Book Review: Stranger Inside by Jennifer Jaynes

 Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons!

  Time passes without little thought for me as to how many books that I own. Yes, I tend to clutter my office with stacks of books. But when it comes to digital books, I tend to forget that I either bought or downloaded a book for free. This is the case with the Stranger Inside. 

  I was having technical issues with my e-reader, and I was trying to assess the issue (SD card malfunction to be precise). I randomly chose a book from my digital library and it's audio book companion to see if they loaded properly. They did. As I listened to the prologue I began to hear a story that was very intriguing to me. I continued this novel and I am happy that I did.

    The Stranger Inside is written by Jennifer Jaynes, and it is published by Thomas and Mercer, an imprint of Amazon.com. It tells the story of mystery book author, Diane Christie. After the suicide of her husband, Diane and her adoptive son, Josh, move from New Jersey to the coastal town of Fog Harbor in Massachusetts. Her daughter, Alexa, is attending a college not too far from where Diane and Josh live. Diane believes that the move will be good for all three of them, since they will be closer in proximity to one another. Alexa hates this idea. She is a moody and tragic young woman who is consistently in a bad mood. Diane is always worrying about her daughter, calling and texting the girl. Josh has a pulmonary disorder that is also a constant worry of Diane's. But her relationship with her adoptive son is better than that of her flesh and blood child. 

  As the weeks pass and Thanksgiving approaches, a young college student is murdered in her apartment. This garners the attention of Diane, who at first fears the student is her daughter since the woman also attends the same college as Alexa. The police are not releasing the victim's name. Later that day Diane arrives at her volunteer position at a Crisis Hotline Center where she receives a disturbing call. The voice is masked by a computer program. On the line is a person who appears to be sobbing. They go on to say that this may be the beginning and that they cannot stop. Before hanging up, the caller refers to a name, Katie. A few hours later Diane hears that the name of the college student that was murdered was Katie. This cannot be a coincidence. The killer had called her on the hotline.  But can this mystery writer solve this real-life crime before another girl becomes the next target of a demented killer?

  The Stranger Inside was a thrill-packed novel that twisted its mystery tight enough to break. With a stream of suspects that Jayne uses to lead you to the killer, she begins to formulate a tale whose ending may be unfathomable to some. But once the reveal arrived and the ending played out I was in shock, worried, and sad all at once. This book definitely had me glued to its narrative enough that I finished it within a day. What I enjoyed most about this book were its characters. They were three-dimensional beings that offered a great deal not only to the story, but made me think of actual people I know and what they would do for family. 

  I was pleased with Tanya Eby's narration of this book. This was my first experience with her reading style, and I found it to be quite gripping. Eby's voice was soothing and easy to listen to. And her portrayal of Jennifer Jayne's characters gave this novel an added bonus. I was particularly moved by her work that she did with Diane Christie. Tanya Eby has narrated over five hundred novels, and her abilities are on display prominently in this book.

  The Stranger Inside is a shocker in many ways. But Jennifer Jaynes works hard to deliver a thrilling mystery that will have you guessing. Its underlying message of family and the importance of its structure is always there testing our characters.  I gave The Stranger Inside 3 1/2 out of 5 stars. I recommend this novel to anyone who is a fan of mysteries and crime thrillers.

  Happy reading and please leave in the comment below whether you have read this novel. Or let me know what you have been reading this week.   

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  Because there is always time to read,
   Xepherus3 



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