Chris and Rose have an 18 year old daughter Julia. Life is plodding away nicely, apart from Rose’ rheumatoid arthritis, all is as it should be.

But then a note is put through their door ‘I KNOW WHAT YOU DID TO EVE LEVINE’

Rose thinks it must be something to do with Chris’ work at the hospital….but Chris seems to remember something from his past.

Then, after a mugging, they meet Katie, she says she’s Eve’s daughter…..and Chris is her father! As there had been a fire at Katie’s flat, she comes to stay with them….while they wait for paternity test results to come back.

Strange and violent events start to happen, Julia’s friend is hurt and secrets start to be unearthed …..not everyone is as they initially seemed to be…

This is a compelling psychological thriller with many twists and revelations that keep the sense of menace building from start to the nail biting finish.

Thank you to Bookouture, the author and NetGalley for a free copy of the ebook. This is my in honest, unbiased review.

Rose and Chris have the perfect marriage and family until, one day, Katie shows up on their doorstep claiming to be Chris' child from a summer fling many years ago. Katie tells them about how her mother has recently committed suicide and the man that she thought was her real father was murdered. Tugging at their heart strings Rose allows Katie to move in with them while waiting for the paternity results to return; she couldn't just expect this young woman to live on the streets. However, during the week that it takes the results to come back Chris' life starts to unravel. Problems between him and hi wife arise, work starts to cause unnecessary drama in his life, and now he has to deal with the stress of hiding this possible daughter from Julia, his daughter with Rose. On top of all of that he doesn't seem able to trust what Katie is saying about who she is and why she is now in his life. Is there something more that she is hiding? Is she really his daughter? Only time will tell. 

I was lucky enough to be gifted with this Advanced Readers Copy through NetGalley. I love a good thriller and, towards the end, this book ended up having many twists and turns. The beginning is a little bit slow and, at times, confusing but not in a way that makes you want to stop reading. It makes you think about what is happening in the story and who you can and cannot believe. Once you finally start getting the missing pieces this book really becomes hard to put down. 

On Goodreads I rated this book a 3/5. It's told completely from Chris' perspective and his mind is, expectedly, all over the place. There were several times in the beginning of this book where I felt a little lost at what was happening and the characters seemed to become a bit jumbled. However, once you have about 80% of the book read things fall into place very nicely and you become sucked into the roller coaster that is taking place. I brought this book to work so I could read it during my lunch and plan period and I was thinking about what was going to happen while teaching. However, parts of the ending were predictable. There was one major twist that I was surprised about because I didn't see it coming at all. The ending was left kind of open which, normally, I'm not a fan of but it makes sense for this particular story. 

This book is published on August 21, 2019!! To my fellow thriller lovers keep a look out for this one!

Thanks to Bookouture for the ARC!!

I thought this story was a bit slow at first, but later I couldn't put it down. I just had to know what was gonna happen!!! Some say the ending was predictable, but it surprised me. I changed my mind several times while I was reading, 'cause I didn't know what to believe. All characters are very complex and have thousands of reasons to act the way they do. 

Also, this story brings to discussion some really important matters, like catfishing, coming out to your parents as gay, DNA tests, childhood traumas, emotional and physical abuse, among others.   
 
This is my first book by this author and I really liked it.

Wow, wow, wow!!! This is the second book I read by Jake Cross and he really hit this one out of the ballpark. If you want suspense you really got it from this book. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next. I was at the edge of my seat the entire book. 

This book was about a young woman trying to find her real father who she never knew existed. Chris is the supposed father to Katie but wants proof since he has a whole new family he has to think of first. As they wait for the paternity test results father and daughter try to bond in the meantime. So many strange things starts happening around Chris since he let Katie in his life and he is really starting to doubt that she has pure intentions. As the book goes on you finally find out the truth.

I want to first say that Jake Cross has done it again. I just loved this whole book and devoured every sentence. I couldn’t wait to read the next chapter to find out what was going to happen next. He had me guessing the whole entire book and by the end I was dead wrong about everything. It was such a shock and I couldn’t believe what I was reading. My whole world turned upside down from this book. This is definitely the kind of book I love to read and would recommend it to anyone who will listen. 

Between the plot, characters and all the twists in this book it made it an easy and fast read. I would definitely recommend it and happily give it 5 Hearts❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

This book is a fun read with tons of twists, turns and drama!  I devoured this in a day because it was that good!  I like that the author made each character flawed, as well.

Happy Pub Day to Perfect Stranger by Jake Cross! Thanks to @netgalley and @bookouture I got a chance to read this one a few weeks early!

You know I love a good psychological thriller and this one was right up my alley!

Chris and Rose get a surprise when a teenager named Katie shows up claiming to be Chris’s daughter. Their seemingly perfect life is thrown for a loop in an instant after twenty years of wedded bliss.

Is Katie who she claims to be? Are her intentions innocent? Why do all these bad things keep happening? 

