PUBLICATION DAY: August 27, 2024

Kiki is a reporter, searching for a way back to the days when she was a respected journalist. Balancing her work and motherhood isn’t easy, but she has been managing until she stumbles on to the murder of Karen Slimmon, a woman she recently interviewed about online dating. As she investigates this death further, she comes in contact with Elise, the detective and Annie, a still grieving mother. What will these three women encounter during this investigation? And are any of them safe?

PROS and CONS:
It is quite painful to read about the experiences of Kiki and some of the other women as they navigate the pitfalls of the online dating world in search of true love. There is also a raw portrayal of Elise, the detective dealing with cancer and the demands of a stressful job. And then there is Annie, the mother who has already suffered so much, and will perhaps find out something even worse. This is an excellent book, my favourite so far from Barton.

READ IT?
I loved it - so yes!!!

5 Stars

This book was a little predictable and had a lot of characters to keep track of but oveall I enjoyed the story.

This was such a great mystery novel, it had everything that I was looking for and enjoyed about the genre. The overall concept worked with everything that I wanted and thought that everything worked overall. The characters were everything that I was hoping for and enjoyed getting to read this. Fiona Barton has a great writing style and I’m glad I read this.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this ARC! This book was BRILLIANT. There were so many twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat the majority of the time. I loved the character development of all the main characters in the book. Typically I find multiple viewpoints books to be a bit challenging to navigate but the extensive character development in this book made reading it a breeze as each character really had a different personality and tone. Absolutely loved the ending but wish we would have gotten more information on Archie’s death as I don’t feel like that part was as clear. Overall brilliant work, 5 stars from me!

Fast-paced, easy read.
Predictable, can you guess
the full picture?
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


I write haiku reviews on Instagram but am happy to provide further feedback.

Welcome back Detective Elise King! She is recovering from cancer and still getting her footing when she is thrown straight into an investigation of a local woman's murder. Karen Simmons was mid 40's woman looking for love and well-known in the small town. When her body is found in the woods, everyone is afraid. An intrepid report named Kiki throws herself head first into the story, believing that it's a case of an online dating meeting gone wrong. The two strong woman step on each other's toes as they race to get to the bottom of it all.

Meanwhile, we are introduced to Annie, a woman still grieving the death of her young son many years ago. She returns to those same woods and ends up opening a Pandora's box.

There are lots of threads and sometimes too many but a wholly enjoyable story that I needed to finish in one sitting! I can't wait to see what's next for Elise, I really admire her!
#fionabarton #talkingtostrangers #berkley

Thank you, NetGalley for an early copy of Talking to Strangers by Fiona Barton. D.I. Elise King is back in the second book in the series, she is called to solve the murder of Karen Simmons. The reporter Kiki Nunn is determined to solve the murder before the police and revive her career in journalism. Annie is the third narrator in the story, her son was found dead years ago in the same spot Karen Simmons is found. Is this a coincidence or are they connected?

A great thriller that explores issues many single women face in the dating world. It took a while to get into this book and follow with so many characters. I loved that I did not guess the ending. I will definitely read the next one in the series.

Not much to say about this book. I didn't love it but didn't hate it. An average whodunnit, Anyone who is a fan of Fiona Burton will enjoy it!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't get completely hooked into this for quite a while, it was a little slow going for me. But once I got into it I found msyelf enjoying it, and I was pleasantly suprised by the ending!

Four women......Karen Simmons is found murdered on Valentine’s Day. Detective King suspects her online dating life might hold the key. .Journalist Kiki Nunn is determined to crack the case. Annie finds similarities relating to the death of her son. But how do the puzzles pieces connect????

Told for 3 points of view, I found it a little tough getting into the story. It was interesting to see how the lives of these four women were connected. The story was very thought provoking, and with the online dating, this could very well happen. I did find it rather easy to solve the case. I had it narrowed down and was correct.

It was an okay read. There are other books by this author that I like better. I would definitely recommend you give this one a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this ARC to enjoy.

This book got better as it went on The beginning/middle felt overly long and not so interesting but I kept at it and the end was worth it. I guessed a number of the twists. Three women, a mother grieving still for her murdered child, a reporter and a police detective and the cases that involve them, personally and professionally. Who can be trusted

Great mystery/thriller! The author kept me engaged and wove together a great story! I loved how the women wound up helping each other figure things out near the end! Great character development- believable characters and storyline.

Karen Simmons uses an online dating app. Karen Simmons is murdered on Valentine's Day. Enter detective Elise King and wanna be detective, reporter Kiki Nunn who had a semi personal relationship with Karen.

The story is told through these two perspectives along with a third person, Annie. Annie has her own story as her son was murdered and found in the same woods Karen was found in.

It takes a moment to get going with this, but once you do it goes at a quick pace. The chapters are short which allows the switch of the narrators to go seamlessly. The ending is predictable about midway through but the story is interesting enough to keep you reading to the end.

Another great read by Fiona Barton and I look forward to reading her next.

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkeley Publishing group for the advanced copy of this book

This was my first book by Fiona Barton and will not be my last, i’m ready to read her entire backlog after this book!

Fiona Barton weaves together a strong story that (nearly) kept me guessing. I enjoy her writing and her characters, some of which are challenging to sympathize with but I think that adds to their depth. Talking to Strangers explores important contemporary themes in a way that is considerate to the challenges women face. Thanks, NetGally, for an advanced copy in exchange for a review.

I really enjoyed Local Gone Missing by Fiona Barton, it was a cozy little British mystery. However, it's been awhile since I read it and while reading Talking to Strangers, the books were connected by characters that I didn't remember well so it gave the sense of reading a second book when you didn't remember what happened in the first. The feeling persisted throughout the book and ended up making it feel unsatisfying of a read. I wish I had read the two books back to back.

Elise King is an investigative journalist and reporter who is on a mission to solve the murder of Karen Simmons, a local woman. Little does she know that this case has been connected to multiple crimes in the present and past. As the investigation progresses, she and her partner, Kiki, become increasingly perplexed by missing information and questions. After some difficult detective work and a sting operation, more questions begin to surface. The story eventually concludes with the closure of a cold case and a new...

There were times while I was reading this book where I was super engrossed in the story, but then my interest would wane a bit, but overall I did enjoy it. I wasn’t certain at first how the characters were going to be connected, so I did like that there was some mystery there. I will say that I did not enjoy it as much as The Widow and The Child.

I really enjoyed this book think it was on par with many of the authors other books. The multiple perspectives are interesting as always, but some of the twists were predictable. I found myself having a hard time putting the book down, but at the same time it almost felt a little too long and drawn out. All in all I enjoyed it.

Thanks to NetGallery for an advanced copy of this book.

While this book did not initially grasp me, it definitely got better and kept my interest. Some nice twists along the way and a surprising end.