I received this free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Girl Before is about 2 women that have lived through tragedy and move into a highly advanced technological house. Emma is the first to move in to this strange house after answering very interesting questions on the application. The first question is, "Please make a list of every possession you consider essential to your life." And the questions seem to become stranger still.

Jane moves into the house after Emma is no longer there. She is fleeing her own personal tragedy, but soon after moving in she finds out that the previous tenant who had an uncanny likeness to Jane died in the house. Jane finds herself racing to find out how the other girl died. Then, she begins to experience the same things as the other girl.

I can truly say this book was devoured. I loved the pacing as well as the mystery. Yes, I did suspect who the bad guy was, but I still enjoyed the whole journey to the end. A realistic mystery thriller is usually such a good choice for me, and I am so glad to have the opportunity to read this delectable morsel of a thriller.

I rated this 5/5 stars and highly recommend it.

These days you’re hard-pressed to find a thriller that isn’t labeled The Next Gone Girl or Girl on the Train. Usually that’s enough for me to steer clear, but The Girl Before is getting so much buzz that, I’ll admit, I was curious and, when the chance to review a copy was offered, I couldn’t help myself.

Much like the other The Girl Before (which I also enjoyed!), the chapters alternate between then, which focus on Emma, and now, Jane’s story. After a break-in leaves her sense of peace shattered, Emma has convinced her boyfriend to look at other places to live. Each apartment, however, isn’t quite up to Emma’s newfound standards: for example, a window with access to the roof is practically an invitation for a burglar. Eventually the realtor offers an…interesting option. An architect famous for his minimalist style has a house to rent for cheap – very cheap – but there is a score of rules. No books, no photos, no children, the list goes on. Realizing this house, complete with the highest of high tech gadgets, could finally calm her fears and allow her to live again, Emma fills out the application and hopes for good news.

Two years later Jane is still reeling from the shock of a stillbirth. With a house full of baby clothes and a newly furnished nursery – not to mention her company brought someone on to fill her role during the maternity leave she no longer needs – Jane craves a fresh start, a place not bursting with hopes and dreams of what could have been. Her much tighter budget doesn’t allow for much, and it’s only as a last option that the realtor mentions a place she might be interested in. Granted, the owner is extremely particular and eventually has the final say in who gets to rent the place, but Jane goes along with filling out the application anyway.

From Jane’s initial chapters, it’s clear something bad happened to Emma, thus allowing the house to become available once more. She learns Emma tragically died, assumed to have stepped out of the shower and slipped down the steps. As Jane becomes more and more curious, she digs deeper into what really happened and discovered more than she bargained more. I’ll admit that I had a guess as to what went on the night Emma died and I’m pleased to say that, initially, I was wrong. It wasn’t until more details were slowly revealed or hinted at that I figured out the truth.

Right from the start Edward, the architect behind the house, is shown as a too-charming, super charismatic guy with a past. He had once been married with a young son and, sadly, both were killed. The coincidence of another death linked to Edward, combined with some seriously controlling tendencies easily labeled him the Bad Guy in the story. Honestly, the more I read, the more I likened The Girl Before not to Gone Girl and Girl on the Train, but to one of my top reads of 2016, Behind Closed Doors. Jack Angel is depicted as just that, an angel, to the world. Behind closed doors however, it’s another story, and that’s exactly the vibe I got from Edward. He charms his way right into both women’s hearts and his near-verbatim interactions with each one was fascinating and chilling to witness. He has a line he repeats several times: “This relationship will continue only for as long as it’s absolutely perfect” and more than once his dialogue ends with he says reasonably. As both stories are told from the women’s perspective, it was intriguing to watch just how effortlessly he was able to worm his way inside and manipulate them into seeing things his way, going along with his decisions.

