This book was chef’s 💋. A psychological thriller about a sociopath? Yes, please! Camille had a harrowing childhood and it has permanently damaged her psyche. While she is trying to work through her issues, strange things start happening. Is the past re-visiting her? What is going on? I was glued to this book from start to finish. I highly recommend! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely. I devoured this book! I loved being able to sit in on Camille's therapy sessions. I loved knowing some of Camille's secrets that she had kept in the vault and never shared with her husband. I loved being a silent observer as things began to become uncomfortable for Camille. Speaking of Camille, she is such an interesting character. Very interesting, indeed. There are a nice number of twists and turns in this book. Holy Moly, I did not see a major twist/reveal coming at all! I was left with my mouth hanging open, thinking "did that just happen?" and "shut the front door!" Seriously, Minka Kent, I salute you. This is how you write a gripping and shocking psychological thriller, hands down five beautiful stars.

Camille Prescott has done a brilliant job of leaving her mom, Lucinda, and an abusive childhood behind. She's found a husband anyone would be lucky to have, has two perfect kids, and moved from Chicago to a picturesque suburb in Southern California. Camielle even has a doting mother-in-law who more than makes up for the time and effort Lucinda never gave her. Things are wonderful. Then, when Camielle's daughter starts coming home talking about an imaginary friend and providing specific references from Camielle's childhood, of course paranoia runs rampant. Running around chasing shadows while her busy husband & mother-in-law look after the kids, Camielle has to find out if Lucinda is back.

I really, really enjoyed this one. Coming off cold, Camielle should make an odd, unlikable narrator, but so many of the issues she runs into surrounding motherhood and trying to manage a household while maintaining a romantic relationship are so relatable that you can't help but love her and empathize with her. Right from the beginning, she talks about not having the mom gene but being steadfastly determined to do any and all research necessary to make sure that her kids have the best possible childhood in an increasingly concerning world. That's something I think a lot of people (at least in my elder millennial age bracket) struggle with. I also truly appreciated the way she talks about not wanting to be pregnant anymore at the end of her second pregnancy. It's such a taboo thing and it really shouldn't be. It's not a comfortable experience, and it's refreshing to hear people admit that it's a labor of love rather than some sort of ethereal privilege. The brutal honesty throughout really made Camielle's story one I couldn't put down.

As for the story, it was paced extremely well. For the first half, things build slowly but surely and you're with Camielle as her journey becomes crazier and crazier. For the second half you're on a runaway train unsure of who can be trusted. The ultimate resolution at the end was unexpected but not unbelievable and really pulled it all together. I am a big fan of this author but this might be my favorite yet!

Raised by a vindictive and psychotic woman, Camille has gone to great lengths to bury her past and for good reason: if her mother ever finds her, she will kill her.

Great tension and plot twists. Loved it!

What a twisted web Minka Kent weaves with this newest thriller!

"Psychopaths are born, but sociopaths are made..."

What would you do to protect your family? That's the premise of Camilla's story.

I admire the fact that Camilla knows of her mental health issues and is doing what she can to adapt and overcome them. To be able to have a "normal" life and family with the horrific upbringing she has.

Ms. Kent's exploration of this character and her internal struggle is fascinating and makes you question everything you think you know. 

Between flashbacks and the current time, you see Camilla's evolution and what she is willing to do to protect her children and the family she has created.

Hell has no fury like a woman on the edge, and that is what Camilla is.

When you dive into a world that Ms. Kent has created, you won't be the same when you come out.

Imaginary Strangers is a fast paced, easy bingeable popcorn thriller. The concept of this book was amazing, I really loved the sociopath aspect and learning more about it, exploring it in a real life setting. I thought that was truly well done.

The characters were complex although lacking a little more backstory for my liking, I would've liked more about Camille(Gabrielle). The side characters were just okay for me.

This book started off really strong for me, but then halfway I just felt like it was dragging and some things were said but just left hanging and never developed. The final twist is supposed to come as a major shock, but for me it came off as predictable, as the author tries to steer you in such an opposite direction which felt too obvious for me. The ending just left me feeling underwhelmed with the reasoning behind the actions.

I still enjoyed this book, it was definitely a fun and fast read that was very entertaining !
✨️Thank you to @netgalley, Thomas & Mercer & Minka Kent for my gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Chilling and sinister, Minka Kent has once again created a captivating, dark mystery. Quick to read and at times heart-pounding, the book swirls with characters who are clearly unstable - or are they really the ones you think? A good thriller!

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read this ARC.

A psychological thriller that kept me turning the pages, Imaginary Strangers is about a mother who will do anything for her children. The thing is, she doesn’t love them - not really. Not because she’s a bad mom, but because she’s clinically a sociopath who can’t feel any emotions whatsoever. Normally, you’d think that such a person would be impossible to relate to, but this book made me care. She is manipulative and cunning, and she’s not really making sacrifices out of love. Her one and only motivation is to be as different as her own mother as possible. So her own family doesn’t even know her. I really enjoyed the twists and I had no idea how it would end. That said, this is too much of a domestic thriller for me to fully enjoy, but only because it is not one of my favorite genres. There are a lot of details about mothering, chores and psychology. Readers of domestic thrillers will probably enjoy it more. As it is, even if I’m no fan of the genre, I enjoyed this book.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/Thomas & Mercer.

