Member Reviews
I am still at a loss for words. I have been chasing that Gone Girl high for so long when I read thrillers, and this one finally hit the mark. It completely nailed the isolation get agoraphobia of modern urban living. Now I am suspicious of everyone in my neighborhood because the book stuck with me that much!
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. I thought it was a bit slow to begin with, it seemed to drag on with not much story, then it changed. Brilliant book well written, heartbreaking at times when suzie was remembering back. And then Emily’s POV was really good too. I felt so sorry for her after her story. It was an amazing ending I never even thought of Mike to be honest. I was thinking Darren. So I was stunned at the end. Brilliant storyline and the characters where amazing too. Definitely worth 5 stars.
This book begins slowly, documenting the trials of living in London in a flat . The inconvenience of hearing intimate details of the life of your neighbours and the irritations that these cause. Then Suzie's upstairs neighbour disappears little buy little she finds out more about her life, prompted by the disappearance of her own husband in the past. Well written, as a reader you feel that something is not right after Emily disapppears. Suzie investigates her life and in doing so come to terms with her own loss to some extent but also creates problems for herself .
Towards the end, the suspense increases but I liked the description of emotions and living with guilt and change in the book. It was very realistic.
Thank you to Net Galley for the ARc in exchange for an honest review
Suzie lives in a downstairs flat in London – depressed, lonely, and extremely frustrated with her noisy upstairs neighbor Emily. The floors are thin, and Suzie can hear EVERYTHING – Emily’s music, her phone conversations, even her bathroom habits. So when Emily’s flat suddenly goes quiet, Suzie knows there’s something wrong.
In Suzie’s opinion, no one seems to care enough about Emily’s disappearance – not her parents, not her coworkers, not even the police – so Suzie is determined to get to the bottom of things. At first, I couldn’t understand why Suzie would care so much about finding a neighbor she was so irritated by, but as the story evolves, Suzie’s motivations are revealed.
Georgina Lees’ debut novel is a cleverly written slow burn that packs an emotional punch. While obviously a psychological thriller, it’s also a story of redemption. Suzie is sympathetically portrayed and my heart ached for the trauma she had been through. The first half of the book is very atmospheric, while the second half picks up the pace with plenty of twists and red herrings.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
3 for neutral! Not for me, could not finish. Did try a few times, will update if able to at a later date, as I am a moody reader!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.
Suzie struggles daily with the noises endured from her neighbour upstairs, she hears every movement and every sound much to her annoyance but when all goes quiet Suzie knows something is not right and will not stop until she finds out what happened to Emily all while fighting her own demons.
The characters are mysterious and keep you intrigued, however there were times when I found it very flat and repetitive.
It is a good debut psychological thriller and would recommend.
I loved this story of a nosy neighbour who ends up becoming obsessed with her missing neighbour who she is the only one concerned that she has been missing for a few weeks. As she starts to get herself involved in her neighbours life she starts to unravel as her past issues make her and her family and friends start to question her actions as she spirals out of control. Has something happened or is it all just in her head.
This book was really great and grabbed my interest right away. What I really liked was there weren't to many characters to keep track of. Something that is very different in thrillers lately. It starts out with our main character Suzie having to deal with her upstairs neighbour Emily. She doesn't mind Emily however the noise all of the time really gets on her nerves. It gets to a point where Suzie can tell exactly where Emily is walking and how many people she has over and it is really driving Suzie crazy. Not sure what to do Suzie makes a complaint to her super about the noise, and after a harsh interaction with Emily, Suzie is please when it seems that Emily has taken their advice and decided to keep the noise down, or has she? With Emily suddenly missing, Suzie becomes an active player in her whereabouts, as everyone is left questioning what really happened to Emily? This book was very different than a lot of thrillers that I've read lately but I couldn't get enough of it. I found the characters very easy to relate to and since there weren't to many of them it made it much easier to get lost in the story line. This is the kind of thriller that gets people taking, and I also believe that this one would make a great movie. I loved everything about this book. If you are a big thriller fan than this is one story that you won't want to miss out on, the only suggestion that I have is to clear your schedule though because you won't want to put this book down once you start. Great read I'm so glad I got the chance to read it, this is one that everyone will be talking about when it comes out and I'm glad I got to read it first.
Terrific story told in through the eyes of Suzie, builds slowly at the start then quickly pulls you into the mysterious disappearance of the once noisy neighbour in the flat above. Having argued with her neighbour before she disappeared, Suzie is initially curious, the worried that the girl hasn't returned. The Police and her family are doing enough to find the girl, and Suzie decides that she needs to find out what's happened. A great read full of tension.
