The #1 New York Times-bestselling author’s terrifying new thriller about one man’s ice-cold malice, and one woman’s fight to reclaim her life.

Former Army brat Morgan Albright has finally planted roots in a friendly neighborhood near Baltimore. Her friend and roommate Nina helps her make the mortgage payments, as does Morgan’s job as a bartender. But after she and Nina host their first dinner party—attended by Luke, the flirtatious IT guy who’d been chatting her up at the bar—her carefully built world is shattered. The back door glass is broken, cash and jewelry are missing, her car is gone, and Nina lies dead on the floor.

Soon, a horrific truth emerges: It was Morgan who let the monster in. “Luke” is actually a cold-hearted con artist named Gavin who targets a particular type of woman, steals her assets and identity, and then commits his ultimate goal: murder.

What the FBI tells Morgan is beyond chilling. Nina wasn’t his type. Morgan is. Nina was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. And Morgan’s nightmare is just beginning. Soon she has no choice but to flee to her mother’s home in Vermont. While she struggles to build something new, she meets another man, Miles Jameson. He isn’t flashy or flirtatious, and his family business has deep roots in town. But Gavin is still out there hunting new victims, and he hasn’t forgotten the one who got away.

Book Type:

Romantic Suspense

Review: Identity

A woman struggles to reclaim her life in the wake of treachery, in Nora Roberts’ engrossing romantic suspense, IDENTITY.

We meet Morgan Albright, who loves her life, her roommate, and the direction her life is going. She dreams of home improvement projects and continuing to make it on her own in a small neighborhood outside of Baltimore. But shortly after hosting a dinner with a man she’d recently met and her roommate Nina, she walks into a home that seems like a burglary gone wrong, and Nina dead on the floor.

As it turns out however, the man she’d been getting to know is not who he says he is—he’s a con artist and serial killer who upends Morgan’s life, stealing her money and identity, robbing her of her best friend, and shattering everything she hoped for the future.

Destitute and depressed, she flees home to Vermont, to live with her mother and grandmother. As they encourage her to start anew, the man who destroyed her life obsesses over finishing what he started. After all, he never meant to target Nina, but rather, it was Morgan he was after.

Soon, Morgan builds a new life while the man edges closer, threatening to destroy her—and those she loves—all over again.

As always, Roberts strikes the perfect balance between plot-driven suspense and the warmth of family/community and romance. I devoured the story, invested in the life Morgan endeavored to rebuild as well as what would ultimately happen with the serial killer. Supporting characters, especially Morgan’s grandmother, come to life beautifully and deepen the narrative’s poignancy. And that’s the real magic—seeing how Morgan’s loved ones come together to support and protect her, come what may.

I loved it—Nora Roberts’ novels always feel comforting and heartwarming, and entirely enjoyable.

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