THE STRANGER YOU SEEK: A GUEST REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

 GIVEAWAY ENDED
THE STRANGER YOU SEEK

BY AMANDA KYLE WILLIAMS

ABOUT THE BOOK:

The papers have called me a monster. You’ve either concluded that I am a braggart as well as a sadist or that I have a deep and driving need to be caught and punished.    
 
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 before another victim meets a shattering end, A.P.D. lieutenant Aaron Rauser turns to the one person he knows can penetrate a deranged mind: ex–FBI profiler Keye Street.
 And you must certainly be wondering if I am, in fact, the stranger you seek.
 
Keye was a rising young star at the Bureau until addiction derailed her career and her life. Now sober and fighting to stay so, Keye picks up jobs where she can get them: catching adulterers, serving subpoenas, chasing down bailjumpers, and dodging the occasional bullet. With multiple victims, little to go on, and an entire police force looking for direction, the last thing Keye wants is to be pulled into the firestorm of Atlanta’s worst nightmare.
 Shall I convince you?
 
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.

An electrifying thriller debut, The Stranger You Seek introduces a brash, flawed, and unforgettable heroine in a complex, twisting novel that takes readers deep into a sultry Southern summer, a city in the grips of chaos, and a harrowing cat-and-mouse game no reader will ever forget.

PRAISE FOR THE STRANGER YOU SEEK:

“An exceptionally smart, harrowing, and funny character-driven debut by a welcome new thriller writer.”

—New York Times bestselling author Karin Slaughter
 
“There’s a new voice in Atlanta, and her name is Amanda Kyle Williams. A dark, gritty thriller, The Stranger You Seek is a sensational debut. Readers will relish this story’s many captivating, powerful, and compelling layers.”

—New York Times bestselling author Julia Spencer-Fleming

“The Stranger You Seek is a page-turning thrill ride from a writer with a sure hand, keen psychological insight, and a devious imagination. Keye Street is my kind of detective: complicated, savvy, flawed, and blessed with a sharply observant dark wit. This is a great read from a powerful new voice.”

—New York Times bestselling author Joshilyn Jackson
 
“From its chilling first page, The Stranger You Seek hurtles heroine Keye Street into a race against time that crosses the finish line with a satisfying twist, leaving readers breathlessly waiting for the next installment.”

—New York Times bestselling author Wendy Corsi Staub

“The Stranger You Seek is filled with rich, evocative prose that transports you straight to the South and right into the psyche of new heroine Keye Street. She’s formidable, but poignantly human as she struggles to navigate her present while battling shadows of her past. You can almost feel the Georgia humidity when you read this book, but you’ll definitely feel the heat when the victims of a calculating, relentless serial killer start stacking up. This book burns rubber to the end, so carve out some downtime, because you won’t want to leave Keye hanging.”

—PJ Tracy, author of the Monkeewrench series
 
“Keye Street is a kick-ass protagonist! Strap yourself in for a twisting, turning carnival ride of a plot through the New South—this is compulsive reading!”

—Vicki Lane, author of The Day of Small Things
 
“The Stranger You Seek is a riveting debut with rapid-fire pacing, expert plotting, and an introduction to the memorable and winning Keye Street. Both Williams and Street should be around for the long haul, so discover them now from the start.”

—Alafair Burke, author of Long Gone 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Amanda Kyle Williams has contributed to short story collections and as a freelance writer for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She worked as a house painter, a property manager, a sales rep, a commercial embroiderer, a courier, a VP of manufacturing at a North Georgia textile mill, and owned Latch Key Pets, a pet sitting and dog walking business. She also worked with a PI firm in Atlanta on surveillance operations, and became a court-appointed process server.

“We do what we have to do to buy the groceries while we’re waiting for that big break.  Working as a process server and with PI and courier firms in Atlanta was wonderful preparation for developing the Keye Street character.  It takes time and work to find that unique voice as a writer, and for that voice to reach pitch.  And more time to then develop a character that’s the perfect vehicle for that voice.  Keye Street is that character for me.  She’s slightly damaged, seriously flawed; a sober alcoholic with a mighty Krispy Kreme doughnut addiction.  She makes jokes to avoid intimacy.  She’s more afraid of heartbreak than she is of whipping out her ten millimeter Glock.  She feels real to me.  The series is dedicated to my deeply southern Chinese-American niece, Anna.”

In order to lend authenticity to her Keye Street series, Amanda took courses in criminal profiling and practical homicide investigation, and frequently consults with professionals in law enforcement, bond enforcement, criminal profiling and forensics.

The Stranger You Seek (Bantam Aug. 30, 2011) is Amanda’s first mainstream crime novel and the first in the Keye Street series. Bantam will also publish Book Two and Three in the series. Stranger In The Room (Fall 2012). Don’t Talk To Strangers (Fall 2013).
 

Amanda Kyle Williams lives in Decatur, Georgia, which produces unending fodder for her fiction.  She is currently hard at work on the next Keye Street Thriller.

GUEST REVIEW:

Let's welcome a favorite reviewer, Larry DeLeon. As a producer, Larry is quite at home producing excellence and doesn't stop even when he is doing reviews for me.  Larry lives in North Carolina with his supportive and lovely wife, and their sweet dog, Hoover. Thank you, Larry!

I really liked this book. Author Amanda Kyle Williams brings us a great new lead character for murder mystery fans in Keye Street, an Asian-American alchoholic ex-FBI profiler caught between her heritage and her childhood growing up in the South. The juxtaposition of a grisly serial killer story with a funny, flawed protagonist is a tricky feat, but Williams pulls it off brilliantly.  The story kept me glued and I loved all the characters in this book (except the killer, who was also fascinating). I alternately laughed and shuddered, then caught by surprise at the ending.  Even the city of Atlanta is an important character, although the chamber of commerce might take some exception.

If you've been looking for a fresh voice and characters in a genre that is often predictable, overly familiar and unsatisfying, you should give THE STRANGER YOU SEEK a read. Like movie sequels, recurring detectives can wear thin over time. Let's hope Keye Street's next adventure is as good as this one. Two thumbs up.

GIVEAWAY

THANKS TO KATE AT RANDOM HOUSE,

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