Suzie is living alone, sad and lonely and unable to go to work. Her sister and parents try relentlessly to visit or get her to visit them in Hove, but she prefers the solitude of her London flat. Emily lives in the flat upstairs, accidentally sharing her cooking smells, routines, toilet habits, rows and problems due to the lack of soundproofing between the two flats.
Complaints to the council about noise lead to a confrontation, shortly after which, Emily leaves.
Suzie, feeling guilty, cannot rest until she has found out where Emily is.
A worryingly familiar story about a missing woman. Perplexing and chilling.
A solid 4/5 for this mystery.
Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ahead of publication in exchange for an honest review
This is a story of a second chance.
Suzie lives downstairs from Emily. Emily who is young, loud, popular and an inconsiderate neighbor. At least that is how she is perceived by Emily who is depressed, a bit of a hermit and resents everything about life.
Emily suddenly disappears for days and it seems that only Suzie, the complaining neighbor is concerned. That’s because when Suzie's husband walked out after an argument no-one went looking for him and was found dead from an accident. Suzie is convinced that had she gone looking they may have found him alive and rescued him. The fact that no-one is concerned about Emily’s disappearance now becomes her crusade in life.
It is a very sad book about a woman looking to redeem her ghosts by getting it right the second time.
The Girl Upstairs is about two women who live in the same building, Suzie lives on the bottom floor and can hear everything, she's the first to notice when her upstairs neighbor goes missing. For me, it felt like it was missing something, but I think it is probably just me and I imagine a lot of people will enjoy this snappy suspense read. If you are looking for a quick twist then this will be up your alley.
Strong lead character with intriguing backstory. Tension mounts nicely in the first half. Perfect for fans of slow-build psychological thrillers. With thanks to the author, publisher and Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read an early copy
This was a book I couldn’t put down. Needing to get to the end is the best sign of an enjoyable book so this ticks the right boxes. I thought it was a really interesting concept and loved the way we learnt more and more in layers (like any good mystery book) but without feeling for the first half the book you’re playing catch up or don’t know what’s going on. This is a definite plus for me. If I had any criticism it was that one of the mysteries being built up to was almost anti-climatic and maybe even came slightly too soon in the novel. But this is just being fussy. I’d probably go 4.5 if I was allowed a half!
Everybody has had a nosey neighbor from time to time, but in this case it was necessary. When Suzie's upstairs neighbor abruptly stops disrupting her day with loud music and stomping about, Suzie immediately knows something is very wrong. The police consider her a runaway and close the case, but Suzie knows this is all wrong. Will Suzie find the help she needs to solve the case or will old memories keep her from finding the truth?
4.0/5
This was an entertaining read that kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what happened to Emily. Suzie's character is very likeable. The story is honestly very believable (which I like in a story line) with how the world is these days. I did not expect who the perpetrator would be, that surprised me! I would recommend.
Thank you Georgina Lees and Netgalley for this great ARC!
An interesting read that captured my attention from the first few chapters. There is a lot of mystery and suspense around this novel, and trying to figure out just what is going on. The main character is mysterious and secretive, and a bit unique, which for me added to the mystery and suspense of the novel as I tried to figure out what was going on and what was going to happen.
I really enjoyed this book and was able to get through it fairly quickly. This novel kept me wanting more and had many plot twists that I didn't predict. I loved the main character and found her to be very interesting and was rooting for her the whole time! Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this book and it kept me mostly gripped! Parts of the ending surprised me but others didn't but won't give any spoilers. I did find some of it a bit repetitive and found myself skimming parts earlier on but overall it was a good read
I just finished reading The Girl Upstairs, by debut author Georgina Lees, and can’t stop thinking about the book! At first, I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it, but 25% of the way in, I couldn’t put it down. It’s plot is memorable, exciting, & had me at the edge of my seat. I cannot wait to read more from Georgina Lees!
Thank you for the chance to read this.
I'm only giving this a 3 star sadly. I found myself skim reading the repetitive bits, particularity at the start, but I did want to get to the end to find out what happened, so it felt like a book of 2 halves. It tells the story of Suzie.. A girl living in a downstairs flat that she's unable to leave, Emily is the Tennant upstairs. She's very different to Suzie.. Loud, has lots of friends, doesn't care about anyone, free spirited... Suzie wants the quiet life, Emily doesn't. Becks long the 2 of them clash about noise levels, and after that.. Silence from upstairs... Is the peace too good to be true.......?????