This book took me by surprise! I was immediately gripped by the first chapter and couldn’t stop reading until I found out what was real and what wasn’t. It took me 1 and a half days to read only because I had to go to work lol.

The writing style reminds me of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides (a book I loved!). I loved how the story was told through Dr. Byrd’s clinical POV and Jane’s letters to her son, and how the two slowly revealed more about themselves as the story moved along.

My only issue was that the ending was a bit abrupt, but I do understand why as it’s to make us draw our own opinions of what we believe to be real.

@randomhouse | #gifted I’m afraid I might be something of an outlier when it comes to 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘 𝗖𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗝𝗔𝗡𝗘 𝗢. by Karan Thompson Walker. I didn’t love it and I really, really expected I would. This is the story of a very unique, complicated woman having some sort of breakdown. About half of it is told by Jane and the other half, by her psychiatrist. The premise was very interesting including Jane’s life, her problems, and really everything around her. The psychiatrist also had a solid backstory, though his real focus was always Jane.⁣
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So, why did this book (which I read in print) not quite work for me? I didn’t like the voice of either Jane or the psychiatrist. His was just so dry and clinical and honestly, hers was too. By the midway point they were both grating on me even though I wanted to know how Jane’s story would resolve. I guess you could say that the premise, the big ideas kept me going even though the journey through its telling was not the pleasant reading experience I was expecting. Darn! ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫✨

This novel keeps readers on edge with its two unreliable narrators, forcing constant self-reflection on what’s genuine and what’s distorted. Dr. Byrd’s ever-shifting diagnoses of Jane’s mental state were especially grating, leaving me feeling more perplexed than intrigued.

The supposed chemistry between the central characters also felt forced and lacking in depth, undermining what should have been a central emotional thread. Having been captivated by the author's previous work, *The Age of Miracles*, I was left disappointed by this one. The story’s strange conclusion only added to my sense of disconnection, making the book more perplexing than satisfying.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC which I read in exchange for my honest review.

Oof. Made it 50% in and stopped reading it because I was never able to fully connect nor understand the characters. To be honest, the characters felt flat.

It’s told from two perspectives: the patient and the psychiatrist. The patient, Jane, is experiencing hallucinations and amnesia with sci fi elements. I do not enjoy anything sci fi ish but I was able to still get past it. The psychiatrist grossed me out and I did not enjoy that plot line. Giving it a one star but I was intrigued enough to read this book.

Ooooh I really liked this one. One day, Jane walks in to psychiatrist Dr. Henry Byrd's office after having experienced what she can only describe as a hallucination; she saw and talked to someone who was long dead. After that first consultation she goes missing for 25 hours, no one could get a hold of her and she didn't pick up her son at daycare. She continues to see Dr. Byrd but for as much as he tries he can't understand what is happening to her and he can't let go.

Told from both of their PoVs, we follow Henry's understanding and opinions and Jane's views on things. I really liked how distinct they both feel. When reading from Hnery's PoV it's almost like reading doctor's notes - his voice is stiff and formal. He presents his opinions very factually and always considering the science behind it. Jane, even if still very grounded, reads more emotional - specially because what she is going through and what she went through in the past.

But to be honest, just as in her last book, even though I like and care about her characters, it's the ideas and the plot in itself that I really love in Karen Thompson's books. There are discussions around our current view on science and how sometimes we, as a society, ascribe so much value in only the science that we can understand and explain that we forget to expand our minds to different possibilities, compromising the very scientific method that is the foundation of discovery. I loved how she presented this discussion through the point of view of a scientist. The plot is also something that I really enjoyed - I liked where she went with her narrative SPOILERS AHEAD I really liked that Jane was seeing and living in another reality when she was in her "fugue" state - even her son wasn't the same. And how Henry got some comfort that his wife was alive somewhere END OF SPOILERS. The book is really engaging and I couldn't put it down because I really wanted to know what was going on with Jane - it has the feel of a psychological thriller combined with literary fiction and a little bit of SPOILERS AHEAD sci-fi END OF SPOILERS.

