An Anonymous Girl: A Novel

Hendricks and Pakkanen got it right with this polished psychological thriller. I liked it as much for the writing as for the philosophical questions it posed. The writers dive deeply into the tangled minds and motives of the two primary characters, with compelling results. Jessica is a NYC makeup artist who is scrappy, independent, vulnerable, cynical, impulsive and financially strapped. She is likable and entrepreneurial. In search of quick cash to help her struggling family and disabled sister, she finagles her way into a psychological research study, where she’ll be anonymously quizzed on issues involving ethics and morality. She’ll be well-paid, if she simply agrees to be honest and forthcoming. Confidentiality and privacy are assured, so Jessica reveals long-held secrets and painful truths regarding her life. She feels unburdened, but also wary, and begins to wonder about the true purpose of the probing inquiries. At this point, Dr. Lydia Shields divulges her identity to Jessica as the respected psychiatrist and creator behind the unconventional research study. Jessica is quickly drawn to Dr. Shields, almost as a maternal confessor. Validation and insight are bestowed by this seemingly composed, empathetic and intelligent clinician. Then, Jessica is told that she’s been selected for more in-depth field research, where she’ll take part in hands-on, real-life scenarios involving choices and morals. Dr. Shields is also a well-drawn character, and the reader is shown the tiny hairline cracks in the otherwise flawless routines of her personal and professional life. With slow-building unease and alarm, Jessica begins to discover the real reason she’s been singled out for the increasingly intense and bizarre research project. Danger is suddenly everywhere and she must decide whom she can trust. Steady suspense, good pacing and an intriguing premise. Lots of complex questions to ponder regarding why people do what they do. This would be a great choice for a book group. A satisfying read.

Jess is a makeup artist, working hard in New York City to earn enough money to keep herself afloat. So when the chance arises to make a little extra money in a psychological survey, Jess grabs the opportunity and runs with it. But becoming a research subject in a project on morality means that Jess starts to question all her choices.

Meanwhile, the doctor creating the project, Dr. Shields, has her eye on Jessica for a special project of her own. But this exploration of ethics and humanity, of the choices we make when we think no one is watching, could reveal secrets that could destroy a life. As Jess reveals her secrets and her vulnerabilities, how far will the experiment push her before she breaks?

Told from alternating viewpoints, An Anonymous Girl is the story of what could happen to any of us if our lies, our choices, and our secrets were studied and possibly revealed. Written in the stunning slow burn twistiness of The Wife Between Us, authors Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen return to explore the relationships we have with ourselves, with the choices we make, and with the ripples that those choices cause, the pain or happiness that can last for years and years from a choice we made in an instant.

An Anonymous Girl is a fantastic novel of psychological suspense. There are twists and turns that you cannot see coming, that change everything you think you know about where the story is going and knock you for a loop. It’s a book people are going to be talking about for a long time. Join in that conversation as soon as you possibly can. Buy this book!!

Galleys for An Anonymous Girl were provided by St. Martin’s Press, with many thanks. However, I was not able to read them early, as my cat threw up on them, and I had to wait until the book was released to buy myself the Kindle version. Totally worth it!

AN ANONYMOUS GIRL lives up to its billing and exceeded my expectations. Writing about a psychological thriller without revealing any of its secrets is a difficult task, but suffice it to say, I read the book cover-to-cover in an all-nighter. The writers reeled me for the duration after I finished the first chapter. By the time I reached the last page, I was frazzled. Intense, creepy, twisted - three adjectives that come to mind.

Jessica Farris, a young makeup artist always in need of money, enrolls in a study on ethics, conducted by the enigmatic Dr. Shields, a psychologist at NYU. For her participation, Jessica will be handsomely compensated. “Talk about easy money”, Jessica thinks as she sits alone in front of a laptop computer. “Answer some questions, cash my check and walk away...not so fast,” she realizes as the first question slowly appears on the screen. COULD YOU TELL A LIE WITHOUT FEELING GUILT? And that is the easy one.

Jessica shortly realizes that the study is not a one-off. Dr. Shields is a beautiful, seemingly compassionate woman who at first enthralls Jessica. As the study continues, however, the questions are progressively more invasive, as are the demands of Dr. Shields. The good doctor appears to anticipate Jessica’s every move as she slowly gets into Jessica’s head.

The chapters alternate between Jessica’s and Dr. Shield’s first person narrative. Often choppy and awkward in lesser hands, this technique enhances the story. Reading the two points-of-view as Dr. Shields lures Jessica into her web lends to the overall creepiness of the battle of wits.

Jessica, though flawed, is a likable and relatable character. Having struggled to live in Manhattan on little money, I could envision myself signing up for this study. How ironic that her downfall is her honesty on the first test. She ponders the answer to each question and gives away much of herself with her answers. “Ding, ding, ding. I’ve got a winner”, thinks Dr. Shields.

Dr. Shields is a terrific character as well. The inner workings of her brain fascinate me. And that’s all I will say!

For reasons I won’t divulge, AN ANONYMOUS GIRL is my favorite kind of psychological thriller. The authors put meaning into every sentence, which requires deliberate reading. A very clever, suspenseful tale.

<b>4 Stars</b> for this unhinged little thriller. There is something very wrong with me. I cannot get enough of reading about crazy people, particularly crazy people who appear completely normal until it's too late. I couldn't love it more!!!

