The Stranger Inside is a dark, nail-biting thriller that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Unger's writing is strong and compelling. The plot is excellent. The characters are engaging. Highly recommended to readers looking for a fresh thriller with an unpredictable mystery. Be sure to check out The Stranger Inside today!

The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger is psychological fiction at its best, taking the reader on a roller-coaster of emotions and tension. When Rain Winters was twelve, her two close friends Tess and Hank were abducted while the trio was walking in the woods. Rain escaped but Hank and Tess were taken by a vicious killer. Hank was able to escape eventually but Tess never returned. Years later, Rain, a journalist on leave, is a stay-at-home wife and mother, when a murderer who escaped justice is killed. This reminds Rain of the fate of the man who ruined her childhood: he was murdered when he was released from prison. Suspecting a vigilante may have committed these two murders, she begins to investigate and, in doing so, stirs up memories that would have been better left undisturbed. What she uncovers is shocking. If you love psychological thrillers, The Stranger Inside will be very satisfying. Highly recommended. Thank you to Harlequin Park Row and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A slow and unsatisfying story...

As a child Rain was nearly kidnapped by a disturbed individual, instead her two best friends were taken. One was murdered and one escaped. Rain has always blamed herself for her 12 year old's self inaction in a truly terrifying moment of her life. She becomes an investigative journalist, and follows terrible stories that happen. One of the cases happens to be a man that, in all likelihood murdered his wife and unborn child, but gets acquitted. A year or so after he's acquitted he is found murdered in a very similar fashion to how his wife was found murdered. This brought up the possibility of a vigilante murdering those that are released/acquitted/justice not served. Rain takes this moment to dig into her past and these other cases in order to find out what happened and figure out who this serial killer is.

Meanwhile, Hank, the best friend that escaped, has become a psychologist and is working with traumatized children and teens trying to help them be survivors. He spends his time helping the kids and then stalking Rain. Readers are also informed that when he was escaping he couldn't do it alone, so his brain split and there's an angry, mean version of himself that comes out when Hank needs to be protected. Hank believes that he's in control, but is he really?

Honestly, this did not feel like a mystery, or a thriller, or even that suspenseful. The "twist" at the end is not really that shocking, and you are informed really early on what it is, you just don't get to have it laid out for you until later. Hank's behavior is creepy and he really needs to be seeking help for as much as he gives it. Yes, he does help a lot of kids, which is wonderful, but he needs to get some for himself. Rain's behavior is just annoying. While I understand that she has been traumatized and suffers from PTSD, her decisions in this book are just frustrating. The majority of this book was her arguing with herself and her husband about whether or not she should go back to her job or be a stay at home mom, and then when she is being a mom about how good or bad she is at it. Meanwhile, her husband is just a terrible person. We're told over and over about how he's a good guy, but he criticizes Rain for every action she takes, complains all the time about her trying to get the story done and back into work (but he supports her and wants her to have the chance to do this...), and then anytime their daughter gets fussy while under Rain's care he is all over her about how she needs to be better and pay more attention. Except when he has to watch her he can't manage to even feed her properly without freaking out and yelling at Rain for being gone too long. He is such a terrible person, but because he says the "right" things Rain dismisses it and thinks that she's a poor mom and that she shouldn't be pursuing a career as well. Their whole marriage was just crap.

I know that this makes me a disturbed person, but I also hated that they talked all the time about the terrible things that Tess suffered, but you never really find out what that is. I'm sure some people appreciated not having the details about horrible sufferings for a young girl, but since this is such a referenced part of the book, I wish I knew what they were referencing.

I did enjoy the parts where Rain actually focused on the story like an actual podcast and wish it was slightly more like "Sadie" by Courtney Summers, because I really enjoyed that format. The pace is also quicker in that format. This book just took forever to read, I was going to not finish it and give up, but I wanted to know if my guess at the twist was correct.

Free copy provided by NetGalley.

3.5 out of 5 stars

Rain Winter is adjusting to being a stay at home mom after a job as a journalist. When a murder catches her eye, she is thrown back into her past. Rain was a survivor of an awful attack when she was young. She wasn’t the only survivor though and she begins to suspect that Henry is involved in the murder. Are there more vigilante killings including the murder of their attacker?

