Dr. Deadly's Book Club

Book Club Pick

Dr. Deadly starts the discussion…real talk with no spoilers!

If you like…psychological suspense; an alluring hero hired to unmask a serial killer in rural Ireland

Let’s talk about…

LJ Ross’s Impostor

From Penguin Random House:

Forensic psychologist Doctor Alexander Gregory has a reputation for being able to step inside the darkest minds to uncover whatever secrets lie hidden there and, soon enough, he finds himself drawn into the murky world of murder investigation.

Dr Deadly’s analysis…

Dr. Deadly enjoyed the elegance of LJ Ross’s first novel featuring Dr. Alex Gregory. Race-against-time suspense unfolds alongside the structure of a closed-circle mystery. Which of the troubled townspeople is acting out their sickest inner strife, and will certainly strike again?

Deeper thoughts were inspired as the story progressed. First: where is the line with keeping secrets? To invite you into her headspace, Dr. Deadly created these hypotheticals:

Is it okay to stop for a quiet ice cream or drink after work, and not mention it to your spouse at home? Or offer to carpool your neighbor’s children, and not share your DUI history? What if your brother admits he killed someone, and begs you not to tell?

So many aspects of human experience are on a spectrum, including our willingness to have and protect secrets, and we can all debate where to “draw the line”.

Dangers of the extreme end of the secrecy spectrum are made plain in Impostor, while raising fascinating questions about where we draw that line, if we want healthy relationships with ourselves and with others. 

These questions bubbled up for Dr. Deadly:

  1. At what point does hiding part of your life become unhealthy or dangerous?
  2. What secrets of others would you find unforgivable  – in a partner, sibling, parent, child, friend?

If you’d like to share your thoughts below, all PG/PG-13 comments are welcome!

If you read Impostor, Dr. Deadly would love to know any other themes or questions or observations on your mind!

Next book club pick: Lauren Nossett’s The Resemblance

3 responses to “Book Club Pick”

  1. Juanita Rose Violini Avatar
    Juanita Rose Violini

    Why would you hide anything? I mean you don’t have to blurt everything out to everyone but if asked, why not answer, if you haven’t done anything wrong. I mean you still don’t have to blurt everything out, but is asked by someone and it’s none of their business, ‘It’s none of your business’ is also an answer. I think it’s when characters/people hide things from themselves (denial) that the real issues start.

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    1. Dr. Deadly Avatar
      Dr. Deadly

      Good point! In Impostor, uncovering some of the “hiding” is what leads to unmasking the killer. It’s a great question, of whether and how the killer may have started down the unhealthy path by hiding things even from themself. And then, once they knew they’d committed a crime/crossed the line, the hiding from others likely feels necessary.

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      1. Juanita Rose Violini Avatar
        Juanita Rose Violini

        Hahaha. Yeah. Likely : )

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