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JP Delaney

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The Girl Before: A Novel Kindle Edition

by JP Delaney (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

3.9 42,892 ratings

Editors' pick Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

See all formats and editions

THE GLOBAL BESTSELLER • Soon to be a BBC One and HBO Max limited four-part series, starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw (The Morning Show; Misbehaviour) and multiple Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Emmy-nominated actor David Oyelowo (Selma; Les Misérables)

“A pitch-perfect novel of psychological suspense” (Lee Child) that spins one woman’s seemingly good fortune, and another woman’s mysterious fate, through a kaleidoscope of duplicity, death, and deception

Please make a list of every possession you consider essential to your life.

The request seems odd, even intrusive—and for the two women who answer, the consequences are devastating.

EMMA
Reeling from a traumatic break-in, Emma wants a new place to live. But none of the apartments she sees are affordable or feel safe. Until One Folgate Street. The house is an architectural masterpiece: a minimalist design of pale stone, plate glass, and soaring ceilings. But there are rules. The enigmatic architect who designed the house retains full control: no books, no throw pillows, no photos or clutter or personal effects of any kind. The space is intended to transform its occupant—and it does.

JANE
After a personal tragedy, Jane needs a fresh start. When she finds One Folgate Street she is instantly drawn to the space—and to its aloof but seductive creator. Moving in, Jane soon learns about the untimely death of the home’s previous tenant, a woman similar to Jane in age and appearance. As Jane tries to untangle truth from lies, she unwittingly follows the same patterns, makes the same choices, crosses paths with the same people, and experiences the same terror, as the girl before.

Praise for The Girl Before

“Dazzling, startling, and above all cunning—a pitch-perfect novel of psychological suspense.”—Lee Child

“The Girl Before generates a fast pace. . . . [J. P.] Delaney intersperses ethics questions on stand-alone pages throughout the book. . . . The single most ingenious touch is that we’re not provided either woman’s answers.”—The New York Times

“J. P. Delaney builds the suspense.”—Vanity Fair

“Immediate guarantee: You will not be able to put this book down. . . . Fans of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train will realize that there’s not only more where that came from, but it’s also more thrilling.”—American Booksellers Association

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Emma and Jane have a lot in common; they even look alike. Each has been through a traumatic experience and needs to move into a new London apartment, but neither has much money. They both see a gorgeous, glamorous (but minimalist) flat on Folgate Street that is, miraculously, within budget—assuming that the renter meets the owner/architect's strict requirements: no alterations, no rugs or carpets, no pictures, no potted plants, no throw pillows, and about 200 other stipulations. The flat should be experienced as is and, in fact, is meant to transform the occupant rather than the other way around. But there's something very compelling about the apartment. When Jane moves in, she learns that Emma was the previous resident—and that she died there. Told in chapters that alternate between Emma's and Jane's stories, the book ratchets up the tension page by page as Jane can't resist looking into Emma's life and death. By the end, readers will have no idea whom to believe or how far any of the characters will go to get what they want. VERDICT Teens who gobbled up Paula Hawkins's The Girl on the Train and Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl will be clamoring for this page-turning psychological thriller, which is already being made into a movie by Ron Howard.—Sarah Flowers, formerly at Santa Clara County Public Library, CA

Review

“Dazzling, startling, and above all cunning—a pitch-perfect novel of psychological suspense.”—Lee Child

“The Girl Before generates a fast pace. . . . [J. P.] Delaney intersperses ethics questions on stand-alone pages throughout the book. . . . The single most ingenious touch is that we’re not provided either woman’s answers.”—The New York Times

“J. P. Delaney builds the suspense.”—Vanity Fair

“Immediate guarantee: You will not be able to put this book down. . . . Fans of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train will realize that there’s not only more where that came from, but it’s also more thrilling.”—American Booksellers Association

“This is going to be the buzziest book of 2017. We may only be a few weeks into 2017, but we’re calling it early: This year, The Girl Before will be that book. The upcoming novel by author J. P. Delaney has all of the makings of a sexy murder mystery that is sure to hit the bestseller chart, and it already has the movie deal to prove it.”—InStyle

“Delaney has created a genuinely eerie, fascinating setting in One Folgate Street. . . . The novel’s structure, volleying back and forth as first Emma and then Jane begin to question their improbable luck, is beautifully handled. The pages fly.”—USA Today

“The house has a dark past and a landlord that’s anything but welcoming.”—New York Post, one of the must-read books of the week

“The Girl Before is deservedly anointed the ‘top girl’ of this season’s suspense novels.”—The Washington Post

“The Girl Before is a cat-and-mouse game that toys with our expectations and twists our sympathies. At times almost unbearably suspenseful, it keeps us guessing from the first page to the very last. Don’t miss it.”—Joseph Finder

