The Perfect Stranger is a fast-paced sci-fi thriller novel written by Brian Pinkerton, published by Flame Tree Press. A story about the dangers of AI, told with a close third-person POV following Linda, the PR manager of an electric company, after she hires a new remote worker, Alison; a novel that examines the dangers of certain online aspects such as deepfakes and how much is given up on our online life.

After Linda sees how Alison becomes the practically perfect employee, she starts becoming suspicious; voicing her concerns to the higher staff doesn't help, as she's dismissed. But when weird things start to happen around her, Linda genuinely fears for her life, and after some cyberattack, she's forced to flee; she must uncover the truth about Alison and the people behind her before they get her out of the picture.

Despite being a plot-centric story, we spend enough time with Linda to develop a certain empathy for her situation; from a really low point in her life, she's forced to fight in a really uneven battle due to how Alison practically has control over everything.
In general, the book is well paced, pretty much fast as you would expect from a thriller, but it is true that the last third could have been a bit longer; it gets too frenetic from a point. It is interesting how Pinkerton approaches some of the technologies that are appearing nowadays and uses them to build a story that highlights some of the dangers behind them, and why we need to be careful with progress.

The Perfect Stranger is a great and fast-paced sci-fi thriller novel that you will totally devour in a few days, as it will hook you from the start with a compelling story about the dangers of technology. A perfect choice if you like fast-paced thrillers, technology and a really intense story.