Book Review: An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks, Sarah Pekkanen

Description

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. 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. 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.

Review : 4.5 Stars

I enjoyed the previous book The Wife Between Us by these authors tremendously and was excited to read this one. The story draws you in instantly. It starts very simply but builds the suspense page my page. You can feel what Jessica feels because she has been shown to be as clueless as the reader, neither have any idea what is going to happen next. The writing is inviting and the 2 points of view are depicted very differently. Jess's story is told in a more personal manner while Dr Shields story is told more in a passive voice as if Dr Shields is talking about another person; a detached person talking about a 3rd party. 

Dr. Shields is playing a game, a twisted one where the 'study' is not really a study but more of a game that fuels Dr Shield's agenda.  There is a palpable tension that you can feel all through the book. Jess is vulnerable and impressionable and Dr. Shields is a master of the game. Dr.

Shields weaves a web that's impossible to get out of.  The lure of money and the desire to know more drags Jess into this sticky tangled web. Slowly you see obsession rearing it's ugly head and it is evident in both Dr. Shields and Jess. As the 'tests' progress you can see that Jess is weighing her options more carefully and is almost paranoid about how her actions will be judged. Rather than being herself she rethinks hers actions and does what she assumes would make Dr. Shields think highly of her. You begin to wonder if it is simply a crafty revenge story or is there more? Your patience is suitable rewarded as you continue to read. By the time part 3 begins you can no longer decide who is the prey and who is the predator. It is simply a matter of who can outsmart the others better. All the characters are flawed human beings but they are still relatable. The exchanges between them feel like a long volley in a tennis match. 

The book is gripping and you will read it compulsively to find out the truth. The rest of your life will probably go on hold once you start this book because putting it down is extremely hard. There are many twists in this plot and while you maybe able to guess some of them the ending will leave you shocked. Overall this is a  winner of a book for sure, worth every minute you spend on it. 

My favorite quote from this book:

"How do you know if you can really trust someone?" I finally ask...."If you need to ask that question, then you probably already know the answer," he says.

Thank you  NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review. #AnAnonymousGirl #NetGalley

Book Review: An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena

Description

A weekend retreat at a cozy mountain lodge is supposed to be the perfect getaway . . . but when the storm hits, no one is getting away.  It's winter in the Catskills and Mitchell's Inn, nestled deep in the woods, is the perfect setting for a relaxing–maybe even romantic–weekend away. It boasts spacious old rooms with huge woodburning fireplaces, a well-stocked wine cellar, and opportunities for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, or just curling up with a good murder mystery. So when the weather takes a turn for the worse, and a blizzard cuts off the electricity–and all contact with the outside world–the guests settle in for the long haul. Soon, though, one of the guests turns up dead–it looks like an accident. But when a second guest dies, they start to panic. Within the snowed-in paradise, something–or someone–is picking off the guests one by one. And there's nothing they can do but hunker down and hope they can survive the storm.

Review : 5 Stars

I picked this book up after reading a very good but mentally exhausting book. Of all the books on my immediate to read list, this seemed to be the easiest choice. And man, was I wrong.  I started this book very late at night and promised myself that I would only read one chapter and stop. But with Shari Lapena's writing it was an impossible promise to keep. 

I'm a huge Agatha Christie fan time and again while reading this book I actually thought I was reading Christie. The book has striking similarities with Christie's 'And then there were none'; the set up is similar with the guests going to an isolated vacation spot, just the butler and the cook-housekeeper to attend to them. The plot too runs on similar lines with more than one person ending up dead. The key difference however is that in Christie's book the isolation was not unplanned whereas here it is unplanned due to the storms. So it's hard to imagine how a murder set it up since obviously they can't control the weather. However if you remember And Then There Were None, then you may focus on one of the guests with that colored perspective. I won't say if you will be right or wrong since that would give the mystery away. The story is well crafted and the twists are sudden. There is tension that builds up and you can feel it as you read along. The temptation to go to the end and find out the truth is prevalent but at the same time the fear of missing out on the story is much stronger and one can resist the temptation. The characters are all interesting and each one seems to have a mystery about them. As a reader you really want to find out more about each guest and host instead of just finding out who the murderer is. The complexities of human nature are well played here and the plot only thickens as you read more about each of them. Each character is very real and relatable. I like how the story flows and pulls you in. In a single word, the ending is brilliant! It is impossible to predict and leaves you stunned. 

The main reason I give the book 5 stars is because even though the writing and the plot premise was similar to Agatha Christie's book, the author in no way replicates the tale and instead misleads you to believe that you may know who the murder is because you've read And Then There Were None. This misleading of the reader is a game that Lapena plays with the reader and for that I tip my hat to her.  A thoroughly enjoyable read. Shari Lapena has lived beyond my expectations with this one!

Privacy in the age of digital assistants

I saw this very interesting video about smart home and how much information the devices share about you with a manufacturer and some vendors. There were many folks that posted shocked reactions to it and some were angry about it too. But it got me thinking about why we are shocked at this. I think somewhere we forget that when we use technology as “assistants” we are opening up our private lives for these “assistants” to see.

If we had a personal assistant/secretary who truly helps us to manage our daily tasks, would they not know a lot about us? Think about it for a minute, what makes some a good personal assistant? They know your routine, they understand your moods, they can predict your requirements, they know when to send flowers/gifts to your partner/friends, they know how much you like to spend on whom, they know what you like to read, what music you like, what food you like etc. They even know how you take your coffee and have it waiting at your desk every morning! Basically, the more they know you the better they serve you and that makes you think of them as ‘great assets’ to your life. In fulfilling all your requirements these assistants choose vendors that they have worked with and know that you prefer. For example, they send a bouquet of Orchids to your mom on Mother’s Day on your behalf using a flower shop that you have used for years. When they call this shop and say you would like to order flowers, chances are the shop owner knows you, knows what you always order and they simply confirm that it’s the usual bouquet.

In all these cases you do not know if your assistant ‘gossips’ about your choices with others. Do they share your private information tidbits with others? Chances are high that they do! Some of them may even be ‘selling’ your information to others, for cash or kind! Let me give you an example, imagine there is someone who wants to meet you to discuss a proposal to their latest idea. You have been avoiding them because you don’t really like them. This person goes to your assistant and offers them tickets to some event that is hard to get into, all they want to know in exchange is where you are going for lunch and if you are alone. It’s highly likely in this case that the assistant share this information because they think it’s no big deal. The interloper shows up and pretends that it’s a chance meeting. Basically, you get ambushed at lunch and can’t wait to get out of there but don’t know how the chance meeting came to be.

So then, how is a digital assistant any different? And why do we expect it to be? It can only function intelligently if it collects information about you, analyzes it and helps predict what you need before you ask for it. To do so it needs to interact with other systems and send the data to somebody to analyze. Just like a personal assistant would share your information with their ‘friend’ the digital assistant shared this information with its manufacturer and preferred vendors maybe. Just like your assistant would have your coffee ready, if you drive a Ford car, then Alexa can have your coffee ready at Starbucks for pick up. Digital assistants do this to serve you better, sure someone is making a profit out of it but that’s business.

If you are involved in activities that you classify as private you would avoid sharing them with your personal assistants and then the same principle should apply to digital assistants. The bottom line remains the same, if it’s private keep it to yourself and don’t delegate to personal or digital assistants.

It’s unfair to develop machines that mimic intelligent human behavior and then be shocked when they behave the same way.

Today, machines do not have emotions and they don’t have a conscious and hence you can’t expect loyalty from them. They won’t protect your information because you paid for them. They don’t form a personal bond with you. Someday they may, but for now they don’t and till then their loyalty lies with their creator.