Not Like Us (An Ilse Beck FBI Suspense Thriller Book 1)

Author: Ava Strong

4.5 out of 5 stars

Dr. Ilse Beck is a well known psychologist specializing in treating the survivors of serial killers. Unfortunately, her newest patient brings back memories of her own abusive childhood. But when that patient calls her for help thinking that the killer she escaped has tracked her down, Ilse must team up with FBI Agent Thomas Sawyer, who’s well known for being difficult to work with.

This is a riveting thriller. And it has an amazing twist that I didn’t even get close to figuring out. I had theories about what was going on and how everything was going to come together, but I was completely wrong. The author did a great job of surprising me.

The writing was really good too. It had a nice, steady pace that’s fast without being too fast. And the descriptions of the Washington state scenery and the view from Ilse’s lakeside home were lovely to read.

Ilse was an intriguing main character because of her tragic past and how it continues to affect her, but she shows a lot of courage at one point in the story when she refuses to let her fears stop her from helping her patient.

Sawyer was also an interesting character, although there was something about his characterization that was a bit off-putting at first for some reason that I can’t put my finger on. But I grew to like him more later in the story. I also later realized that if this book was a movie, Tommy Lee Jones would probably play Sawyer.

Overall, Not Like Us is a very entertaining read that I’m rating 4.5 out of 5 stars. I decided not to give it five stars because of my feelings towards Sawyer’s characterization. I recommend it to anyone looking for a suspenseful thriller who doesn’t mind some disturbing scenes, including animal death.

Price on Amazon Kindle: $0

Link to buy: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08Z5JJNBD

(I do not benefit from the use of this link.)