Arriving in London from Paris with nothing, Lynch bumps into Bobbie at the airport. She mistakes him for her missing brother, Heydon, and gives him instructions on how to enter her wealthy parents home. This results in him impersonating Heydon in a bid to try and uncover what really happened when he disappeared.

There was quite a bit going on this book and a lot of stories & characters to follow. The writing style makes it easy to read but there are parts that were a little boring that I felt dragged a bit. I loved the main character, despite him having questionable morals. I was rooting for things to work out well for him.

I also enjoyed that you have to read till the very end for things to come together properly. Knox keeps you guessing up until the last page!

I enjoyed true crime story by this author and I loved thus especially after listening to him talk about the book at a book festival. He's a very interesting and funny man!

It starts in an interesting way with a con man accidentally getting into a situation with a wealthy heiress! There is plenty of intrigue, family secrets and lies. I thought it became rather complex, with lots of detail/dialogue about things couldnt follow (cypto currency) but the last third of the book got back on track. There was no way to predict the ending.

There were a lot of characters to keep track of and I wouldn't call it an easy read- it makes you think, but the title is really clever and everyone in the book appears to be an imposter of some kind!

A suspenseful action packed book that has so many twists and turns.
Reading it late at night was not the best for me as I found it harder to follow the various developments when I was tired. It was certainly not a predictable read and each new event led the main character deeper and deeper into the investigation of what happened twenty years ago and introduce him to some rather unsavoury characters. Who should he trust? - nobody!

A great read from the excellent Joseph Knox. Fast-paced, gripping and intriguing from the start. When a conman meets an heiress whose brother has been missing for years, he sees an opportunity for rich pickings. The rich panoply of characters can sometimes be a little baffling but the story keeps you hooked until the denouement.

Having read the premise of the book I was really looking forward to reading something a bit different from the norm and was excited to give it a go.

The start of the book had me hooked but I soon found myself lost in the story and found too many changes in the direction of story and the identity of the characters.

I was half way through by which point I had given up trying to figure what the hell was going on and even less interested in seeing it through.

Unfortunately I have really struggled to feel engaged but kept going to the end. Sadly it was a swing and a miss for me.

Disappointed in this after the excellent True Crime Story. Found the plot far-fetched and not very compelling. I hope Knox writes something else with an ‘oral history’ approach in future.

Con-man Lynch is at the airport trying to plan his next move after apparently fleeing Paris, when he bumps into spoilt rich kid Bobbie who is stunned at his resemblance to her late brother Haydon. When she gives him an opportunity to make some quick and much needed money, he can't pass it up. But he didn't expect to end up in a situation that could get him, and others, killed.

With lots of twists, turns, characters good and bad, this was a slightly complex story to keep up with, but overall a very engaging and entertaining read!

I absolutely loved True Crime Story and was excited to receive this ARC from NetGalley.
This is a very different style of writing - much more traditional in format, but with the same type of multi-layered crime story at its heart, where the reader spends far too long trying to work out what is happening!
In London, with no money, clearly having fled from some terrible event in France, con-man
Lynch is approached by an heiress, who tells him he looks just like her missing brother Heydon, and offers him the chance to retrieve something for her while she heads off to rehab. After a night in her hotel room, Lynch wakes with a tattoo on his face like that of the missing person, and decides to take a chance with the rich family.
After this he is thrown into a very murky situation indeed, with a family with some very big skeletons in the closet, and a lot of danger to negotiate. Lynch is the narrator of this tale, and it’s clear he’s not a very reliable narrator. There are a lot of unanswered questions, and I don’t know if I really understand his motivation for undertaking the things he does, except for clearly being driven by the thrill of a con. There is a lot going on in this book and I find myself wondering if it’s just a bit too much. However, I really enjoyed it, and am looking forward to seeing what Knox writes next.

This book has a lot going on but I liked reading it.
There's an heiress, a con artist and lots of other people along the way!
I did struggle to get into it and first but I managed.
First by this author, not sure we're entirely compatible with reading styles but I'd try another.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Following a daring escape from Paris, serial con man Lynch is mistaken by a wealthy heiress for her missing brother. She tattoos his face and convinces him to access her family home where her mother asks him to pretend to be her missing son to draw out his killers. What could go wrong, right?

