
Member Reviews

Short, punchy chapters mixing history with current day really pays off in this well planned out mystery. It felt a bit different to what Jane would normally pull out the bag with her books, but I liked it. Some of the characters were quite punchable but luckily the two leading characters, I did reason with. I’m sure this will be another hit.

Below is the blurb
"You may not know the stranger in room six. But they know everything about you.
It's been fifteen years since Belinda was convicted of her husband's murder. Now, she's ready for her life to begin again, and she's set on that happening at Sunnyside Home for the Young at Heart.
The owner, Mabel, has spent her life here. First as an evacuee during the Blitz and now as the care home's oldest resident, Mabel has held the secrets of this house for as long as she can remember. Secrets that could kill if in the wrong hands.
But history won't stay hidden forever and someone is onto them both. Watching and listening from room number six, they'll stop at nothing to find out the truth."
I just love this author. Every time a new book comes out I get nervous that I will be disappointed but so far it hasn't happened. This is so not my type of book (usually mystery/horror) but I just love everything she writes. Usually a story with a strong female lead or two flitting between stories and time periods that are somehow connected. I liked Beth's story more than Belinda's story but couldn't explain why! Yes, some of the twists or connections are a bit convenient but who cares! Another great read and can't wait for her next book.

OMG!! WOW!!... OH YES!!!. BOY. OH. BOY...
Incredible read!!... Will suck you in like never before!... Mind-blowing... LOVED this book!
This book kept me turning the pages into the early hours. Heart-pounding and very tense... Nail-biting.
A massive 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 stars from me!

Mabel tells her war story to Belinda who is now working in the care home. Belinda has been in prison and Mabel has her own secrets from the war. Full of emotion and its good how their stories interweave, connecting these women across the decades. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

The Stranger in Room Six is a suspense-filled story of two women of different generations, who meet at Sunnyside care home in Devon and begin to share their secrets from their past.
Belinda has recently been released from prison, where she spent 15 years for the murder of her husband. Now in her 60s, she has a reason for choosing Sunnyside as her new place of employment.
In her late 90s, Mabel not only lives at Sunnyside but she owns it - having moved here as a teenager during the war, to live with her aunt.
Now, someone has moved into room six who knows them both, and is determined to bring secrets to light!
I loved the way this story was told, through Belinda and Mabel looking back on their past lives and telling each other their stories. Their reflections were told as if it was the present day, so it was easy to get lost in them - and then we would be brought back into their actual present day conversation and be reminded of what is going on now. Their friendship was really lovely!
I don’t want to give anything away about their stories, but both the prison and World War 2 stories were brilliant and gripping, as well as very emotional! It was a gripping read and my favourite from Jane Corry so far.

Belinda has finally been released after being in jail for murdering her husband. She is at the Sunny Side care home in search of a life after her prison term. Mabel has been living in the house that is now a care home, where she is the oldest resident, for decades.
They both have secrets but someone is determined to advantage of the truth that they have each protected for so many years. Can the two women possibly find a way through the danger that they are unknowingly facing?
While this story does require some suspension of disbelief, woven around the lives of two very different women who are equally strong characters, it delivers a compelling read. This one gets 3.5 stars.

I really enjoyed this story of two srong women, each with a different burden to carry.
The story flowed well and kept me wanting to read on throughout, I especially enjoyed Mables's story. I learnt a few things I had no idea about.
A poignant tale filled with murder,friendship, and forgiveness.
A recommended read.
Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin General UK for the Arc.

A highly bizarre storyline that really shouldn't have worked but turned out to be an utterly compulsive read! Not at all what I expected and in hindsight quite surreal but quite enjoyable nevertheless.

An enjoyable dual perspective book about Mabel,99 year old owner of Sunnybank home for the young at heart, and Brenda, recently released murderer. The book documents the two recounting their trials and tribulations, each with their own agenda.

The story is about two strong women from different generations - Mabel and Belinda whose lives overlap in unexpected ways. They each have their own tragedies and traumas to deal with, Mabel's during World War 2.
Belinda's life is turned upside down overnight when she receives an anonymous call from a woman telling her that her husband has been having an affair. The fallout is severe with unexpected and tragic consequences. Excellent book with loads of twists and turns. Highly recommended.

