Author: Tasmina Perry
ISBN: 978-0-7553-5849-6
RRP: $29.99
Tasmina Perry’s latest novel is a gripping page turner that held me in thrall start to finish. There is something for everyone with elements of crime, suspense, romance and travel.
In an ideal world this is one book that I would have devoured in a single sitting, I found it extremely difficult to put down and was always itching to get back into it. In part I can attribute this to the various strands of storyline playing out simultaneously, the chapters focus on different characters so at the end of every chapter you want to continue until you can get back to those characters to see what they’re up to.
The story is told in the third person which keeps the story flowing fluidly through chapters as it focuses on different characters. There are straightforward links between some of the characters from the beginning so you know how they fit together. As the story progresses the twists begin and we start to see that often things are not what they seem.
Yet again Tasmina Perry has set her story in the midst of the wealthy, leading lives of privilege. Gorgeous houses, everything money can buy and shallow characters concerned more about bank balances and appearances than actual people.
Sophie Ellis is a spoilt, materialistic young lady drifting through life on Daddy’s bank balance until he loses all the family money in a Ponzi scheme, and then 12 months later passes away from a heart attack. Chapter One opens with Sophie at her father’s funeral trying not to let the other attendees see how much she’s hurting. After the family lost all their money it seems they lost most of their friends as well. She is forced to reassess her life and start standing on her own two feet, which is how she ends up working in a gym and then starting her own personal training business.
Before long Sophie is house-sitting for a client, which is how she meets Nick Cooper and quickly becomes involved with him. Within a week Nick is murdered in his hotel suite and Sophie is a suspect. From this point Sophie’s life rapidly spirals out of control, it is also where our other leading lady and gents enter the picture.
Ruth Boden is a committed newspaper journalist out to catch a story big enough to land her the promotion she is desperate for, which lands her in Nick’s hotel suite ready to give her all in the pursuit of this story.
Inspector Fox is a detective on the Nick Cooper case chasing every lead he can get his hands on to track down Nick’s killer.
And then there’s Josh, an apparent friend of Nick’s and the only person Sophie could think to contact trying to find answers of her own.
Tasmina Perry doesn’t just write her characters, she creates them, and these ones are very 3-dimensional and in focus. There is not a great deal of background on Inspector Fox because we only really see him when he is totally immersed in the case and he is on duty almost 24/7 so even though we only see Inspector Fox and not the man he is off duty it still seems like a complete picture because he seems to live and breathe the job.
Josh is another character who remains shrouded in mystery throughout the novel and I think this works well because we need that slight sense of vagueness to keep us guessing.
Ruth Boden is a character we do get to know inside and out, on duty and off. She is a cut-throat journalist willing to do pretty much anything to get her story. Yes, over the years she has learned to play the game so to speak and her integrity isn’t neccessarily what it once was and she is a journalist who is always on duty but we still see Ruth Boden the woman as well as the journalist.
Sophie, well Sophie is on a roller coaster ride of discovery, much of it self discovery and that brings us closer to her as the pages turn. A young woman who started the book a spoilt little princess grows into a strong and assertive character who is more than capable of standing up for herself.
I loved this book. I love the characters, I love Perry’s writing style and I love the never-ending twists. Looking back I can see that there were clues to head us in the right direction but never enough to completely join the dots because things are often not what they seem and this plot is layered much more intricately than I was expecting.
I can’t wait to hear what our book club readers have to say about it.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
This was my first time reading Tasmina Perry and now I am a complete fan. Perfect Strangers grabbed me right at the start and flowed perfectly until the end.
The characters, especially Sophie, were well written and I felt I instantly knew them making me feel every bit of drama going on.
I will definitely be recommending this book to others and will be looking for more books from Tasmina to read myself!
Perfect Strangers was ‘Mills and Boon meets John Grisham’! I felt little sympathy for Sophie for the shock loss of her affluent lifestyle, but I did admire for her for having the courage to make the changes she needed to in order to get back on her feet financially. However this was short-lived and it wasn’t long before she swept up in murder, mystery, and deceit, not knowing who she could trust. I thought the story was a little far-fetched in parts, but liked the way the ending allowed Sophie to come to some resolution regarding her father’s devastating actions prior to his death. I was a little disappointed with the tidy romantic ending – I prefer to see a portrayal of women as capable of creating their own life independent of men, rather than falling rapidly from one relationship with a virtual stranger to another. These are the sorts of role models that younger women need.
Firstly thank you Beauty & Lace for letting me read and review this book.
This book was exciting and held my interest from the very first page. I found it very difficult to put down and couldn’t wait to get back to it every time I did leave it.
Loved the Tasmina Perry’s style of writing, and how she made it possible to really get to know the characters. And I really enjoyed that I was kept guessing until the very end of the book.
