This book was ok but I never found myself wanting to pick it up. I loved Stillwater Girls so I was excited for this one, but unfortunately it fell a little flat.

I've been reading a bit too much romance lately so I needed a palate cleanser and this was a perfect book for that. A domestic type thriller with a twisted main female character named Camille who has a sordid past. Her primary focus now is on protecting her family and this life that she has built as fiercely as possible. I find short chapters to be key in thrillers, and this one was no exception. I found myself thinking "just one more chapter" over and over because I just couldn't put it down. It was fast paced, enthralling, and I enjoyed the twist at the end. I do feel like the author maybe left a bit of meat on the bone, but that might be because it is a part of a series. I didn't realize this was going to be a part of a series but I certainly look forward to the next book to see what Camille is up to.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced readers copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

A remarkably addictive and splendidly suspenseful page-turner, this tense psychological thriller will 100% pull you out of a reading slump. I completely devoured it!

We don't often see sociopaths as leading protagonists (or protective mothers) in fiction so I loved that aspect. It was a fresh and stigma shattering take.

I was extremely excited to learn that a follow-up book is in the works. I know I'll be dropping everything to set time aside to read it as soon as it becomes available!

Perfect for fans of Mary Kubica and Freida McFadden, this gripping and entertaining quick read will have you itching to pick it back up at the end of the work day.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for early access to the e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

incredibly awesome mix of some very classic thriller concepts produces an amazing thriller. Should we even be surprised? 5 stars, tysm for the arc.

I am always interested in reading books by unreliable narrators and Camille was one of the best examples of one of them.

Brought up by a vindictive mother, Camille is always looking over her shoulder. When she finally builds her own world, Camille is shocked to see her daughter Georgie exhibit disturbing behaviours, some of which can be traced back to the abuse of her own childhood.

But Camille's mother does not know where they live. Does she?

Gripping and fast-paced, this book was a great pageturner.

This was my first Minka Kent and I think I will read more of her.

4 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC.

Camille Prescott is faking it. She’s a psychopath incapable of feeling love but it’s not her fault - she was raised by an evil mother. Having survived her horrific childhood and escaped her mother - now she looks like any other posh San Diego stay at home mom. But when her daughter’s “imaginary friend” stirs up past memories Camille will do anything necessary to protect her kids.
Imaginary Strangers is the first installation of a series. It’s fast paced and thrilling from the beginning. I recommend it to fans of psychological suspense and I can’t wait to read the next one!

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

We follow Camille, a mother who seems to have it all. She lives in a nice neighborhood, has two healthy kids that she dotes on, and a doctor husband who is the best. However, Camille has dark secrets from her past. When her daughter starts coming home from school talking about things she shouldn't know about Camille's past, Camille quickly tries to find out who is behind it. She will stop at nothing to protect her family.

I really enjoyed this book! This is one of those quick thrillers that is hard to put down. I found the story interesting and it kept me wanting to read. It was almost a bit creepy in parts and I really liked that! The writing was good and I liked the characters as well.

I will say that some of the twists were a bit unrealistic to me. However, it didn't take away from my experience because I figured some of the twists would be like that. This book delievered a fast thriller and that is exactly what I was looking for!

I would definitely recommend if you are looking for a fast-paced thriller full of twists!

I thought this was a fascinating, thrilling but also psychological read! It feels very creepy and intense and internal, with a focus on mental health and motherhood and trauma, and how all of those things link together — what happens when you have a traumatic past, and you can see your child exhibiting behaviours that either trigger you or are uncomfortably reminiscent of things you'd prefer to forget? There's a lot of twists and turns, but they're all so exciting and feel so real and honest to the unfolding of the story itself. I will definitely pick up another book by Minka Kent!

For a short book, wow does it pack a punch. It’s creepy with several twists and lots of drama. Even though there was a lot in a smaller book, it wasn’t overly packed and crazy. It was such a mind blowing story, loved it. It’s my second Minka Kent book but I think I’ll have to go read her other books, I really liked both.

Interesting tale of a sociopath whose paranoia hits tilt when her daughter finds a friend in Imaginary. Camille has tried to keep her family safe from her past and her own state of mind, but her daughter Georgie’s new imaginary friend, Imaginary (yup, no joke), and the actions they partake in, unglue our mother to the point that would make a private investigator blush.

There are some interesting twists and turns, as Camille’s mind and actions goes further down the rabbit hole as she struggles to get to the bottom of Imaginary. But as the story goes on, the pages become harder to turn, as being in Camille’s head takes as much a toll on the reader as it does to herself. The back and forth timelines between her past therapy and the present seem to only cover gaps just quick enough for them to matter a chapter or two later. And the ending feels rather moot, because as you shall soon see from beginning to end, Camille is as wily as you can get.

Still, Imaginary Strangers is an entertaining read and credit to Minka Kent for doing the right research on mental health and getting the character of Camille right. Even if the story drags on the thrills, the psychological aspect will keep you from DNFing it.

I’ve tried to write this review multiple times and I’ve never felt so stuck - I truly have minimal thoughts on this book, I just didn’t like it. It felt very flat and the story developed so slowly, that once that twist and ending came - it elicited minimal emotions and I was left very underwhelmed.

Also, being a mum I could understand certain actions and thoughts from our MC and would also do anything to make sure my children are safe, but I expected to feel anxious, worried and shocked from such a story about, what’s meant to be a “likeable sociopath” and with her daughter having a new disturbing friend and the events that took place, but unfortunately I disappointed in this department.

