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    Stranger in the Room: A Novel
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    Stranger in the Room: A Novel
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    Stranger in the Room: A Novel
    Audiobook13 hours

    Stranger in the Room: A Novel

    Written by Amanda Kyle Williams

    Narrated by Ann Marie Lee

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Fresh from her debut, The Stranger You Seek—which Publishers Weekly called "an explosive, unpredictable, and psychologically complex thriller that turns crime fiction clichés inside out"—Amanda Kyle Williams delivers a second thrilling Keye Street novel, perfect for fans of Karin Slaughter and Patricia Cornwell.

    That bullet was meant for you.

    Summer is smoldering through Atlanta on Fourth of July weekend, as fireworks crack through the air and steam rises from the pavement on Peachtree. Private investigator and ex-FBI profiler Keye Street wants nothing more than a couple of quiet days alone with her boyfriend, Aaron—but, as usual, murder gets in the way.

    I will find her.

    A.P.D. Lieutenant Aaron Rauser is called to the disturbing scene of the strangling death of a thirteen-year-old boy. Meanwhile, Keye must deal with not one but two of her own investigations: In the hills of Creeklaw County, there's a curious case involving chicken feed and a crematorium, and in Atlanta, Keye's emotionally fragile cousin Miki is convinced she is being stalked. Given Miki's history of drug abuse and mental problems, Keye is reluctant to accept her cousin's tale of a threatening man inside her house late one night. But as a recovering alcoholic herself, Keye can't exactly begrudge a woman her addictions—especially since Miki drives Keye to near-relapses at every turn. And yet, Miki is family, and Keye must help her—even if it means tempting her own demons.

    I always find her.

    All hell breaks loose when another murder—the apparent hanging of an elderly man—hits disturbingly close to home for Keye. And though the two victims have almost nothing in common, there are bizarre similarities between this case and that of Aaron's strangled teen. Is there a single faceless predator, a calculating murderer targeting his prey at random? Only a skilled profiler like Keye Street can help the A.P.D. find him. With the threat of more deaths to come, Keye works on pure instinct alone—and soon realizes that a killer is circling ever closer to the people she loves the most.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateAug 21, 2012
    ISBN9780307966889
    Unavailable
    Stranger in the Room: A Novel

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    Reviews for Stranger in the Room

    4/5

    97 ratings36 reviews

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    • 5/5
      If you are a fan of woman detective stories, this is one of the best. The main character is Keye Street, an Asian woman who is a recovering alcoholic (isn't this typical of private detectives?) She receives a call from her neurotic cousin who swears she saw someone staring in her window. Of course she takes the cousin in an begins to investigate. Several murders take place causing more distractions when all she wants to do is spend time with her boyfriend. She also goes after a bail jumper in one of the funniest scenes I've read in awhile. I totally enjoyed this book and have recommended it to several people. I would love to read more of these books about Keye Street and her fascinating family.
    • 3/5
      This is a good (not great) crime novel. Our protag, Keye Street, is very Kinsey Millhouse like but grittier. Keye is an ex-FBI agent turned private detective. Her boyfriend is an Atlanta PD Detective.

      This book is the second in a series and it seems that there will be more to come by Williams. I think that they will be a hit for those that like a quick crime drama with some comedy and a strong female lead.