Have you ever started a book and thought “oh this is going to fuck me up?” Because it’s rare that it happens to me and that’s how I felt when I read the quote at the beginning of the book. What followed was a relentless, fast paced narrative that kept me on my toes until the very end. I am writing this review at 3:27AM - I literally could not put this book down. The time jumps were wielded brilliantly, slowly exposing more information as the story went on, slowly doling out what we learned and only allowing the reader to see what was immediately ahead. The twist was flawlessly executed and while I fairly easily predicted the how, I never guessed the who. The protagonist was utterly fascinating and incredibly well written. I absolutely loved being inside of her head. I already want to reread this book. Wow. Just…wow.

Imaginary Strangers was a twisty domestic thriller that was a quick read. Camille knows that her estranged mother has found her family and is doing everything she can to mess with her daughter, Georgie. Or is there something more sinister going on? I didn't guess the ending at all, so that was a nice surprise. There were some parts of the book that were a little slow, but overall a solid book!

The author did it well ! How much we are ready to keep our secrets away from those tho would ruin our lives ? I guess we are all ready for it when we love someone more than ourselves !

When I received this from Netgalley I had no idea it was part of a series. Imaginary Strangers is Book 1 of Minka's Dangerous Strangers series.
Expected publication 7/23/24

Camille Prescott has it all. A doting husband, two children, a charming home in a seaside enclave, and a beautiful, fixed smile that exudes normalcy. But behind her polished mask lurks a much different Camille―one with a padlocked vault of secrets. Raised by a vindictive and psychotic woman, Camille has gone to great lengths to bury her past and for good reason: if her mother ever finds her, she will kill her. Minka is a mastermind at writing flawed, complex characters and this one did not disappoint. The book allows the reader to be a fly on the wall during Camille's therapy sessions and her childhood is revealed. Simultaneously, he child is coming home using phrases and telling stories that only Camille and her mother would know, right?

Thank you to Netgalley and Minka Kent for the Advance Digital Copy and I am looking forward to Book 2

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I've never read a book by this author, but I really enjoyed Imaginary Strangers. It's a fast-paced plot and characterization, and the book doesn't drag. I couldn't believe I had gotten through the 74% already.

Camille had a traumatic childhood with an abusive mother. Sadly. No teachers or neighbors called CPS for her or really looked after her. She leaves home at 17 after contemplating drowning her drunk mother in the pool. Lucinda is a shadowy character from her past, a 1 dimensional monster. We meet her as she's a mom of 2 small kids, having married a doctor. All is well until her daughter Georgie has an imaginary best friend at school, who knows things that she shouldn't know - as a 6 year old kindergarten student about her mother. Camille investigates by deciding to volunteer at the school and discovers a teaching aide at the school is suspicious to her. Camille is convinced that Lucinda hired her to get to her through her daughter.

Camille uses the school's fall break to follow "Imogen Carey" around and places a tracking device on her car. She asks her mother in law Jacqueline to visit to help watch the children, and she acqueises. However, Camille isn't really getting anywhere with following Imogen. When the school accuses Camille of stalking Imogen, she's banned from school grounds. Her husband asks her to get a head CT to rule out medical conditions like a tumor. Camille comes to a startling realization in the doctors office, and from there on out, it's a wild ride. I wasn't expecting the person who was planting things from her past to trigger her. I had a difficult time with the believabilty factor, I guess. Yes, Camille has issues including diagnosed sociopath, but she clearly cares about the well-being of her children. The ending was delicious as well.

TW for childhood abuse, possible death of a parent, mental abuse, and disordered eating abuse. 4.25/5☆ The book is out July 23, 2024 .

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of this novel.

The opening scene in Minka Kent’s latest thriller reveals 17 year old Gabrielle, checking on her drunken mother, who has lost consciousness in the bathtub. Exhausted by the stress of taking care of a woman who is reckless and abusive, she thinks about turning on the tap and watching her drown, an act she considers ‘exhilarating’. It’s not the first time she’s considered killing the vicious Lucinda, just the first time she’s acted on it. But Lucinda, (never ‘mom,’) wakes up. Furiously. And it is, yet again, Gabrielle’s. As her murderous mother forces her head under water, she finds herself ‘overcome with pure rage.’ Gabrielle asks herself, ‘Why should I be the one to die? I didn’t spend seventeen years in hell only for it to end like this’.

Since this is the opening act it’s not giving anything away to say that both survive and the daughter is thrown into the streets, her send-off ringing to her mother’s declaration that she will kill her when, not if, they next encounter each other.

Thirteen years later, Gabrielle is Camille, married to the handsome, loving, hard-working physician Will, living in a plum neighborhood, with two beautiful children, Georgie and Jack. She has not merely survived, she has transformed, and is living a fantasy version of the good life. Except that Georgie, only three weeks into kindergarten , is seemingly showing signs of the antisocial tendencies that have afflicted the women of her family. Lucinda was definitely sociopathic. Although better equipped to fight it, Camille recognizes that sociopathy is deeply in herself too. Will tries to assuage her concerns, and she pretends, with him, that she believes his reassurances. Lying, she admits to herself, is what holds together their marriage and ´beautiful little family.’