“Get hooked on this hair-raiser about a woman who scores what seems like her dream home . . . until she finds out the mysterious fate of the previous tenant.”—Cosmopolitan

“One of the best thrillers you’ll read in 2017. . . . The Girl Before will appeal greatly to fans of psychological suspense.”—New York Journal of Books

“Riveting! One of the most compelling page-turners I’ve read in years. Twisty, turny, and with an ending not to be missed!”—Lisa Gardner

“Riveting . . . Writing with precision and grace, Delaney strips away the characters’ secrets until the raw truth of each is revealed.”—Publishers Weekly

“Superior psychological suspense . . . a cleverly constructed thriller.”—The Bookseller

“A masterfully crafted spellbinder . . . guaranteed to astonish.”—Booklist (starred review)

About the Author

The Girl Before is the first psychological thriller from JP DELANEY, a pseudonym for a writer who has previously written bestselling fiction under other names. It is being published in thirty-five countries. A film version is being brought to the screen by Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

I. Please make a list of every possession you consider essential to your life.

THEN: EMMA

It’s a lovely little flat, the agent says with what could almost pass for genuine enthusiasm. Close to the amenities. And there’s that private bit of roof. That could become a sun terrace, subject of course to the landlord’s consent.

Nice, Simon agrees, trying not to catch my eye. I’d known the flat was no good as soon as I walked in and saw that six-foot stretch of roof below one of the windows. Si knows it too but he doesn’t want to tell the agent, or at least not so soon it’ll seem rude. He might even hope that if I listen to the man’s stupid patter long enough I’ll waver. The agent’s Simon’s kind of guy: sharp, brash, eager. He probably reads the magazine Simon works for. They were exchanging sports
chat before we even got up the stairs.

And here you have a decent-sized bedroom, the agent’s saying. With ample—

It’s no good, I interrupt, cutting short the charade. It’s not right for us.

The agent raises his eyebrows. You can’t be too choosy in this market, he says. This’ll be gone by tonight. Five viewings today, and it’s not even on our website yet.

It’s not secure enough, I say flatly. Shall we go?

There are locks on all the windows, he points out, plus a Chubb on the door. Of course, you could install a burglar alarm, if security’s a particular concern. I don’t think the landlord would have any objection.

He’s talking across me now, to Simon. Particular concern. He might as well have said, Oh, is the girlfriend a bit of a drama queen?

I’ll wait outside, I say, turning to leave.

Realizing he’s blundered, the agent adds, If it’s the area that’s the problem, perhaps you should have a look farther west.

We already have, Simon says. It’s all out of our budget. Apart from the ones the size of a tea bag. He’s trying to keep the frustration out of his voice, but the fact that he needs to riles me even more.

There’s a one-bedroom in Queen’s Park, the agent says. A bit grotty, but . . .

We looked at it, Simon says. In the end we felt it was just a bit too close to that estate. His tone makes it clear that we means “she.”

Or there’s a third-floor just come on in Kilburn—

That too. There was a drainpipe next to one of the windows.

The agent looks puzzled.

Someone could have climbed it, Simon explains.

Right. Well, the rental season’s only just started. Perhaps if you wait a bit.

The agent has clearly decided we’re time-wasters: He too is sidling toward the door. I go and stand outside, on the landing, so he won’t come near me.

We’ve already given notice on our old place, I hear Simon say. We’re running out of options. He lowers his voice. Look, mate, we were burgled. Five weeks ago. Two men broke in and threatened Emma with a knife. You can see why she’d be a bit jumpy.

Oh, the agent says. Shit. If someone did that to my girlfriend I don’t know what I’d do. Look, this might be a long shot, but . . . His voice trails off.

Yes? Simon says.

Has anyone at the office mentioned One Folgate Street to you?

I don’t think so. Has it just come on?

Not exactly, no.

The agent seems unsure whether to pursue this or not.

But it’s available? Simon persists.

Technically, yes, the agent says. And it’s a fantastic property. Absolutely fantastic. In a different league from this. But the landlord’s . . .to say he’s particular would be putting it mildly.

What area? Simon asks.

Hampstead, the agent says. Well, more like Hendon. But it’s really quiet.

Em? Simon calls.

I go back inside. We might as well take a look, I say. We’re halfway there now.

The agent nods. I’ll stop by the office, he says, see if I can locate the details. It’s been a while since I showed anyone around, actually. It’s not a place that would suit just anyone. But I think it might be right up your street. Sorry, no pun intended.

