Academic Thriller

The Protégé by Jody Gehrman is a psychological thriller that delves into the dark side of academic life. The story centers around Dr. Hannah Bryers, a forensic anthropologist and professor at the fictitious Mad River University. Hannah is on the cusp of achieving tenure when a series of catastrophic events begin to unravel her life. Her promising graduate student, Winter Jones, harbours a deep-seated grudge against her and is determined to shatter Hannah’s career and life. As accidents and murders occur around her, Hannah realizes that someone she once trusted wants her dead.

The Protégé excels as a psychological thriller, with its intriguing characters and suspenseful plot. The strengths of the book lie in its detailed character development and the realistic portrayal of academic life. However, some readers might find the plot somewhat predictable and the pacing uneven at times. Despite these minor flaws, the novel is a compelling read for fans of psychological suspense.

In conclusion, Jody Gehrman’s The Protégé offers a gripping tale of revenge and betrayal set against the backdrop of academic politics. It is a well-crafted thriller that keeps readers engaged from start to finish.

The first half of the book, it felt like the protagonist didn't have a clue even though she is portrayed as extremely intelligent. The last third of the book was the redeeming piece.

The Protégé
by Jody Gehrman

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Renowned forensics expert and professor Hannah Bryers destroyed Winter Jones's life when she was 13. Now Winter is Hannah's new teaching assistant and plans to return the favor in The Protégé, Jody Gehrman's revenge thriller. Hannah's degree in anthropology bolsters her skills as a forensic expert; law enforcement and her employer, Mad River University, revere her opinions. Although her laser-focused analyses are much lauded, her introversion and general social ineptitude result in much side-eye at faculty parties and functions. Amy and Joe, her close friends, view Hannah as endearingly vulnerable, but Winter sees this as the perfect way to destroy the professor's life and ultimately kill her--as payback for something that happened during Winter's childhood.

After becoming Hannah's teaching assistant, Winter monitors the professor's movements via tracking devices, patiently waiting for any opportunity to discredit the so-called expert. And anyone who gets in the way of Winter's insatiable need for revenge only hastens their own demise. Soon, authorities blame baffled Hannah for destroying evidence and for a nearly fatal lab explosion; she also faces murder accusations. A distraught Hannah, ostracized by the community and not knowing whom she can trust, mistakenly confides in Winter.

Gehrman (The Summer We Buried; The Girls Weekend) slowly paces Winter's diabolical plot to destroy Hannah in chapters that alternate between the two women's perspectives, and the villain's identity is obvious from the beginning. Still, the novel retains its nail-biting suspense as readers race to understand Winter's motivations and how--even if--she will succeed with her plan. --Paul Dinh-McCrillis, freelance reviewer

Horrors that will leave you gasping for breath every minute is terrifying! So many different deaths. I struggled with this story because it literally made me feel paranoid.

A twisty insane thriller that had me on the edge of my seat. I could not put it down. Thank you to the publisher.

Very cool, very creepy. I couldn’t predict where this book was going. I read it in two days and I enjoyed it.

Revenge is two-faced antagonist, Winter’s, modus operandi as she adroitly performs teaching assistant duties for college professor of forensic pathology, Hannah, in the dark and dangerous thriller, “The Protégé,” by Jody Gerhman.

Dually narrated by Winter and Hannah, readers watch the TA’s devious rage against her professor evolve, as well as see Hannah ponder the mounting disasters surrounding her career.

Throughout the mounting tension of the novel, we question, “Why?” What caused Winter’s bitterness and hate towards Hannah? Does Hannah suspect that Winter could be involved in the treachery?

TheBookMaven thoughtfully submits this Review and graciously thanks Author Jody Gerhman, NetGalley, and Publisher Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read this Advance Readers’ Copy (ARC) prior to publication.

Does anyone remember the first book that sent chills up their spine ? Mine was Girls Weekend, by Jody Gehrman. If anyone has read it they know Gehrman, set the bar for disturbing. Since, I have been chasing that feeling . I was in search of that up all night, can’t sleep, cant breathe, can’t think, kind of feeling and I found it …..

The Protege

I think i made a subconscious decision to try everything in my power to give myself nightmares for the rest of my life . I can also tell you, I have achieved such goal without evening knowing I set it .

I’m officially terrified .

If you want to know what can scare the crap out of this thrill chasing, suspense lover then roll the dice and buy yourself a copy of The Protege, You won’t regret it ….. or will you? 😏

Teaser :

Dr. Hannah Bryers, anthropology professor and forensics expert at the prestigious Mad River University, takes pleasure in examining corpses, but small talk and living people fill her with dread. When she’s not teaching, she analyzes the decomposing flesh of murder victims around the globe.

