With good characterization, plenty of plot twists, and high suspense in the back, the book makes for a quick read. if you're looking for a quick read to kill a few hours, you won't be disappointed. The pacing is bit slow in the middle but plotting is tight enough to keep the reader turn pages fast. A typical Lisa Jackson that won't disappoint her fans.

I'd just about given up on psychological thrillers, the ones I've read lately being predictable, yet this one sounded like it could be intriguing, so I gave it a go. Boy am I glad I did.

We have divorced mum Rachel, caring for her two teenage children, whilst trying to keep her ex-husband at arms length. Rachel loves her children, but tends to cloister them, for Rachel is scared that something might happen to them. Rachel is actually scared of EVERYTHING, for in her past, in a teenage game gone wrong, she shot and killed her own brother. Or did she?

Now Rachel is getting mysterious texts seemingly from beyond the grave. And she thinks someone is stalking her house. Then, on the twentieth anniversary of her brothers death, one of the witnesses to his death is murdered. Is there a connection? If so why wait so long to get rid of the witness? As Rachel desperately tries to find out, her increasing paranoia has her jumping out of her skin at every little bump in the night. Or day. At any time really. And the truth? Oh wow!

I found Paranoid to be an ingeniously twisty and turny thriller. While I really didn't like our main character Rachel, I don't think I was meant to. Sometimes I just wanted to slap her and tell her to loosen up! I'm sure her kids did too. While the middle stages of the book tended to get a bit bogged down and long -winded, when the action started up again, boy, I had to hang on tight. And the killer? Not even on my radar.

Then when it was all over, yet another twist was revealed...

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

20 years ago a carefree, teenage game in an abandoned cannery warehouse turns deadly. The group of teenagers were supposed to be shooting pellet guns, no one was supposed to get hurt. So how did Luke end up dead?

His half-sister, Rachel, was initially blamed for the shooting but with no gun shot residue evident on her hands the case never made it far. Although she was never found guilty, Rachel has lived with the guilt of Luke's death for the last 20 years. With no one held accountable, that night remains filled with unanswered questions. How did Luke end up shot by a real gun? Who killed him and why?

On the 20th anniversary of Luke's death things begin to take an eerie turn for everyone who was in the warehouse on the night of his death. Witnesses are suddenly found dead, killed in a brutal manner. Rachel's house is vandalized, she receives eerie texts from an unknown number and can't help but feel as if she's being watched all the time. Is she being paranoid or is someone out to even the score for Luke's death all those years ago?

Paranoid is a tale of secrets, lies, paranoia, guilt and ultimately revenge. I was fully engaged with the story from the beginning. I was feeling a bit disappointed that I had figured out the current timeline's culprit very early on when Jackson completely threw me with the past timeline's whodunnit! I definitely hadn't figured out the who and why surrounding Luke's death and was pleasantly surprised by that twist! It took my rating from 3 to 4 stars!

20 years ago some kids were playing paintball in an abandoned building with huge holes in the floor and not lights. So they were pretty stupid. Then Luke was shot for real and his sister (or half sister as keeps getting pointed out for some strange reason) is arrested for the death. Somehow, the didn't know that she had a real gun. and then the gun was gone and she was cleared. The description makes it sound as if she is ostracized for the murder and getting away with it, but there is very little proof of that. She seems to be involved in the community and living just fine.

I started out wanting to know who had killed Luke. Then I realize that I was pretty sure I knew and that I really didn't care. Every character was a stereotype. Most annoying were her kids. Could there be any more annoying and self-centered than these two? Maybe I got really lucky and had the two best teenagers in the world, but I do not know how these kids could think they could get away with talking to their mother this way or why they would even want to do so. Every character had conversations with themselves with half of it being out loud as if they were unaware that they were NOT two people.

So we have a town of egocentric, delusional people and someone starts killing them off. I kind of was hoping certain characters would be next by about halfway through. So much filler. I kept hoping there was a reason I was reading some of this stuff. That it would add to the story at some point or be important for character development. It really wasn't.

The story revolves partly around a reunion being planned. Of course they have a meeting the night of the anniversary of the death. And of course the reunion is being planned by his sister (excuse me, half-sister, something I've literally never called any of my half-sisters, but) his girlfriend (who is now his half-sister's ex mother-in-law), and his best friend (who was his age and would not have been part of the same class as the other two (who weren't the ones who were seniors that year so why are they in charge? Whose reunion is this?) Yeah, that's as messed up and confusing as it sounds. Time to start skimming?

This book is kind of a ridiculous mess of characters that are over-explained yet still shallowly written. Who killed Luke? You may want to read just to finish and find out. For that, it gets a few stars.

