The Stranger Inside

Finished July 21
The Stranger Inside by Laura Benedict

This suspense novel takes place in Missouri. Kimber Hannon works in the sales department for a St. Louis radio station. When she comes home after spending a weekend out of town, she finds that her key doesn't work in her front door, nor does it work in her back door. There's a strange bicycle sitting beside hers, and on it one of her towels dirty with sweat and grease. And there's someone inside. So she calls the police.
While she's waiting her neighbour, a friendly and inquisitive woman who notices most of what's happening in the neighbourhood seems surprised to see her, and tells her that she's met the man inside, a man who says he's leased the house for six months. The police show her the lease document, which seems to have her signature. Kimber can't figure out what is happening. She doesn't recognize the man, and she is panicky not to be able to access her home or her belongings.
As this story unfolds, the suspense builds and ebbs. We see Kimber's dark side, the things that she's done in the past that she'd rather people not know about, the untimely death of her sister, the disappearance of her father for years, and many more unhappy situations.
Kimber is a bit broken, and she's been pretending for years. I read this book in one day, but set it down several times when it got to an uncomfortable scene. A definite page-turner.