Rose opens her house to Katie despite Chris’s protest and from there and it’s twist after twist. Truly I couldn’t keep up but I was very interested in what was going to happen next!

If you’re looking for a twisty thriller, look no further!

Highly highly recommended thriller!  I had a hard time putting it down!  I hope to read more from this Author.

Having loved Jake’s book The Family Lie, I was excited when I saw that we were getting another book from him this year. Perfect Stranger is another solid read from Jake. The blurb drew me in straight away as did the cover of the book. It is so striking and compliments the story well.

Jake has created a story that would have any man that has strayed shaking in their boots. This is the case for Chris, when Katie turns up on his doorstep claiming to be his daughter. Having just recently lost her mother, Katie reaches out to Chris and when she reveals that she has no where to go Chris’ wife Rose, although not happy with how this has come about, invites her to stay much to Chris’ annoyance. As they all await the results of the paternity test, strange things start to happen and and you are left wondering if Katie is really who she says she is.

With the exception of Rose, for me none of the characters were very likeable but in saying that, they have been written extremely well. Chris made me feel uncomfortable and there was just something that wasn’t quite right with him. As the story progresses you start to see him unravel as the stress starts to become too much and you see a side to him that makes you question if this man is really who he portrays himself to be. Katie is an intriguing character and I liked how I kept questioning myself as to is she or isn’t she being genuine.

I really like Jakes writing style and how he manages to keep the reader in suspense throughout. The use of short chapters make this a quick and easy read. It is a slow burn to start with, but once it gets going it is a chilling read full of twists and turns in the lead up to the thrilling conclusion. I think the message here is never open your door when a stranger comes knocking! You never know who you are letting in….

Thank-you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Jake Cross for allowing me to read an advanced copy of Perfect Stranger which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

She thinks he is her father as a result of a hidden part of his past. But now that it is revealed there seems to be more that he may hiding. Who is the true stranger?

While I did enjoy the book I don't love it. I felt that it dragged on a bit the last quarter. It is a unique storyline so that really had me hooked in the beginning. Still finished it though to get answers to the unknown events.

Chris Redfern met Eve Levine 18 years ago and had a fling. Little did he know that he'd left her pregnant. Now, that daughter, Katie, has shown up and wants to get to know him, his family, and to be a part of his life. Although Chris, his wife, Rose, and their own 18-year-old daughter, Julia, are waiting on paternity/DNA tests to confirm the relationship, they invite Katie to stay with them. That turns out to be a very bad decision.

I finished this only because I promised, by requesting, that I would read and write a review. I found it very difficult to get through as it was tedious, overly long, repetitive, and not very exciting despite the author's attempts to try some surprises and twists. Since I didn't like any of the characters, I didn't even really care how it all turned out but finish it, I did. I didn't find any of the plot believable because of the behavior and reactions of the characters. They didn't question anything or do their own covert investigation into this person who has just appeared into their lives. Call me a skeptic, but, honestly, I sure would have done a deep background check no matter the cost before I allowed someone to move into my home. But, I'm from Missouri, USA, where the motto is, "SHOW ME." Since I couldn't buy into the story line, I tried to follow the narrative and get something from it, but, sadly, I couldn't get past some of the ridiculous -- for example, Katie claiming that her paresthesias were caused by her swallowing a rubber ball that "went into her body and lived inside her, still bouncing." I mean really? Chris is supposed to be a scientist, a microbiologist, and he says nothing. Anyway, I don't know what more to say. I didn't find this book my cup of tea. 

I'm still grateful to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read and review.

Wow. And not a good wow. A 'how did this even get close to publication?!' wow. This book is literally crammed full of some of the most unlikely events I've ever come across in a thriller and I've read some pretty outlandish thrillers. 
A girl turns up claiming to be a man's daughter from a one-night stand eighteen years ago and his wife is all 'hey, move in with us until we find out either way!' and it gets more stupid with every chapter. There's a couple of attempted murders, an actual murder, a catfish, a couple of hostages, some pyromania, a LOT of secrets, an emphasis on rheumatoid arthritis which you think will become an important part of the story but it never does, a chequered past, a wanted criminal, an abandoned pub... It was just too much. And for a story so obsessed with fire, it fizzled out terribly. 
I didn't care for the characters, I didn't buy any of the plot, the inconsistencies with personal pronouns was nothing short of irritating and for the most part, I couldn't follow any of the dialogue because it always seemed to refer to something not touched upon, as if it hadn't been re-edited since some changes were made. It definitely had a hook in that I was so stunned by how incoherent and ridiculous it was that I couldn't put it down until I'd seen how on earth the author managed to tie it together. Did he manage it? I'm not convinced.

