Author: Mark Edwards
Narrator: Will M. Watt, Stina Nielsen
Publisher: Amazon Publishing UK | Thomas and Mercer
Publication Date: June 2020
Genre: Thriller
Buy the Book: Amazon | BN | Audible
Description: A perfect summer. A perfect stranger. A perfect nightmare.
When British twenty-somethings Ruth and Adam are offered the chance to spend the summer housesitting in New York, they can’t say no. Young, in love and on the cusp of professional success, they feel as if luck is finally on their side.
So the moment that Eden turns up on the doorstep, drenched from a summer storm, it seems only right to share a bit of that good fortune. Beautiful and charismatic, Eden claims to be a friend of the homeowners, who told her she could stay whenever she was in New York.
They know you’re not supposed to talk to strangers—let alone invite them into your home—but after all, Eden’s only a stranger until they get to know her.
As suspicions creep in that Eden may not be who she claims to be, they begin to wonder if they’ve made a terrible mistake…
My Thoughts: The Hitchcock-style creepy vibes are strong here, and readers should check trigger warnings for cults and trafficking. While the story ultimately becomes intense, it took me a while to get invested because the early narrative felt flat and distant.
The setup asks for a lot of suspension of disbelief: Adam and Ruth are housesitting for Jack and Mona, a couple they barely know, and then they quickly welcome Eden into the home without being able to verify who she is. At first, that made Adam and Ruth seem naïve and kept me from connecting with the characters. Once Ruth disappears, Eden vanishes, and Jack and Mona return with no idea who Eden is, the mystery finally becomes compelling.
From there, the slow burn shifts into high gear as Adam realizes he does not know whom he can trust, even among the people closest to him.
After the intensity of Adam’s discoveries and the danger surrounding him, the ending fizzled for me. The lack of closure left a lingering sense of dread, but not in a satisfying way. Readers who enjoy terrifying thrill rides and do not mind cliffhangers may appreciate this more than I did.
Thank you to the publisher, Amazon Publishing UK | Thomas and Mercer, who provided an advance reader copy of this book via NetGalley.
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