Tech also plays a large role in the book. This house is truly a smart house. Instead of keys there’s an app to download that has a passcode in order to get through the front door. A waterproof bracelet learns preferred shower temperatures and automatically sets to those specifications depending on who is in the bath. The house has its own intranet – complete with certain restrictions aka no google searches here – and, occasionally, will shut off access to the computer/shower/sink/etc in order for the renter to answer questions ranging from how happy they are with their surroundings to who they would save first in an emergency (rescue their own child from drowning and save one life or run for help in order to save a group of children at the risk of losing their own). As the book wore on, housekeeper (the AI’s name) definitely had a more ominous feel that I could easily see being watered down a bit for a Goosebumps book! Super creepy.

In the nearly six years (eek!) that I’ve been reviewing books, I’ve come to learn that when I ramble it’s either because I really liked the novel or I really didn’t. I’m thrilled to say The Girl Before definitely falls into the former category. I tore through this book with ease, surprising myself even by how fast I got through it! After a record-breaking 200 books read in 2016, I wanted 2017 to slow down a bit and be more about savoring books. Whoops. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough! It also helped that each chapter was amazingly short. If you’ve ever read a Dan Brown or James Patterson novel, you know what I mean: bite-sized scenes that are, at most, two or three pages.

I was shocked to learn JP Delaney is actually a pseudonym for another author (there are rumors as to the true identity), but I am NOT the least bit surprised to hear film rights have already been purchased with Ron Howard directing. The Girl Before is hands down going to be THE book to read this year and I’m beyond excited to get in on the ground floor. While it doesn’t offer anything new to the genre that’s currently flooding the market (no complaints here!), it was, however, extremely gripping with an enticing plot and rapid-fire chapters. The moment I was finished I immediately sent out a text to my group of friends, practically flailing over this one and insisting they all read it once it comes out. Despite my hopes of taking things a bit slower this year, I’m thrilled to kick 2017 off with a bang and if this is how my reading year starts, I can’t wait to see where it goes next!

One Folgate Street, a property in London, was designed by award-winning architect Edward Monkton who is very peculiar about choosing the tenants he allows to rent his minimalistic but high-tech, smart home. Over 200 rules and regulations, questionnaires with intrusive questions etc.
Who would want to live in a place where you are constantly under the control of a third party? Emma, the previous tenant, and Jane, the current tenant, were both successful at completing the strange application process. The plot unfolds by swapping backwards and forwards between 'Now' and 'Then'. Both women had their own reasons for wanting to rent the place. There were eerie similarities between the two women, and when Jane starts investigating what happened to Emma, the tension builds up and the house seems to take on a life of its own.
I've been avoiding writing this review for weeks now because I feel conflicted about this book. It's already being adapted into a movie, there is a lot of hype, and most people seemed to love it. I wasn't a fan of the frequently changing perspective. The premise of the book - although seriously far-fetched - was unique and the plot really was intriguing. My main issue, I couldn't get excited about any of the characters. They all just left me feeling....pretty much nothing. The one scene that triggered some emotion was the one involving food (if you've read this, you'll probably know what I mean). Apart from that, I was quite impartial towards the whole thing. There are obviously several twists and turns, and I enjoyed the latter half of the book more while other reviewers actually seemed to prefer the first half. It's a worthwhile read because of its unique premise, but I wasn't blown away by any of it. Therefore, I've decided on 3 stars.
I received an ARC via NetGalley.

The Girl Before tells the story of two women who each went through a traumatic experience, prompting them to seek a new place to live because their homes carried devastating memories. The story is told from each woman's point of view, with Emma's story being 'Then', and Jane's story being 'Now'. Emma and Jane both end up choosing to live in the same house, located at One Folgate Street. They had to jump through some unusual hoops in order to live there, however.

Prior to being approved, anyone interested in living in the starkly minimalist house is required to fill out a form with some rather odd questions, and agree to live by a set of 200 rules, which includes having no books, photos, throw pillows, or anything else that is considered 'clutter' in the house. They must also include a photo of themselves, something each woman thought odd.