Winter Jones is Hannah’s most promising graduate student. She’s smart, cunning, and dedicated, but she’s got her own agenda for coming to Mad River: to bring Hannah Bryers down. She’ll stop at nothing to make her life implode. In alternating narratives, Winter systematically robs Hannah of the things she values most: her reputation, her job, and—ultimately—her safety.

When dangerous mistakes are made in her lab, Hannah has no idea who would have it out for her and would be willing to risk students’ lives. As the incidents become deadly, many suspects come to light. Hannah won’t go down without a fight. She has to figure out who is sabotaging her career and killing people; her life depends on finding answers.

I absolutely loved this authors last book so I was so excited to get to this one. I didn't really care for it in writing so I thought audio might be a better bet, but it still didn't work for me. I just wasn't really interested or invested in the story. If you want a winner definitely check out The Summer We Buried, it's an awesome read. I still want to check out The Girls' Weekend too, I just can't recommend this one. But I will definitely read her next book as well as The Girls Weekend.

Jody Gehrman's The Protege is one that you have to stick with a little bit to get to the point where, as a reader, you're hooked. The first third of the book is a slow burn, but it's worth letting the fire build, because the last two-thirds is twisty and fantastic. I would have liked to see more dimension in the characters, but it's an overall great read that I can see definitely appealing to thriller lovers who like a more subtle vibe.

This book caught my attention, it had mystery, thrills, and secrets and was set in a college environment. All that was up my alley. The book starts with the introduction of Mitch James who is busy bringing AI robots to the school and we also meet Dr. Hannah Byers who is a famous anthropologist and skilled in her career. She is also on the spectrum as she struck me as someone with Asperger syndrome rather than autism. The book also introduces us to Winter Jones who is Dr. Byers's protege in class. She reminds Hannah of a younger sister or daughter. However, Winter has a secret agenda for getting closer to Hannah and wants to ruin her career and her life. So the book begins, with lots of little accidents happening, but why is Winter doing this as she goes along with the story, will she achieve her goal of alienating Hannah from everyone in her life and maybe even pushing her that one step further and seeing Hannah take her own life or has Winter underestimated Hannah and her plan backfire? Find out in The Protege by Jody Gerhman. A great college YA/NA crossover thriller.

At the foundation, this is a great story. I did struggle with the writing for the first 20% or so. The main character is socially awkward and the writing felt the same. But after that point either it got easier or I got more comfortable with it. But Hannah's awkwardness continued to feel a bit forced, as though she were a caricature. The suspense was well paced and the slow reveal of what was going on was nice. I wish more time had been spent on the initial event that had started everything. Both main characters know fully what happened but the reader never gets more than a cursory reveal near the end. I would have liked more time spent on establishing the characters and the situation between them.

Dr. Hannah Bryers, professor of anthropology, has her life turned upside down when one of her teaching assistants seeks revenge and her reputation is sullied beyond repair. I found the plot enjoyable, if not entirely unique. I wish there had been more of a mystery or twist, but still an entertaining read.

Jody Gehrman makes some interesting narrative choices in The Protégé:

1. She reveals the antagonist, and most of the antagonist's motive, at the very beginning of the book. Right away, the novel pits forensic anthropology professor Dr. Hannah Bryers against her star student and TA, Winter Jones. Winter has come to Mad River University for one reason: to get revenge on Hannah for a past wrong. Over the course of the novel, Winter systematically works towards this goal by sabotaging Hannah's relationships and tarnishing her reputation, all while pretending to be her confidante.

2. She makes her protagonist incredibly difficult to relate to and/or sympathize with. I love quirky, socially awkward characters, but Hannah's complete lack of social finesse and naïveté comes across as forced and inauthentic. Imagine Dr. Temperance Brennan -- the version from the television show Bones, not Kathy Reichs's novels -- and that's pretty much the basis for the character of Hannah. Her characterization felt derivative and too emotionally immature to be believed.

These factors, coupled with an instalove plotline and unnatural dialogue, made The Protégé a less than enjoyable read for me. Because the reader knows up front who is behind the attacks on Hannah, there is no real tension in the narrative. Winter's scheme wasn't clever enough to hold my attention and make me want to keep reading to see how it all unfolded. Additionally, it made Hannah's sections of the book -- which are largely made up of Hannah trying to figure out who's out to get her -- pointless and boring.

