An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen – 375 pages

ARC courtesy of St. Martin’s in exchange for an honest review.

Book Blurb:

Seeking women ages 18–32 to participate in a study on ethics and morality. Generous compensation. Anonymity guaranteed.

When Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study conducted by the mysterious Dr. Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money, and leave

Question #1: Could you tell a lie without feeling guilt?

But as the questions grow more and more intense and invasive and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to feel as though Dr. Shields may know what she’s thinking… and what she’s hiding.

Question #2: Have you ever deeply hurt someone you care about?

As Jess’s paranoia grows, it becomes clear that she can no longer trust what in her life is real, and what is one of Dr. Shields’ manipulative experiments. Caught in a web of deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly.

Question #3: Should a punishment always fit the crime?

My Review: 4 stars

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I read An Anonymous Girl directly after reading The Wife Between Us, the first joint novel by Hendricks and Pekkanen. Reading two thrillers in a row is really unusual me, but I didn’t want to wait on this one like I did on their prior book. Two back to back thrillers, with twists and disturbing characters, equals enough susupense to last me a while. 

Overall, this book has a great plot. A psychiatrist intrigued with people’s ethics & morals moving her study to the real world was a great catch. Especially because our protagonist, make-up artist Jessica, was the sole participant. Creepy and unsettling, yes, but interesting and page-turning, also yes. The mind games and manipulation were constant & the novel had much action & reaction.

The storyline in this book rated higher than the characters. I was not entirely captured by their motives. I questioned why a girl, who seems to have a good head on her shoulders, cares so much about a stranger’s affirmation? But the more I thought about it, doesn’t society thrive on the affirmation from others. It’s just human nature I think. It was the ethics surrounding truth and lies that captivated me the most. So much to discuss about that.

As with all books in this genre, there is a dose of predictability. The plot was well-crafted, and moved at a steady pace minus the doctor’s POV being written in the passive tense. That seemed off to me. I think this duo has a strong sense of pacing and come up with ‘creeptastic’ storylines. I can’t wait to see what’s next from these two.

Quotes I liked:

People are motivated to break their moral compasses for a variety of primal reasons: survival, hate, love, envy, passion. And money.”

– “We all have reasons for our judgments, even if those reasons are so deeply buried we don’t recognize them ourselves.” 

– “Every lifetime contains pivot points—sometimes flukes of destiny, sometimes seemingly preordained—that shape and eventually cement one’s path.”