Revolving around Sophie , Ruth and Josh , this story has something in it for everyone; murder , mystery , romance and travel, to satisfy any reader.
All in all a very enjoyable book, and one that I would definitely recommend to everyone who enjoy romance, crime, suspense and travel. Perfect Strangers is my first Tasmina Perry, it won’t be my last.
Thanks again Beauty & Lace
I found this book great from start to finish. There was a little bit of something for everyone, with romance, mystery, intrigue & danger. Even though the central character Sophie could be perceived as a spoilt society brat, it’s hard not to feel sympathy for the predicament she’s in, being accused of murder. Ruth, Josh & the other main characters are also full of substance & you do become very involved in their lives and want to see what will happen next. I also like the various settings in London & Europe & found myself picturing the surrounds with great detail. I haven’t read any Tasmina Perry books before but will be keepong my eyes peeled for future offerings. Highly recommended, a great read!
If you like this one and are interested in more Tasmina Perry, I also read and reviewed Kiss Heaven Goodbye.
http://bookgirl.beautyandlace.net/kiss-heaven-goodbye
How have I not read a Tasmina Perry book before?! It too me a little while to grasp what was happening in the beginning, and it sort of started out like a normal boy meets girl story, but WOW!
Twists, turns, bad guys, cunning tactics, flickering of romance, witty comments… this book had it all. The story follows Sophie who finds herself in quite a predicament after presumably meeting Mr. Right. How quickly this changes, and the fun begins with a thrilling chase.
I loved trying to piece together the puzzle with the clues and hints given along the way. The story alternates, and tells the side of Ruth, a reporter trying to get the next big scoop.
Overall I give this book a big thumbs up, and will definitely be on the lookout for more of her books. Thanks Beauty and Lace for giving me the opportunity to discover a new author.
Hi All – it seems from reading everyone else’s comments – I’m not on my own. I loved Tasmina Perry’s “Perfect Strangers”. It was a quick read that went everywhere with me over the week – with Tea stains and chlorine water stains to prove it – (sorry Tasmina – kids and life sometimes get in the way of my reading).
I loved the promised twists and turns and surprises that you didn’t see coming and my favourite – a happy ending which I didn’t see coming.
Tasmina introduced us to interesting and various characters in a range of different situations – from the very wealthy, criminals, working class and those just trying to survive.
The story was very easy to follow and I quickly felt part of the action- joining along on the adventure with Sophia and Josh.
Again I really loved it – and was a little sad my adventure came to an end. I would certainly recommend it to all. Will be sharing my tea stained copy with all my friends. Thanks Beauty and Lace for the opportunity.
Thanks Beauty and Lace for the opportunity to read Perfect Strangers. I found the book very enjoyable to read, it was hard to put down.
It was interesting to see Sophie evolve from spoilt rich girl to being able to stick up for herself in any situation that confronted her. It was like going on a wild ride with her and Josh.
I loved Ruth and her determination to get to the truth, not only for herself but also to prove Sophie’s innocence.
The only downside of the book was I found Sophie to be a bit fickle, who falls in love after knowing someone for 5 days? Then he dies and a week later she’s in love with Josh……….I did find that a bit unbelievable.
On the whole I really enjoyed the book and will definitely read another Tasmina Perry novel.
Perfect Strangers is a fabulous read, action packed with loads of surprises I never expected!
Easy to read and well written I enjoyed been taken on an exciting and dangerous journey as Sophie and Josh travel to Europe and the US in an attempt to discover the truth.
I admired the main character Sophie, as even though her life was in limbo she faced each difficult obstacle in her stride and through her experiences grew into a strong and confident woman.
I also liked Ruth’s commitment to never giving up her ‘story’ in proving Sophie’s innocence which she so easily could have given her own life challenges.
This book would be great seen on the big screen!
I love Tasmina Perry’s books! Having previously read ‘Daddy’s Girl’ I absolutely love Tasmina’s style of writing and so I knew I would love this book and it didn’t disappoint! 🙂
The cover art is so attractive and relates well into the even better story inside! So easy to read, each pages flows into the next and I didn’t have to wait long before I was completely hooked! I loved always trying to guess what would happen next and being wrong! I love that because sometimes books that are too predictable can put me off reading them, but this certainly was not like that!
I loved stepping into the characters shoes and living in their mind. It was interesting and opened my mind to their world. I loved the ups and downs and the adventure kept me wanting more!!
Now I’m on the look out for more of her novels to delve into because I didn’t want this book to end. I hope she will continue to write for a long time to come as I will be buying her books and adding them to my collection!
Thank you Beauty & Lace and Tasmina Perry for allowing me to read and review this fabulous novel! One I will no doubt pass on to my sister to read, as she enjoys the same kind of books as I do so I am sure she will love it too! 🙂