Unfortunately, the most interesting parts of The Protégé (Hannah's career as a forensic anthropologist, Winter's troubled childhood) are not the parts that Gehrman chooses to focus on. I toggled back and forth between listening to the audiobook and reading an electronic copy, and I preferred reading the text because I didn't care for either of the narrators. Thank you to Crooked Lane Books, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for the complimentary reading opportunity.

Couldn't finish this book. The Hannah character is way too much. If I wanted a science lesson, I would go back to school. This novel is not enjoyable.

I listened to the audio version and the narrators were fine. I didn’t find the book anything extra special or terribly bad- it was just ok. It was hard for me to get invested in the beginning because it was slow. I’m sure this will be a favorite for some but it just wasn’t the book for me.

2 stars

The book is extremely long, dragged and repetitive. So many irrelevant details and thoughts and internal dialog. Plus, once again we have the smarter than everyone killer who is ahead of the game and commits the perfect murders. The ending was also a let down.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for allowing me to read this book!

3.7 Stars
One Liner: Good pace and premise; not really dark or twisted

Dr. Hannah Bryers is an anthropology professor and a forensic expert at Mad River University. She is most comfortable with dead and rotten bodies than living people. Socializing terrifies her.
Winter Jones is Hannah’s student and TA. However, she is out to seek revenge and destroy Hannah one step at a time. She seems to be successful too, and Hannah still has no clue who is targeting her. Of course, Hannah won’t give up without a fight.
Who will win this war? Why is Winter intent on destroying Hannah?
The story comes in the first-person POV of the main characters, Hannah and Winter.
My Thoughts:
This one has dark academia vibes sans paranormal elements though it doesn’t explore the elements. The setting feels heavy (even if it isn’t). This works well to sustain momentum and mood.
The main characters have alternating POVs (mostly), which means that the reader knows what’s going on, while the characters don’t yet have a clue. I enjoy this style of narration as it focuses on when and how the characters figure out things and what happens afterward.
The book sets the tone from the very first page. Characters are established right away, and they continue to be who they are. This can be an advantage or a disadvantage, depending on what the reader prefers.
The beginning is a little slow. The first chapter by Hannah has a lot of technical jargon. Though I like to learn new things, I almost zoned out because of the dry narration and too much technicality. Luckily, Winter’s POV set things back on track.
The second half is fast-paced as things happen one after another. I could finish the book in two days (less than 3 hours), which is always a plus. Another reason I rounded up to 4 stars.
The characters aren’t entirely likable, of course. But I couldn’t feel anything for them either. Winter is definitely more interesting, so sadly, her past and the things that affect her aren’t presented in detail. This is a kind of book that limits things to the surface level.
The climax and end are predictable but enjoyable. The steady pace keeps the reader going despite the lack of depth. This isn’t a book to read if you want something dark or twisted. It’s a Lite version of a dark psychological thriller. What you see is what you get; pretty much.

To summarize, The Protégé is a decent thriller if you want something light and fast-paced. The forensic and anthropologic details are cool to read (even if some terms are hard to understand). There are a few queasy descriptions of dead and rotten bodies, so be prepared.
Thank you, NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books, for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Why does Winter hate Dr. Hannah Byers so much? This is an unusual thriller in that the reader knows who the villain is from the beginning but not the reasons for the underhand behavior. Hannah is a forensic anthropologist, a woman who has made a career answering hard questions but now things are going badly, very badly. Winter is her assistant, which gives her total access, No spoilers from me because this is a twisty one. I liked how plausible so much of this is (there was once when I thought "huh") as well as, I hate to say it both Hannah and Winter. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A very good read.

Anthropology professor, Dr. Hannah Bryers, is a successful researcher and teacher at a small Northern California university. But, what she doesn't expect is for her most notable student and TA, Winter Jones, to be out to get her because of things of their past, which Bryers is unaware of.

When I picked this eARC on Netgalley, I was so excited to read it because the synopsis really got me hopeful for a griping mystery/thriller story, but I'm sorry to say that expectation wasn't met. I started The Protégé and right from the first chapters I got bored. The storyline is so dragged and the initial bits with Dr. Bryers so technical and mechanical that I wasn't hooked, but decided to continue giving it a try at least until the halfway mile, my limit for a book to grab me and convince me to continue to keep reading. Sad to say, that also didn't happen.

I began getting irritated with how easy to get away with sabotage and other more gruesome crimes it is for Winter. There's simply no on-campus security at the University and at a campus with specialists in human behaviour, whom should be the top of their fields, not a single soul seems to have identified odd traces in a student.