Paranoid by Lisa Jackson kept me at the edge of my seat from beginning to end. We visit a small town where some of its Rachel Ryder and her high school friends are about to celebrate their 20th high school reunion. It also coincides with the anniversary of the death of Rachel's brother, Luke. After twenty years Rachel is still trying to overcome her guilt and fear of how Luke died.
It was a hard to put down thriller. I actually read it in one day! All characters where flawed, which made the story more interesting.

Rachel Gaston and her best friend, Lila, went to play an innocent game, or so they thought, of running around an old mill, in the dark shooting air guns at the other kids that were there. As she was playing, someone jumped out at her and without thinking she fired, but it wasn't her air gun, it was a real gun and she had just shot her brother Luke. Rachel's dad is a detective and many people in their town of Edgewater, Oregon think because of that she got away with killing her half brother.
20 years later, Rachel has never gotten over what has happened, she feels so guilty, has nightmares and her anxiety is so bad, that it has caused a rift and leading to a divorce from Detective Cade Ryder. Lila is determined to make the reunion a success, no matter how outside events unfold. On that disaster of a night long ago, other kids that came in defense of Rachel, have been murdered. Someone is toying with Rachel as well. Following her, writing messages on her door, making her feel like she is going crazy.
Lisa Jackson and Nancy Bush, have the somewhat same writing style. In both their new books they lead the story with an unknown patient talking to a therapist. Kinda confusing at times, but a way to mislead the reader, so you don't have an idea of who is really the tormentor. But sadly in this book, Lisa Jackson's little clues, made me get who it really was. Not much of an intrigue.

Paranoid by Lisa Jackson is a spellbinding thriller set in Edgewater Oregon. 20 years prior Rachel Gaston (Ryder) went to an old abandoned warehouse with her friends to play a shooting game. None of the guns they fired had real bullets, and nobody was supposed to get hurt. Unfortunately, when Rachel fired the gun her step-brother, Luke, had given her, Luke fell and bled to death. Rachel’s step-father, a police officer, was first on the scene and in the end, Rachel was found not guilty. Most of the people in the small town still think she is guilty, and when classmates who testified for her during her trial were subsequently found murdered after 20 years, Rachel’s ex-husband, Detective Cade Ryder, steps in and tries to tie the murders to the incident. Someone is after Rachel and others who were there at the abandoned warehouse, and Cade must work fast to find the murderer before more murders occur.

Lisa Jackson is a bestselling author for a reason; she can tell a story and keep the audience’s attention. Her novels are well-written, concise, and fascinating - Paranoid is no exception. Jackson develops her characters so that readers can relate, and they seem real. The scenarios in this novel are believable, and the twists keep readers on the edges of their seats. Of course, there is a surprise ending, and Jackson is a master at building suspense to a sometimes shocking dénouement.

Thriller aficionados will love this novel, and will appreciate Lisa Jackson’s expertise in putting together a memorable thriller. Highly recommended. Fans of Lisa Jackson will savor this novel, and those who are unfamiliar with her writing will become loyal fans.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

For twenty years Rachel believed she shot her brother in a game gone wrong one night in an abandoned cannery. Racked with guilt, suffering from paranoia and nightmares stemming from the event, divorced now with two unruly teenagers the nightmare begins again when one of Rachel’s classmates who testified on her behalf at trial is murdered. Feelings of being followed and constantly watched further exacerbates tensions in the household.
Full of suspense, riddled in suspects, an unpredictable plot line that will leave the reader guessing ‘til the end, a must read.
That you Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book.

PARANOID By Lisa Jackson
Lisa Jackson has woven a complex tapestry of a great story with Paranoid! I was hooked from the start with this book. I read it in one sitting. There are lots of things going on, it's unpredictable, it twists and it turns, there is never a dull moment! I highly recommend this book, it is a 5 star read.

This is a beautiful, creepy, and an absolutely gripping psychological thriller that hooked me from start to finish.
There is also a touch of romance that is very relatable and engaging.

The main character Rachel is still reeling from a horrific incident from her teenage years where she may or may not have killed her half brother in a game. An incident that left her traumatized and contributed to the failure of her marriage.

Now with her high school reunion looming, unsettling events start happening, and someone is targeting Rachel.
Lots of secrets and twists add to an already suspenseful plot, what really happened on this fateful day? who is stalking Rachel and why? You have to read this fantastic thriller to know.

Thanks Netgalley, publisher Kensington, and author Lisa Jackson for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Very very creepy and unsettling. I was a nervous wreck reading this but I loved it! I will be highly recommending it to anyone.

