The Girl Before by JP Delaney
This is the story of Emma and Jane, two women who, years
apart in time, need a change and a new place to live. Emma is recovering emotionally from a rape
and Jane from a stillbirth. There
appears to be one place on the rental market in their price range. One Folgate
Street is an architectural wonder, concrete, glass, wired to trace a person’s
every nuanced move, it seems too good to be true. But there are issues and not just anyone is
allowed to rent this house. The owner
wants photographs, letters and if approved for an interview, there is a long
and personally intense questionnaire.
In their own time, both women are approved to live
there. The house can be very unsettling
or very comforting, depending on your state of mind, and in the case of both
women, that state of mind is very sensitive.
The owner maintains complete control of the house and the house responds
electronically to any indiscretion. There are rules: no pets, children, throw
pillows, rugs, dishes out of place, flowers, nothing intrudes on the starkness
of the house. One can either feel very
spooked here or very safe.
Emma meets an untimely death and her death is something Jane
wants and needs to learn more about. Her
inquiry and snooping around in the owner’s life makes for a strained
relationship that puts Jane in her own danger zone.
As with the other books this is compared to, Gone Girl,
Girl on a Train, the ‘girl’ books have almost become their own
genre. Psycho-mystery? As with the other
‘girl’ books this one has twists and turns. While you are on one path and it
makes sense, you also know in the back of your mind that if you are trying to
figure out the twist you should have taken the other fork in the road. It has a twist, as they all do.
Looks like a great read.
ReplyDelete