The Stranger on the Stairs by Ruth Mancini

Description from Goodreads:

"You were only seven years old when you witnessed your mother's murder.

Although you did not see her attacker clearly, you are pretty sure who it was.

Thanks to you, he went to prison for twenty years.

Now he's out.

And you are no longer certain that the man you identified that terrifying evening really was the killer.

But if it wasn’t him, who was the stranger on the stairs?

And can he now be coming for you?"

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A twisty and unsettling thriller

I read Ruth Mancini’s previous book, The Woman on the Ledge, back in December 2023 just before it was officially released, and I've been meaning to pick up another of her stories for ages. I’ve definitely left it far too long to dive back into her work, but I’m so glad I finally did because this was another cracking read.

The story centres on a woman who witnessed her mother’s murder when she was just a child. Her evidence was what put a man behind bars for twenty years, but now that he’s been released, she’s starting to question everything she thought she knew. It’s a really clever premise that looks at how fragile our memories can be – especially when we’re young – and whether we can ever truly trust what we think we saw.

Because Ruth Mancini is a criminal defence lawyer, the whole thing feels incredibly authentic. You can really tell she knows the legal system inside out. It isn’t just about the mystery either; it’s a very human story about trauma and the search for the truth, even when that truth is terrifying.  The idea of a potential miscarriage of justice feels all too real – we've seen enough cases like this over the years to know that the system isn't always perfect – and that adds a layer of genuine unease to the plot.

The pacing is excellent and kept me turning the pages late into the night. I'll admit I did manage to guess what was happening and worked out "whodunnit" before the reveal, but that didn't take away from the enjoyment at all. I really liked how everything came together at the end which was very satisfying.

Many thanks to the author, Random House UK, Cornerstone, Century and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of this thought-provoking and scarily all to real book.

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