      Many thanks to Random House Publishing and Net Galley for this advanced readers copy.
    • 5/5
      The second novel in a series is critical; after all, a good first novel could be a fluke. The more I like the first in a series, the more I hope the second lives up to its potential, and I am pleased to say that Amanda Kyle Williams more than delivers with her second Keye Street thriller, STRANGER IN THE ROOM. If you missed THE STRANGER YOU SEEK, Keye is a disgraced FBI profiler-turned-P.I., her brilliant career derailed by alcoholism, who gets pulled in as an APD consultant when a serial killer terrorizes Atlanta. Keye is funny but competent, deeply flawed, and self-aware. She's as funny as early Stephanie Plum, but in more intense thrillers (think Karin Slaughter, early Patricia Cornwell). It's an addictive combination. Thrillers are often relentless (which is the point, of course-- to keep the reader turning pages) in gore, action, and suspense, but in a twist on the usual thriller formula, Williams has used her heroine's abundant flaws to inject substantial humor into her books. The suspense is still intense; humor simply provides another layer of enjoyment.Atlanta is practically a character in STRANGER IN THE ROOM. Having made it through a scorching summer, lines like "Atlanta's smoldering summer had dropped down around us like a burning building" really resonate with me. Keye observes of her private investigation business, "Missing persons, surveillance, bond enforcement, and process serving keeps the cash flowing when business slows to a crawl over the winter holidays. But when Atlanta starts to heat up and the glaring southern sun sets our bloodstreams ablaze, when the clothes get skimpy and overworked servers stagger out with trays of frosty pitchers at packed pavement cafes, my phone gets busy." Details of locations and mouth-watering descriptions of restaurant offerings (more on this later) add to the authenticity. Keye struggles with sobriety, and Williams treats alcoholism with great sensitivity and understanding, even as Keye cracks jokes about it.STRANGER IN THE ROOM starts out with Keye's troubled cousin, Miki, asking for help; she's being stalked. Keye isn't sure how much of Miki's account to believe, but when a body turns up in Miki's house, Keye is convinced. Miki is possibly more screwed-up than Keye. "'Are you all right?' she asked, then went on without giving me time to answer. 'Oh, right. The alcohol thing. What's the big deal, anyway? I won't let you get wasted. Just order a fucking drink.' 'That's the worst idea I've heard all day.' She reached into her bag and withdrew a tiny glass vial with a black cap. 'I've got some coke. Would a line help?' That's my Miki, always thinking of others." Meanwhile, APD Lieutenant Rauser has asked for Keye's insight in a serial killer case. These two mysteries make up the main plot, with Keye's private investigation business providing the subplots. One is a bail bonds case that provides quality comic relief (and by "comic relief," I mean, "uncontrollable laughter"), and the other takes Keye up to rural Big Knob, where she investigates odd happenings at a crematorium. The Big Knob case introduces one of my favorite characters in any book in any genre: the politely racist Mrs. Stargell. In a less nuanced novel, Mrs. Stargell would have been a one-dimensional character to hate, but Williams rounds her out nicely, and she steals every scene she's in. I kind of hope future cases take Keye back to Big Knob.Keye's supporting cast is fantastic. Williams is skilled at crafting complex characters, no matter how few words they have in the book. Keye's relationship with Rauser continues to develop in interesting and unexpected ways. He's a great cop: "'Listen to me, people,' Rauser snapped. 'All that DNA shit, it's gonna be great in court. But it's good old-fashioned police work that closes cases. Don't ever forget that.'" But he has a goofy side, too: "Rauser's hand went to his weapon, then slid away when we saw the gray tabby from next door pulling himself up and over the fence. He balanced on top for a couple of seconds, then jumped to the ground and sauntered over to the patch of neglected garden. He dug around, sniffed, turned a few circles, sniffed, dug, then laid back his ears and did his business. 'Little bastard,' Rauser growled, watching the cat with Wile E. Coyote eyes. 'Fucker's looking right at us.' I had to bite my lip and look away. Rauser had unintentionally built a giant cat box in his yard." Her coworker, stoner savant Neil, is hilarious and strangely competent. He and Keye exchange great childish banter that brings out Keye's silly side. "Neil had his electronic devices out, and he was balancing a hotel coffee mug. 'This is going to be one of those three-hour tour things, isn't it? Big Knob's the Minnow and you're Ginger and I'm the professor and we're never getting off the island.' 'You see me as Ginger? Really?' I glanced at myself in the rearview."I'm tempted to quote all the passages I marked that made me laugh out loud (and, in one case, literally slap my knee), but I don't want to spoil the joy for new readers. I'm also tempted to quote all the passages about food (seriously, don't read Williams on an empty stomach!), but I'll just give one example: "She grew poblano peppers in her own garden and stuffed them with cheese and cubed acorn squash she'd sauteed in garlic. She skewered fresh peaches on cinnamon sticks and bathed them in bourbon and honey on the grill until their meat was sweet and smoky. She filled tiny pastry cups with goat cheese and homemade lime curd and glass pitchers with sweet iced tea and fresh thyme. Southern cooking gets a bad rap. But when it's done right, it's a beautiful thing." Besides their other attributes, I think Williams's books could be the foundation for a spectacular cookbook.STRANGER IN THE ROOM stands well on its own, but I can't possibly recommend skipping THE STRANGER YOU SEEK. Do yourself a favor and read both. Quoting extensively in a review is the highest compliment for me: it means the writing is so good, it's best to let it speak for itself.Source disclosure: I received an e-galley of this title courtesy of the publisher and purchased my own hardcover edition.
