First Impression. Based on the extract offered by ReadersFirst in order to enter the draw. I adore the idea of doppelgangers, and this books plays right on it. I love the concept that meeting one’s own look-alike breeds misery, an old myth that I hardly see play out. This book looks equally fascinating and psychologically terrifying, after all as humans we all fear our own capabilities and this is a physical manifestation of it!
Synopsis. When Kate, a ‘super-recogniser’ who worked with the police, is involved in a terrible car accident, she suffers a serious brain injury resulting in her losing her ability to recognise any face no matter when or where she had seen it before. But then, while recovering in hospital, Kate meets Rob. The rich and handsome technology grenius soon falls for Kate and she moves in with him.
As Rob nurses her back to health in their high-tech Cornish home, they discuss their worst fears. Kate is afraid of never regaining her ability to recognise faces so she can paint again, Rob is deathly afraid his doppleganger, whom he has met once before, will return and take over his life.
Kate dismisses his fear as impossible, until one day Rob returns home from work and she is positively certain that the main before her is not Rob at all. Is Kate delusional, has her brain sufferred more damage than first thought? Or have her abilities returned and the man before her truly is a stranger?
— Gripping And Intriguing —
The Writing Style And Narrative. J.S Monroe certainly knows how to write a gripping and intriguing thriller. His writing style balances between descriptive and direct, managing to be incredibly impactful and chilling. Through his writing he creates a distinct atmosphere of fear and entrapment, isolation versus safety, insanity versus certainty. The balance between each of these emotions supports the thriller and the fear and discomfort it breeds. I felt incredibly connected to the story through the writing and found it was excellent at maintaining the tension throughout the story.
The narrative itself rotates between three main characters; Kate (the main character), Jake (Kate’s ex-boyfriend), and DI Hart (Kate’s old boss). Despite the three separate perspectives, the story is never confusing. Monroe masterfully weaves the narratives together and creates distinct perspectives ensuring there is no confusion.
Each of these perspectives work wonderfully together. Kate’s is perfect for the thriller aspect of the novel. Her previous injury means her perspective is not entirely trustworthy meaning you are also uncertain as to whether or not Kate is correct in believing Rob has been replaced. Moreover, her lack of insight into Rob’s mind and what is actually going on leaves us in the dark too, creating a tense atmmosphere full of suspense. This perspective also allows us to connect with the character, her stress, her emotions and her fears.
Jake’s perspective is very interesting. His is almost a mix between mystery and thriller. Having been broken up with Kate for a while he is relatively disconnected from her. Thus, when they do communicate it adds a great dynamic to the story. Jake, still in love with Kate, is determined to work out what is wrong with her and even digs into Rob’s past to work out the truth. His perspective allows us to learn things before Kate, adding more to the tension when we return to her perspective, but it also means we learn more about Jake too so we can easily connect with his character.
Finally, DI Hart’s perspective is more police procedural with a hint of thriller, and yet it aids the thriller aspect magnificentally. DI Hart, devestated at having lost Kate from the force, needs to ask her to make one more spot (one more identification). DI Hart believes there is more to Kate’s story than they realise but he isn’t prepared for this spot to draw their stories tgether. As DI Hart learns more about Kate’s story and any possible crime relations, we also learn of his own life and how it impacts the rest of the story allowing a strong connection to his character.
— Full Of Suspense And Tension —
The Plot/Story. This is a fascinating thriller, full of suspense and tension. While the book starts of relatively slow, it does a brillaint job at setting up the story and creating the perfect scene. The story then very quickly begins to pick up the pace and maintains it right up until the the end.
The story is based around Kate and her injury. The idea that her brain injury could be why she believes Rob has been replaced adds a fantastic element to the story because, as a reader, you question her views. On the other hand, you are also in suspense because Rob may be a doppelgänger and if he is you want to know what he will do next and why he is with Kate.
The idea of doppelgängers is at the core of the story and is brilliantly done. I have adored the idea of dopplegangers since Jekyll and Hyde, and Frankenstein, but these take a more monstrous manifestation. What makes this story truly chilling is that the idea is the dopplegangers are identical, and what do we fear more than ourselves? To have monstrous identical is terrifying, a reflection of what you could have been and it adds a thrilling depth to the story as Rob is a nice guy, accomplished and even charitable, but his supposed doppleganger is cruel and threatening making him all the more terrifying.
The story is also very unpredictable, despite the mention of dopplegangers early on, while you may guess certain elements there is a lot more to the story than you first think. The plot is very unique and original, it definitely kept me gipped and intrigued. The twists and turns are well crafted, chilling and thrilling- and the ending, the truth, is just horrifying and incredibly well done. I loved this story idea and felt it was executed very well.
— Interesting And Complex —
The Characters. The characters in the story are interesting and complex. I loved following each of the characters, and their perspectives, because they were all very unique and different from one and other. They had dynamic and individual personalities and were incredibly eemotional and easy to connect with.
Kate. The main character, the ‘super-recogniser’, has moved away from her previous home and employment after a tragic accident that left her unable to utilise her skills. Her character is introduced halfway through her recovery, she is stronger and less symptomatic of having a brain injury. But, she is still trying to recover completely, atempting to recover her skills so she can paint again. Kate is intelligent and creative but has become more reserved after the incident, however, she is strong willed and headstrong. Though at times I questioned her decisions, they were understandable in light of the situation, at least from her perspective. I liked her character and enjoyed watching her develop.
Rob. The ruch, charitable and handsome boyfriend of Kate. Rob is kind, caring and obsessed with Kate’s safety to the point that he has almost completely turned their home into a tech driven safe house. He has been by Kate’s side and helped her through her recovery and her fears. Rob is on truly scared of one thing, his doppleganger who he truly believes will take over his life, should they meet again. Rob’s character is incredibly interesting and we only get a little window into him through Kate, making him more intriguing. I enjoyed his character development and the idea of his doppleganger taking over. It was truly thrilling and chilling trying to determine whether Rob was Rob.
Bex. Kate’s slightly chaotic but kind best friend. Bex comes to stay with Kate for a little while and tries to help her come to terms with Rob’s identity. I loved Bex’s character, she felt like a no nonsense, straight talking person with a heart of gold making her extraordinarily interesting. My only problem was I wanted more of her in the later part of the bok. She was a super fun character who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind but also genuinely cared and I loved reading about her.
Jake. Kate’s ex-boyfriend who happens to still be in love with her. Jake finds himself drawn in to the story without realising but he is determined to help Kate find out what is wrong. I loved Jake’s character. He is undoubtedly flawed but is so easy to connect with and is so well crafted that you can’t help but love him by the end of the story. His involvement, his behaviour everything was so fun to read about because while he is not perfect he does genuinely care about those close to him.
DI Hart. Kate’s old boss who is devestated at her departure. DI Hart finds himself entangled in a much larger case than he first anticipated when he goes to ask Kate to make one more ‘spot’. Hart is a good and clever detective and has a soft spot for those close to him, which happens to be an advantage at times. I liked Hart’s character, he was kind, strong-willed and smart but also highly aware of his own mistakes and guilt comes easily to him. He does make mistakes, and is relatively realistic making him easy to relate to and like.
Overall. The Other You, by J.S.Monroe is an amazing thriller with a uniquely chilling story and wonderfully developed characters. This story is such a great read and is a brilliant psychological thriller full of twists and turns!
A brilliant thriller, perfect for fans of the genre. Definitely would recommend, particularly if you enjoy the idea of dopplegangers and love unpredictable and horrifying twists!