After twenty years of marriage and raising their daughter Chris and Rose feel like they're in a comfortable and secure position in life.  Things begin to change when a girl a few weeks older than their daughter makes an appearance in their lives. Katie claims that she is the result of a one day fling that Chris and her mom shared around the time that Chris and Rose got together.  Katie claims she has no place to stay so Chris and Rose agree to let her stay at their home while they wait on DNA tests results.  Katie quickly integrates herself within the family and their lives.  When strange things involving acquaintances of Chris and Rose begin to happen they have no idea what evil lurks around them.  I enjoyed some parts of the story, some parts I felt like were cumbersome.  I felt like Katie was strange and unreliable and that Chris and his family were too gullible and accepting of whatever she told them.  Thank-you to Netgalley, Bookouture and Jake Cross for an ARC in exchange for a honest review.  Review will be posted on Goodreads, Amazon and Kobo.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jake Cross and Bookouture for this ARC.

I do love a good psychological thriller, and this one was pretty good. The ending was a bit predictable, but made the story more interesting in my opinion.

I'll be picking up more Jake Cross books after this!

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This book had me wishing I didn't have a life. Once I started it I didn't want to put it down. With that being said, I also found parts of it predictable, but not so much that I didn't want to see where the plot line was going.  And thank goodness I didn't, because the twists and turns towards the end kept me guessing. A solid four stars from me, and a bunch of five stars reviews from others. At $2.99 for the Kindle Edition, you can't go wrong. 

Description from Amazon: 

You let her in. You’ll wish you hadn’t.

Following a whirlwind romance, Rose and Chris’s marriage has been unshakeable for twenty years. But when teenager Katie turns up on their doorstep, blonde, wide-eyed and beautiful, their perfect life threatens to crumble to pieces. Because Katie says she’s Chris’s long-lost daughter, the product of a forgotten summer fling.

The couple is still reeling from shock when Katie tells them she has nowhere to go. The couple is her only hope. Kind-hearted Rose invites Katie to stay, despite Chris’s protests. The poor girl has only just lost her mother – they can’t leave her out on the street.

But soon after Katie moves in, strange things start happening. Someone crashes into a neighbour’s fence. An unexplained fire starts in the couple’s kitchen. And a family friend coming to visit disappears on the way to the house. Chris insists Katie has to go. But it’s Chris who won’t explain where he was at the time their friend went missing… 

The couple’s dream life seems to be turning into a nightmare. With dark secrets about Chris’s history with Katie’s mother coming to light, Rose no longer knows who to trust. Soon, she isn’t sure whether she’s invited a dangerous stranger into her home, or whether she’s been living with one all along…

A chilling thriller that will make you question everything you think you know about your loved ones. Fans of The Woman in the Window, Then She Was Gone and The Perfect Child won’t be able to put this book down.

Was not that great of a book. Well written on the characters but didn’t grab my attention. Thank you to the publisher for letting me read this book.

Imagine you've been married for years, have a happy wife and daughter and things, for the most part, are going really well.  Then a stranger enters your life and tells you she's your daughter from a one time thing many years ago.  What do you do?  Especially if this stranger is odd, acts a bit dangerously and may even be a threat to you and your family.  Now what?

Perfect Stranger gives us some serious things to think about.  It's not your typical, run-of-the-mill thriller, and it definitely has some twists that make it worth the read.

Overall, great book, great story.

This book promised to be a good read. There were many parts of it that were well written but there were also some rather surreal happenings, inconsistencies and just plain unbelievable developments to the plot. I know this is fiction but the story just seemed to run away with itself and become rather fantastical. I ended up feeling confused and several times remarked out loud 'This is nonsense!'
The premise, of a unknown daughter who emerges into a family, where a DNA paternity test reveals she is Chris's daughter, is a believable and sound one. Rose's reactions (Rose is Chris's wife) are often not believable and Julia, the 'real' daughter doesn't quite come across as believable either. 
The parts where Chris, who is a microbiologist, is in the lab, are good and there are occasions where the dry humour made me laugh (mainly around Lionel Parrott, lab assistant), but the rest of it is just plain bizarre.
Katie is completely deranged. Hope that doesn't spoil the plot for anyone. Gold star to you if you can understand the surreal connections made in this book. I am afraid my mind wasn't up to the task. Thanks however to Jake Cross, the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.   Thank you NetGalley!

Jake Cross' books always impress me.    He has an amazing talent.    As usual, this book had me on the edge of my seat.     I couldn't stop reading.      There's some insane twists in this book that you won't believe!   read this now!

Chris and Rose have the perfect marriage. Living in Sheffield with their daughter Julia.  Chris works in the labs at one of the local hospitals.  
On an evening out they are accosted in their car for a robbery but a stranger coming along stops anything further happening.
The woman is Katie. She Chris long lost daughter he knew nothing about. Whilst Chris is shocked, Rose welcomes Katie into the home. 
The story is set over a week. The plot contains many twists and is a very easy read.  At times you lurch between whether you believe Chris or Katie. 
Once again Bookoutre has published a fantastic book. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an advance copy.

A quick book to read while in between thrillers. This would be a cool movie or series. I feel like it would play out better that way versus the novel.