Review: Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson

Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson

Blurb from Goodreads:

Growing up, Kate Priddy was always a bit neurotic, experiencing momentary bouts of anxiety that exploded into full-blown panic attacks after an ex-boyfriend kidnapped her and nearly ended her life. When Corbin Dell, a distant cousin in Boston, suggests the two temporarily swap apartments, Kate, an art student in London, agrees, hoping that time away in a new place will help her overcome the recent wreckage of her life.

Soon after her arrival at Corbin’s grand apartment on Beacon Hill, Kate makes a shocking discovery: his next-door neighbor, a young woman named Audrey Marshall, has been murdered. When the police question her about Corbin, a shaken Kate has few answers, and many questions of her own—curiosity that intensifies when she meets Alan Cherney, a handsome, quiet tenant who lives across the courtyard, in the apartment facing Audrey’s. Alan saw Corbin surreptitiously come and go from Audrey’s place, yet he’s denied knowing her. Then, Kate runs into a tearful man claiming to be the dead woman’s old boyfriend, who insists Corbin did the deed the night that he left for London.

When she reaches out to her cousin, he proclaims his innocence and calms her nerves--until she comes across disturbing objects hidden in the apartment and accidentally learns that Corbin is not where he says he is. Could Corbin be a killer? What about Alan? Kate finds herself drawn to this appealing man who seems so sincere, yet she isn’t sure. Jet-lagged and emotionally unstable, her imagination full of dark images caused by the terror of her past, Kate can barely trust herself, so how could she take the chance on a stranger she’s just met? 

My Review:
 

This was a pretty good mystery and thriller - I was reminded a bit of both Rear Window (the constant watching) and one of my favorite books in this genre, Into the Darkest Corner, while reading this book. That being said, there was a lot to like about this book in the setting and the pace. It was easy and fast to read and almost all of it was interesting.  It was a bit predictable, which is my usual criticism of books in this genre, but it wasn't boring. I think the characters could have been flushed out a bit better to understand their motivations because there was something seriously off in each of them. I felt a real lack of basic understanding with all of the characters except Kate, which is hard when there are multiple POV and you're not connecting with the character.  Still, I enjoyed this one and will look from more from this author.

Her Every Fear came out earlier this week on January 10, 2017, and you can purchase HERE.

They'd met three times and she felt as though she'd known him her entire life. Self-conscious suddenly, she stopped looking at him and picked up her martini again from the table to take another sip. She was drunk, she realized, her fingertips numb against the still-cold glass. She scooped a number of cashews form the small dish on the table and began to eat them, one by one.