A 3.5 star read.

Its an emotionally intense novella, with lots of romance sprinkled with suspense. I am not much of a first POV reader and may be thats where it was a let down for me. But for a novella, it did well in stirring my emotions and I felt pain when the characters felt it too.

Wow, wow, WOW! I am so in awe of Charlotte Stein's writing skill right now. She already held a spot as one of my absolute favorite authors, but this book sealed it. It was fantastic. No one writes 1st person POV like Ms. Stein. I mean NO one. It was funny at times, but also super HOT, and the nail biting ending will leave you on the edge of your seat. Throw in a broken, tormented hero AND heroine and you have the recipe for perfection! I couldn't put it down! 5++++++++++ stars!

*** Book Q & A***

* How did the book make you feel?: Oh my goodness, this book was so unexpected and wonderful. I stayed up way too late reading it.
* How do you feel about how the story was told?: It’s told from the h’s perspective as she learns more about her mysterious sleepwalking neighbor and learns she has a lot more in common with him than she imagined. Usually inner monologues annoy me, but hers didn’t in this book. The character development was so tender. I ate it up.
* What did you think about the main characters?: I love, love loved them. They were both cracked, but not shattered. They were both resilient in their own ways, and they had such mutual respect and concern for each other. It was moving. Their chemistry was beautiful.
* Which parts of the book stood out to you?: The buildup! Shew!
* What themes/tropes did you detect in the story?: Psychologist-victim, serial killers, romantic suspense
* What did you think about the ending?: What a climax! It was a wonderful resolution though.
* What is your impression of the author?: This was my first read, but you can safely say I’m now a fan.



Triggers: kidnapping, rape, murder, torture (all off-page and related as H’s and h’s memories)

Charlotte Stein doesn't write Meet Cutes.
Charlotte Stein writes Meet Weirds.

I believe that every Stein's writing idea has the same starting point:
"I'll take one damaged, broken woman and then I'll make her fall in love with the most screwed up guy people can think off. "
Just check her backlist or these brief blurbs* of her coming soon novels. She sure loves writing fucked up characters and I am a total fangirl because of that.

So,in [b:Intrusion|21856146|Intrusion (Under the Skin, #1)|Charlotte Stein|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411245282s/21856146.jpg|41128987], we have Beth who doesn't do good with men due to traumatic experience:

"How did I not notice how beautiful he is? I suppose I could blame the door or the shadows or his tension, but really I know this is nothing of the sort. This is Ted, squatting there like an ugly toad in the back of my head. He made it so every man now looks like nothing to me, instead of what I can now see so clearly."

Entire story is written from her pov and we get bits and pieces here and there of what happened to her as we follow slow progress of her relationship with Noah. I have this crazy idea** in my head that author writes herself a bit in every one of her heroines because they are all little quirky and nerdy and they can make movie reference like nobody's business! Hence, after so many novels, I kind of know what kind of weirdness I can expect from any of her heroines, but I still got totally immersed in Beth's brainstorming. Her thoughts are all over the place- she has no idea what's she doing and if she's doing it right and she is terrified some mistake she makes will make Noah go away. But don't think of her as someone who is insecure or a pushover- it's a hero who is fucked up in so many ways that even most experienced and confident women wouldn't know how to approach him.
Noah is insanely smart, he reads people with astonishing accuracy. He is an expert in criminology and forensic psychology and brilliant in it. But for someone who is so perceptive, he is not always socially adept since his thoughts and conclusions are mostly based on logical patterns. So, expect Noah to confuse you- he can blurb inappropriate things and he can psych and manipulate Beth like a pro. His expertize being what it is, Noah also has a knack for understanding darkest of minds and direct insight into evil left a mark on him- he is a sleepwalker. Like, "going out in the middle of the night in his underwear and waking up on strange place" sleepwalker. He is also incapable of having a normal relationship.

And here is where issue comes. Attraction between them is instant, but relationship as next logical thing is unbelievably far and, in times, impossible goal for them. Every little step these two make- holding hands or a kiss is such a huge milestone for them and thus, when they make it, it's really, really emotionally charged. Erotic parts here is not some insane, high passion athletic tableau, erotic parts here are those small pieces of intimacy we take for granted and they are huge accomplishment for these two. Of course, this is Stein- you will finish this book satisfied in that department, but I personally found this small things incredibly sexy, simply because they are attached to such high stakes for characters... It literally rocks their world.

There is also one scene at the end that's incredibly suspenseful, and it's followed by one of the most amazing lines in novel, and they are delivered by Beth.

So, hero, theme, events...it definitely makes one of Stein's darker reads, but it worked for me on every level.
Recommended.

*not official blurbs.
**Ignore me; in my head, Stein and I have most fascinating movie discussions ever. -__-

Chillingly dark. I didn't quite like the use of first person, but I can't deny that it gave a greater sense of intimacy to the situation.

Interesting story and well written. I liked the hero and wish I could've had more of his POV.
Not erotica but nice sex towards the end.
Majority of the story is told from the heroine's pov.

This book seems like it's trying so hard to be dark and suspenseful that it doesn't realize it's actually a goofy Gothic. Gothics can get by with mopey characters and vague feelings of foreboding, but suspense needs actual details and action and plot. But I made it to the end and enjoyed several scenes, which is more than I can say for the last Stein novel I tried to read.