Review: The Stranger You Know by Andrea Kane

The Stranger You Know

Series:  Forensic Instincts

Author:  Andrea Kane

Published:  September 2013

Publisher:  Harlequin MIRA

Pages: 368

Genre:  Thriller

Source:  A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher and TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.  Receipt thereof bears no influence of my opinion nor this review.

It begins with a chilling phone call to Casey Woods. And ends with another girl dead.

College-age girls with long red hair. Brutally murdered, they’re posed like victims in a film noir. Each crime scene is eerily similar to the twisted fantasy of a serial offender now serving thirty years to life—a criminal brought to justice with the help of Forensic Instincts.

Call. Kill. Repeat. But the similarities are more than one psychopath’s desire to outdo another. As more red-haired victims are added to the body count, it becomes clear that each one has been chosen because of a unique connection to Casey—a connection that grows closer and closer to her.

Now the Forensic Instincts team must race to uncover the identity of a serial killer before his ever-tightening circle of death closes in on Casey as the ultimate target. As the stalker methodically moves in on his prey, his actions make one thing clear: he knows everything about Casey. And Casey realizes that this psychopath won’t stop until he makes sure she’s dead.

My thoughts:

It's 1 am and I just finished reading The Stranger You Know.  As disturbing as the crimes were in this novel, the writing and the characters kept me turning the pages long after bedtime.  Tomorrow I am going to be so tired but I couldn't put it down.  I was determined to see it to the end just as the team at Forensic Instincts was determined to catch the serial killer.  

The Stranger You Know is a disturbing psychological thriller with a serial rapist/murderer intent on making Casey his ultimate prize.  Casey has built an impressive team at Forensic Instincts and between them and the skills they bring to the table, they are a formidable force.  Only a psychopath would mess with them and in The Stranger You Know one seriously deranged psychopath not only does so but sets his sights on the head of the team, Casey.

One by one, red headed college girls are disappearing and later found dead.  Their lives brutally taken.  Just as frightening, Casey starts to receive phone calls from a blocked ID and it has to be the killer.  He taunts her, discloses that yet another girl has fallen victim, and then tells Casey her time is coming.  As the crew investigates, using technology that makes one leery of using a cell phone ever again, among other "talents," it is clear that time is running out and they must use and be the best of the best to catch this psychopath before he does the unthinkable.

Warning to readers, the very plot is disturbing and descriptions are mildly graphic.  But it's not just what you read but what your own imagination conjures up that'll have you on personal alert.  This is one book you want to read with the lights on and the doors locked! If you enjoy psychological thrillers, like Mary Higgins Clark's, you'll enjoy The Stranger You Know.

Meet the Author:

Andrea Kane’s psychological thriller The Girl Who Disappeared Twice became an instant New York Times bestseller, the latest in a long line of smash hits. With her acclaimed signature style of developing unforgettable characters and weaving them into carefully researched story lines, Kane has created Forensic Instincts, an eclectic team of maverick investigators. Recruited because of their special talents and dynamic personalities, the high-energy members thrive on blatantly disregarding authority. Armed with skills and talents honed by years in the FBI and Special Forces and with training in behavioral and forensic psychology, this unstoppable team solves seemingly impossible cases while walking a fine line between assisting and enraging law enforcement.

With a worldwide following and novels published in more than twenty languages, Kane is also the author of numerous romantic thrillers and historical romances. She lives in New Jersey with her family, where she is busily crafting a new challenge for Forensic Instincts.

Visit her at www.AndreaKane.com