Strangers We Know, by Pip Drysdale

A life of lies, a partnership forged in deception, and doubts that begin to niggle and then unravel everything you thought was true. Are some secrets and the past best left buried? For one seemingly happily married wife, she will find out and perhaps wish she hadn’t.

This thriller is infused with juicy gossip girl vibes that makes even the cringiest bits fun!

Short chapters aid with pace and tension and will keep readers turning pages!
Definitely a book I liken to a popcorn thriller that is best paired with a chilled coke zero!

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for my advanced digital copy to read and review.

Pip Drysdale is now officially an automatic must-read for me! I know that I'm going to get a twisted storyline that keeps me guessing and The Strangers We Know is no exception. This is a masterclass in plot twists and moral ambiguity. It is extremely hard to talk about all the things I like about this without spoiling so I will say this: just read it and trust me that you will love it.

The Strangers We Know is a suspenseful and modern thriller that hooks readers with its clever plot and intriguing exploration of trust, relationships, and betrayal in the digital age. The protagonist, Charlie, finds herself caught in a nightmare when she spots her husband on a dating app, leading her to unravel a dark and dangerous conspiracy. Drysdale effectively balances tension with character depth, creating a story that feels both grounded and exhilarating. The twists are well-paced, and the tech-savvy storyline adds an engaging, contemporary edge.

This was my first Pip Drysdal novel and it will not be my last. I have immediately added more to my TBR.

Imagine seeing your loving husband on a dating app. Now imagine that’s the best thing to happen to you all week … I was hooked right from this intro.

What would you do if you found out your entire life/ relationship was a lie? As Charlie digs into her husband Oliver's life, she is shocked to find out that he and others around her are hiding huge secrets and she isn't the only one being betrayed. There were so many twists and turns throughout this book it was a workout for my mind! I don't even know how I would handle this situation if I were in Charlie's shoes, and I found that I kept thinking about this while I was DEVOURING this book. In one sitting I might add.

Can't wait to check out my next Pip Drysdale book! This is your sign to read this book if you haven't already, just trust me.

This is not my first book by this author, and also it is not my favorite.

This one wasn't for me, I didn't like the main character, Charlie was insufferable, I couldn't relate to her and it made it hard to stay in the story when you don' t care what happens to the main character. The writing was beautiful, lyrical and very descriptive. I will buy her next book and try it, I jus think this one wasn't for me.

Ok story especially at the beginning but quickly became twisty just for the sake of being twisty without forwarding the plot in any significant way. Maybe I am just over domestic drama but this was just not the one for me.

What if the people you know are not who they say they are.

When you first meet people, why would you think they aren’t who they say they are.

I like the fast pace of the book and all the difference twists and turns.

It was a great read.

I will be reading more books from this author for sure

The Strangers We Know was an interesting book. I almost felt like it was something that I had read before. The story felt familiar and it really never felt like a twist was revealed, or an 'Aha' moment happened. I can't explain it. That didn't stop me from reading it though. I was absorbed in the story, reading and flipping the pages as quickly as I could. I like Pip's writing, and she is definitely an author I would read again. Like I said, this one just felt off for me.
Thank you to Simon and Schuster for the gifted copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was my first book by this author and I loved it! It was a clever who dun it! I liked the character build, the suspense and twists! I will definitely recommend this one and look forward to binging all her other books!

I finally finished it. I almost DNF the book twice. I wanted something big to happen so I kept reading. I found in the last quarter of the book I was skimming lines. I really wanted something more from this book and it just didn’t happen for me. Perhaps I was not the right audience for it.

I was immediately interested in Charlie's relationship with her husband and all the possible secrets that he held.
I had higher expectations of this books but for me things were fairly obvious and they didn't feel like wild twits and turns.
I would definitely pick up another book by Pip Drysdale, as I really enjoyed her writing style. Just this particular story wasn't for me me.

Pip Drysdale has quickly become one of my favorite authors. She never fails to pull me into her characters’ lives and keep me glued to the pages.

The Strangers We Know had my interest piqued from the very first line of the synopsis: Imagine seeing your loving husband pop up on your best friend’s dating app. Now imagine that’s the best thing that happens to you all week...

How bad was this week going to get?! Oh, yes! I couldn’t wait to find out. That is what I love best about Pip Drysdale’s writing, you never know where she is going to take you.

Charlie and Oliver seemed like a happy couple. She was an actress, he was a successful businessman, and they were madly in love. So, why would he be on a dating app? My heart broke for Charlie when she discovered her husband’s secret. I was as incensed as she was over his potential philandering. But nothing is ever quite as cut and dry with these kinds of novels. Can you truly trust exactly what is presented to you? That’s what makes these novels so enticing.