    • 3/5
      When I received this book I realized I had already read it. It was okay, not very impressive. It almost seemed like the pi was a little TOO quirky. Like the author was trying too hard to make her seem special.
    • 4/5
      This book was really good! I was a little distracted by the 2 story lines, but over all, I really liked the characters. I would definitely be interested in seeing more from this author!
    • 3/5
      The blurb on the back compared this to Janet Evonovitch. Don't worry, it's not that bad. But it is also not that funny.What it is is your standard boilerplate mystery. If your the type that reads one or two of these a week (I am) go ahead pick it up. You will like it just fine, probably enough to get the next one.
    • 5/5
      Keye Street, a former FBI profiler and now a private detective, who helps her relative, Miki, who feels she is being stalked. Keye finds a body hanging in Miki's home. Her boyfriend, Lt Rauser with the Atlanta PD, asks for her assistance in investigating another murder. Keye feels that one murder is related to the body found in Miki's home. Keye is an interesting main character, and her relationship with Lt. Aaron Rauser is a part of the story which doesn't dissolve into a romance novel. I am hoping this becomes a series for Ms. Williams.
    • 3/5
      The main characters descriptions keep throwing me off and making me like the book less with each description. I wish right out of the gate I had the description so my visualization wasn't continually messed up. Bringing up the characters addiction a few too many times is boring me, I want to give her and cookie and a pat on the back and move along...I mean I GET IT. I don't not like that main character, I do, I think to much description is the issue. The story on the other hand seems interesting and I want to fall into the story BUT the description of some things make it hard to keep interest. I would like this book more if the main character was a little less into her thoughts and a little more focus on the mystery within the book.
    • 4/5
      Stranger in the Room is a fast paced who done it. The characters are realistic and fun. Keye is a recovering alcoholic, ex FBI profiler, working as a PI and bail recovery agent that while trying to keep herself together, helps solve a string of murders and a bad crematory. Thoroughly enjoyed the book. Will be looking for more books by author Amanda Kyle Williams.
    • 4/5
      Keye Street is back and is just as kick-*** as ever. Aren't familiar with Keye Street? Well, she's a Chinese-American private detective, a former FBI profiler, and an alcoholic. Keye was adopted by the Street family as a young child and also has an adopted African-American brother who just happens to be gay. Her adoptive mother's sister has been in-and-out of mental institutions for most of Keye's life and it seems as if her cousin, Miki, may be following in her mother's footsteps. Miki is bipolar and an award-winning photojournalist. She's in dire need of Keye's expertise since she believes she has a stalker. Keye's lover, Atlanta Police Department detective Aaron Rauser is investigating two murders with some strange similarities (murder always trumps relationship plans, but it means Keye has no one to function as a buffer for the upcoming holiday weekend). Just to make things a little more interesting, Keye is asked to investigate a North Georgia crematorium that appears to be ripping off its clients. Keye tries to figure out what is going on with her cousin Miki, what exactly is happening at the crematorium, and is worried about her lover's case. Ms. Williams has provided another great read with STRANGER IN THE ROOM. The action is plausible, the characters are unique yet realistic, and the story kept me flipping the pages until the end. How good is this story? Well, I've read it at least three times since it was published and I still find it an enjoyable read.
    • 4/5
      Amanda Kyle Williams' latest novel, Stranger In The Room, continues with the quirky PI character, Keye Street, from her previous book. Williams has an easy, smooth writing style with a touch of humor. The plot centers around Keyes's cousin who is being stalked and the connection to murders that have occurred. I found the book to be a little slow about three-fourths the way through but glad I hung in there until the end. Look forward to her next novel.
    • 4/5
      Keye Street is an ex-FBI profiler, whose fall from grace due to her alcoholism was a public event. As a private PI, she still struggles with maintaining sobriety and keeping her business afloat by gathering info for lawyers and capturing bail jumpers. In this second novel, Keye is involved in two separate cases, one involving a crematorium, which is delivering urns of concrete mix and chicken feed (instead of ashes), and another where her cousin Miki is being stalked by a serial killer. This is a typical female thriller with an interesting storyline. Keye is a likeable character who is flawed and easy to relate to. Her sense of humor is dry and dark and the characters throughout were solid and realistic. I enjoyed her relationship with her hot detective boyfriend and her independent and fearless personality. I am now looking forward to reading the first Keye novel, which I had not read prior to this one.
    • 4/5