I really enjoy her writing, it flows so well for me and I can see everything very vividly.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and publisher for the ARC.

This captured me from the very beginning. Jane, a new mom of a one-year old boy, shows up at Dr. Byrd's office. He doesn't recall ever seeing her but she says she was at his office once....20 years ago and can recall every detail of his office! Her memory is incredible for any day you can name.

He is most interested in her as she begins to have amnesia, premonitions and hallucinations. She goes missing at times with no recollection of the time she was missing. A fascinating story. The ending did get a bit far-fetched for me, but it didn't damper my fascination with both characters - Jane and Dr. Byrd. Well-written characters.

My thanks to Net Galley and Random house for the advanced copy of this e-book.

This novel is told from two different perspectives as it flips back and forth from a patient, Jane, to her psychiatrist, Dr. Byrd.
Jane is a new mother experiencing something very unusual. She finally seeks out psychiatric help, but then goes missing. As you dive in trying to find Jane and figure out what is going on with her, you will switch between her journal entries she writes in present time, and the perspective of Dr. Byrd who is telling the story now, but of when he was her doctor in the past.

Honestly I know that is vague but go into this one the more blind the better! I loved that it read like a medical mystery and did keep me invested until the very end. You do not need to know anything of psychology or mental health psychosis to be able to follow the story. It is written well and easy to follow.

With a background in psychology myself, the premise of this book was so very intriguing to me. I am so very grateful for the advanced copy, but overall it fell a little flat for me. When it ended, I found myself feeling very disappointed in the ‘easy, quick’ ending.

With that said, although I may not remember this book for years to come, this psychological thriller definitely had me thinking long and hard after closing this book.

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing group for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book and have thought about it frequently since finishing it several weeks ago, which is a marker of a great book for me! The dual perspectives were really interesting and kept me turning the pages, trying to figure out what was happening. This felt like very approachable, or "light", sci-fi and would be a great entry level read to anyone wanting to dip into the genre. Readers who have enjoyed Blake Crouch's books, but wished for a little more female perspective and character development will LOVE this one, like I did!

A fantastic thriller. It’s beautifully written with so many pieces to the story. The story had me thinking and fully engrossed.

4.75/5 Stars (rounded up to 5)
When I first head Karen Thompson Walker was coming out with a new novel this Winter, I was immediately excited. This past fall, I was really craving something escapist, and for me, that often means something with a little speculative fiction mixed in. My favorite book podcaster who hosts Sarah's Bookshelves Live recommended The Age of Miracles to me via her Patreon Facebook group, and it was just what I needed at the time. Now, it being February (the shortest month of the year, yet for New Englanders like me, it often feels like the longest), I found myself craving something similar, so the timing couldn’t have been better. Although I had a hard time understanding the speculative fiction piece to this book (until maybe the end), I absolutely loved it all the same. It still told that mysterious, otherworldly story, and it did so through alternating parts- featuring a psychiatrists case notes (or what it felt like- it definitely included them, but it also broke the fourth wall by having the psychiatrist speak to the “reader” who he often refers to, whoever they may be, which I loved), and the pages of a journal the psychiatrist recommends his patient start keeping. I love reading multiple point of view books, and this was one written in such a unique way that I absolutely ate up. I felt as if I knew both the characters and at times *was* both the characters- the writing style, along with the expert characterization and come-off-the-page personalities made them characters I loved and will remember for a while. I resonated and empathized with them both as well, and given the fragile nature of patient Jane, this was a smart move by Thompson Walker.

Jane, the patient, is a complex character whose case is quite strange, for sure. Jane’s psychiatrist struggles to diagnose her, and the stakes are raised as Jane’s symptoms become more severe and even possibly dangerous- she reports hallucinations and blackouts, among other alarming issues. Not to mention- Jane is the single mother of a one year old and has no close family or friends to help her raise him. I wouldn’t say we ‘race’ to find out what’s happening to her- this was definitely more of a slow burn suspense in my opinion- but the need to find out what’s happening to her, mixed with the very interesting psychological notes and thoughts from her doctor made this a really unique take on a psychological thriller. As someone who studied psychology in college and who loves learning and thinking about the way the mind works, I especially appreciated that side to the story. The psychiatrist explains psychological theories and diagnoses in the way that my favorite psychology professors did- succinct, yet totally immersive. This goes to say- you don’t need to know anything about psychology beforehand to enjoy this aspect of the story.