The entire novel takes place over the course of a week, and there is no downtime, no lull in the progression of the story. Charlie needed to find out the truth about her husband, and I was right there with her, every step of the way.

*4 Stars

I don't want to share this review on my socials because I'm so appreciative of being accepted to receive this book. Unfortunately, I found the main character to be insufferable and the twists very predictable. The hand holding and breaking of the fourth wall telling the reader to "remember this, it will be important later" and the "ba doom, ba doom" onomatopoeia was incredibly frustrating. I'd love to read more of Drysdale's work, but this one wasn't for me.

This is the second novel I’ve read from Pip Drysdale, and overall I enjoyed it. I won’t say it was one of my favourite reads of the year, but it did read quickly and kept me intrigued. I look forward to Drysdale’s next book!
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley, Pip Drysdale and Simon & Schuster Canada for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I was worried about this novel because it seemed like it was going to be the usual suspicious wife and maybe cheating husband - BUT after the first little bit, this novel is so so much more! There is so many twists to this novel and the whole thing was impossible to guess. I really ended up enjoying the whole thing.

“When Charlie sees a man who is the spitting image of her husband, Oliver, on a dating app, her heart stops. When other signs of betrayal begin to surface, Charlie does the only thing she can think of to defend herself-she signs up for the app to catch Oliver in the act. But Charlie soon discovers that infidelity is the least of her problems.”

The Strangers We Know is a gripping thriller, guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat. Although I guessed who was behind it all, I wasn’t completely right! This book really made me think about the people around us and how well we actually know them. I definitely recommend this book and the authors last book as well, The Next Girl.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for this Advance Reader Copy. All opinions are my own.

Review is scheduled to be posted on Instagram Dec 23, 2023. It is already posted on Goodreads.

The Strangers We Know by Pip Drysdale

I was so excited to get this one from @netgalley and @simonschusterca since I loved The Next Girl last spring. Unfortunately this one fell short for me.

The style of writing and point of view that I felt worked so well in the last book, just didn’t in this one. Her weird foreshadowing, memories and trains of thought made the story really scattered. I think my biggest problem though was how predictable this one was, the cheating storyline, and even the twists at the end were unsurprising and a bit annoying. Also the main character was just naive and messy, I had a real hard time feeling bad for her or rooting for her.

Kind of wish I gave up on this one, but since I loved her last one I stuck with it. I definitely would try another by her - hoping this one was just a one-off.

On to the next! What are you reading this weekend?

#ebooks #kindle #bookreview #bookthoughts #bookishthoughts #reading #read #readebooks #booksbooksbooks #canadianbookstagrammer #bookstagram

Thank you to the publisher for my copy - all opinions are my own.

Pip Drysdale is quickly becoming one of my can't-miss authors, as the stories she serves up are piping hot, full of drama and intrigue and with mysteries and twists that keep you flying through chapters from beginning to end.

This was such a fun, soap opera-esq, mystery filled, whodunnit style drama of a book that I barely know where to begin with it. I love love loved the complex characters and Charlie makes for a perfect leading lady. Her determination to find out if her husband is truly cheating on her leads her through such a web of increasingly complicated betrayals and secrets and I truly enjoy reading a character who responds to those situations in believable and realistically messy ways. You spend the whole book rooting for Charlie to get her answers, and the twists served up as you go, do not disappoint.

No spoilers here, but if you enjoy a really character drama rich suspense, this is very much a book for you. Its a fabulous must have addition for winter reading piles!

This is my second book from Pip Drysdale and much like the first, I enjoyed this one.

Charlie discovers her husbands photo on a dating app and her life unravels from there. I was definitely intrigued and finished The Strangers We Know in an afternoon. It’s a quick easy read that kept me wanting to know what was going to happen, even if Charlie did annoy me at times.

This is my second book by Pip Drysdale and once again, I really enjoyed it! This author has such a distinct voice and writing style, and I always end up flying through her books and loving every minute of it.

I really had no idea where this story was going and what was going to happen. There were a lot of pieces to the puzzle, and I didn’t predict the big reveal at all, which is always so much more fun!

I loved the main character, Charlie. I thought she was a total badass while also being vulnerable and raw. She very much felt like a real person to me. I also loved that sense of humour that was sprinkled throughout the book. It can be tough to pull that off in a thriller, but I thought it was well done.

Overall, a fun and quick read for all you thriller lovers out there!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for my gifted copy. This one is out now!