      Stranger in the Room started out slow. We meet Keye Street again in this book. I have not read the other book that starred Keye Street. She is a recovering alcoholic that use to work for the FBI BAU until her alcoholism shattered that career. Now Keye is a private investigator.She has a co-worker name Neil who I loved from the start. He was smart ass and entertaining. He is a tech geek that helps Keye on some cases. Keye does bail bond jumpers, investigates for a lawyer and also consults with the Atlanta PD where her boyfriend Aaron works in major crimes.A Stranger in the Room centers around Keye and her cousin Miki. She has a stalker and a history of cutting and addiction problems. When the Atlanta PD are working on a murder case Keye feels that her cousin's stalker and the murders are related.The story got interesting my Chapter 20. I found myself bored with a lot of the writing about Keye's alcohol addiction and Miki's problems. Always reading about how the alcohol tastes to an alcoholic got on my nerves when it came to the 3rd time reading it. That was the only thing that annoyed me the most.
    • 4/5
      Author Amanda Kyle Williams gives readers another entertaining glimpse at razor-sharp investigator Keye Street in "Stranger in the Room". The prologue for this book sets the tone when Keye's issue-plagued cousin Miki comes home one night with a couple of drinks settling in and hears a noise from inside her house as she is fumbling to open the front door. When she looks through her window from the outside, there is a man wearing a ski mask, dressed all in black, staring back at her from the inside. He makes a motion with his hand like he is firing a gun at her. How invasively creepy is that? Keye, struggling to recover from her own substance abuse issues with alcohol, provides refuge to her cousin, wondering all the while why she's adding to her own stress load. Keye's boyfriend, Police Lieutenant Aaron Rauser is deeply involved in the homicide case of a strangled teenager. Another murder case, the hanging of an elderly man, would at first appear unconnected, but there are similarities that former FBI profiler Keye cannot ignore. Then there's the weird case of the crematorium mixing up cement mix and chicken feed and serving up as human remains to grieving loved ones. Atmospheric, set in the July heat of Atlanta, and edgy--Keye shoots from the lip, and her thoughts fly just as fast--"Stranger in the Room" is a perfect all-night read for lovers of whip-smart, idiosyncratic female criminal investigators. Review Copy Gratis Library Thing
    • 4/5
      This is an Early LibraryThing review. This is the second time I have reviewed a Keye Street novel, and the story did not fail. Keye is an easy character to love, and get wrapped up in her life events. The plot is fast paced, and well thought out, and I appreciate the honesty portrayed in Keye's relationship with her cousin Miki. I can't wait for the next Keye Street novel.
    • 5/5
      Keye Street is an extraordinary crime analyst/detective, but her excellent skills did not prevent her unceremonious firing from the FBI several years ago. Now 7 years sober and back in her hometown of Atlanta, she is working as a private detective, making her mortgage payments rounding up suspects who have skipped out on court dates, with occasional assignments from various lawyers trying to run down the facts on a variety of cases.Amanda Kyle Williams is an author with a knack for witty dialog and an ability to create characters who are smart, in some cases odd-balls, and always worth getting to know. Keye for one, is ethnically Chinese, still carrying the baggage associated with the trauma of watching her grandparents be killed by a grocery store robber when she was very young. Adopted by an older Southern white couple, she grew up loving all things Southern, including the food, the culture and the sporty fast cars of her youth. She loves her parents while simultaneously being exasperated, particularly with her mother, every time mom opens her mouth.Keye's office assistant Neil is a nerdy techno-geek who never saw a password he couldn't get past when he needs to enter a website or database. He also enjoys the occasional recreational drug, and sometimes the occasions come a little too frequently. But he always comes through when Keye needs information that only Neil can succeed at getting.It appears that Keye's high strung but successful photographer cousin has acquired a stalker and she calls on Keye for help. But Miki also has a drug problem and a flair for the dramatic, so maybe she is imagining some of the drama in her life. In the meantime, Keye's boyfriend, Homicide Lieutenant Aaron Rauser of the Atlanta PD, has a case involving a death by strangulation of a young teen that has some nagging irregularities to it.All too soon Miki's home becomes a crime scene when a dead body of an old man is found hanging in her home. Keye begins to see possible relationships between the two seemingly disparate murders, and before much time at all has elapsed, even more murders are uncovered. Keye is off and running, analyzing clues and behavior patterns that has her believing they may have a serial killer on their hands. A sense of dread develops as one ominous event after another occurs; Keye begins to think more and more about the pleasure and courage she drew from alcohol, coming perilously close several times to retreating back into that life.Keye narrates the book and we are thus treated to her thoughts on all things Southern, such as race relations, the weather and green living. In one hilarious thought progression, Williams entertains us through her protagonist Keye with this delightful prose:Folks with real winters and heavy snows think it's funny that we complain about winter down here, but let me tell you, when the windchill hits you on a little scooter doing thirty-five in a business suit in January, your friggin' lips will freeze to your teeth. I lost five pounds just by shivering. My concern with America's dependency on foreign oil stopped there. (p. 233)This is fast paced, with lots of twists, lots of great, richly drawn characters, and an ominous and scary villain that seems to stay one step ahead right up to the heart stopping conclusion. Keye Street is a top notch investigator that you will certainly want to see more of, and Amanda Kyle Williams is definitely an author to seek out over and over! Block out some reading time, get your copy of Stranger in the Room and get started now!
