Definitely not the shocking thriller of the year. The caption was misleading and left out the porn included in the story. I did not enjoy the book (what I read) and could not finish it. The characters were not enjoyable and I had not interest in what happened to them. Just not my cup of tea.

Great storyline with good strong characters. Very well written. I would recommend this book to anyone.

The Woman Before You by Carrie Blake has thriller, sex, love, and hate all rolled into one book. I would say that I was not prepared for the woman who has everything including a wealthy man and what she will do to keep him includ d in this psychological thriller but it actually enhanced the story. It was not as dark as I thought it might be also. The writer does a great job at being descriptive and passionate while telling her story. There were so many scenarios playing out in my head while I was reading this. The outcome is pretty much expected and you can figure that out pretty quickly however the story is still a fun read.

I give it 4 stars ⭐️ out of 5

Thanks to the author as well as netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Isabel leaves Iowa to go to New York City to become an actress but after many failed auditions ends up working at Dr. Sleep selling mattresses. For fun she meets men on a dating app but she makes herself into a different person for each man she goes on a date with. She enjoys her game. And then she meets Matthew who has his own games to play. But his games are directed by someone else.

Mmm. Shocking thriller.....no. 50 Shades wannabe? Maybe. Really kind of boring sex scenes. Isabel is a wuss who does things at Matthew’s behest that I don’t think any normal person would. I was really fed up of the whole thing about half way through but kept reading to find out what the finale was. The writing is not bad but the book should not be touted as a thriller. ……………Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Hmmmm more erotic read than thriller? I found it odd and the blurb didn’t match the book; I struggled slightly? Didn’t like either characters and wasnt too into it to be honest. Sorry!

I read the reviews prior to reading this book. I decided to give it a try. I only read up to 75% of this book. I did not like the way the book was going. Does this mean the book is bad? No way! It just means that it isn't for me. It still deserves four stars because the writing is great, the character development is great and the story is great.

The summary didn’t quite match the content of the novel; however, I found the story captivating in ways that I was on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happens next. Based on the ending, I hope there is a sequel.

I just could not gel with this book at all. I found it difficult to get past the first two chapters. A shame as I hate giving a negative review.

Thank you NetGalley & HarperCollinsUK for providing me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.

The Woman Before You
The most shocking thriller you’ll read this year. by Carrie Blake

That is a bold faced lie. Nothing about this book is a thriller let alone shocking. This is a light erotic story with abusive men preying on an 18/19 year girl who lost her father at a young age and is desperately seeking male approval.

I think this would be more successful if it was erotica and the author pushed those scenes up. The FMC, Isabel was very frustrating and unsure of herself and who she was. I found it interesting how quickly she fell into a situation she knew wasn’t right.

The men, Matthew & Val were beyond frustrating and selfish. It was tough to get past Matthew’s stupidity or willingness to avoid the truth.

At the end of the book I was very happy it was over. I didn’t care about anyone enough to want to know more I just wanted it to be over.

I highly recommend calling it what it is, and thriller is NOT it.

I was drawn to this title by a gorgeous front cover, an intriguing blurb and the promise of 'the most shocking thriller you'll read this year'. The team behind this book don't appear to know who the intended audience actually is, as this was possibly one of the worst books I've read this year. I expected an exciting Gone Girl-esque twisty thriller that would keep me on the edge of my seat, instead I was given two flat, lifeless main characters with no redeeming qualities and badly written, cringeworthy mild erotica. It feels as though this author is aspiring to be the next 50 Shades Of Grey... and doing it very badly. If you want to write erotica, don't disguise it as a thriller, or your audience will be asleep by page 150.

Carrie Blake seems like a pseudonym for a man. The male characters and dialogue are much more fleshed out than the supposed protagonist. She is a lovesick pushover for a guy she barely knows just because he is handsome, but his sex appeal doesn’t come across on the page. I kept reading to see if something exciting would happen, but the climax and ending weren’t satisfying. The ending seems set up with a sequel in mind but I wouldn’t read it.

I really like this book in the beginning and for some reason, I did finish it. I think I truly just wanted to know what was going to happen, even though I didn't care about the characters at all. The ending was a little forced but I didn't mind where it ended.

I didn't finish this, despite skimming over large sections. The characters were dull and unlikable, the story wasn't interesting, just an excuse for some mild erotica really, and I'm sorry I continued to the end.
A review copy was provided by the publisher.

I enjoyed the writing style, however felt that this book has been placed in the wrong genre. It comes across less thriller and more mild erotica.

Also, I still can't really work out what the title refers to?

Thank you for the book,

Said to be a shocking thriller, but in reality it turned out to be story about a relatively boring woman and a secretive, possibly dominating dude and a lot of lackluster masturbating.

Dull Isabel, a wannabe actress but can only find work selling mattresses, meets exciting Matthew on an online dating site. He has a hidden agenda but our "heroine" who suspects this carries on regardless. The title makes no sense as far as this story goes, nor does what happens match the blurb. It sounded like it would be a fantastic book but sadly it didn't quite come off. Nothing wrong with the writing and it was easy enough to get into, but it just wasn't what it was described as!

This is part psychological thriller and part erotic thriller. I had no idea when i ordered it. I am not a fan of books where women degrade themselves for men on any level. It did not resonate with me on any level as it pictured women as weak, only sexual creatures without intelligence and the men as predators. I was appalled at the level of depravity of the woman and the man.

I was unable to finish the book

Thank you for the ARC.

I must admit that I didn’t quite understand what this novel was trying to be. Erotica seemed to be the proper placement for it. The characters did not seem to evolve enough for me. In the end I felt confused as to what anyone really wanted or needed. I finished it in one sitting, but that was because I thought there would be some game changer that would turn the characters around. I wanted to care more about these people, but there was so much mistrust that the ending left me disappointed. .

The Woman Before You is not who you think. Isabel aspired to become an actress in New York, but when her auditions had not succeeded in any callbacks Isabel began acting in life. She role-played with individuals she met online.

It’s not off to a good start. Isabel’s character turns every conversation into sex. She’s too nice, too gullible, and too trusting. I thought Isabel was pathetic. She claimed to be ambitious, yet went to a few auditions then quit. She’s a flat character with very little drive.

There is nothing remotely interesting about either character. I felt like I missed something significant in the exchange between Matthew and Isabel in the beginning. Upon meeting Matthew Isabel became sexually obsessed with him. She never questioned anything. She was willing to do anything sexual for him.
This storyline is subpar. The blurb led me in a completely different direction. I’m not sure how to process what this story is about. There were so many holes in the plot and the directional changes gave me whiplash.

Apparently, this is Carrie Blake’s first novel. I’m sorry to say that her writing style doesn’t match my reading style. I skimming the first 30% of the book then jumped to the last chapter to figure out what this game was. It was disappointing and anti-climatic learning the purpose of this game. I’m not even going to finish this book.

I was given an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review. This book was so very well written. It captivated me the entire time!