Linda
Written on Mar 28, 2015
Lexxie @ (un)Conventional Bookviews
“[Amanda Kyle Williams] keeps the suspense taut and the humor snarky, with an ending that will have you slapping your foreheard over clues you missed.”—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In the sweltering heat of an Atlanta summer, a killer is pushing the city to its breaking point, preying on the unsuspecting, writing taunting letters to the media, promising more death. Desperate to stop the Wishbone Killer, A.P.D. lieutenant Aaron Rauser turns to the one person he knows can penetrate a deranged mind: Keye Street, an ex–FBI profiler and former addict who now picks up jobs where she can get them. But the last thing Keye wants is to be pulled into the firestorm of Atlanta’s worst nightmare. And then it suddenly becomes clear that the hunter has become the hunted—and the stranger she seeks is far closer than she ever dared imagine.
Praise for The Stranger You Seek
“The best fictional female P.I. since Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone. And with its shocking triple-twist climax, this is the best private eye debut since Dennis Lehane’s A Drink Before the War.”—The Plain Dealer
“A creepy, suspenseful, breathtaking ride . . . [Keye] Street is a unique and worthy addition to the rich tradition of damaged and tough private detectives.”—Associated Press
“An explosive, unpredictable, and psychologically complex thriller.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
- ISBN10 0553808079
- ISBN13 9780553808070
- Publish Date 30 August 2011 (first published 1 January 2011)
- Publish Status Remaindered
- Out of Print 26 February 2013
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Bantam
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 292
- Language English
Reviews
Lexxie @ (un)Conventional Bookviews
Amanda
Written on Oct 3, 2011
I could probably sum up The Stranger You Seek in one word: masterful. If you think you can guess who is behind the murders, you are wrong. Even knowing that the killer was going to be someone I did not expect, I was still bowled over to the point of disbelief. The reveal of the killer’s identity flips you over and makes you question everything you thought you knew. And that’s not the only surprise in store. But I won’t tell you what that surprise is.
Keye Street is a fabulously flawed character. I like flawed characters because no one is perfect, and when you find flaws, you find humanity and the ability to relate. Keye is not quite as flawed or tragic as some of my favorite characters such as Sara Linton and Will Trent from Karin Slaughter’s various series (incidentally enough, these also set in Georgia) but there were points during the book where I felt a kinship, an I understand your inner struggles even without experiencing them myself. We don’t learn a lot about Keye’s past, but what we do learn proves fascinating and incomplete. Though the other characters were developed, there were times when the relationship between them and Keye seemed murky, as though there was more to it than we were ever told. However, this is only a negative if the next books in the series don’t explore these relationships and back stories.
The Stranger You Seek is one of those books that shows you a series of seemingly unrelated events, only to have them converge upon each other in the end. With the abundance of paranormal reads, I forget that sometimes a good mystery is just as good. I will definitely be reading the next Keye Street book.