Jack The Shifter

by Bettina Wolfe

It started as an innocent game... 

Sara Tyler is out of work and down on her luck. She spends her nights playing cards online. 

Jack Halvrek is no stranger to games. He's been watching Sara for weeks, studying her every move. Could she be the one he's been looking for?

When they strike up a conversation, Jack makes Sara an offer she can't refuse.

But who is the mysterious Jack? Is he playing a more sinister game with Sara?

Genres: Amazon

266 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 7, 2018

Reviews

[Linda Strong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sara Tyler is not living the American dream. She's lost her job, her mother's in a home, her car is about to give up the ghost, and the only fun she has is online gambling ... but not with real money.

While playing an online card game, Sara meets a man with a user name of Jack of Spades. One thing leads to another and against her better judgment she agrees to meet Jack in real life. He then makes her an offer ... one that will net her plenty of money.

The catch is she will have to stay at his house for one week, assisting him in various ways. Sounds like a good job .. an easy one. But she soon gets the feeling that something isn't quite right .. with Jack or with the entire situation.

Jack can be kind ... or Jack can be mean spirited. He can be a gentleman .. or he can be verbally abusive. Whenever he leaves the house, he locks Sara inside. He has taken her phone away so she can't call for help.

When Sara discovers things like boxes of women's clothing in all shapes and sizes and mismatched sets of luggage, she starts to fear for her life. In order to escape, Sara must learn rule number one: "Never announce your moves before you make them."

The story premise is a good one. Being trapped in a stranger's home with no way out would be highly stressful and scary for anyone. However well written, the suspense is minor and does not escalate with the story. Jack is a great character ... and one wonders what his agenda really is. He's beyond creepy with dark secrets.

The ending came as a surprise .... but left significant parts of the story unexplained. The book is billed as a psychological thriller, but I found it more mystery than suspense.

Many thanks to the author for the digital copy of JACK THE SHIFTER. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this psych thriller! The book was a gripping story of a girl who was basically held hostage in a strangers house. The way in which the author kept the reader in suspense really kept the pages turning! This was different than my usual books (crime thrillers and other action/fast paced thrillers), so I was a bit skeptical as to how fast the read would be. However, as stated before, the author really knew how to keep the reader engaged, and the pages turning.
I felt the ending fell a bit flat in contrast to the events preceding it. The events leading up to the ending were gripping and suspenseful, and then turn the page and everything was basically wrapped up. I felt the ending could have been played out a bit more, while still having the same type of ending.
Overall, a pretty decent psych thriller!

[Petra Jacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was a skilfully told, disturbing and tense thriller that never slowed its pace. The central character, Sara, was tough and intrepid, but always believably human. Meanwhile Jack was a deftly described, creepy and unnerving man, with too many dark secrets and no sense of personal boundaries.
I found Jack the Shifter fun, nerve wracking, thoughtful and exciting, a great read.

[Patty U. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting creepy thriller. Sara is unemployed and playing poker online when she meets Jack there and talks in a chat room. She meets him and he offers her a job setting up a poker tournament in his home. It is only for a week but he insists she has to stay at his home as he lives two hours from her. Things start to get weird soon after she arrives. Now she is plotting her escape.

[Tammy Damore · Rating 5 out of 5]

MORE MORE MORE!!! (Please!)

I loved this book. I expected the same old same old ending and was pleasantly surprised that it was not! There are some very significant parts that seemed to be left to the imagination. Would have been nice to know the answers but I won't expand on that as I don't want to spoil the story.
Would love to read more from this author.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

highly recommended!!

[Maria Booth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written thriller ,I was gripped from the start. A page turner and would definitely read more books by this author.

[Iparis · Rating 1 out of 5]

this was marketed as a "chilling psychological thriller" yet i found nothing much chillingly thrilling about it.

[Brittany · Rating 2 out of 5]

While reading this, I was expecting Jack to have some type of supernatural ability or something . . . nope.

I’ll admit that this is a fast paced read with a lot going on and no lulls in the story. However, that wasn’t enough to make it interesting. I kept reading for the simple idea I wanted to know Jack’s history.

Sara is desperate for money, but soon finds herself in a hostage situation. Yet she still has her phone . . . and it takes her awhile to think of how to get out of the hell house, in addition to Jack always having a watchful eye on her.

That’s it. The entire story. Sara struggling to escape the house that Jack has locked her into. The twist about Jack? Not worth reading until the end for, sadly.