Though it has very dark aspects to the story, there was also a kind of peaceful redemption, in a way. The push and pull of motherhood with wanting to also be back to doing what you love was a good plot point. The characters were believable and you totally understood where they were coming from, if not always doing things the acceptable way. There is a reveal that I didn’t see coming at all. I enjoyed the story and the conclusion was very satisfying.

Thanks to Netgalley and Park Row for a copy of this book.

Rain Winter experienced a horribly tragedy. She escaped an abduction, barely. Tragically, two of her best friends did not as well. Her best friend Tess was killed, and Hank suffered serious harm. Fortunately, the kidnapper was caught and imprisoned. However, he was eventually released. While Rain became terrified all over again, she soon learned that the man had been killed.

So, Rain is free to live a normal life. She was a very successful journalist, but chose to leave her career and to stay at home with her baby daughter. Now that the man has been killed, this brings back all the horror to Rain, especially as she is drawn into the case. This is in part because of her connection to journalism.

Rain knows that a vigilante is at work. But why? As this story progresses, Rain's past trauma is relayed. This was utterly tragic. There was no way not to be involved emotionally on many levels. On the one hand, imagining what Rain, Tess and Hank went through was utterly heartbreaking. Then the need for vengeance felt so real. I was riveted to this story because it had it all: tension, drama, tragedy, danger and more.

Imagining Rain as a protective mother after the past she could never forget added another layer to this thrilling story. In part this is because even though the man was killed, the danger has not let up. In fact, it has increased. Rain's take on it is definitely not what anyone expected. This being said, this story runs at a rapid pace, which continually escalated and resulted in shocking twists and turns. This all resulted in a shocking conclusion.

Many thanks to Park Row and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger. All opinions are my own!

I really enjoyed this book. The fast-paced thriller kept me on the edge of my seat and I really enjoyed the flashback chapters from when the kids were abducted, giving us more into why each character ended up the way they were. I was a little disappointed with Hank's character development because it seemed like they went one direction with him and then dropped it. I really connected with this book because it had a lot of parenting topics, including the guilt you feel as a working mom and sometimes having to choose between being a parent or a working woman. I really related to main character, Rain, in that aspect so I enjoyed the book even more because of that! That's something that I haven't seen represented much in books and I was really appreciative that it was.

My Highly Caffeinated Thought: A tense and gripping thriller dealing with past trauma, the darkness in human nature, and the desire for revenge.

Oh, how I love a Lisa Unger novel! There are certain authors that I know will give me a solid read that I can lose myself in. THE STRANGER INSIDE is one of those books. With twists, turns, and a whole lot of secrets, this story pulled me in and sent me down a path as the characters struggle to deal with their baggage from the past.

What I loved about this book is that there are so many layers to characters. Rain, Hank, and all those we meet in these pages are complex and genuinely fascinating personalities. The author plays with the concept of good and bad by testing the limits of what these characters are capable of doing. This push and pull between good and evil is the crux of the whole book. As the reader, I got to experience so many sides of human nature. Unger brings to life the fear, pain, guilt, and desire for justice in dealing with a traumatic event, but she does so in a way that is different for each character separately. This is what makes the book so addictive.

In this smart, compelling, and darkly taut thriller, the author gifts her readers with a story that will push the limits of what you think is right and wrong. I enjoyed getting to see multiple sides of a crime, along with why someone would choose revenge. Survival is not as easy as we would like to think, and this book shows just how complex it can be.

My thanks to Harlequin and Netgalley. Seriously, the fact that I'm thanking Harliquin for a good book is surreal. Harlequin? This can't be the Harlequin books from my youth?
Anywho..
I've only ever read one Lisa Unger book, and I liked it. A lot. Red Hunger? I don't know, something along those lines. I'd have to check, and right now I just don't care!
I liked this book. Quite a bit.
In all honesty, I was a wee bit sick when I read this. Not a biggie. But, it was 3 weeks or more ago. I liked the mystery, "which in truth I can barely remember." The one thing I mostly remember though is being annoyed at the repettiveness of the woman thinking she was an unfit mother for wanting to work again. Yes, it was too much. Over and over! Please, all women just know that you are enough! You can and should have it all.
I think this was my biggest gripe about this book. Please stop having women fret about children and work. Try to incorporate both. Honestly? It became too freaking annoying.

