REVIEW:

If you’re a meat ‘n potatoes kind of domestic thriller lover, never willing to add a little something different to the menu, you might want to abstain from reading A. R. Torre’s latest suspense novel.

A Familiar Stranger takes a familiar genre and spices it up. Not in the “spicy” sense of grody sex scenes, but rather by taking some interesting and unusual risks that are sure to alienate some readers. The general premise is pretty standard - a wife begins an affair shortly after learning her husband is having one himself. Someone turns up dead. Readers of course are meant to wonder who the killer is, but first they have to wonder who the KILLED is.

That’s right, for the first part of the book we know someone will die but not who it will be. Then we find out, and then bam, we’re reading a different kind of story all of a sudden.

Personally I’m all in on Torre and whatever she dishes out after her last two thrillers, Every Last Secret and The Good Lie. The lady knows how to write a page turner, okay? So even though I found some of the elements predictable (such as sleuthing out the murderer even though I hadn’t initially guessed who had been murdered), I applaud her for taking chances in a genre that might be approaching its sell by date.

My thanks to the author and Thomas & Mercer for the gifted advance copy to review via NetGalley. The expected US publication date is September 27, 2022.

PUBLISHER SYNOPSIS:

Such a quiet and ordinary wife and mother. Who will even notice what she’s done?

Lillian Smith leads an unexceptional life, writing obituaries and killing time with her inattentive husband and disconnected son. Then she meets David, a handsome stranger, in a coffee shop. Lured into an affair, she invents a new persona, one without strings, deadlines, or brooding husbands.

Lillian has never felt so reckless, unpredictable, or wanted. But as her affair with David intensifies, she withdraws from everything that’s real, even her closest friend. When evidence of her life as a secret lover finds its way onto her son’s social media, she risks ruining much more than her marriage or reputation.

As lies beget lies, Lillian’s two worlds spiral dangerously out of control. And betrayals run deeper than she imagines. Because Lillian isn’t the only one leading a double life.