<b>SUMMARY</b> Jess is a twenty-eight year woman living in NYC. She dreams of being a make-up artist for Broadway shows but for now, she works for Beauty Biz, a cosmetics company that sends make-up artists to people's homes to make them up for special occasions. Not exactly her dream come true, but if she works very hard, she can make enough money to pay her bills and occasionally send money to help with her younger sister, Becky's, medical expenses.

Jess dearly loves her sister Becky, who at age seven, suffered a significant brain injury which leaves Becky completely dependant on their parents and in need of various forms of extremely pricey physical and occupational therapy.

When she hears about an opportunity to participate in a study for a psychological professor at NYU, earning an easy $500 for only a few hours of work, Jess finds a way to finagle herself into this study. And, to add to her good fortune, the professor likes her answers so much, she offers Jess the chance to join an extended version of the study with an opportunity to earn even more money. What could possibly go wrong????? Oh, just wait. A lot goes wrong!I

<b>WHAT I LOVED</b> This book drops little hints throughout, letting the reader know there is more to the story than they are currently being told. Little by little, the reader reader discovers the answers to the burning questions they have been DYING to know. We know Becky has a brain injury and that Jess feels guilty about the accident BUT we have no idea why and what happened until almost the end. We know someone in the book (or maybe more than one someone) is frighteningly off kilter, little clues are scattered out every so often but it's not until the end that we have the definite answer. The suspense is just so well done!!!! There are just so many revelations. I had no idea who to trust.

I loved the characters!! Jess was comp!ex and compelling. She was a decent person and easy to see as a sympathetic heroine, but she made her fair share of mistakes and was definitely flawed. Yet, I still liked her on every single page, even when she made a bad choice or two.

There are so many things to love about this book, I couldn't mention them all. It's so worth reading.

I was interested in this book, given the social psych/morality focus of the plot, but I felt the ending could have been more satisfying. I kept waiting for a bigger twist, that didn't come. I did like that Jess appeared to try to be a critical thinker and outsmart Dr. Shields, although she wasn't always successful. I also dropped one star because it felt like it had a slow start...it didn't really start to pick up until about 1/2 of the book.

AN ANONYMOUS GIRL – Protagonist Jess doesn’t stay anonymous too long, as Dr. Shields enters her life and she becomes a number and part of the doctor’s psychological "ethics study." Here is where I wish that I had not read the reviews beforehand, because an early surprise happens when Jess learns the gender of Dr. Shields, who is not the gray-haired old gent whom she first envisioned.

I gave this book 4 Stars for its originality and the unique first person present dual narrative. Also, this book has a lot of surprises for the reader, and it captured my interest right away. As I first followed Jess through her strange and creepy questionnaires which queried her personal ethics questions, I began to suspect that some force operating behind the computer screen wanted more than information for a study.

And so Jess, who is struggling with money as a traveling makeup artist becomes Subject 52 and answers questions (such as “Could you tell a lie without feeling guilt?), while being paid very well to participate. But the enigmatic Dr. Shields has stranger questions and challenges ahead for Jess as the “study” continues.

We know that Jess’s need for money for her family’s situation keeps her glued to the project, and she admires Dr. Shields, a wealthy and beautiful professional woman, expensively dressed and confident. Jess also initially considers her to be a kind, caring and a sensitive person. (I love the bit about the scarf!) And Jess continues to be extravagantly paid as she works, supposedly as a test subject, for the doctor.

Some reviewers have criticized this book as being dull, and I understand what they mean. Although I didn’t feel it was dull, I wondered when the story would get to the point. The strange-and-stranger-yet machinations of Dr. Shields sometimes seemed to go on too long.

Overall, this is a fascinating and strange psychological mystery that really pushes the chill factor up to “high.”

Jessica Farris is a makeup artist. She works for a company called BeautyBuzz. Her last clients of the day are 2 college girls who live in a student housing complex at NYU. While in their apt., Jessica overhears them replay a voice mail message about a study in which they've agreed to participate. Jessica shows up in their place.

It's a comprehensive morality & ethics research project being conducted by a preeminent NYC psychiatrist. Jessica is Subject 52. Fifty-one other young women have been evaluated, thus far. She's compensated generously for her participation. The money is too tempting to turn down.

Dr Lydia Shields is a well-respected professor who is conducting the psychological research. She pushes Jessica to reveal things about herself she's never talked about. The original academic study is suspended. Subject 52 becomes the sole focus of a real-life exploration on morality & ethics. Dr Shields has her sign a detailed confidentiality agreement. Jessica has vowed to be scrupulously honest. She exposes her true self, her deepest fears, painful secrets & vulnerabilities. Dr Shields is privy to her insecurities & most intimate thoughts.

Dr Shields is married to Dr Thomas Cooper, who is also a therapist. They've been married for 7 years. Although, they're separated now, because he has strayed from their marriage. He swore it would never happen again. It was a singular indiscretion. But, Lydia suspects he's an adulterer. One betrayal might be surmountable. But, confirmation of even one more act of infidelity would establish a pattern of cheating.

Dr Shields uses Jessica as bait to see if he'll cheat again. She's supposed to flirt with him & seduce him. He's supposed to reject her & say he's happily married. Is Thomas faithful, when the opportunity presents itself?

Dr Shields gives Jessica a number of assignments & Jessica has trouble understanding why they're relevant to her research. She thought she could trust Dr Shields. But, she learns she's been lied to about so many things. For instance, Subject 5. Did the esteemed psychiatrist & NYU professor push her to commit suicide? Would she do the same to Jessica?