One thing I loved about The Age of Miracles was it’s atmospheric quality- an important one for me- and the author nailed that here, too, enhancing the New York City setting by showing it through two different sets of eyes, two different lived experiences that intersected beautifully. I loved the way Thompson Walker compared the ‘old’ city- the one that Jane knew for the first time back in college studying abroad for a summer- and the one that Jane knows presently, the one that has become her home.

Beyond the dominating story- that being the mysterious case of Jane- we find one about the love between parent and child that is quite possibly the opposite of cliche. Both Jane and her psychiatrist are single parents to young children, and the reader gets to see the love between parent and child in two very different circumstances. It was beautiful to watch Jane’s journey as a parent- despite her possibly loosing her mind, she never looses sight of her love for her child. I found this a true testament to the bond between mother and child, and appreciated the author avoiding stereotypes and tropes that could have had different implications regarding the mother child relationship.

However, the only reason I give 4.75 instead of 5 stars was the ending, which did feel a bit cliche. This is disappointing for me in any story, but especially given the uniqueness to this premise, the fresh, pull-you-in storytelling- I was hoping the author would leave a bit more room for interpretation- either that, or perhaps the opposite, being a more concrete answer. The ending felt too ‘easy’ for such a complex story, to put it simply.

I know it’s early in the year, but this book is already on my list for possible best of the year contenders.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed herein are my own.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest novel by Karen Thompson Walker. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

A year after her child is born, Jane suffers from a series of strange episodes and seeks out a psychiatrist. Then she goes missing, only to be found unconscious in what appears to be an episode of dissociative fugue. She has no memory of what happened when she awakes. As the psychiatrist delves deeper, he begins questioning everything.

Go into this one as blind as possible, so that you can explore all the magic slowly unfurling on these pages. It's beautifully written and drew me in right away, as the pieces of the puzzle slowly fit into place. That's what it felt like - just something slowly clicking in your mind, rather than a big in your face twist. It's that perfect mesh of reality and speculative mystery revolving around our memory, identity and love. A must read!

Karen Thompson Walker’s novels have been on my TBR since they were published. The Strange Case of Jane O. is the first one I have read. It’s a difficult book to categorize - perhaps psychological mystery fits best. And the reader just needs to go on the ride. Told from two perspectives, Jane O’s in letters to her son, and Dr. Byrd, her psychiatrist, we learn about what Jane O is experiencing.

It’s a fascinating premise - a young mother is suffering from episodes of amnesia and hallucinations. I couldn’t stop turning the pages, wanting to know what was really happening, what her diagnosis was, and how it would end. The ending doesn’t resolve everything, but was satisfactory enough for me. I am now even more eager to read Thompson Walker’s previous books.

Thank you #RandomHouse for an early digital copy in exchange for my review.

3.5 stars rounded down. Honestly, this feels a little low, but I'm not sure I'd accurately describe my reaction to this book as "really liked it" aka 4 stars. It's an INTERESTING story, definitely. The ending premise I did not see coming. The novel is told from two different perspectives - that of Jane, and that of her psychiatrist, Dr. Byrd. And I enjoyed the dual narratives, and both characters.

"In the first year after her child is born, Jane suffers a series of strange episodes: amnesia, premonitions, hallucinations, and an inexplicable sense of dread. As her psychiatrist struggles to solve the mystery of what is happening to Jane’s mind, she suddenly goes missing. A day later she is found unconscious in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, in the midst of what seems to be an episode of dissociative fugue; when she comes to, she has no memory of what has happened to her.