The architect and owner of the house is a man named Edward, who originally built the house for his family. After losing his wife and son, Edward never lived there, choosing instead to rent it out for an extremely low price to anyone who was willing to live by his stringent demands.

Both women become involved with Edward, and when Jane finds out that Emma—whom she closely resembles—died in the house, she becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to her. Was it truly an accident, or something more sinister that killed Emma? Was Edward involved? Despite being warned against it, Jane is relentless in her search for the truth, never realizing she was putting herself in danger... until it was too late.

The Girl Before is a deliciously creepy psychological thriller worthy of the genre. I devoured it in a single day... I just couldn't put it down until I knew who did what, and why. There were several surprises along the way, but the last one left me so stunned, you could have knocked me over with a feather. I'm not kidding. My jaw hit the floor and I kept shaking my head in disbelief because (and I know I say this a lot) I NEVER saw it coming.

Treat yourself and get a copy of this book when it hits the shelves. You won't be disappointed!

I really enjoy psychological thrillers, especially when they're told from the point of view of a not-necessarily-reliable narrator. This book is told from the perspective of two women with eerily similar lives. They both are tenants in a futuristic, austere flat belonging to an eccentric (or insane, depending on who you ask) architect, and rumors abound about some unsavory events that happened on the premises.

I thought the idea of the futuristic house was really cool. The engineer in me was geeking out about how much technology can impact our daily lives and improve everything from our mood to our health. At the same time, I also wondered why someone would automate every single aspect of a house without any manual overrides, because one of the biggest reasons the Internet of Things isn't widespread already is that it's easy to hack. At least that doubt was addressed eventually.

I thought the parallels among both Emma and Jane's lives were drawn well, and I liked how you got to know each of them a lot better as the novel progressed. Neither of them are who they seem to be at first, and they both have a lot of secrets and trauma to deal with. Emma in particular is almost self-destructive, which makes watching her trainwreck of a life that much more horrifyingly fascinating. What I didn't like was how both women ignored all warning signs of an abusive relationship/gaslighting; it's not like they were stupid or oblivious, they both chose to ignore the signs and continue their relationships. There were a lot of questionable situations that were just too reminiscent of the whole it's-okay-if-I-have-a-creepy-stalker-as-long-as-he's-hot rape culture thing that plagued YA fiction after Twilight.

The funny thing about this book is that it's so transparent at first that you think you know exactly how it's going to go. But as the book continues and you uncover more clues, it becomes obvious that your initial assessment of every character was wrong. This isn't the most shocking book, even the "twists" weren't that unexpected, but I did like how it played with the reader's expectations.

Overall a pretty good psychological thriller. There were some issues I had with it, but overall I did enjoy it.

Mystery, yes thriller, okay maybe a little, but when you add a psycho guy spitting the words C you next Tuesday.... You lose me. No girl ever wants to hear or see that word!

Story was okay, it held my attention but really way to many rules and no one and I mean no one would be able to do that nowadays!! Now lets talk about the ending I didn't see any of that coming.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This book absolutely blew my expectations for it away...in the best way possible. I completely thought it would be one way, and it ended up being SO much better and even more interesting. The Girl Before is a mind-bending, suspenseful thrill-ride that absolutely grabbed on to me and would not let go until I had read the very last word.

My only real complaint and the reason I am giving this book 4 1/2 stars is because of the repetition of sections of the book. We're talking several sentences in a row, multiple times. I know it was because we were getting the story from two points of view and from two different points in time, and it makes sense with the story. But it was an annoying part of the story for me.

Overall, I really, really enjoyed this book, though. I read probably the last 55-60% of it last night after going to bed. I just couldn't put the book down until I knew how it ended. This is really one of those books that I feel like I cannot say much about without giving things away about the book because it is an extremely complex book.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and I am never compensated for my reviews.

