Review: Under My Skin

Title: Under My Skin

Author: Lisa Unger

Publisher: Harlequin Australia, HQ (Fiction, Non Fiction, YA) & MIRA HQ Fiction, 23 September

Pages: 304 pages

How I Read It: ARC book

Genre: Mystery and Thrillers

My Rating: 4.5 cups

Synopsis:

From New York Times bestselling author and master of suspense Lisa Unger comes an addictive psychological thriller about a woman on the hunt for her husband’s killer.

What if the nightmares are actually memories?

It’s been a year since Poppy’s husband, Jack, was brutally murdered during his morning run through Manhattan’s Riverside Park. In the immediate aftermath, Poppy spiralled into an oblivion of grief, disappearing for several days only to turn up ragged and confused and wearing a tight red dress she didn’t recognise. What happened to Poppy during those lost days? And more importantly, what happened to Jack?

The case was never solved, and Poppy has finally begun to move on. But those lost days have never stopped haunting her. Poppy starts having nightmares and blackouts — there are periods of time she can’t remember, and she's unable to tell the difference between what is real and what she’s imagining. When she begins to sense that someone is following her, Poppy is plunged into a game of cat and mouse, determined to unravel the mystery around her husband’s death. But can she handle the truth about what really happened?

My Thoughts

Under My Skin was a really compelling psychological thriller that I greatly enjoyed. It kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. The protagonist, Poppy, was trying to move on from the murder of her husband. She was unable to do this because she was spiralling down into a well of grief and the methods she was using to cope were causing her more problems.

The book is very well written and starts off with a description of one of Poppy’s online dates. It flashes between the past and the present and you have to really be concentrating to know what period each chapter is!

Poppy starts to have what she thinks are nightmares, but she isn’t sure whether they are nightmares or memories returning from her lost days.

“The details of the dream are already slippery. What kind of car? What club? It’s important  to remember; I must dig into that place.”

I really liked the character, Detective Grayson, the detective trying to solve Jack’s murder. He was doing his job, but he was also showing his human side to Poppy and even though they met under such tragic circumstances, they almost became friends who relied on each other.

“I appreciate how he often uses Jack’s name, doesn’t call him ‘your husband’ or ‘the victim’. I feel like he knew Jack, that they might have been friends.”

Layla was Poppy’s best friend and even though she was just trying to keep Poppy safe, I felt like she was too controlling and tried to take over Poppy’s life. It was only when Poppy ‘escaped Layla’s clutches’, that she really started to heal.

“You’re not staying here,”...she casts a quick dismissive look at Grayson. “Pack a bag.”

All the characters Poppy meets along the way, eventually lead to an outcome, but there is a very surprising twist at the end that I certainly didn’t see coming. Lisa places suspicion on one character and then does a complete turnaround! Very clever storyteller!

This is a very enjoyable thriller and if you like suspense, then pick yourself up a copy of Under My Skin.

“I wish he had protected himself.”

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release