The Silent Stranger

by Aileen Izett

After her husband confesses to having an affair, Isabel flees alone to the South of France to supervise the renovation of her brother’s recently acquired château.

Isabel loses herself in her work alongside the grumpy ex-pat Greg, until one day a beautiful young girl, Eveline, mysteriously appears on the remote grounds, entirely mute and clutching a bullet in her palm. The mystery of her presence becomes even more sinister as Isabel discovers that the house was previously owned by the criminal dictator General Innocence Kumono and his infamous sons. Who is Eveline and what is she looking for?

As Isabel starts to unravel the terrible events that brought Eveline to the château, she uncovers how her own family’s shocking secrets are entangled in the house’s dark history.

The Silent Stranger is an unsettling mystery with a creepy sense of danger at every turn. Perfect for fans of Kate Morton who are looking for a psychological twist.

Aileen Izett was born in Malaysia and educated in Ireland, reading Russian and French at Trinity College Dublin. She lived in France for a while, and now lives in London and Moscow.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

344 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 20, 2019

Reviews

[Candy]

Book was not what I expected. There were too many times I was not sure if I was in the present or the past. The house had definitely been used for something unsavory in the not so distant past which is revealed almost imediatley. Also too many weird strangers keep showing up and seem to be accepted as friends of a sort . Would not reccomend, even end ubsatisfying.

[Clareece · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Read

The story line was great, love French changes and castles. The silent stranger was everything that makes a good read, characters story line, location and plot. She is kind of innocent when it comes to her brother, he's a cad. But recommend it highly

[Sheridan Miles · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice, easy read.
I enjoyed the story itself although I shuddered almost everytime the meals were described.. Yuck.
The ending was kind of quick, I would've liked a bit more, but all over it wasn't bad

[A.J. Griffiths-Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a great story. It starts innocently, with a simple plot but the intrigue quickly builds & the character development is lovely. I listened to this on audio & the narrator was an absolute delight, perfect for the plot & carried it off beautifully. Five stars.

[Jeanine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't.

[alice wittwer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too long!

I kept reading this book because I wanted to see what happened. All I can say is yuck.I t was too easy to predict.

[alicia doan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting

Absolutely brilliant writting. I cannot praise this book enough. I was hooked with the first page. This book would make most thrilling Movie. Cheers to to Ms. Lzett.

[rosemary macedonio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not run of the mill

I read this book in under a day. It is quite different from the mysteries that I usually get on Amazon. I bailout thoroughly.

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected more from this book than it delivered. I found myself disliking almost all of the characters, and there were very few redeeming qualities about any of them.

[Suzie Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The opening line ‘My brother killed my father’ had great curb appeal for me and the novel’s synopsis piqued my curiosity as someone living in France and already very familiar with chateaux renovations and who also loves a darn good mystery. And I wasn’t disappointed. I loved this slightly disturbing story, the way it kept me teetering on my toes at every turn of the page and left me constantly asking ‘Why is Eveline there and WHO is she?’ , ‘HOW did their father die’ and ‘what the hell went on in that chateau?’ - The author’s skilfully handled storyline and fluid prose made pretty sure you weren’t going to find out until the end……and I was right there, with Isabel, in that beautiful, old and somewhat chaotic kitchen wanting those answers as much as she did. In fact, there were so many insightful observations typical of a French chateau that I really did feel as though I was another silent stranger at the table! This book is dark, full of twists and turns and will satisfy anyone who likes a good thriller. My only criticism is that Isabel didn’t run off into the sunset with Greg, but that’s just the soppy romantic in me! This is a super read by a gifted writer and I look forward to reading more of her work.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

For that spooky read you need for the summer.

I couldn't really put this book down the first time that I started. The writing is easy to read but not boring at all. It keeps you on the edge of your seat, wondering what the hell the main character got herself into. I despised their little spoiled, houseguest and wondered why Isabel wouldn't just kick her the fuck out. I kept getting frightened for her when night came. And for a while I thought this ain't so bad and nothing's the matter until the last few moments when everything suddenly blew up.

I think this was a really good first novel and I'm happy to have read it. It was able to meld a family's relationship and a mystery well without it getting so absurd. I find most mystery/thriller novels being so contrived that they just seemed so silly.

[Avis Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have just finished reading this book. I had a recurring thought while doing so: why am I doing this? Now at the end of the book, I am still confused about the why. The characters rambled and all the way through, I kept wondering about the thrust of the main point. Yet I continued to read. I am sure I have never done this before. I am a lifelong reader and usually know the genres I enjoy. This was out of my league. I have never read this author before. I found it ambiguous, but there was always hope the next few pages would give me a clue or two as to what was going on. Perhaps the main character was simply having a hard time learning a life lesson--something we can all relate to, at times. Maybe I was missing the author's point. Not sure I can recommend it highly, but do not want to condemn it either.

[Maggie P · Rating 5 out of 5]

Keeps you guessing from first page to last

This book is pacy, well written and doesn't shy away from serious topics. In southern France a British woman works to forget her problems back home, helping her highly successful brother who has suddenly acquired a dilapidated chateau. She has run headlong from her unfaithful husband and pours all her energies into doing up the building for the man she has idolized since childhood, who is too busy to do more than ring her when he wants something. And then Eveline arrives, shadows gather in the castle and every discovery knocks the world off balance. You won't want to put it down

[Michele Zito · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was not impressed at all with this book. Rather improbable the way these events happened , silent girl, unreachable brother at times. strange mother and how did the father die?
Skipped most of it.
Do not recommend.
Michele Zito