Once this story gets going, it's really hard to put it down. Lots of good , strong characters in this story. No huge surprises here but still a tense, engrossing read.

Thank you for the ARC, Harlequin! I love Lisa Unger's books and was very excited to get the chance to read this.

This one was an interesting dual-narrative, two childhood friends who were victimized (but not murdered, obviously) by a killer in their young years, now each struggling to make it in the world. When their killer is murdered, and subsequently other murders seem connected, it brings them both back to their past to try and solve the mystery and move on and heal. It was interesting, but I didn't find it as suspenseful and pulse-pounding as I would have hoped. Good book, worth reading.

Lisa Unger has a knack for creating a thriller that not only keeps you on the edge of your seat, but makes you feel for the characters and really explores their feelings and psychological motivations. The Stranger Inside is no different; it tackles the struggle of Rain to navigate being a "working mom" and trying to move forward from the trauma she suffered when two of her best friends were kidnapped when she was young. She's done her best, but one of her friends has been unable to move on, and risks pulling Rain out of her happy life and back to that dark day.

THE STRANGER INSIDE by LISA UNGER is an engrossing, fantastic, tension-filled, dark, and thrilling novel that was absolutely unputdownable. I was immediately sucked into the narrative and devoured every single page of this highly entertaining book. I was fully immersed in this story--I don’t think my mind wandered even once while I was reading this book.

LISA UNGER delivers a vividly descriptive, atmospheric, intriguing, well-written and irresistible thriller here that I absolutely loved and was thoroughly impressed by. The characters were extremely interesting, compelling, and definitely held my full attention.

The storyline was one that I found myself totally drawn into. I was questioning and pondering the actions and reactions of our characters here to a point where I found myself sitting on the edge of my seat on pins and needles in anticipation of how it was all going to play out. I was fully engaged and invested in this tale and the ending left me with shivers and goosebumps!

When it comes to psychologically suspenseful and thrilling stories, Lisa Unger knows how to tell them. The Stranger Inside is the story of Rain Winter who escapes abduction while her friends Tess and Hank were not so fortunate. Rain buries her story while her friend Hank relives it. Now a temporarily stay at home mom with a new baby Rain is keeping her journalistic tendencies at bay as the story of vigilante killings appear in the news. The stories themselves has her thinking back to own. She wonders if she needs to find the answers to the events of her past while answering who is murdering men who are not held responsible for their crimes. The story builds as Rain takes chances with the life she's built with her loving husband and daughter to find answers to her questions. Unger will take you on a ride of twists and turns you won't see coming as the story races to an end you don't expect.

Rain is a stay-at-home mom, and a former reporter. When a suspected killer is found murdered, she finds it hard to not investigate the case. The recent murder reminds Rain of a murder of the man who attempted to abduct Rain and her friends when she was a kid. Rain was able to escape her kidnapper, though her two friends were not so lucky.Being forced to relive the horrors of that night Rain knows there is no way that she can let the vigilante escape this time even if his or her actions seem justified.

The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger is a well written addictive ,suspenseful thriller with different POV’s. An entertaining read which I would definitely recommend and will look forward to the next one by Lisa Unger

I would like to thank Harlequin & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.

When Rain was 12 years old her two best friends were abducted and one died. She has never fully come to terms with the fact that she got away. Their abductor didn’t go to jail; he went for psychiatric treatment and was released years later. But someone issued real justice when he was killed in the same manner that he killed Tess. Rain is now a stay at home mom and tries her best to not think about the events from her childhood. When another murderer who was not convicted is found dead, Rain feels the need to write about her own experiences. Who is this vigilante? Why can’t Rain just let it stay in her past?

The Stranger Inside is a psychological thriller with some well-placed twists included. I love Unger’s books because she always keeps readers guessing where the story will go and this one is no different. This novel is told in multiple voices, one of which is a killer. Readers will know what everyone is thinking and feeling, yet they will still be amazed that Unger is able to throw in a few unexpected twists. The Stranger Inside should not be passed up by anyone who enjoys this genre.

