The Stranger Inside by Laura Benedict

Kimber was only out of town for a few days but when she gets home she finds her locks changed and a stranger living in her house. When the police arrive, the stranger presents a rent agreement claiming that Kimber invited him to stay. But Kimber never rented out her house. Kimber doesn't know the man. And now she can't get him to leave. 

As Kimber tries desperately to get her house - and her life - back, the stranger counters every attempt. The police aren't on her side and there seems to be little she can do. Anger and frustration, not to mention confusion, have become Kimber's everyday life. And now paranoia had joined the club as she becomes certain the stranger is out to take more than just her home. 

I love Laura Benedict's work. Just flat out love it!

This latest is a bit of a change as it's straightforward thriller with no horror or supernatural aspects, but, if you couldn't tell, it still has a healthy dose of dread and high emotional stakes.

I can't imagine what I would do if I left for a weekend to myself and came back to find my house occupied by someone else. And to find out the police aren't interested in helping! That's the situation Kimber is in when the stranger claims he has a right to be there. And as time goes by, he even gets the police to believe that Kimber is stalking him!

So Kimber's life is not only upside down, she's being treated like a criminal.

But as it turns out, Kimber isn't exactly a great person. She's done some things in the past that reflect a little... poorly on her character. And so she needs to tread carefully where the stranger is concerned. Which makes this a twisty, turny read from the get go. For Kimber and the reader both.

Paranoia is the key here and it comes through on every page of The Stranger Inside. And the questions that drive the plot - Who is the stranger? Why is he out to get Kimber? And what are these shady secrets Kimber is so determined to keep to herself? - are guaranteed to keep readers frantically turning pages until the big reveal at the very end.