I really loved The Girl Before. It is reminiscent of Girl on The Train and the books of Gillian Flynn. In spite of that I found the story to be very original and the writing to be intelligent and quick moving. What I especially loved about this book was that I couldn't put it down. The book starts with a "Then" character, Emma, and a "Now" character, Jane. The women go down similar roads when they both rent the same mysterious house. The house is its own character in the book. I am a mystery and thriller fan and this book has a few excellent twists that surprised even me. The Girl Before would be an excellent vacation book or something to read on a long flight -- the story moves quickly and is a thrilling ride.

I really liked this book, particularly its structure--with the story told by two different characters, each of whom rented the same house, but at different times. The story is a little murder mystery, a little psychological thriller, a little romance and a little Fifty Shades of Grey, with some architectural history thrown in. It's a fast read and, to me anyway, a page-turner. I'll definitely look out for other books by this author.

4 Stars

If I had to describe this book, I would say pentimento. It is a smart and sexiy. Complex, interesting, and downright scary! It has the crazy, off kilter, smart, beautiful manipulative, Emma. Did I forget lair? Emma is crazy with a capital C! She is a hard act to follow and the fallout she leaves in her wake is mind boggling. Jane is Emma without the crazy, but is a mild Emma enough for Edward? Throw in murder, suicide, rape, crazy obsessed Simon, and a wealth, handsome, meticulous, dominate Edward and you have a bestseller. Did I mention a creepy state of the art austere mansion for a home?

A great read and I can definitely see a future movie. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book for a fair review.

Great thriller/mystery novel that keeps you guessing until the end.

The first request for One Folgate Street is to make a list of every possession you consider essential to your life. I found myself going through the motions with Jane and Emma, and discovered that the home would definitely not be for me. Highly recommened for readers of The Girl on the Train, Gone Girl, and Behind Closed Doors, The Girl Before is a psychological thriller that is sure to keep you on edge. My favorite thing when reading books such as this one are when I am totally stumped in regards to the outcome, and this was one of the few where I was. I found Jane to be more likeable of the two women involved, and I have to say that Edward was charming, despite his strange requests. This one comes highly recommended from me!

This book was an excellent thriller novel for those who like titles such as "Gone Girl." It follows an eccentric architect who build an unusual house in London, but instead of living there, decides to rent it out. He has a new idea of how houses should run and the future of houses, but not everyone is on board. This story is weaved between Emma and Jane, two women who lived in the house two-three years apart. Their pasts were completely different, but their present and possible future are the same. I really enjoyed this book, especially when the twists and turns came out. It was clever and well-written. However, the only reason I did not give it 5 stars is toward the end; Jane's ending did not make much sense to me and came out of nowhere. Other than that, it was a really great book and I would recommend it for those in the mood for a good thriller.

One of the best suspense thrillers I've read in a very long time. Can't wait to see what this author writes in the future!

The lives of two women are interwoven when one rents out the other woman's former high-tech residence. The town home was built by an architect who seeks to manipulate his renters' behavior through architecture and technology (making it what we know as a "smart home"). The home's occupants have to agree to all sorts of ridiculous stipulations about how they will behave in the home and how they will care for it. Soon, the home malfunctions and its occupants' lives begin to unravel. The home, its designers, and its occupants are full of secrets and surprises - ones that will keep readers turning the pages of this book and not wanting to put it down.

There was nothing about this book that seemed forced or contrived. The dialogue flowed naturally and I could easily envision this book being turned into a suspenseful movie. There were many twists and turns that surprised me, but none of them unrealistic or untrue to the characters. The characters were all fully sketched out very well, so much so that by the end of the novel I was left desiring a sequel to the novel. The characters and their flaws seemed genuine and relatable.

In the latest of "If you like Gone Girl..." is JP Delaney's "The Girl Before"
Thanks to the publisher for an advance reader copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

This story pulled me in right off the bat. The idea of the house with its simplicity and list of rules was intriguing. When the second story started in the second chapter I realized that the connection between the two was the home. Since Emma's chapters were titled "Then" I figured she'd been the previous occupant.

