If you say that a good psychological thriller is filled with suspense and keeps you guessing until the end, then I would say that Lying With Strangers by James Grippando is that and a whole lot more. Peyton Shields is a first year’s resident at a Children’s hospital. Kevin Shields is a lawyer. You could say that their marriage is not a good one but that is only part of the story. The other part is that Peyton is driving home late at night in the snow when she is run off the road and is nearly killed, only to be saved by a mysterious stranger in a black mask. From there, the story seems to take off in different directions, the suspense building from Peyton’s bad marriage to her being stalked which leads to murder. The story is unpredictable, even with a murder trial coming. I’m not a big fan of legal thrillers but in this case, I liked what I was reading about the trial since it brought out another side of lawyers that you don’t see in TV shows like The Good Wife or Law and Order. I like the fact that the lawyers look awful in this book which only added to the suspense and made the story even more riveting as a result. In reading some other reviews, people said that they didn’t like the heroine. I could agree with that and I don’t see anything wrong in not liking the characters in this book. If anything, that only made the book more interesting and different to me. I think that helped in making this book more unique with a good plot that was driven by Peyton and Kevin. At times, I thought that this was a tough book to put down and there were other times when I thought that I didn’t believe in the decisions that were made by Peyton and Kevin as they continued to have problems. Part of me was skeptical but when you’re dealing with ordinary people who make bad decisions, then there was a part of me that felt that it was okay since that made the plot more unpredictable. In reading Lying with Strangers, I came away feeling that the characters weren’t memorable but I liked the idea that the characters were undesirable such as the lawyers who were more realistic since they went out of their way to guide Peyton and Kevin in different directions in order to pit them against each other, which was great in building suspense. All in all, I liked Lying With Strangers because it’s the kind of book that was different in the sense that it portrays characters in a different way, much like you may see in a novel by Gil Brewer. To me, they left a bad taste in my mouth and in this case, I liked that, along with a very exciting ending. I’m happy to give this book five stars and want to read other thrillers by James Grippando as well.
Sure, I liked it. Fairly typical of the thriller genre, but with a few worthy twists. Very much plot-driven, with little character development, but hey, that's what makes a thriller a thriller. Characters need to be empathetic to a certain degree, but it's the action, the made-for-TV-movie pace that provides the grist for the mill.Let's run through the check list: this one features a stunningly beautiful (check) professional woman(check), who's being stalked by a sociopathic killer (check), with a semi-suspicious husband (check) who's having an affair with someone from work (check). When said heroine articulates her fears, everyone believes she is just paranoid (check). She is then blackmailed (check), framed for murder (check), and ends up as co-defendant in a murder trial (check), with her husband, of whom she is now suspicious indeed(check). Enter brilliant husband-and-wife lawyer team to represent the co-defendants (check), add a few red herrings (check), and resolve with stunning surprises on the witness stand (check), everything straightened out (check), and the bad guy dead (check).Good entertainment value.
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This book was really interesting for me. It's a very quick and exciting thriller. The characters are contructed in a way that makes you bond easily to them. You cared about what's going to happen next. But I will say that the twists in the book keep you going and going. I thought I knew who was behind it but then it turned in a completely different direction. I enjoyed the interplay between all the couples: Peyton and her husband, her parents and the lawyers that represent them. I found the ending to be different and fascinating although I wish it wouldn't have wrapped up quite so quickly and neatly. I wanted to explore it a little further. I highly recommend this book. I got it from Zooba for $9.95 with no shipping for the hardback. I recommend anything from Grippando.
—Samantha
I listened to this on audio and enjoyed it very much. Quite a thriller with twists.Payton is doing her residency at a hospital to be a pediatrician. Her husband Kevin is a lawyer and a writer. It seems they have a perfect life but they both work a lot and don't have a lot of time for each other. Payton has bought a gun because Kevin travels a lot and she thinks she heard the lock on her front door being turned one night. It becomes apparent that she is being stalked and a previous lover of hers is supposedly kidnapped. Payton and Kevin are being framed, but does anyone believe them?
—Paula
Why are characters portrayed as so dumb? "I should call the police, but..." How silly. "I have a cordless phone, I'm expecting a call, but rather than take the phone to the tub I'm going to keep getting out to answer it. Oh no, no power! Now I can't call the police. What's that sound? Oh, that's just my cell phone. Too bad I didn't call the police while my power was on, now I'll have to face all bad guys on my own. No one loves me or believes me. Oh, that's right, I only accuse people and not tell anyone what's going on." And so on, and so on...In the end a good twist and sort of exciting conclusion but continued stupidity by main characters.
—Scott Wright
