Sleeping With Strangers book review

If I had a million dollars, I could make anyone fall in love with me.

Well, maybe not anyone. Just the person I really wanted.

That idea is what made me smile while reading Sleeping with Strangers, the first book in one of my favourite series of all time.

Sleeping with Strangers by Eric Jerome Dickey is a fiction novel in the suspense thriller genre. It serves as the first book in the Gideon series and introduces readers to one of Dickey's most fascinating characters.

The series includes:

• Sleeping with Strangers

• Waking with Enemies

• Dying for Revenge

• Resurrecting Midnight

• Finding Gideon

  
  

And if you're like me, you'll probably count Thieves' Paradise as part of the larger Gideon story too.

The most important thing about this book to me is Gideon's interaction with what he calls "squares."

They're ordinary people. They're not in the business. They're not contract killers. They're just living their lives.

The story begins with Gideon on a flight to London. During the flight, he notices a woman crying the entire trip. He also encounters someone we later learn is Lola Mack.

One thing Eric Jerome Dickey does exceptionally well is intertwining his characters across multiple books.

The crying woman turns out to be Mrs. Jones, the mother of Mo, a character from an earlier novel. If you've read several of his books, moments like this feel like little rewards because you start seeing how all of these stories connect.

"What if I was sitting next to a killer on a plane?"

That's one of the things that keeps running through my mind while reading Gideon's story.

He's sitting beside ordinary people, having ordinary conversations, while carrying around secrets that no one would ever suspect.

The other part of the story I loved involves Lola Mack.

She's excited to see her boyfriend and can't stop thinking about him. She's humming songs and making references that mean absolutely nothing to Gideon.

He's completely out of his element.

Gideon doesn't spend his time thinking about music, relationships, or romance.

He's a contract killer.

He gets a job, completes the job, and moves on.

But underneath all of that is a surprisingly simple motivation.

Gideon wants a million dollars.

Why?

Because the girl of his dreams told him she wouldn't even go out with him until he had a million dollars.

"The girl of his dreams said that he cannot even take her out until he has a million dollars."

Talk about high standards.

What makes it so entertaining is that, beneath all the danger and suspense, Gideon is really just a guy with a crush trying to impress someone he likes.

He's working, saving, chasing opportunities, and trying to reach this goal because he wants a chance with her.

It's oddly sweet.

One of the reasons I love Eric Jerome Dickey's writing is that he somehow manages to humanize a contract killer.

I never thought I'd say that sentence, but it's true.

Gideon is dangerous, but he's also relatable in unexpected ways. He has hopes, frustrations, dreams, and insecurities just like everyone else.

I also enjoy reading Dickey's acknowledgments at the end of his books. He often writes about where he was during the writing process and what was happening in his life when he finished the manuscript.

I like imagining him sitting in a hotel room writing when one of his old characters suddenly demands another story.

It feels fitting for an author whose books are so interconnected.

Get your copy of Sleeping With Strangers. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Would I re-read it?

Absolutely.

Sleeping with Strangers is the perfect introduction to Gideon and the series that follows. It immediately pulls you into his world and sets up the stories that continue across the next several books.

If you're looking for suspense, action, memorable characters, and one of the most unique protagonists I've ever read, this series is worth picking up.

https://youtu.be/hb4FQTXZT_8?si=U0eimC7iocwyp2XH

Until the next book review, 

Kyla