First time ready a book by this author.
I was intrigued from the first page. Very well written,
the plot, the characters and the ending.
I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more from this author. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity

Many thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for allowing me to read The Impostor. This book caught me right away and didn't let go! It made me think and was very believable. The characters are so well written and relatable. This is book 1 of a series and I'm ready for book 2!! The Impostor is a wild ride that you don't want to miss!

LJ Ross is one of my favourite authors, but that said, I’ve only read her DCI Ryan books.

Impostor is a treat of a book. Following a gruesome murder that rocks the quaint town of Ballyfinny, the local police bring in a criminal profiler, Dr Alexander Gregory.

What follows is a thriller that is remarkably well plotted, with twists and turns I didn’t see coming.

The distrust of the locals of Dr Gregory is believable for a small town, and everything flows in a very believable arc.

I’m glad the rest of the world will be able to enjoy LJ Ross’ work!

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen for the chance to review this one!

Great first book in a murder mystery thriller series. Fast paced and 2 plot twists, neither that I guessed. Excellent writing and I enjoyed the Irish setting. Thanks to NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press and the author for the opportunity to review this book.

“Imposter” by L. J. Ross is a dark and suspenseful thriller with a gripping murder mystery at its core. Dr. Alexander Gregory is a complex, haunted character whose rare gift makes him both invaluable and vulnerable. Twisty, psychological, and utterly addictive—I couldn’t put it down.

This was my first L.J. Ross book, and what an introduction. We meet Dr. Alexander Gregory, a forensic psychologist with a rare gift who can read the darkest corners of the human mind, a skill that makes him both brilliant and haunted. Gregory works with violent offenders, the kind of people most would rather forget, yet their thoughts and actions follow him long after the day is done. Beneath his calm professional exterior lies a man carrying secrets of his own, hidden deep for reasons we can only begin to guess.

The prologue sets the stage with a chilling tale of a mother with Munchausen Syndrome, seemingly killing her own children, though one survives. It is a disturbing and unforgettable opening that lingers as the story unfolds. Soon, Gregory is drawn into a small Irish community where a brutal murder has shattered the calm. His task is to unravel the mind of a killer hiding in plain sight. But as dreams bleed into reality and old wounds resurface, the truth becomes as elusive as the killer he is trying to profile.

Ross’s writing is taut and cinematic, almost claustrophobic in how it traps you inside this tight-knit community and keeps the list of suspects painfully close. Every page hums with tension, and just when you think you have found your footing, Ross tilts the ground beneath you. The ending lands with a sharp cliffhanger that leaves you desperate for the next installment. Impostor is dark, psychological, and utterly consuming.

This is such a good book!!! It is a perfect thriller with so many twists and turns. You never really know where the book is going. I think it was full of emotion and great writing! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This one was absolutely fantastic. LJ Ross knows exactly how to build tension and make you suspect everyone in the room. Dr. Alexander Gregory is such a compelling main character, sharp and intelligent but clearly haunted by his past. I loved how his calm professionalism clashed with the chaos of the small town of Ballyfinny. The murder mystery was smartly written, full of twists and red herrings that kept me second guessing until the end. Every time I thought I had solved it, Ross pulled the rug out again. The pacing was tight and the writing smooth. The atmosphere was so vivid. The ending hit like a shock, and that final twist was genius. I can’t wait to follow Gregory wherever he goes next. Thank you so much to the author and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read the book in advance, I received this for free and I'm leaving an honest review.

Super fast paced thriller with twists I didn't see coming. I love it when I am surprised by a book! I read the final chapters so fast I had to go back and re-read them to catch what I missed. Great start to a new series—I’m already excited for the next one!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Imposter is an atmospheric and emotionally layered thriller that succeeds by balancing tense investigation with deeply introspective character work. LJ Ross excels at crafting a haunting sense of place—the rural Irish setting feels isolated, windswept, and charged with suspicion, heightening the book’s psychological tension. Dr. Alexander Gregory is a compelling protagonist: brilliant but fractured, observant yet vulnerable. His internal conflict gives the story weight beyond standard crime-thriller tropes.

The mystery unfolds steadily, peppered with sharp dialogue and well-paced reveals. While not packed with nonstop action, the book’s strengths lie in mood and the unsettling exploration of how violence grows unnoticed within a community. Secondary characters sometimes serve more as plot devices than fully realized personalities, but the central narrative remains engaging and thoughtful.

Fans of forensic psychology, slow-burn suspense, and character-driven crime fiction will find much to enjoy. Ross delivers an engrossing blend of intellect, atmosphere, and tension.

#imposter
#ljrossauthor
#forensicthriller

I loved this book. Dr. Alexander Gregory is a mental health professional in a mental hospital in London. He is also well known as a criminal profiler, so when a woman is murdered in a small Irish town, the mayor called for help. All the characters are well defined and interesting people. The local police are not happy about having an outsider called in, but eventually begin to come around, and Dr. Gregory becomes personally involved in the case. He is a lonely person, and he has his own demons. Indications are that there will be more books featuring him, and I look forward to reading them. He is an interesting character, and the mystery was well crafted. I received an arc from NetGalley and have no pressure for a positive review.