Is Rachel PARANOID? Is her fear REAL or is it IRRATIONAL? Most watch a scary movie and then hear every bump and squeak in the house and see shadows out the window. And so a trauma that took place in the PAST can have an effect on ones life and the people around them. Guilt haunts and keeps one from enjoying life and love. Jackson wrote an intense crime drama that had me figuring out the mystery and then changing my mind the more pages I read. In depth characters and prose. Not telling anymore= =READ THIS!! "A copy of this book was provided by Kensington Books via NetGalley with no requirements for a review. Comments here are my honest opinion." DO NOT MISS THIS ONE

A guilt left obvious. A dead sibling. Can a town ever truly move on from its bloody past? This is the situation that Rachel is left with after being involved in stupid teenaged game that went horribly wrong. Rachel fired the gun that inadvertently killed her half brother. His dying face haunts her existence to this day – twenty years on. Guilt plagues her even though she was acquitted of the murder. She believed she had taken his life but did she? This is a story of Fear, loss and the complexity of human emotion. As the story unfolded the reader was able to see that this wasn’t a simple story. Actions have concequences for all involved. The story follows Rachel’s life from frightened teenager to divorced woman with two children of her own and the fallout from that fateful night.

Rachel is a complex character – and I like that!
For this story it was right how in depth Rachel’s character was. She was ultimately flawed due to her experiences. She is the result of experiencing a tragic event that has changed her for good. Life would simply never be the same again for her. She has the classic signs of PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). She fears everything, her marriage broke down, she doesn’t have any close friends (possibly fearing she may lose them if she’s truly close to them) and she has her children on a very tight leash. Her Daughter, Harper often states “It’s like a prison”. Her character is completely true to the event though – who wouldn’t be psychologically affected after going through what she has!

Plot – Well executed
The plot was interesting and I enjoyed the mental health take on the main character. The take on the fallout of several families involved gave the real implications of actions and concequences. It was a quick read and I wanted to keep reading to find out who was causing such carnage in the little town. The twist was unexpected and I was very shocked. This was a great, steady read.

I received an ARC copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
4 Stars

This is my first book by Lisa Jackson, and it was a solid mystery thriller with a touch of romance. Who could ask for more in a perfect summer read.

The book tells the story of Rachel who may or may not have accidentally shot her half brother as part of a game in high school. Still living in the same small town, Rachel's high school reunion is looming, and someone seems out for revenge.

I do not want to give away any spoilers and I went into reading this book with no preconceived notions, and I think that's best. The author makes great use of some red herrings and twists to leave the reader guessing. The romance between Rachel and her ex-husband is complex, especially with his coworker and possible other love interest thrown into the mix, but the story felt heartfelt and believable.

The dialogue was crisp and the situations felt fresh and new. I will be looking at this author's back titles.

Thanks to the author, www.NetGalley.com, and the publisher for my advanced reader's copy.

Read a lot like Bad Things, good story though. I happen to like her books a lot and they never fail to reel me in. A killer is on the loose, but who is his real target?

Great poolside read.

Although I did figure out who did what before the end of the story the book was too good to put down. A very good mystery and story.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC. I haven't read a Lisa Jackson novel prior to this but had heard plenty of good things about her work. This was great! The writing, plot, characters, everything I thought made it a great read.

Lisa Jackson has yet to disappoint me with one of her thrillers. This latest installment was just the book I needed right now.

Rachel's life hasn't been easy since tragedy struck her family in high school. All these years she is still blaming herself for her half-brother's death. Something like that sticks with you for awhile, especially after you have kids of your own.

So much confusion surrounds that night. Confusion that is heightened when people involved with the initial crime start having unfortunate things happen to them as well. All the while Rachel feels as if she is going nuts with thoughts of being followed and trying to monitor her teenagers through this new storm that seems to be brewing.

A twisting turning ride that will have you up late to finish. Lisa Jackson is nothing short of amazing when it comes to a good thrilling read.

Lisa Jackson starts us in Oregon twenty years ago when Rachel shoots her brother Luke dead. Years later, Rachel is a divorced mom of two still scarred by the events of the past. Meanwhile, her high school is putting on a reunion while those who were there with her years ago are ending up dead. Her life is spiraling out of control as she finds herself the target of a stalker, her children are hiding secrets from her, her ex-husband is investigating the crimes, and she is being harassed to being a part of the reunion. Rachel needs to figure out what is going on around her before she becomes the target of a killer set to mete out punishment for the injustices of the past.

Lisa Jackson brings us into Rachel's story by drawing us in to the events as she remembers them. There is intrigue to hint at that feeling that you are being watched even though you see nothing out of the ordinary. Lisa has always excelled at making you feel that things may not quite seem as they appear without being overly dramatic. I enjoyed trying to figure out what will happen with our characters.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Kensington Books for this privilege.

While not my favorite Lisa Jackson book, it was a decent read. I really feel there were too many players and that kind of caused me to pop out of the story on several occasions as I figured out who was who. But the twists and plot are intriguing and keep you interested .