Psych Thriller Gone Round the Bend

Do not put the words obsessive and love in the same sentence and expect anything other than a disaster.

Dr. Shields is a well-known psychiatrist and university professor who happens to be running a morality study on young women.

Jess is a twenty-eight year makeup artist living in NYC and working hard to make ends meet. Under false pretenses, she attempts to join Dr. Shields’s study since it pays five hundred dollars for what seems like simply answering a few Myers-Briggs type questions. Jess is accepted into the study and hands over personal information.

Soon, Dr. Shields make Jess an offer to expand the study requiring even more from Jess, much of it confusing and outside her comfort zone. Jess seems specially chosen and at first is flattered however flattery soon turns to fear as Jess realizes Dr. Shields reach into all aspects of her life. As Dr. Shields’s true motives are discovered, Jess must learn to match wits with the master of a high stakes game.

Jess’s motivations for making more money are for a worthy cause however her reasons are exploited and her judgment becomes clouded as she falls deeper into a trap, risking all, including those she loves most. Meanwhile, Dr. Shields expertly weaves a sinister web drawing in her prey and capturing them wholly.
This is the second collaboration between the authors and promises a thrilling game of cat and mouse which will leave you breathless.
BRB Rating: Read It.

Received an ARC from NetGalley.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It fascinated me and held my attention. I even lost sleep just so I could find out what happens. However, I wasn’t very satisfied with the way it all was wrapped up at the end. It just didn’t seem right following the themes of the rest of the book. Maybe that’s just me though. I still did enjoy the book and believe other fans of psychological suspense type books would enjoy reading this.

I received this as an eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.

3 🌟's

I'll preface this by saying I have not read The Wife Between Us. Since fishing this, I am very excited to.

This book was very gripping and kept me guessing. Basically the entire time. I had half guessed most of what was going to happen, but the end still had me shocked. The characters developed well over the course of the novel, adding for sure to the overall suspense.

With all of that being said, I felt that the book ended rather abruptly, and entirely to neatly. I felt the ending came across slightly as the easy way out and after the build-up, it was a slight disappointment.

I look forward to reading more from these authors!

I loved The Wife Between Us from these 2 authors and I expected a good read with An Anonymous Girl. I wasn't disappointed! What a great read!

Thanks for this ARC.

This book is written by the same authors who brought us The Wife Between Us. I didn't get the same shock factor with this book as I did the Wife Between Us. It was definitely a slow burn, and I tore through the pages to see how it ended. While not as gratifying as I had hoped, I still enjoyed the writing of the book and waiting to see what happened next.

Wow! I read this book in 2 days! It kept me on the edge of my seat and I never knew what was coming next! Thanks for writing an awesome book!

Jess, is a make up artist who is barely making ends meet.

She overhears a client’s conversation one evening about a morality and ethics study being conducted by Dr. Shields the following morning, which will pay $500. She doubts that Taylor, the college student talking about the study, will be up early enough to attend, after her evening out, so she shows up in her place, and is allowed to participate.

She becomes Subject 52.

She begins to answer a series of questions and despite the fact that she was not supposed to be a part of the study, she is just the kind of participant that Dr. Shields has been looking for.

Dr Shields asks her if she would consider expanding her role in the study, for significantly higher compensation...

Of course, Jess says YES...

But will it be worth it? Is what the DR asking of subject 52 ethical and moral?

The chapters alternate...Jess and then Dr. Shields; with the Dr’s chapters sounding to me like what a psychiatrist would record about a patient on tape, though the Dr was actually taking meticulous notes on a yellow legal pad.

Completely different from “The Wife Between Us” this story is less about shocking twists, and more about the build up of tension as you discover WHY the Dr is conducting the study and the lengths the Dr will go to “in the name of research”. (Don’t worry! There are still plenty of surprises!)

I was riveted! No sophomore slump for the collaboration from these two talented ladies!

I would like to thank Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the authors Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for a candid review! This book will be available Jan 8, 2019!
Pre-order now!!

Overall, a creepy suspenseful tale of a young woman who lies her way into a psychological study on morality. A shift occurs when the study is seemingly over and a game of cat and mouse involving lies and infidelity occurs. Consistent for the most part with some unexpected twists yet an unsurprising end.


Copy provided by the Publisher

Slow going into it , not as crazy or creepy as The Wife Between Us was ,but it's just as good , it did take me a while to get into the story unlike The Wife Between Us , and I know that each story is different and so is the characters , while I did like the story I didn't like the characters at all. Can't wait to see what their next book will be .With that said I want to thank Netgalley for letting me read review The Anonymous Girl in a change for my honest opinion.

I was so excited to get a copy of this book, having loved The Wife Between Us! I dove right in and it had such an eerie storyline. Jess was a very complex character who had a lot of baggage from mistakes she made when she was young. She still holds a lot of guilt and tries to cover it by doing things that are reckless. I can understand her reasoning for trying to join the study because it seems like easy money, that she really needs. But things get so strange so quickly with Dr. Shields. I felt like Jess was a formidable opponent in the game of cat and mouse that began between her and Dr. Shields once Jess caught on to her manipulations. I flew this book, as I did The Wife Between Us, it didn't have the big surprises that The Wife Between Us had but the mind games really kept the story interesting!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I read The Wife Between Us by these authors and I loved it so I was really excited to get approved for this ARC. I think this one may actually be better than the previous book. I agree with other reviewers that the synopsis should be limited to just the fact that a girl works her way into a psychological study. Nothing else should be given away because I had NO idea where this was going for quite awhile but I was very intrigued. Then once I did know where it was going, I was not disappointed. I didn't know who I could trust and I really loved the way the chapters from the doctor's perspective were written. This one had many twists and turns at the end. I couldn't put it down and look forward to the next one from these authors.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for my Kindle.
I read "The Wife Between Us," and it was o.k., but "An Anonymous Girl," was a good one!
Entering a case study for the sole reason to make some money was the premise that the book began with but it's so much more. A few twists and turns I figured out, but there were many that I didn't see coming. I did have to go back and read the "Epilogue" again to make sure I understood the ending of the book. I would have liked a happier ending for the main character, but the ending was what realistic. A good psychological thriller!