It turns out, plenty! This is a fast-paced thriller with plenty of characters and potential leads to explore. Imposter Syndrome kept me guessing till the very end!

The premise and pace of this novel - the third I’ve read by this author - instantly gripped me. I was intrigued about why Lynch had left Paris with nothing but the clothes he stood up in and wanted to know more.

First there’s the meet cute with Bobbie, a mysterious, damaged rich kid on her way to rehab. Then comes the interesting offer of a get rich quick scheme that no hustler without funds would ever be able to resist.

This book was brilliant…until it got to the last third. At this point, there were so many plates being juggled that I think both myself and the author lost control of the plot a bit. Still an enjoyable, if ‘slightly’ far fetched thriller.

With thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my days, what have I just read?? This is such an engrossing, twisty, double-crossing story. A wild ride that doesn't let up from the first page to the last, it's like a Michael Bay film in book form.
No-one is who they seem or driven by what you think they are and this means that you just have to strap yourself in and let yourself be swept along in the tsunami-strength plot as it batters you against the rocks, making you question which way is up and what your own name is...all in the best possible way. It was so much fun to read, I read it until my eyes couldn't stay open last night and then picked it up again as soon as I woke up this morning. All the characters are brilliantly written and the scenes delivered perfectly, meaning that even though it's far-fetched I never questioned any of it.
Lynch was an excellent portrayal of a lifetime grifter and con-man, jaded at all the mayhem he saw around him, just taking it in his stride and trying to figure out how he could use it (or escape it, if needed) to give him the best chance at survival. He's trying to do good, show he can be a better person, but the lies are too entrenched - it's too hard to stop 'choosing another personality from the fancy dress box'.
I had literally no idea how this was going to pan out right up to the end, I still had multiple theories and a feeling that I could have missed things that signposted who was behind everything...if it was indeed only one person.
True Crime Story has been on my list for a while now, it's definitely moved way up towards the top after reading this.

“Imposter Syndrome” by author Joseph Know is an exciting thriller full of suspense, deception, intrigue, and danger.

Lynch is a con artist who is looking for a fresh start when he arrives in London. Life up to now has been full of mistakes and he desperately needs a break. But a chance encounter with a troubled heiress named Bobbie is not really the break he need as it sets him off on another rocky road.

Five years ago Bobbie’s brother, Heydon, walked out of the family home and never went back. His car was found parked on a bridge overlooking the Thames, in the early hours of the same morning. Unsettled by Bobbie’s story, and suffering from a rare attack of conscience, Lynch tries to back off.

The following day when Bobbie leaves for rehab Lynch finds himself drawn to her luxurious family home, and into a meeting with her mother, the formidable Miranda. When Miranda notices the resemblance between Lynch and her son Heydon she suggests Lynch assumes her son’s identity, in an effort to try and uncover his killer.

Once Lynch accepts the proposal he soon realises that Heydon wasn’t paranoid at all and someone was watching his every move and prepared to kill to keep the secret.

With Lynch stepping into Heydon’s shoes his life is full of danger and hidden enemies, certainly not the fresh start he was looking for.

“Imposter Syndrome” is an exciting read and I really did struggle to put it down, lots of atmosphere and twists to keep you guessing. I have read all of Joseph Know books but in my opinion this is the best yet.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Random House UK for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Whilst on the run, Lynch bumps into Bobbie who is startled by his resemblance to her brother who has been missing for 5 years.

He helps Bobbie and her family to use his similarity to Heston to figure out what happened the night he went missing and if he is still alive.
As Lynch digs further people around him start dying and Lynch discovers he is involved in something deeper than a simple missing person case.

The plot was really complicated so was difficult to follow at times. I started to get lost towards the end. Overall I did enjoy it and it did keep me intrigued enough to keep reading until the end to find out what happened.

Needs a bit of concentration!

