You Don't Know Me in Aussie Readers

Oct 28, 2019 Brenda rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, own-read, crime, psychological-thriller, net-galley, aussie-authors, 2019-release, mystery, read-on-kindle, suspense

Alice Pryce had been in Thailand for the past three months, teaching English to the Thai children. Noah Carruso was on holidays in Thailand, away from the family restaurant in Sydney which had always drained his energy. When Noah and Alice met, the sparks were immediate; they spent the last days of Noah’s holiday exploring; being tourists and making memories.

When Noah arrived home, the looming inquest into eighteen-year-old Lizzie Burdett’s disappearance twelve years prior had the Carruso family ...more

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Oct 28, 2019 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc-are, netgalley-reviews, aussie-author

“The search parties move through the forest shortly after dawn, flashes of neon jackets among the trees, the slumbering air stirring towards an early morning chill. They call her name again and again, then wait, hoping for something in return.”

For just a moment, when Noah glimpses a woman with long red hair on a ferry while holidaying In Thailand escaping the pressures of work and family, he thinks it could be his brother’s missing girlfriend, Lizzie, more than a decade later and thousands of ki “The search parties move through the forest shortly after dawn, flashes of neon jackets among the trees, the slumbering air stirring towards an early morning chill. They call her name again and again, then wait, hoping for something in return.”

For just a moment, when Noah glimpses a woman with long red hair on a ferry while holidaying In Thailand escaping the pressures of work and family, he thinks it could be his brother’s missing girlfriend, Lizzie, more than a decade later and thousands of kilometres from where she was last seen. Of course it’s not, but he is drawn to the beautiful redheaded stranger, and when he sees her next, he learns her name.
Alice is almost half way through her six month contract teaching English in Thailand, having fled Australia in search of anonymity. She’s not looking for anything that might complicate her attempt at building a new life for herself, but she finds Noah irresistible.
Though Noah has to return to Sydney in a few days, and Alice can’t leave Thailand, they embark on a passionate affair, and vow to find a way to make their relationship work, but the truth is, sometimes love just isn’t enough.

Unfolding from the perspectives of Noah, and Alice, You Don’t Know Me is an absorbing story of family drama, mystery, and romance from Sara Foster.

Foster deftly explores the complicated dynamics that has both shaped and ultimately twisted the members of the Carruso family. Meeting Alice causes Noah to question the path he has taken in life stirring up lots of family drama that is exacerbated by the return of Noah’s older brother, Tom, after an eleven year absence. With no love lost between the two brothers stemming from childhood rivalry and the uncertainty surrounding Lizzie’s disappearance, the tension ratchets, and then explodes, just as a coronial inquiry to determine Lizzie’s fate forces Noah to confront the guilt, shame, and anger he has been repressing for years.

I was intrigued by the mystery surrounding Lizzie’s disappearance, the details of which are communicated through the transcript of a podcast. Foster presents several suspects, and creates some stunning twists as the coronial inquiry plays out. I was left guessing about what happened to Lizzie, and who was responsible, until very nearly the end.

While Noah struggles with his conscience, Alice unexpectedly returns to Australia when her father is badly injured and must face her own demons. The combined drama and its emotional toll leaves its mark on Noah and Alice’s fledgling relationship, which Foster explores thoughtfully as they try to support one another through all the turmoil, and desperately attempt to hold on to the joy they find in each other.

I found You Don’t Know Me to be gripping story.
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