**Spoiler-Free Review**
“I believe you may be in danger.”
The Girl Before by JP Delaney was thrilling, compelling and you feel like you are in a race against time as you turn the pages. The way in which it’s written felt slightly odd and did take us some time to get used to. Told in two pov’s: Emma in the past and Jane in the present, one serves as a chilling mystery for the other to solve. The twists and deceptions are immense, and we have to say we did not see a lot of them coming. In fact, until the very end, we had no clue where this story was going such was the meticulous unveiling of behavioural clues and psychological truths. Upon finishing we’re still not entirely sure of all the how’s and why’s. What we are one hundred percent sure of though, is that we were swept up in this eerie whodunit drama and were kept on tenterhooks throughout, trying to piece together a puzzle where tiny pieces were missing or didn’t quite fit. Was it a masterpiece? Almost, parts of the picture were still blurred upon finishing but the journey to get there certainly hinted at it.
In a well-run society, there have to be consequences for those who break the rules.
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It all begins at the tragic and sterile minimalistic One Folgate Place, a rental home masquerading as a stunning architectural vision designed by the elusive Edward Monkford. A house designed to adapt to the person living there yet also create a more tranquil, honest, and less hurried lifestyle in its inhabitant. If the walls could talk though they would scream! One Folgate Place seems to attract the damaged or broken, those who have suffered emotional trauma or grief. However, one simply doesn’t just move in! A lengthy questionnaire must be filled in, once you pass with a nod from Edward Monkford, and move in, an ongoing survey must be filled out with the most impossible questions of moral dilemmas. Questions that we ourselves found almost impossible to answer though they were intriguing, and we could discuss them for hours! Just what happened to Emma? And what part did Edward Monkford and One Folgate Place play in her death? If you love psychological suspense thrillers, problematic obsessive characters, and superbly written whodunits, then The Girl Before by JP Delaney should definitely be on your list!
“There was a time when One Folgate Street seemed like a calm, serene haven. Now it doesn’t. It feels claustrophobic and aggressive. Like the house is angry with me.”