Are Jane’s strange experiences related to the overwhelm of single motherhood, or are they the manifestation of a long-buried trauma from her past? Why is she having visions of a young man who died twenty years ago, who warns her of a disaster ahead? Jane’s symptoms lead her psychiatrist ever-deeper into the furthest reaches of her mind, and cause him to question everything he thought he knew about so-called reality—including events in his own life."

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed herein are my own.

I have very complicated feelings about The Strange Case of Jane O. and am not quite sure how to rate it. The story is told through letters that Jane, who is experiencing strange psychological symptoms, writes to her infant son, and the perspective of Dr. Bryd, the psychiatrist treating her.

I was excited early on when it became clear that Walker was inspired by Oliver Sacks. Walker certainly achieved writing similar to Sacks, but I ended up finding it somewhat boring. It was hard for me to get invested in Jane's symptoms or Dr. Byrd's thought on what may be the cause. With my enjoyment of Sacks's writing, it's hard to say what didn't work quite as well for me here; I suspect that it has to do with Walker sticking very close to Sacks's case study style, which is less compelling to me when it's not based on a true story.

Late in the book, Walker introduces some more sci-fi elements, and I think those elements came too late for me to get on board with.

What do you do when your own confidence in your memory and reality is no longer in step with the world? In The Strange Case of Jane O, it's not that the narrators are simply unreliable---it's that the reality cannot be trusted. Told from two perspectives-patient and doctor-the novel unfolds over the course of a summer. Jane, a single mother of a one-year-old, walks through the world as if a veil separates her from everyone else. Her own disappearance, followed by a reappearance, triggers her to seek out a doctor she saw once in her late teens. As the story unravels, so does the narrative thread, which is then is artfully rewoven by an author into a complete and wondrous creation. Walker has hit her stride in this masterful novel. A meditation on love, loss, hope and anxieties, both real and imagined, within the context of caring for very young children, Walker questions how we are tethered to earth, to reality, and to one another. I've been thinking about The Age of Miracles for years, and Jane O has wormed its way into my heart in the same way.

Thanks to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy. The views expressed her are exclusively my own, and I received no compensation for my opinion.

This quietly propulsive novel enables the reader to be a voyeur peering into the psychiatric sessions of a patient whose concerns far transcend a disappointing relationship or a stalled career. The story unspools in the psychiatrist’s case notes and letters that Jane O pens to her son, Caleb. The letter are prompted by Jane’s “urge to leave a record for you, in case I’m not around to tell you all of this when you’re old enough to hear it.”

Jane is a 38 year old single parent of a thirteen month old who met with Dr. Henry Byrd, a widowed psychiatrist with a three-year-old daughter, who was new to private practice after having been sacked from his former job after some “professional difficulties.” Dr. Byrd assumed that he would not see Jane again after she abruptly left their initial session; however, three days later, he receives a call from a hospital after a maintenance worker had found Jane unconscious on a field in Prospect Park. Jane provided Dr. Byrd’s contact information to the hospital personnel.

Jane returns for a few additional sessions with Dr. Byrd where she disclosed that she was an only child who grew up in Southern California and now worked as a librarian at the Fifth Avenue branch of the New York Public Library. Jane explained that her initial consult was prompted by a hallucination: she had seen someone on the street who she knew had died twenty years ago who called out her name. They had a routine conversation on the street, and then he had warned her to get out of the city. Other than her inability to account for the twenty-five hours that had passed prior to being discovered in the park, the most extraordinary characteristic was Jane’s prodigious memory, that “would preserve not only the treasured memories but also the loathed ones.”

Jane misses her next appointment wit Dr. Byrd and fails to show up for work. It seemed that whatever caused her to be in the park three weeks earlier might be happening again, but this time her son was with her. The police detectives were skeptical of Jane, assuming that she was seeking attention. Dr. Byrd considered that Jane was suffering from dissociative fugue, a form of amnesia where a person loses awareness of their identity and all personal memories, often accompanied by a sudden and inexplicable departure from home. The person may not attract attention because they do not appear to strangers to suffer from any psychopathology.