The problem with this kind of what she calls ‘infallible glué’ is that it isn’t. The rest of the story shows how, little by little, slowly but with increasing intensity, things come unstuck. Threats appear for which known defences don’t work. Identities built for survival purposes cannot survive, nor can the relationships constructed on them. And when it’s all grounded in the relationships of mothers and daughters, the stakes are as high as life, death, and all that you’ve ever wanted.

In Camille, Kent has created another of her tough, emotionally contained, perpetually on guard female characters, who has had little choice but to be that way. But Camille is more than a mother made over-protective by unrelenting childhood abuse—she is a sociopath too. She knows it, and therapy has helped her deal with some of its tendencies. Unlike her own mother, whom she would have liked to kill, and still would, or her equally evil mother in law, her motive force is to protect her children, at any cost. Is sociopathy curable? Are sociopaths made or born? The author raises these questions, but they are not answerable, given the nature of the disorder. More to the point, is Camille justified in her hatreds and the lengths she contemplates going to if love is her motive?

This is a fast paced story, ´thrilling’ though sometimes a bit cliched in writing and plot. Will is a cardboard character, forever ‘processing ,’ a terribly overused word. His mother Jacqueline the prototypical horrible mother in law, and then some. The cliches do work, and the story is not altogether predictable. For fans of this genre, it’s a definite must-read. And there is more to come. Lucinda is still out there.

I think I have loved every book written by Minka Kent so far. This one here – I feel like this one is my favorite of hers. An absolute favorite of hers. And, it most definitely has moved in to live permanently among my top reads of 2024.
The book’s story is horrible, yet beautifully told. The main character is a flawed human through and through, with the most beautiful soul and the most beautiful mind. Although Camille (the main character) is horribly broken, yet somehow she is one of the most wholesome fictional characters ever written. And, I hate to admit how relatable her experiences and thought processes are. I hate to go to those places the book took me – although, no, I do not hate going there per se, I hate admitting it out loud. Because once you read it, and once you put two and two together of me saying this, you will know so much about me that I have never told. You know, if that makes any sense. Yeah, I hope it makes no sense.
And that husband of Camille’s? He too made my mind go to places/memories I prefer not to go to, but for an entirely different reason than Camille. Either way, that too is another absolutely beautifully written character.
Back to the book: it has taken me several days to write this review. I finished reading the book, I absolutely loved every page (or %, more likely) of it, I devoured it. I wanted to scream from every rooftop about it once I finished reading it. I did some behind-the-scenes screaming though, I told a friend she must read add it to her pre-order list and then she has to talk to me about it as soon as she reads it. But it took me a weirdly long time to write the review.
This book deserves all the stars. Not just five. It deserves to be talked about and yelled about from every corner and screamed about from every rooftop.
This is NEXT LEVEL psych thriller. If you think you have read it all – ok, especially if you think you have read it all – you have to read this one. Trust me. Read it. Pre-order it. And read it asap when it is delivered at the end of July. Thank me later. You are welcome.

This book was so wild, I loved it. Camille was such a hot mess of a MC, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to shake her or root for her. I couldn’t put this one down. At no point did I guess what was going to happen. I look forward to reading more from Minka Kent!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I liked this thriller by Minka Kent and was surprised by some of the twists throughout. It was a quick read and entertaining was my first book by this author and would read more from her. I give this one 3/3.5 stars and would recommend. I want to thank NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

First off, this book is a total page-turner! 👀 Kent really knows how to keep you hooked from start to finish.

Let's talk about Camille – she's not your typical protagonist, that's for sure. Her backstory adds layers of depth, making her one of the most intriguing characters I've come across lately. You can feel her past haunting every page, which amps up the tension in this gripping tale.

If you're a fan of intricate plots and slow-burning suspense that leaves you breathless, this book is a must-read. Trust me, you won't be able to put it down!

As for the ending, it took me by surprise in the best way possible. While it wrapped up quickly, leaving me eager for more, the door is wide open for a sequel - and count me in for that journey!

Overall, if you're a fan of psychological thrillers, do yourself a favor and add this one to your TBR list ASAP! 🔥

I love every book Minka Kent writes and i knew i had to read this one. I admit it started out slow but i was hooked and flew through the book. Highly recommend.

Outstanding Thriller!!!!

✔️ Minka Kent
✔️ Twisty
✔️ Secrets
✔️ Phenomenal Writing

Thank you NetGallary for an early review copy of Imaginary Strangers!

This is another fantastic book from Minka Kent! There is just something about this book at hooked me from page one!

The character development was excellent! This book had plenty of twisty turns at just the right points.

I savored every word because I could not stop reading!

This is one of the best of 2024 thus far! A masterpiece that kept me engaged the entire time!

No spoilers with my review! This is a must read for 2024!

If I could give more than 5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ I would!