Gizmo's Reviews: #Review - The Stranger in the Mirror by Liv Constantine #Thrillers #Suspense

Series: Standalone
Format: Hardcover, 336 pages
Release Date: July 6, 2021
Publisher: Harper
Source: Publisher
Genre: Thrillers / Suspense

A diabolically twisty, psychologically unsettling novel about a woman with no recollection of her past from the authors of the Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Wife Stalker.

Addison’s about to get married, but she’s not looking forward to the big day. It’s not her fiancé; he’s a wonderful man. It’s because Addison doesn't know who she really is. A few years ago, a kind driver found her bleeding next to a New Jersey highway and rescued her. While her physical wounds healed, Addison’s memory never returned. She doesn’t know her real name. Or how she ended up injured on the side of a road. Or why she can’t shake the notion that she may have done something very, very bad . . .

In a posh home in the Boston suburbs, Julian tries to figure out what happened to his loving, caring wife, Cassandra, who disappeared without a trace two years ago. She would never have left him and their seven-year-old daughter Valentina of her own free will—or would she?

As these two lives intersect, The Stranger in the Mirror hooks readers with riveting drama, told with Liv Constantine’s hallmark blend of glamour, tense psychological thrills, and jaw-dropping twists.

Addison Hope is about to get married, but she’s not looking forward to the big day. It’s not her fiancé Gabriel; he’s a wonderful man who seems to genuinely love her. It’s because Addison doesn't know who she really is. 2 years ago, a kind driver named Ed found her bleeding next to a New Jersey highway and rescued her. While her physical wounds healed, Addison’s memory never returned. She doesn't remember her own name. She doesn't know if she has any family. Or how she ended up injured on the side of a road.

She doesn't remember how she got a crescent shaped scar or why roses turn her off. She only recognizes those she met in the last 2 years, especially Ed and Gigi who took her in and helped her heal and became her surrogate parents. She can’t shake the notion that she may have done something very, very bad. She begins to have flashbacks, but all seem to be very violent. And she realizes she’s getting angrier by the day and fantasizes about punching people. She also knows that Gabriel's mother isn't exactly jumping up and down in anticipation with the addition of Addison to the family.

In fact, she goes out of her way to undermine Addison and Gabriel by hiring a private investigator and pushing Gabriel's ex back in the picture. In a posh home in the Boston suburbs, Julian Hunter is searching for his wife, Cassandra, who disappeared without a trace two years ago. She would never have left him and their seven-year-old daughter Valentina of her own free will—or would she? When Addison and Julian cross paths, everything begins to spiral out of control. Julian claims that Addison is his missing wife that disappeared two years ago. While Addison finally thinks that she will get the answers that she has been searching for, the twist and turns show that not everything is as it may seem!

To say anymore would spoil the twisted ending. This is another one of those stories where you have an unreliable narrator in Addison as well as another character with deep seeded darkness to his persona that slowly gets revealed as more and more about Julian is revealed by the authors. Of all of the characters involved in this story, the one I found the most innocent is the daughter Valentine. Again. No spoilers.

Liv Constantine is the pen name for author / sister duo Lynne and Valerie Constantine. This is their follow up to Last Time I Saw You.