I just finished a really good book that kept me reading late into the night, big surprise! An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen is a great suspense novel. I loved it from page one and was totally hooked. I like how the style is different and the plot is one I never saw before. The book switches from the main character Jess to the psychiatrist, Dr. Sheilds. I was kind of on edge as I read, on edge in the best way!



Here’s what you need to know about this fabulous book, due out in 2019:

Seeking women ages 18–32 to participate in a study on ethics and morality. Generous compensation. Anonymity guaranteed.

When Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study conducted by the mysterious Dr. Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money, and leave. But as the questions grow more and more intense and invasive and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to feel as though Dr. Shields may know what she’s thinking…and what she’s hiding. As Jess’s paranoia grows, it becomes clear that she can no longer trust what in her life is real, and what is one of Dr. Shields’ manipulative experiments. Caught in a web of deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly.

I got a sneak peek so I can tell you how good it is and how you will want to read this as soon as it’s out next January!

Intriguing and shocking at the same time! How far would you go for love? Never have I read a story where I felt hatred as well as empathy for a character before. Dr. Shields was indeed lost in her own world and sense of entitlement. However, Dr. Shields did diagnosed Jessica correctly in the end. I did not see that one coming. No matter how Jessica justified herself for doing what she did. It was a great read. Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen never disappoint with one of their books.

An absolutely incredible book. Very mysterious and intriguing and pulls you in so it’s impossible to put down. #greerhendricks #ananonymousgirl

A financially strapped make up artist takes the place of one of her coed clients in a paid psychological research study. Hilarity ensues. No, just kidding. Nothing much of interest ensues. The woman running the study has an ulterior motive and in her quest for cash the make up artist becomes her unwitting pawn.

As you can tell I found it very hard to stay with this book until the end. I had previously read The Wife Between Us by the same authors and had enjoyed all of it except the final plot twist. In An Anonymous Girl they seem to have taken that same kind of weird plot twist and used it as the basis for the book. It fails.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Having read the earlier book, The Wife Between Us, by these two authors I couldn’t resist the offer to read this latest novel when it was offered to me. See sometimes you just know that you need to read a book by the description, as well as the authors’ previous work, as well. This one definitely falls into that category.

The story opens with the main character, Jessica Farris doing what she does best with going beauty and makeup makeovers to two young clients. But her whole life is on a crazy course to change when she takes a chance on a message meant for her client to get involved with a psychology study with an acclaimed NYU professor.

At first, it all seems too perfect that Jessica is making quite a bit of money answering some questions on morality. But pretty soon, the professor running this study takes an unhealthy interest in Jessica and insinuates herself into Jessica whole life. The professor is using Jessica it seems to test her own husband’s fidelity. Somehow though Jessica gets involved with the professor’s husband all on her own. And from there the story takes on a crazy life of its own.

All three characters (Jessica, the professor, and her husband) have their own secrets, flaws and more. So, it is truly a twisted tale from start to finish. As others have pointed out, there isn’t one big twist. But many smaller ones along the way. Each one from the first through the epilogue twist left me more shocked than the last. Plus, the reference to famous The Beatles song line from “The End” was the cherry on top for any and all Beatles fans.

I wasn't a fan of The Wife Between Us like so many others were. I was hoping I'd enjoy this one more but I found it to be only okay. While the authors are talented and have a substantial fan base, I'm just not one of them.

Thank you Net galley for the absolute pleasure of reading this book in advance. I requested this book., Because I enjoyed The Wife Between us by these authors. Well I have to say this book was even better than that one. The characters were intriguing to say the least. The story line was absolutely fantastic, so different than the usual physiological thillers we read. This book will definitely be a best seller and I will recommend it to all my friends and fellow reader.

Sit down, buckle up, and hang on, because this one is an “E-ticket” ride all the way! (And yes, that’s a decades-old reference, for those of you old enough to remember!) It’s very difficult to review a psychological thriller without giving anything away, because there are so many little things that can make or break a thrilling story; but I’m going to give it a go here. I had not read any previous works by these authors so I was completely new to their style. I loved how the story was told from different points of view, but not in the usual “alternating chapters” style. The plot was excellent and fully realized; everything happened for a reason and there were no perfunctory or throw away events or characters. Most of all, though (and this is what really sets this book apart) is that the authors had me questioning everything I was reading from start to finish…and I mean literally until the last word. Any assumptions or guesses I made were inevitably wrong, or at the very least only remotely accurate. I read this book in two sittings, including well into the wee hours of the morning, because it was just moving so fast I couldn’t put it down. And when I got to the end? I wanted to start it all over again with the knowledge of the resolution, just so I could see if there were any clues that might have been dropped along the way. An excellent book, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. An extra big thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.