From here things got a bit confusing. I couldn't keep the two stories apart in my mind. Since the "voices" of both were similar, the women had a similar appearance, had both suffered tragedies, and were many times doing the same things in their chapters, I struggled to keep them separate in my mind until I was about 75% done with the book. There were also times when mid-chapter I had to page back to see who the chapter was about.

As Emma's lies unraveled I found myself less interested in her and more weirded out that Jane would continue to pursue finding the truth of Emma's death instead of just removing herself from the situation. Especially when she became pregnant. I feel as though expectant mother's would take stronger steps to protect their baby--something that didn't happen for Jane until it was almost too late.

My biggest problem with the book was that the author wrote a story of two women who were in a relationship of sorts with a man who'd been accused of murdering his wife, his child, and in Jane's story, another tenant. I don't agree that faced with this situation, that most woman would have just asked around about the person and the situations surrounding the death. I found it unbelievable that they didn't cut and run. It was early enough in the relationship that Edward's "power and influence" over them wouldn't have caused them to overlook the fact that he' might have murdered another (or two) women he'd loved and a child.

I finished this book quickly and the author did a good job of keeping my interest and I wanted to see it through to the end. But the issues I mentioned in the previous paragraph kept me as more of a bystander instead of being really inside the story.

I also found the last chapter with Jane where it was revealed that the title refers to Isabel instead of to Emma as readers would likely assume, a bit oddly phrased, almost as if the author really liked this title and was forcing it to fit a situation. I just don't believe a mother would talk about her stillborn baby to a subsequent child as "the girl before" or "the girl who came before"

A couple of other things that bothered me unrelated to the story. A book with an identical title came out last year that was I believe also an Adult "thriller" I haven't read the other book but I think it's strange that this book has the same title in the same genre in such a short time after the other book was published.

I was also a bit put off by the blurb about the author I saw on GoodReads and Amazon. "J. P. Delaney is the pseudonym of a writer who has previously published best-selling fiction under another name." I don't understand why the author would attempt to create an air of mystery about their identity when a quick google search revealed that the author was Tony Strong--someone I'd never heard of. The only reason I can think for doing something like this was to try and make readers think the book was written by a woman? Seems a little icky.

This review is also posted on GoodReads.

Two women, each looking for a fresh start.

One house, striking in its design.

One architect, relentlessly committed to a rule-driven way of life.

"You can make your surroundings as polished and empty as you like. But it doesn't really matter if you're still messed up inside. And that's all anyone's looking for really, isn't it? Someone to take care of the mess inside our heads?"

I experienced a range of feelings about this book as I was reading it. I was, by turns, skeptical, riveted, repulsed, bored, shocked, etc.

No doubt, the question everyone who reads this book will ask themselves is, "Could I live at One Folgate Street?" Anyone who knows me well enough can probably answer that - NO. Of course, I doubt I'd even have a shot, considering the bizarre application process all prospective tenants must undergo.

Part of me did not want to finish this book - Edward, the architect and owner of One Folgate Street, is an extremely unsettling and unlikeable character - but I just had to know how this nightmare was going to end. The closer I got to the conclusion, the more obvious it became to me how Emma - "the girl before" (or one of them, anyway) - had died. Had it been more clear from the onset, I suppose I might have wound up skipping to the end to confirm my suspicions.

I like the way the story unfolds, narrated from the alternating perspectives of Emma and Jane, the current tenant. This book is an interesting study in relationships (mostly relationships at their worst), instincts and personalities.

Since everyone wants to try to compare it to "Gone Girl" and "The Girl on the Train," here's my take. I have yet to read another book that tops "Gone Girl," so nice try. On the other hand, "The Girl Before" is far more intelligent and original than "The Girl on the Train." Just thought I'd put that out there.

