming release. The Secret Mother was a solid guilty pleasure read that stayed the course and boasted wholesome characters. Unfortunately, I couldn't get through this one. The writing was painful and there was too much hand-holding and spoon feeding of suspense. I made it to 35% but I couldn't take another chapter of Dani visiting the nutritionist and moaning about how her husband won't eat properly. No thanks to the diet culture talk in this book as well. I'm sorry Boland, but I'll still give your backlist a try. 3 stars out of fairness since I DNFed it.

I have enjoyed all of Borland’s books. A clever and intelligent writer. Sadly this book was not believable and suffered from unbelievable actions and silly choices that just ended up in me really disliking the book.

As I have said the writer is brilliant. This book just wasn’t her best work.

Creepy, creepy and more creepy. Great turns and twists in this story that might actually have you gasping. Emily and Aiden had an almost pretty perfect life until they didn't. Finding out her husband had a private vice that forced them to flee their very life makes for an interesting story plot. How it unravels is even more chilling. Trying to start over, with new identities is not as easy as it may seem.
Boland does a good job with the character development and twists and turns along the way.
A Perfect Thriller.

How well do you know your husband? how well does he know you?
When Emily's husband becomes stress and snappy she wonders what she did wrong... but what's bothering him could be alot more deadly...

This book had me hooked from the prologue. Although i guessed the final twist quite early on I don't feel like that took away from how thrilling and interesting this book is.

I felt like I knew the characters personally and I loved how unique each characters personality was. wonderfully written thriller

I knew from the second I finished the prologue that this would be a twisty ride! This was a really fast and fun thriller. While there were a few twists I could see coming, this was an overall great read that allowed me to escape from my everyday routine and finished with a solid ending.

I have been Shaliini Boland fan for a long time now, All her thrillers are fast paced and pull you in from the first pace and this is no exception. The family element to this is so relatable, The constant twists in this will have you doubting everything and everyone and just when you think you have a grip on the complicated web of a storyline the ending will blow your mind. If you love a domestic thriller where you never really know what's gonna happen this is definitely for you.

Yes this book was ok, just a little bit silly in the middle..
Emily and Aidan had a happy marriage with their son Josh and another one on the way, they both worked hard life was not easy.but they were careful with money and made end meet.
Until the day Emily found out that Aidan was gambling on line and was a lot of money in debt.
They had death threats and decided to run away and start again in a cottage in the country.
They had a lodger taking one of their rooms, he was a perfect stranger they thought, it was not true and tragedy struck.
Thanks net galley for this book, it was ok but not as good as other books by this author.

Annie and her young son return home from a grocery trip to a horrific discovery. Emily dreams of one day finally being financially stable and living a comfortable life with her husband, Aidan, and their children. Dani lives a life or luxury, her husband, Marcus, is handsome, wealthy, and completely in love with her. Everyone has a secret that could destroy their lives.
I've always been a fan of Shalini Boland, so I was excited to get the chance to read this newest book. I definitely did not guess the big twist, although I did guess the second, and very last twist, that didn't take away my interest or appreciation for the overall story. I wasn't totally invested in the characters, none of them were exceptionally likeable. I was satisfied with the ending and felt it tied up all the loose ends. I hate a book that leaves you hanging or has major potholes, this thankfully did not. The book is only listed as an audio book on Goodreads, however, I had the ebook version.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Another brilliant book by Shalini Boland. The chapters move between two different women and we see that their marriages are being affected by secrets and lies. While one couple flee their lives to escape danger, the other couple must also deal with their issues. A thrilling story that keeps you turning the pages until the very shocking ending. Brilliant twists and turns. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of the book in return for my honest feedback.

I love Shalini Boland's books; this is no exception.
Emily and Aiden thought that they wanted to live the life of a successful couple, like Dani and Marcus, but it wasn't to be - something happened that changed their journey in life for the worse; something unimaginable!
I hadn’t realised that I was hooked on the storyline, until I found myself reading into the twilight hours; I couldn’t put the book down! I found the story picked up pace as the plot thickened and events progressed, so stick with it.

Shalini Boland has become one of my favorite thriller authors and so I get excited when I get the ARC of her latest books. A Perfect Stranger is her latest psychological thriller.

The story talks about two couples--Marcus and Dani and Emily and Aiden. Marcus owns a successful car dealership business and both he and Dani had been trying to have a child. Aiden and Emily already have a son, Josh and Emily is expecting another baby. But when Aiden tells Emily that he was in debt and that their family should leave the comfort of their houses and move somewhere else under different name, Emily wonders how well she knew her husband. Dani meanwhile finds a terrible secret about her husband and wonders how well she knows her husband.

The story started a little too slow but then soon, it gained its momentum and became fast paced and page turner with twists and turns along the way. The story is told from Dani's and Emily's perspectives, mostly from Emily's perspective. The author has managed to capture us readers into the story so making the reader feel like a part of the story. The story also describe the relationship with the spouses and mainly, talks about how much you know your partner and how trustworthy your partner can be. The ending was unpredictable, which actually made me give a higher rating and the twist at the end was actually completely unpredictable--did not predict that type of ending at all.

Overall, I actually enjoyed this fast paced thriller and managed to finish this book within two days. Worth four stars in my opinion.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Shalini Boland, A Perfect Stranger, Bookouture, July 2022.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof in exchange for an honest review.

Shalini Boland is a great provider of novels to read on the beach. They are not demanding, have some interesting story lines and characters, and some twists. This one fulfills everything the reader of Shalini Boland has been led to expect from her previous novels. Although I feel that I have read better from Boland, I was happy enough to read to the end, and was satisfied with the ending, although I felt some of the twists were a little contrived.

The prologue is clever, and introduces Annie, George and David who have just welcomed a boarder into their home in the country. There is a startling end to the prologue, and the story moves to chapters where the two main characters tell the story in the first person: Emily, married to Aiden, with four-year-old Josh; and Dani, married to Marcus, and longing for a baby.

All the characters have secrets, and it is a secret with which the book ends those compromises one of the most sympathetic characters. However, the other secrets carry the plot. Wealthy Marcus is Aiden’s boss, Dani dislikes Emily, but covers it well. Aiden wants a new lifestyle and Emily is resistant. Although they only rent their home, it is in a desirable area and Emily feels that they have established themselves, with Josh and his play school friends, her job and Aiden as a successful salesperson. Emily has a fraught relationship with her parents but can rely on her godmother for support when a dramatic change impacts life as she has known it.

The change to Emily’s life carries the plot, as she finds out more about Aiden and his problems. Dani is also distressed about changes taking place in her life, the longing for a child affecting her marriage and the way in which the couple interact. Characterisation of the two women is reasonably well developed, drawn as they are into events over which they have little control but try to influence. The men are less well drawn, with few complexities to make them interesting characters.

But, returning to my opening paragraph, the story moves along quickly, there are some surprises, and once Boland has written a book to open when you want an unchallenging read.