    • 3/5
      Middling detective story about a former FBI profiler with serous personal issues. I spent first half of book thinking that if the characters in the story had read even a handful of mysteries in the last century they would have known what was going on a lot sooner. Nice scenes evoking a strong sense of place in the American South,. Only recommended for mystery buffs who must have a new female PI to follow.
    • 4/5
      This is a great, quick read mystery. Liked the characters and plot. Only thing I did not like was that the main character was made a recovering alcoholic- I have read several other detective/police type mysteries where their main character also was a recovering alcoholic- just wondering why I am seeing this so often? Can't there be great detectives that are not recovering from whatever? Otherwise it was a fun read and although this is the first book by this author I have read, I will plan to read more by her.This was an earlier reviewer book. Thanks guys :)
    • 4/5
      STRANGER IN THE ROOM is one in a mystery series involving Keye Street, PI. The main character at one time worked for the FBI in their behavioral analysis department, but thanks to her drinking, lost the position and is now working as a PI/bounty hunter in the deep south. At this point, Street is a recovering alcoholic with a big chip on her shoulder. If you like Jessie Stone, chances are you will enjoy this mystery series also.Keye is an American of Chinese descent living in Atlanta, Ga with a cat named White Trash. She is far from perfect and at times I just wanted to shake her and tell her to stop her whining and feeling sorry for herself. That is how well written this story is. It manages to capture the readers attention and keep them focused on the pages around them.Although the main focus begins with one serial killer, Keye ends up exposing two different serial murder cases. You never know what is happening until the end sneaks up on you. The author adequately describes the circumstances keeping the reader engaged and focused on where she wants him to be in the story. At one point, you are walking with Keye in the woods and you want to be anywhere except where you are at that
    • 5/5
      "The stranger in the room" by Amanda Kyle Williams dispels the theory of the sophomore slump. I think the second Keye Street novel was even better than the first. I love the rapport between Keye and Aaron Raiser. He a sturdy police detective and she a private investigator with her failure as an FBI profiler forever haunting her. Her constant battle with herself as a recovering alcoholic. The book is a page Turner. I can't wait for the next one.
    • 5/5
      When I first learned I would be receiving the second book in the Keye Street series, I picked up the first, The Stranger You Seek, to read so I would have some familiarity with the characters. I'm quite happy that I did because I loved the characters and the book. For me, Stranger in the Room is even better. I read it in one day, sitting up past my bedtime, so that I could find out "whodunit." Williams kept me guessing until Keye herself knew. I couldn't even guess who it might be. I think that's the mark of a good book.I agree with another reviewer. There's just enough lighthearted banter in the book to counter what otherwise is a very suspenseful novel. I kept thinking Keye Street is a more sophisticated and serious Stephanie Plum and Amanda Kyle Williams has written a series for readers who want a more literary offering than what Janet Evanovich has provided (Sorry, Janet. Your books do have their place and I love Grandma Mazur.). And speaking of love, Neil is a treasure. I hope to see more of him in the upcoming book. They are a perfect team.I'm excited about this series, happy that LibraryThing introduced me to it, and looking forward to Don't Talk to Strangers.
    • 5/5
      The second novel in a series is critical; after all, a good first novel could be a fluke. The more I like the first in a series, the more I hope the second lives up to its potential, and I am pleased to say that Amanda Kyle Williams more than delivers with her second Keye Street thriller, STRANGER IN THE ROOM. If you missed THE STRANGER YOU SEEK, Keye is a disgraced FBI profiler-turned-P.I., her brilliant career derailed by alcoholism, who gets pulled in as an APD consultant when a serial killer terrorizes Atlanta. Keye is funny but competent, deeply flawed, and self-aware. She's as funny as early Stephanie Plum, but in more intense thrillers (think Karin Slaughter, early Patricia Cornwell). It's an addictive combination. Thrillers are often relentless (which is the point, of course-- to keep the reader turning pages) in gore, action, and suspense, but in a twist on the usual thriller formula, Williams has used her heroine's abundant flaws to inject substantial humor into her books. The suspense is still intense; humor simply provides another layer of enjoyment.Atlanta is practically a character in STRANGER IN THE ROOM. Having made it through a scorching summer, lines like "Atlanta's smoldering summer had dropped down around us like a burning building" really resonate with me. Keye observes of her private investigation business, "Missing persons, surveillance, bond enforcement, and process serving keeps the cash flowing when business slows to a crawl over the winter holidays. But when Atlanta starts to heat up and the glaring southern sun sets our bloodstreams ablaze, when the clothes get skimpy and overworked servers stagger out with trays of frosty pitchers at packed pavement cafes, my phone gets busy." Details of locations and mouth-watering descriptions of restaurant offerings (more on this later) add to the authenticity. Keye struggles with sobriety, and Williams treats alcoholism with great sensitivity and understanding, even as Keye cracks jokes about it.STRANGER IN THE ROOM starts out with Keye's troubled cousin, Miki, asking for help; she's being stalked. Keye isn't sure how much of Miki's account to believe, but when a body turns up in Miki's house, Keye is convinced. Miki is possibly more screwed-up than Keye. "'Are you all right?' she asked, then went on without giving me time to answer. 