3.5 stars.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I try really hard to stay away from reading Goodreads reviews until after I’ve read a book as I don’t want to be influenced beforehand and have preconceived notions. I love reading reviews from my fellow book bloggers because I trust their opinions and know they won’t spoil anything for me, but on Goodreads/Amazon you just never know. All that being said, I had heard that The Girl Before was getting mixed reactions so I checked things out for myself and it seems people either love this book or they hate it. I happened to love it, but just know that it seems like it’s not for everyone.

You have dual perspectives here, Emma is Then, Jane is Now. This style never fails to reel me in and by ten percent I was totally hooked. Emma and her boyfriend Simon move into One Folgate Street together, then two years later Jane moves in alone to start fresh after a tragedy. As the chapters flip back and forth, the similarities between the two women are frighteningly uncanny.

One of the biggest complaints that I’ve seen about this book is that no one finds the premise believable. One Folgate Street is owned by an architect named Edward who is a rigid perfectionist to put it mildly. He’s created a sterile, modern home with new technology that’s amazing but also creepy. No house keys are needed, the shower remembers what temperature you prefer, etc. The application prospective tenants must fill out in order to be considered has two hundred questions. That’s right, TWO hundred and they are anything but typical. They require the applicant to answer moral dilemmas and they’re just very odd. He also requires a picture which is just bizarre. Would I ever want to live in a place with a tyrannical control freak as a landlord? No thank you. But as a premise for a book I thought it was fabulous and it didn’t bother me that it wasn’t exactly believable.

Beyond what I’ve already discussed I won’t say more about the plot. This was a highly addictive and provocative read for me, a real page turner about the quest for perfection and the obsession that goes hand in hand with it. I was blindsided by one of the major twists and the smaller ones threw me for a loop as well. I can’t wait to see this play out on the big screen as Ron Howard is directing, I think it’ll be fantastic! Again, this seems to be a really polarizing read, you’ll either love it or hate it. If you’ve read it I would love to see which side of the fence you fall on!

This was quite the page turner. I absolutely could not put this book down and finished it in three days instead of one only because I had to go to work.

The story is based around a house located at One Folgate Street. There are two women who apply to live in the house and the story is told from their points of view from the time they apply to the time they leave the house. In order to live in the house, applicants must agree to a long list of rules that were created by the builder who originally built the house to live in with his now deceased wife and son. Emma, lives in the house first with her boyfriend Simon. Then several years later, Jane lives in the house. The fact that the two women look alike and also look like the builder’s deceased wife with dark hair and blue eyes is slightly unsettling. I really enjoyed reading this book because the characters came to life through the author’s writing. I could imagine the open floor plan of the house and each room from the kitchen (they called it something else in the book) to the bathroom with the sensor-activated shower head to the hidden panel that lead to the mop and broom closet. The answer seems so obvious to what happened to Emma, so of course, I knew there had to be a plot twist. Going over the details over and over in my head while reading this book was like trying to solve a game of the board game Clue. But in the end, all the pieces laid out neatly with no loose ends to be found. Yes, it all made sense at the end.

Thank you J.P. Delaney and NetGalley for this copy of The Girl Before in exchange for an honest review.

No rating dnf
I was very confused and sadly not entertained reading this book. The blurb sounded amazing and I couldn't wait to dive in. Unfortunately so many things felt wrong and the book didn't hold my attention. It seems as though the owner of the house was trying to recreate his wife by selecting girls that looked like her to live in the house. Unfortunately his taking both girls past and present to the same locations, doing the same things with them sexually was just plain weird and creepy. Secondly I didn't love how Emma's chapters sounded so similar to Kane's chapter that I Often found myself confused having to go back to the beginning of the chapter to find out who I was reading.
I wanted to love it but the rules seemed so over the top and controlling. And the pace was slow making it uninteresting to me. Maybe this would be a book I revisit one day :(

Although the ending took me by surprise, I had a hard time digesting this book. I will admit I ate it up quickly and obsessively to find out what happened. But it felt Part fifty shades and part girl on the train- you are left wondering what is wrong with these characters... and you can't relate to anyone but the poor dead kitten...