There were also quite of lot of cliche phrases used throughout the entire book that just didn’t fit well with the rest of the writing style.

This is to be part of a series and while may have not enjoyed this, being that Minka is one of my favourites authors, I will still aim to pick up the next book, just to see where it goes and if my feelings change.

I don't know, this wasn't my absolute favorite Minka Kent, who I usually LOVE to read. It felt confusing and disjointed in places and I'm still confused at some of the significance of some of the subplots and fringe characters. Maybe confusing the reader was deliberate to keep us guessing on who to trust or keep us off Lucinda's trail. It just left me kind of disappointed that it never grabbed me. Either way, I'll still read every Minka Kent book she writes!

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

After a failed abusive relationship Kate and her eight year old son Christopher decide to settle in the small town of Mill Grove Pennsylvania. They are both hoping to have a fresh start. Christopher is a bit of a loner he’s dyslexic and he’s poor so he’s teased about his clothing. One day Kate is late picking Christopher up and when she arrives he’s gone! For one terrifying week everyone is frantically searching for him. When he is found it’s a miracle and he said he was helped by a nice man in the woods. When the police cannot find any proof of a man in the woods they just put it off as a Christopher imagined him due to exhaustion. After his ordeal Christopher almost seems better than before he begins to excel in school all of a sudden he has friends and Kate wins the lottery and she pays her debts off and get to buy a new house! Unbeknownst to anyone including Kate, Christopher is changing. He has headaches and gets thoughts that just come to him and he knows things he shouldn’t. He also sees his imaginary friend in the woods where he disappeared. His imaginary friend is telling him to do things and the first thing he needs to build a tree house in the middle of the woods and to needs built before Christmas, or bad things will happen to everyone Christopher knows and loves. This first half of this book was amazing!! The second half I felt was a bit much and could be confusing and it was dragged out. This book had a lot religion, small town paranoia a battle between good and evil and hysteria. I don’t want to be mean but halfway through I was like ok is this book going to end how much more can be thrown in here? The story was unique I just felt like it was a bit much and a bit confusing and it was almost becoming a chore to read.. I give this three stars! I don’t want to push anyone away but if you plan to read be patient and the time you will need to Invest in it!

It said that the author researched sociopaths before writing this, but the character didn't make sense considering the diagnosis. That kept drawing me away from the story, which was supposed to be creepy, but it wasn't really and then the twist was underwhelming.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

I loved most of this book. Everything was good until the plot twist and I didn’t really like it. I felt like it was too safe and easy and was hoping for more. But up until that- somewhere in the 80% of the book- I really enjoyed everything else.

Rated 4.5 ⭐️

Camille Prescott is a woman who has it all. She doesn't have to work, is married to a Dr, and a mother of two. She's also a woman who won't let her past take everything away from her.

This book kept me on the end of the seat, wondering if Camille is going crazy or was there something more going on. I never seen the twist coming, and I loved that. The emotions written on the pages you felt it come to life.

This book was fast paced and my interest was continuously engaged. The book ends with you wanting to know what happened next. I have no idea why it took me so long to open the pages to this book.

Thank you to Netgalley, Minka Kent, and the publishers for this free ebook. This review is 100% my own and honest opinion.

This was a very compelling and fast paced novel joining in a mothers journey to see how far she would go to protect her family. If you love thrillers with ending you may not see coming this one is for you!

Thank you to Thomas and Mercer and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

In true Minka Kent fashion, this book was twisty! I was really hoping for something more paranormal judging from the start of the book, but just regular old (ha!) family drama rife with mental health issues create a wild ride. I loved the take of the main character being a sociopath without her having to be a villain. One of my least favorite things in thrillers is gaslighting, and this one has it in abundance, so that is the only thing that really got on my nerves while reading this book.

I'm a big fan of Minka Kent and believe I have read each and every single book she has written!

Camille, the main character, is a wife, mother and a sociopath. Yes, sociopath! I Any book that delves into the psyche, I am all in and Minka always delivers a great psychological thriller! How exactly does a sociopath hide herself as a mother and a wife? From the outside looking in she is completely normal, but we all know nothing is ever quite as it seems. She becomes worried when her daughter starts talking about a new friend called Imaginary. Imaginary happens to know just a little too much about things that happened when Camille was a child. Just who is Imaginary and what does she want with her daughter? What Camille may lack in love and empathy, she makes up for with her fierce protetiveness of her daughter!

This was a fast paged thriller that had me guessing to the end. I will be here for Minka's next book!

A big thank you to the author, Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for allowing me the oportunity to read an advanced copy of this book! Imaginary Strangers is out now and available on Kindle Unlimited! If you have not yet read it, I highly recommend you go grab it! 5 stars!

I love the premise of this book. Camille is a wife, mother and also a sociopath. I liked the whole idea of a sociopath trying to be a good mother and wife and protect her family even though she does not feel emotions the same way as a "typical" mother does. She becomes worried when her daughter starts talking about a new friend called imaginary. Camille is desperately hoping that her daughter does not carry the same traits as she does.

This one was full of suspense from beginning to end. I did suspect who the bad guy of the story was, but that did not hinder my enjoyment at all.
Unique characters who were very well portrayed. Enough creepy aspect throughout to keep you wondering.

Thanks to netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the arc.