'Oh, right. The alcohol thing. What's the big deal, anyway? I won't let you get wasted. Just order a fucking drink.' 'That's the worst idea I've heard all day.' She reached into her bag and withdrew a tiny glass vial with a black cap. 'I've got some coke. Would a line help?' That's my Miki, always thinking of others." Meanwhile, APD Lieutenant Rauser has asked for Keye's insight in a serial killer case. These two mysteries make up the main plot, with Keye's private investigation business providing the subplots. One is a bail bonds case that provides quality comic relief (and by "comic relief," I mean, "uncontrollable laughter"), and the other takes Keye up to rural Big Knob, where she investigates odd happenings at a crematorium. The Big Knob case introduces one of my favorite characters in any book in any genre: the politely racist Mrs. Stargell. In a less nuanced novel, Mrs. Stargell would have been a one-dimensional character to hate, but Williams rounds her out nicely, and she steals every scene she's in. I kind of hope future cases take Keye back to Big Knob.Keye's supporting cast is fantastic. Williams is skilled at crafting complex characters, no matter how few words they have in the book. Keye's relationship with Rauser continues to develop in interesting and unexpected ways. He's a great cop: "'Listen to me, people,' Rauser snapped. 'All that DNA shit, it's gonna be great in court. But it's good old-fashioned police work that closes cases. Don't ever forget that.'" But he has a goofy side, too: "Rauser's hand went to his weapon, then slid away when we saw the gray tabby from next door pulling himself up and over the fence. He balanced on top for a couple of seconds, then jumped to the ground and sauntered over to the patch of neglected garden. He dug around, sniffed, turned a few circles, sniffed, dug, then laid back his ears and did his business. 'Little bastard,' Rauser growled, watching the cat with Wile E. Coyote eyes. 'Fucker's looking right at us.' I had to bite my lip and look away. Rauser had unintentionally built a giant cat box in his yard." Her coworker, stoner savant Neil, is hilarious and strangely competent. He and Keye exchange great childish banter that brings out Keye's silly side. "Neil had his electronic devices out, and he was balancing a hotel coffee mug. 'This is going to be one of those three-hour tour things, isn't it? Big Knob's the Minnow and you're Ginger and I'm the professor and we're never getting off the island.' 'You see me as Ginger? Really?' I glanced at myself in the rearview."I'm tempted to quote all the passages I marked that made me laugh out loud (and, in one case, literally slap my knee), but I don't want to spoil the joy for new readers. I'm also tempted to quote all the passages about food (seriously, don't read Williams on an empty stomach!), but I'll just give one example: "She grew poblano peppers in her own garden and stuffed them with cheese and cubed acorn squash she'd sauteed in garlic. She skewered fresh peaches on cinnamon sticks and bathed them in bourbon and honey on the grill until their meat was sweet and smoky. She filled tiny pastry cups with goat cheese and homemade lime curd and glass pitchers with sweet iced tea and fresh thyme. Southern cooking gets a bad rap. But when it's done right, it's a beautiful thing." Besides their other attributes, I think Williams's books could be the foundation for a spectacular cookbook.STRANGER IN THE ROOM stands well on its own, but I can't possibly recommend skipping THE STRANGER YOU SEEK. Do yourself a favor and read both. Quoting extensively in a review is the highest compliment for me: it means the writing is so good, it's best to let it speak for itself.Source disclosure: I received an e-galley of this title courtesy of the publisher and purchased my own hardcover edition.
    • 5/5
      Keye Street has a rather annoying cousin. Don’t we all? Miki Ashton, a Photojournalist, who has a touch of drama queen in her, sees a stalker … in her home. She had her key in the lock to open her door when she saw him through her window. Keye only half believes her until she gets there and verifies for herself that Miki’s home was broken into. Keye used to be a police officer, but due to her alcohol abuse, was let go. Now she’s an Atlanta PI, as well as a few other odd jobs. She takes all the work she can get since she has quite a large mortgage payment to keep up with.About this same time, APD Lieutenant Aaron Rauser is investigating the death of a thirteen year old boy who’d been strangled. Within a few days, there are a couple of more seemingly unrelated deaths. But one thing Street does well is profile people. It doesn’t take long before it becomes clear to her that the deaths as well as the threat to her cousin are related. Now they know they have a serial killer on their hands.Keye Street practically pops off the page. This is the second in the Keye Street series, continuing on with Ms. Williams intensely interesting character. With alcoholism in her background, she’s obviously a flawed character, but someone that readers can root for. Just to summarize Keye a bit, she’s Chinese American, orphaned when she was young, and adopted by a very southern Georgia couple. Her adoptive parents also adopted a black male child, so their nuclear family was quite distinctive. She’s been living on her own for quite some time, taking in a little white stray cat she calls White Trash. She and Aaron Rauser are now a couple, having gotten together in the first novel, The Stranger You Seek. There is a side story in this novel which was a fun addition to the story, but it never really connected to the serial killer aspect of the story. The third in the series, Don’t Talk to Strangers, has been out since July 2014. I’m looking forward to reading and reviewing it within the next month. Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
