Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. Opinions shared are mine. Post contains affiliate links; if you make a purchase, I may earn commission.

I’m grateful for the chance to work from home. Keeping my family healthy and safe is my top priority. Within these walls, though, I feel panicky and anxious. When I remember what’s going on in the world, my heart races like it remembers what it’s like to run laps around a track. Reading is a welcome distraction from those feelings.

Strangers by C. L. Taylor was enough of a mystery to keep my mind off the COVID outbreak.

In this book, readers get a snapshot of a “present” moment, then we’re thrust back to the days/weeks leading up to that shocking scene. The story includes a large cast of characters who are seemingly unrelated. To get to the AHA moment, you have to be willing to read through a lot of meaningless background. Only a small fraction of the character history applies to the story.

I was shocked at how emotionally insecure some of Taylor’s characters seemed. What should have been steely resolve ended up being more like neediness. Alice, in particular, got on my last nerve. Her persistence was more like desperation….it was not an endearing quality. I didn’t expect to like Ursula, but she was the only character who felt truly genuine to me.

This was more of a 3.5 star book for me, but I rounded up to 4. It was interesting enough to keep me reading, and I did like the way the whole story tied together in the end.

Thanks to Netgalley for the book! Opinions shared are mine.