Many years ago a terrible incident occurred - an incident that Catherine has never come to terms with, has buried and tried to erase. DISCLAIMER stealthily steals your attention and by the end holds you prisoner – a searing story that resonates long after the final page. But he is eager to confide, and almost anything he says (“I’m a widower”) takes on a sinister and suspect ring. For those readers who read a mix of crime fiction, this is by no means a must read and I could have easily put it down at any point, especially given the long-winded progress to even reach an interesting crescendo. I am a fan of a good psychological thriller and this hit that mark as well, plus there is a great family drama to be had here with some emotional and intense themes that drive the narrative in a most fascinating way – I was utterly engaged with both Catherine and Stephen, their lives and their personal relationships and as it becomes obvious that not everything is clear cut, it is addictive stuff for sure.

Disclaimer was my first step into the entirely unventured-before world of fictitious psychlogical thrillers (for me). However, a book seems to have appeared in her new home – left seemingly in a pile by her bed, with the disclaimer, “any resemblance to persons living or dead…” neatly crossed out with red ink. Maybe the ending felt bit rushed too, as if Renee wanted us to finally catch some air and loose the tension, but this was not my problem. And how are Catherine and Stephen, who becomes more and more of a sinister figure as the plot progresses, linked? DISCLAIMER stealthily steals your attention and by the end holds you prisoner - a searing story that resonates long after the final page.

If someone had told me the entire plot before I had read the book, I would have probably not bought it and would have labeled it a woman's type of novel.

Keep in mind that you will need to suspend your disbelief nearly throughout but if you can then it will make for a satisfying read if you like tricky psychological thrillers.I was both angry and mystified that the protagonist did not make events clear earlier in her life, or at least earlier in the later events that were blowing up her life. This is where it begins and we are off on a rollercoaster of a ride as Catherine’s world falls apart. The story is told mainly through two viewpoints, which works well and the tension builds effectively.

It is a cheap and lazy gimmick and the author does nothing to salvage it and can't, in a book where the characterization is so paper thin. When a mysterious novel appears at documentary filmmaker Catherine Ravenscroft’s bedside, she is curious. But then there's the twist — she never actually had an affair; the man raped her at knifepoint and made her take sensual pictures for him, and she went along with him because her son was asleep in the next room and she didn't want him to get hurt. Catherine remains rather distant, but I suppose this is intentional, to keep the reader guessing about whether she's supposed to be sympathetic or not. I've said over and over again that most of the hyped and praised and 'hotly anticipated' books I've read this year have been thoroughly mediocre, and yet only recently has it occurred to me that of course they are: it's mediocre books that sell the most.Confesso que não criei empatia com nenhuma delas, talvez por todas terem demasiados defeitos e esqueletos no armário para que me pudesse rever. is turning into another great year for books, most especially debuts and this one is definitely going to be somewhere near the top of the favourites list come the end of the year – I was totally absorbed into the story and loved the emotion of it as much as the mystery element. Despite its brilliant premise it never really captured my imagination, and an overexposure to so-so melodramatic psychological thrillers had left me rather indifferent. Catherine, a successful film-maker, is intrigued when she mysteriously receives a book entitled The Perfect Stranger.

Please don't worry about about the condition of any 2nd Hand Books or other items you purchase, they'll be exactly as described in the details section.The initial concept peaked my interest, but I found it slightly frustrated as was left waiting for clues. I'm not quite sure what came over the author at the end as all the last section does is to dilute what was already a satisfying mystery. The overly long tidying up of matters which Knight opts for following the powerful denouement are an unnecessary detraction from a story which charts the unhappy lives of two very different families. Brooks is a pro at building suspense even if it plays out in some rather spectacularly yucky episodes, one involving a short spear that takes its name from “the sucking sound of pulling it out of the dead man’s heart and lungs. However, the premise was let down by a keep-you-in-the-dark plot and a series of shallow, weak and generally unlikeable characters.