Karen Thompson Walker’s beautifully written novel is an unforgettable tale about memory, identity, and fate. It is a mesmerizing story about the love between a mother and her child, a man and a woman, and those who we’ve lost but may still be alive among us. Thank you Madison Dettlinger at Random House for an advanced copy of this intriguing psychological mystery that I had difficulty putting down.

2.5 stars, rounded down. Outlier alert!
Warning: if you dislike reading about the pandemic, this is not the book for you. There's a major section dealing with a pandemic.

I was really looking forward to this read, as I adored everything about The Dreamers. Unfortunately, this book just did not live up to my expectations.

I overall liked the premise, and even though it is a very slow burn, I initially had buy in because I wanted to see where things were going. In the end though, it just didn't deliver a cohesive enough story for me to get behind it. And then the ultimate ending made me round down, because of the weird ick factor it gave me.

The book is told from two perspectives. That of Dr. Henry Byrd, a psychiatrist, and the journal entries of Jane O., his patient who comes to him after experiencing some fugue state episodes.

We don't get to experience much in real time. It's a book full of telling us what happened and I felt like an outsider most of the time. I didn't connect with either of the main characters at all, and felt like they were both performing for each other rather than really trying to get to the heart of what was going on with Jane. I had zero buy in about Henry's "feelings" which came out of absolutely nowhere.

This was just not a book for me. There wasn't enough sci-fi to make it compelling (Like there was with The Dreamers) but there also wasn't enough of anything else to make it interesting without the sci-fi elements. I'll still give this author another chance because I do like her writing overall.

The Strange Case of Jane O. is a quick and compelling read. The story focuses on a single mother, Jane, who experiences increasingly alarming symptoms, before she ends up disappearing. The writing alternates between doctor's notes and Jane's diary entries, which slowly reveal both the facts of what is known about Jane's condition and her slow understanding of what could be going on.

Overall, I enjoyed this one, even if I wish it had pushed a little farther on the stranger aspects of Jane's experiences. The ending is both satisfying in terms of wrapping up one plotline and frustrating in how it shies away from making any declarations on what is actually going on. I am still a sucker for anything story that touches upon different timelines and alternate universes, so I liked this more romantic take on this sci-fi staple.

We meet Jane O. when she meets with psychiatrist Dr. Byrd's. "Something strange" that "didn't make sense" happened to her and she's hoping the doctor can help. The narrative is told from Dr. Byrd's case notes, and in later sections from Jane O.'s letters to her infant son, which Dr. Byrd recommended as therapy.

Two unreliable narrators. An exploration of the mysteries of the mind, coincidences, grief, possibilities. While the prose was straightforward, the subject matter was not - this was a brain bender, in the best way. I had to know what was going on, and finished this in one day.

A haunting story that uniquely unfolds, this was riveting. Best discovered going in cold.

My thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the digital ARC. (pub date 2/25/2025)

“The Strange Case of Jane O.,” by Karen Thompson Walker, Random House, 304 pages, Feb. 25, 2025.

Dr. Henry Byrd, a New York psychiatrist, is the narrator. Jane O., 38, goes to his office for the first time and stays only 14 minutes. She tells him she is a librarian and has a one-year-old son, Caleb.

She hasn’t been sleeping well since her son was born. The only trauma she recalls is the death of an elderly neighbor named Shelia Schwartz. Jane tells Byrd that she also had a hallucination: she saw someone that she knows is dead and talked with him. His name was Nico Lombardi and he died when he was 18.

Three days later, Byrd gets a call from New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital. A woman has been brought in to the emergency room. She was found unconscious in Prospect Park. She says her name is Jane and that Byrd is her doctor.

The more Byrd learns of her case, the less certain he is of its nature. At Byrd’s suggestion that she keep a journal, Jane begins to write letters to her son. Jane has an excellent memory but are her memories real? Is Byrd or Jane the reliable narrator?

The plot and the characters are interesting. Karen Thompson Walker does an excellent job of blending the two main characters’ voices. The ending is surprising.

I rate it four out of five stars.

In accordance with FTC guidelines, the advance reader's edition of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a review.