    • 4/5
      Keye Street, former FBI profiler turned private detective returns in this second book in the series. The story was interesting enough with Keye helping her cousin out as she is being stalked and helping her boyfriend, Lt. Rauser, investigate a murder. That aspect of the story was interesting enough and had enough detail to hold my interest. And in all honesty I liked Keye as a character. The only problem I had was the repetitive descriptions of how alcohol tastes to an alcoholic, what it means to them. While I understand that her addiction is a big part of who she is there are only so many times that you can read about that before it becomes boring and repetitive. If that hadn’t been brought up as often as it was then I would have admittedly enjoyed the book a bit more but other than that I found it an interesting second book in Keye’s story.
    • 4/5
      Last year I read and thoroughly enjoyed Amanda Kyle Williams’ debut novel, The Stranger You Seek. Williams’ private detective, Keye Street, is a Chinese American Type A female, recovering alcoholic fired from the job she loved with the FBI, and was raised by loving but quirky parents in Atlanta. A black, gay adopted brother is also part of the family and adds his own uniqueness to family gatherings.In this second installment Street is getting on with her life, after surviving near death incidents in the previous book. The publicity from her last case increased business for her PI firm, so much so that she and Neil, her pot smoking tech assistant, are working harder than ever before—mostly on mild cases like bond enforcement, serving subpoenas, and infidelity matters. Early in the novel Keye receives a terrified call from her quasi-famous photographer cousin, Miki, about an intruder in her home, but Keye is skeptical as Miki is the drama queen of drama queens. The police find no evidence of an intrusion, and, given Miki's long history of drug abuse and acoholism, followed by numerous rehabs, Keye says she will look into the matter but has no real expectations of finding anything. Shortly thereafter one of Keye’s clients asks her to investigate a strange case for a young couple who received an urn of their dead mother's ashes that actually was composed of concrete mix and chicken feed. The two cases make up the bulk of the novel, both cases with suprising twists and turns along the way that put Keye back in the public spotlight. Again, Keye is put in life threatening situations but this time also puts Neil and Miki in imminent danger. Author Williams continues to deftly mix Keye’s investigative strengths and human weaknesses with a compelling plot that races to a final resolution that includes Mother Nature dropping a massive tornado on Atlanta that helps Keye barely escape with her life. A great read.
    • 2/5
      First and foremost, the author really needs to re-think those super-snarky comments related to real-life people. Every time I came to one of them, I had to restrain my impulse to throw the book across the room. Presumably they’re meant to be funny, but they’re not . . . and they make her seem just plain mean.Keye Street is the central character in “Stranger in the Room.” She’s a flawed and occasionally-funny ex-FBI profiler, currently a private investigator who consults for the Atlanta police. The southern settings are exquisite, perfectly described and one of the highlights of the author’s writing. While I mostly liked the characters, they often had an unfortunate tendency to be one-dimensional and to behave in perfectly predictable ways. Miki wasn’t at all a sympathetic victim, making it difficult to care about the outcome of the story the author wanted to tell. It seemed to be a reasonable assumption that Keye would save the day in the end, but when she did just that, Miki’s response made her so unlikeable that I really didn’t care that she had been rescued. The recovering alcoholic descriptions got very old very fast, mostly because they seemed far too repetitive and just a bit too blatant. The author’s decision to include two major mystery/crime elements is rather baffling. Either one of them alone would have been perfect and the book would have been tighter if the author had chosen just one as her focus and then really delved into it. The mere fact that Keye was involved in both investigations was far too slim a connecting thread to make the two divergent stories dovetail in any meaningful way. The biggest problem I had with the book was that it was far too easy to set it aside in favor of reading something else; I simply didn’t care enough about any of the characters and the telling of the tale wasn’t compelling enough to keep me reading and involved in the story being told.
    • 3/5
      While overall I enjoyed this novel, I don't think it's as good as the debut. Some of the things that bugged me were small; like a character asking for an ink pen from a waitress. Well what other kind of pen are you expecting, a quill? Funny. Then, I caught a continuity error involving Miki being left asleep in the guest room and Rauser having admitted to seeing her in her underwear just minutes before. Well, which is it? And "the auto-winder on Jo Phillips's digital camera was singing". Ha! Two of my pet peeves in one, lack of author research and the stupid noises digital cameras make to mimic things they just don't have - like auto-winders. Nothing to wind.It wasn't bad though and I highlighted a few passages that were really good such as Keye musing that she was "mentally addressing invitations to my pity party" and "we'll be about as hip as a forty-year-old tattoo". I like the way she describes her life with her cat, White Trash, and some of the things that only cat owners notice like when Keye notes that WT was "miffed I had dared to move my legs". Good stuff.Again, Williams doesn't drown us in forensic or evidence-gathering minutiae, but what she does give us seems very accurate. Like when folks need to use luminol to find bodily fluids not apparent to the naked eye, the