After loving my first Lisa Unger book, Under My Skin, I was really excited to read The Stranger Inside. Unfortunately, this one fell pretty short of that mark. Rain is a hard-boiled newslady turned stay-at-home mom, and she’s not exactly satisfied with her new job title. She’s itching to get back out there and investigate violent crime, especially when she hears about a vigilante murder that bears a strong resemblance to one she’s personally connected to. Rain and her two best friends were abducted as young children. Rain escaped into the woods, Hank was taken to a second location but survived, and Tess was murdered. Years later someone killed their abductor in a vigilante style—killing the murderer in the same way he murdered. There’s clearly a Dexter-style serial killer out there. Rain uses her ex-reporter status and a friend who’s still in the biz to help her start a podcast about these justice killings. As she digs deeper, she uncovers some unsettling truths, but to say more might spoil the plot for other readers. Sadly, I didn’t find Rain to be very relatable, and the rest of the characters were so lightly drawn that I couldn’t connect to any of them, either. The plot meanders, is pretty unbelievable, and the final “twist” wasn’t very exciting. It wasn’t that I guessed it, it just didn’t surprise me at all. There are lots of great thrillers out there right now. Give this one a pass.

Twelve-year-old Rain Winter escaped an abduction while walking to a friend’s house. One of her friends never came home, and one was held in captivity before managing to escape. The abductor was sent to prison and years later was released. Then someone decided to take justice into their own hands and killed the abductor in cold blood.

Rain is enjoying the perfect suburban life with her dark childhood buried deep. But when another brutal murderer who escaped justice is found dead, Rain is unexpectedly drawn into the case. Eerie similarities to the murder of her friends’ abductor will force Rain to revisit memories she’s worked hard to leave behind. Is this the work of a vigilante?

Okay, friends, I’m going to let you in on an embarrassing secret. This is my first Lisa Unger book. There is no good reason for this. It just happened to have worked out that way. I’ve always wanted to read one of her books. So when the opportunity came up for me to join the blog tour for The Stranger Inside, I jumped on it! Welcome to my stop.

There was a lot to love about this book. I’m always drawn to books that feature some sort of vigilante justice as a theme and in that regard, this book really delivered. I was drawn in right away by the dual perspectives of Hank, told in the first person, and Rain, told in the third. Their shared victimology bound them together in a number of ways some of which were expected and some of which were quite dysfunctional. One might even say creepy. (Me, I am the one.)

The Stranger Inside was unique in that it was both character and theme driven. The reader is implored consider a number of topics ranging from the way women’s roles and expectations change as we start families to why two people who experience the same tragedy can walk away changed in completely different ways. It’s always great when you can read a book that’s page-turning and entertaining but also makes you think.

In my opinion, The Stranger Inside leans more toward dramatic suspense than thriller but there were a few edge-of -seat moments. And one big twist that I did not see coming!

This may have been the first book I’ve read by Lisa Unger but I’m sure it won’t be the last. If you have a favorite, I’d love to hear what it is.

Many thanks to Park Row press for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to like this book. I like the synopsis and really had high hopes that this book would be at least a 4 star book for me.

Unfortunately, I was so bored. I was not invested in the characters at all. The pacing felt slow and stagnant at times. The overall plot was predictable. I even re-read the last few chapters to see if I missed something I didn't.

I will say that I call in the minority about my opinion on this book. Most people loved it. I wish I did too.

Rain Winter is a stay-at-home mom who resigned from her high pressure career as an investigative journalist when she had her daughter, Lily. When a local man is murdered after being acquitted in a murder case. There appears to be some vigilante justice happening and Rain is pulled into investigating by her friend Gillian.

I am not going to share anything else about this story, because you need to read and discover it on your own. Rain has a lot of issues and baggage from something that happened in her past and that causes her to make some impetuous decisions in her life, specifically while investigating this case. The story is told in a dual narration, by Rain and the murderer. We do know who the murderer is relatively early on in the story, but there is so much more going on here. The tension and suspense build right from the beginning and doesn't stop until the last chapter. These characters were flawed and had me feeling terrible for what happened to them in the past. It made me think about what I might do if in a similar situation or my children had been. I was on the edge of my seat knowing that the shoe had not yet fallen and waiting to see where Lisa Unger was going to take the reader. The twists and turns are unforgettable, as she delves into trauma and the human psyche. This is an extremely well written psychological thriller, which is what I have come to expect from this talented author.