What starts off with a seemingly harmless and random meeting in a restaurant (โ๐๐ช! ๐โ๐ฎ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ฃ๐ช๐ณ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ ๐ต๐ธ๐ช๐ฏ!โ) rapidly takes an unusual turn in this completely engrossing thriller by Lisa Jewell. This book has received overall glowing reviews and I have to agree. This is one of my favorite Lisa Jewell books!
I loved the unique structure of the story, a Netflix documentary about a podcast that centers on Alix Summers, a beautiful and successful woman who seems to have it all, and Josie Fair, the slightly offbeat woman who will become the subject of Alixโs new podcast series. They meet the night of their birthday celebrations when Josie approaches Alix in the ladiesโ room and they exchange mutual birthday wishes.
Right away, it is obvious that there is something off about Josie, but I had no idea of the twisty thrill ride I was about to take. Josie soon ingratiates herself into Alixโs personal life, crossing lots of boundaries but all the while giving Alix a gripping story of her life for the podcast.
I am so glad I went into this one blind, because the less you know about the story the better. There are some really brilliant twists, and the cast of characters is likewise absolutely unforgettable. The first page was just as unpredictable as the last and I had to go back and reread it once I finished the book. One of Lisa Jewelโs best books!
(๐๐ข๐ฏ๐บ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฌ๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฃ๐ญ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ข ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ข๐ณ๐บ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฑ๐บ ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฌ. ๐๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ช๐ฏ๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฏ.)
About the Book:
Lisa Jewell returns with a scintillating new psychological thriller about a woman who finds herself the subject of her own popular true crime podcast.
Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summers crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins.
A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alixโs childrenโs school. Josie has been listening to Alixโs podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.
Josieโs life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she canโt quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alixโs lifeโand into her home.
But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappears. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake, and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her familyโs lives under mortal threat.
Who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?