Another fantastic book from Jane Corry which I couldn’t put down.
This book tells the stories of Belinda and Mabel and the trauma they both went through before meeting, sharing their stories and becoming unlikely friends. Mabel and Belinda are both excellent characters and such strong women. Both of the characters stories were so different but absolutely fascinating and I was hooked.
I loved reading about Mabel’s time during the war and her chapters were so descriptive.
The ending was excellent and not what I was expecting at all.
Thanks to NetGalley, Jane Corry and Penguin general UK for an advance copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Set in Devon, Belinda Wall is freed from prison where she was held for the murder of her husband.
she Trying to start a new life and move on she befriends an elderly woman, Mabel, who we discover has dark secrets of her own.
Both women are interesting characters and I loved seeing the dark sides of both of them
The telling of this story is difficult at times. it is a bit graphic and quite disturbing.
It is an intriguing read and I enjoyed my reading time

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review. Wow! I was absolutely blown away by this new book from Jane Corey. I always love her books but this one is another level for me. It had so much depth, detail and fascinating characters that I grew so fond of. A truly captivating tale of family, friendship, love and grief. This book literally has it all. I didn’t want this story to be over and I sobbed at the end, it was really poignant. A captivating story that I will definitely recommend to everyone. 5 stars

Book Review: The Stranger in Room Six by Jane Corry
I had high hopes for The Stranger in Room Six, as I’ve enjoyed Jane Corry’s past works, but unfortunately, this one didn’t quite hit the mark for me. I found it a bit confusing and, honestly, the pacing didn’t flow as well as I’ve come to expect from her.
The premise was intriguing — Belinda, convicted of her husband's murder, finally seeking a new life at Sunnyside Home for the Young at Heart, while Mabel, an elderly resident, harbors dark secrets from the past. It has all the elements of a gripping psychological thriller. However, I struggled to connect with the characters, and at times, I found myself lost in the timeline and shifts in perspective. The alternating viewpoints felt jarring rather than complementary, and I had a hard time following the threads of the mystery.
In previous books, Corry’s writing felt more seamless, but here it felt disjointed and harder to follow. The tension didn’t build up as effectively, and by the time I reached the climax, I wasn’t as invested in the outcome as I should have been. I do appreciate a good slow-burn mystery, but here, it just felt like the story wasn’t unfolding in a way that kept me engaged.
I can see that some readers might enjoy the twists, but for me, the story was harder to follow than it needed to be, and the payoff didn’t feel as satisfying as in Corry’s previous novels. The potential was there, but the execution didn’t quite live up to expectations.
Overall, The Stranger in Room Six just didn’t work for me. It was a bit too convoluted and slow-paced, and I missed the clarity and flow I’ve enjoyed in her other books. I’d still give Corry another chance in the future, but this one left me disappointed.
Rating: 2/5
The concept had promise, but the execution felt confusing and didn't flow as smoothly as her previous works.

I'm a big fan of Jane Corry but have to admit this isn't her best.
Whilst the stories of Belinda and Mabel were somewhat interesting I felt that they weren't woven together well, as a result The Stranger in Room Six was quite underwhelming.
3 stars.

An ok domestic drama.
I did struggle at times as the storyline just didn't flow well for me.
Not one of the best from this author.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

This is a domestic thriller however for me it was more of a domestic drama as it just seemed to lack the thrill. I did enjoy the separate stories of the main characters who had both experienced very different but challenging times in their lives but I didn’t feel especially invested in either. There were a few twists and surprises in this and both storylines were thought provoking but would have worked better as individual stories with more depth as I think so much more could have been explored in each.

I'm a huge fan of Jane Corry so I was excited to be given an ARC of her new book.
I found this a little difficult to get into at first. A LOT happened in a very short space of time and I wasn't sure I would be able to enjoy it, however it soon settled into a rhythm of the past and present stories of both Belinda, an ex-con who is now working as a carer in a residential home, and Mabel, one of the residents there.
At times the prison scenes were brutal, and whilst the story of Aunt Clarissa and the Coronel was clear from an early stage, it was not necessarily from the view point of the young Mabel as she came to terms with losing her mother and sister, and being relocated to the Devon coastline.
It was as ever a page turner and I really enjoyed the book. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first Corry book, and I don't think it was the one to start with.
Other reviews mention its not her best work.
I personally didn't enjoy the writing. At times I found it overly simple, and at others a little disjointed.
Not the book for me unfortunately.

This novel by Jane Corey is set in Devon, somewhere the author clearly knows well, as the previous book I read of hers, Coming to Find You, was also set in that area. Like her previous book, the plot of The Stranger in Room Six also jumps between the past, specifically the Second World War, and the present. The main protagonist is also female, in this case Belinda Wall, who at the start of the book does something on the spur of the moment which changes her life forever.
Later on, she befriends an elderly woman, Mabel, and we hear her life story.
The plot is mainly about how these two characters have secrets which lead to some dramatic outcomes in the course of the book. The two women also become close friends and share some of their secrets. But not all!
I liked the depiction of life in England in wartime and also the description of prison life.
Belinda is faced with some difficult decisions and this makes her an interesting character.
The book succeeded in keeping my interest right to the end to see how some of the loose ends might get tied up.
There are a large number of other characters and because of this some characters felt a little underdeveloped. Some incidents also seemed to be a bit unlikely.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Penguin for an ARC in return for an honest review.