I loved this, was gripping. Lynch, a con man, arrives in London where he literally bumps into Bobbie. He looks like bobbies brother Haydon who has been missing for the last 5 years. What follows is a gripping tale of deceit, lies, secrets and a few murders. Who was behind Haydon s disappearance? Who is coming for lunch?
Definitely recommend.
Thanks to netgalley for the arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I love this author's Aidan Waits series - wish there were more - and also enjoyed True Crime Story, so I was quite excited to get my hand on this, his latest offering.
We start with Lynch running from something that happened in Paris. He has just arrived in London and is a bit on high alert from anyone following him. He has no money, his phone is dead, but he is resourceful and, when we first meet him, he is wandering around the airport... Until, that is, he bumps into Bobbie who initially mistakes him for her estranged brother Haydon Pierce, who vanished without a trace some 5 years previously. They get talking and sort of team up, Bobbie having suggested that Lynch go to her family home to try and extract some money from her family. To complete the subterfuge, Bobbie also replicates the tattoo she drew on Haydon.
But things don't go as expected when Lynch is outed pretty much straight away but, instead of being thrown out, or the police called, the family have an another suggestion of ways he can help them...
An so begins a very convoluted and interconnected story that, at times I found to be way too busy and hard to follow, but which does all come good at the end. Lynch is an interesting character, hard to get to know, get to grips with, but I guess that's the nature of his profession! Other characters are equally tough as they also have many faces and facets and there are so many secrets and lies, and so much dysfunctional behaviour that my head nearly exploded!
But I toughed it all out, kept what I didn't get in my head, just, and I was rewarded at the end. It was worth the pain to get there. But it was a bit hard work on occasion keeping it all in the air.
All in all, not my favourite of his books but one I am proud of myself for getting through as it was rather challenging. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I like books about con-men and I enjoyed the main character here. However, the plot overall was a bit too complicated and sometimes unrealistic. I understand that you have to suspend belief on occasion but there were too many occasions for me in this book. I still finished it, though.

Thanks to the publishers for an advanced copy of this book. I loved Joseph Knox True Crime Story and it was one of my favourite books of the year when it came out so was really looking forward to reading this new book. The book is a story of a con artist, a missing man and a wealthy family trying to get to the bottom of his disappearance. Heydon went missing 5 years ago with his car found on a bridge with everyone suspecting suicide however his family want to learn the truth and when Bobbie bumps in to lookalike 'Mr Lynch' at Heathrow airport by chance this spirals into a thriller to find out what really happened amongst all the lies. I really wanted to love this book however it almost felt like I was reading an unfinished article, perhaps and 1st or 2nd draft, it seemed a bit all over the place with unanswered questions. I also didn't really like or warm to any of the characters.

Joseph Knox hits another one out the park with Imposter Syndrome as he continues his new direction in high quality stand alone stories that do exactly that .. stand out.

After the incredible Aidan Waits series. Knox had a billing to live up to. And with this darkly intense psychological thriller he absolutely smashes it,

This story is so complex it requires all of your attention, so very clever and written with such an elegance, I hoovered this up.

Knox is a unique voice in Crime Fiction, he may not be for everyone as he has an edge that takes him ahead of the pack.

Top stuff again from an author who probably doesn’t realise just how good he is.

“One man in his time plays many parts”, could be the motto for grifters. Lynch has spent his time in this way but might want to change now and be himself, if can remember who that is! He’s just fled Paris for London after a con went wrong, abandoning his partner, Clare, in the process. We know that blood was spilled but don’t know whose. He feels he’s lost his touch, lost his motivation. Then he literally bumps in to Bobbie Pierce, who initially thinks he’s her missing brother, Heydon, but quickly realises her mistake because Haydon has a distinctive tattoo on his face. In the next rather confused 24 hours, he ends up with a copy of the tattoo, courtesy of Bobbie, and a mission to trace Heydon, alive or dead. After pointing him in the direction of the family home, a very upmarket house in Chelsea, and a promise that they will pay him well, Bobbie flies off for a fortnight’s REHAB in LA. Needless to say, a ‘simple’ missing person investigation turns into a complicated pinball game, as Lynch is batted around London by various competing interests, familial, professional and covert. Is Heydon still in the land of the living? Whose interests are going to win? What happened in Paris? It’s all out there right up to the last sentence.
This I would mainly class as a thriller, although mostly more a foreboding one rather than an imminent risk of death one (although there is the latter, of course). The pace feels smooth, due to sections which are quite expositional and unthreatening, but is actually galloping along, as Lynch careers from one threat situation to another. It isn’t that difficult to work out the answer to my three questions above, but none of them are really answered until shortly before that last sentence. So, if you’re invested in the characters, you will absolutely keep reading, and the ricochets from one ‘bell’ to another will keep you guessing. It’s not perfect, but I don’t see any flaws in the plot as finally revealed so it has to be 5.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.