lights have to be turned off in order for the alternate light source to work. On TV now, no one ever turns off the lights. Silly. In the last book I thought that the homosexual angle was overplayed and in this one it was southern-ness and alcoholism. After a whole bunch of internal monologues about how badly she wanted a drink it got to be distracting. I understand that the evil pull of booze never goes away for these people, but injected into a storyline so constantly didn't enhance things for me. Neither did the constant references to southern this and southern that. Yeah, we know that she's in Atlanta and despite being of Chinese descent, is southern to the core just like everyone else. Yeah, it's important to establish character and place, but it was a bit too thick.Keye is still her flawed, sarcastic self though. Some people didn't like the sub-plot involving the crematorium, but I did. I thought it showed the life of a run-of-the-mill PI more accurately and it served to lighten the mood quite a bit despite the horrific cemetery. Usually the PI is focused on a single case, as if they go through life working one big one after the other. Not so and I like the piddling shit that Keye has to put up with. Like going to see the bond agent she depends on to keep cash flowing. Last time out, her profiling seemed reasonably applied and arrived at. This time though it's closer to the psychic hotline and clashed with the hard-core realism of the rest of the investigation. While accurate and ultimately correct, her prescience with regard to finding the one newspaper story that revealed the killer was way too much. It was based on a crime scene element that was ephemeral at best. I think that Williams might be a Davenport fan because she puts words in Rauser's mouth that are almost direct quotes from the Sandford novels. Particularly about forensic evidence never actually solving cases, but instead is used to absolutely tie a suspect to the crime and that the suspect is found through normal police-work. It was kind of funny. Maybe Rauser gets up to the Twin Cities now and then.
    • 5/5
      Author: Amanda Kyle WilliamsPublished By: Bantam BooksAge Recommended: AdultReviewed By: Arlena DeanRating: 5Review:"Stranger In the Room: a Novel" (Keye Street #2) was a wonderful mystery suspense-thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat not putting it down until the end. This novel is a second in the 'Keye Street series' dealing with Keye Street's cousin,Miki being stalked...add to that many murders are being committed and the missing cremated ashes and you have a excellent well written script to be read.All of the characters were simply wonderful in that they were so well developed into their particular character only making this read good....from Keye, Rauser,Neil, Miki, Tyrone, Emily, Harold, Cash Tilson, Billy and Brenda Wade, Larry Quinn, Bevins, Marko Pullip, Jimmy,Dan, Dr, Shetty, Joe Ray Kirkpatrick, Mr.Huckaby,'White Trash,' Mary Kate Stargell and the list goes on ...all simply good...some over the top....with even some were even humorous and had me laughing out loud at some of it. Now, I am sure at this point you are wondering what "Stranger In The Room" is all about and this is where I say you must pick up this read to find out about it. "Stranger In The Room" was a tastefully written with all of its darkness... that after all is said and done the job of getting it delivered to the reader was well done...as this author brings it to life a very believable story for the reader. The ending rather surprised me but after I thought about it...I guess this is the way life can go for a person. Only leaving me to say does one ever open their eyes and see what is not good for them. Oh well... to know just what I am referring to....you must pick up this read.Would I recommend this mystery thriller..."Stranger In The Room"... YES. It is my understanding that there is a #1 in this series: The Stranger You Seek that I plan on checking it out soon. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    • 3/5
      [Stranger in the Room] is the second novel in the Keye Street series. It's a good read, although I think I liked the first one even better.Keye Street is a private investigator, former FBI criminalist, and sometimes-consultant to the local Atlanta police. In this novel, her PI work involves finding out why a crematorium gave someone an urn filled with fake ashes. This part of the story line has a lot of humor in it, but gets pretty creepy, too. Her police consultancy work involves helping to solve some possibly-related murders. And she is also helping her cousin Miki, who is being stalked by an unknown man.I really liked a lot of things about this book. Keye is sarcastic and funny, but vulnerable, too. I like the juxtaposition of mundane or offbeat PI work with the more serious police investigations. But in this book, Keye's "criminal profiling" of the murder suspect seemed way too detailed, with nothing to back it up. And the criminal's background, and how it relates to his "signatures" left at the scene, was too much. I don't expect a suspense thriller to really be believable, but this was too far.Disclosure: I received a free advance copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.
    • 4/5
      I won this book through the author and Goodreads giveaway. This is the second book from this author featuring the Private Investigator and ex FBI agent Keye Street. I have not read the first book but reading this second book i dont feel like i needed to ,to be able to " get " this book. I am now a new fan of Amanda Kyle Williams' story telling and will be reading more by her. This book is highly entertaining. I really liked the main character's personality, meaning her warmth ,sarcasm and humor. I found myself laughing out loud a few times. I couldnt put it down until i found out who the killer was. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a good suspense murder mystery.I would actually give this book 4.5 stars if I was given that option.