The Girl Before Me – ARC Book Review

I’m so worried. You aren’t safe in that apartment! You have to get out. Before it’s too late…

When Rachel moves into a new apartment with her young daughter, Lily, it’s with a huge sense of relief. After escaping an abusive marriage, this perfect downtown fourth floor rental, within minutes from the lake, feels like the new beginning the two of them deserve.

It’s a place to call home. A place for them to grow together. A place for them to heal. And, as Lily starts at a nearby elementary school, and Rachel begins to develop feelings for her neighbor, Alex, who lives just down the hall, she dares to hope that their life is looking up.

But soon handwritten letters begin to arrive for someone called Annie. Alex says she was just the tenant who lived there before, who moved out one day without a word. Tentatively Rachel opens the first letter, intending to return it to the sender.

But the note says ‘Annie. I’m so worried. You aren’t safe in that apartment! You have to get out. Before it’s too late.’

Something happened to Annie. And Rachel is not nearly as safe as she thinks she is…

A totally unputdownable gripping thriller, perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Shari Lapena and Gillian Flynn.

WOW….This is simply wow for me.

Rachel Gleason moves into an apartment with her daughter, Lily who is about to start at en elite school. She is freshly divorced after having an abusive relationship with her husband Keith. When she moved into the apartment and checking the new mail box, she finds a letter from Julia in Australia addressing to her sister, Annie who used to live in the same apartment as Rachel right now. In the letter Julia has asked Annie to leave the apartment. When Rachel tries to dig in, Annie had left the apartment suddenly, taking away her furniture and everything. No one in the building knows what happened to Annie. But Rachel is determined to know more about her previous occupant.

To me, this was actually a fast paced thriller that will keep you on the edge of the seat. This was quite unputdownable and there were some twists and turns in nearly every chapter. What I liked about this book was there are so many suspects who may have been involved with Annie’s disappearance–the principal at the school Rachel’s daughter Lily is attending to, Rachel’s new lover Alex, Rachel new friend Bridget…the list goes on and on. The ending was unexpected. The author’s writing was really good and did a good job of hooking the reader into the story and making the reader feel like they are a part of the story. Overall, I actually enjoyed reading this thriller!

If you like an unputdownable, fast paced thriller with twists and turns that will keep you on the edge, then this book is one for you–worth five stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.