NOW: JANE

“That’s the last one.” The agent, whose name is Camilla, drums her fingers on the steering wheel of her Smart car. “So really, it’s time to make up our minds.”

I sigh. The flat we’ve just viewed, in a run-down mansion block off West End Lane, is the only one in my price range. And I’d just about persuaded myself it was all right—ignoring the peeling wallpaper, the faint smell of someone else’s cooking seeping up from the flat below, the poky bedroom and the mold spattered across the unventilated bathroom—until I’d heard a bell being rung nearby, an old-fashioned hand bell, and the place was suddenly filled with the noise of children. Going to the window, I found myself looking down at a school. I could see into a room being used by a toddler group, the windows hung with cutouts of paper bunnies and geese. Pain tugged at my insides.

“I think I’ll pass on this one,” I managed to say.

“Really?” Camilla seemed surprised. “Is it the school? The previous tenants said they rather liked the sound of children playing.”

“Though not so much they decided to stay.” I turned away. “Shall we go?”

Now Camilla leaves a long, tactical silence as she drives us back to her office. Eventually she says,
“If nothing we saw today took your fancy, we might have to think about upping your budget.”

“Unfortunately, my budget can’t budge,” I say drily, looking out the window.

“Then you might have to be a bit less picky,” she says tartly.

“About that last one. There are . . . personal reasons why I can’t live next to a school. Not right now.”

I see her eyes going to my stomach, still a little flabby from my pregnancy, and her eyes widen as she makes the connection. “Oh,” she says. Camilla isn’t quite as dim as she looks, for which I’m grateful. She doesn’t need me to spell it out.

Instead, she seems to come to a decision.

“Look, there is one other place. We’re not really meant to show it without the owner’s express permission, but occasionally we do anyway. It freaks some people out, but personally I think it’s amazing.”

“An amazing property on my budget? We’re not talking about a houseboat, are we?”

“God, no. Almost the opposite. A modern building in Hendon. A whole house—only one bedroom, but loads of space. The owner is the architect. He’s actually really famous. Do you ever buy clothes at Wanderer?”

“Wanderer . . .” In my previous life, when I had money and a proper, well-paid job, I did sometimes go into the Wanderer shop on Bond Street, a terrifyingly minimalist space where a handful of eye-wateringly expensive dresses were laid out on thick stone slabs like sacrificial virgins, and the sales assistants all dressed in black kimonos.

“Occasionally. Why?”

“The Monkford Partnership designs all their stores. He’s what they call a techno-minimalist
or something. Lots of hidden gadgetry, but otherwise everything’s completely bare.” She shoots me a look. “I should warn you, some people find his style a bit . . . austere.”

“I can cope with that.”

“And . . .”

“Yes?” I prompt, when she doesn’t go on.

“It’s not a straightforward landlord–tenant agreement,” she says hesitantly.

“Meaning?”

“I think,” she says, flicking down her indicator and moving into the left-hand lane, “we should take a look at the property first, see if you fall in love with it. Then I’ll explain the drawbacks.”

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01EE0CRKW
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ballantine Books (January 24, 2017)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 24, 2017
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 7174 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 465 pages
Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1400026873

Best Sellers Rank: #392,344 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,795 in Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Literary Fiction
- #2,549 in Psychological Fiction (Kindle Store)
- #4,823 in Psychological Thrillers (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
3.9 42,892 ratings

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JP Delaney

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JP Delaney is a British writer of psychological suspense. His novel THE GIRL BEFORE was an instant New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller which sold over a million copies in 40 countries. It was adapted by him for a BBC and HBO Max TV series in 2021. His second thriller, BELIEVE ME, was also a Sunday Times bestseller, as were his subsequent books THE PERFECT WIFE, PLAYING NICE and MY DARLING DAUGHTER. His sixth book, THE NEW WIFE, is being published in July 2023.

JP Delaney has previously written bestselling fiction under other names. The Carnivia Trilogy, a series of three standalone but interlinked thrillers set in present-day Venice and written under the name Jonathan Holt, was published in more than 20 countries.

For more information, visit www.jpdelaney.co.uk or follow @jpdelaneywriter on Facebook.

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RSW Kindle Customer

4 Stars

Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2017

Verified Purchase

Reading this Brit-Lit psychological thriller was super suspenseful and chilling and SO MUCH FUN!

SYNOPSIS
The book is written with a dual point of view and timeline, seamlessly alternating chapters between Jane's story, in the present and Emma's story, about three years in the past.

EMMA
The story opens with Emma and her boyfriend Simon touring apartments. They are looking for a very secure place to live after a traumatic experience in their current apartment makes Emma feel she must get out of there ASAP. Unfortunately, none of the apartments in their price range feel secure enough.

Hesitantly, the real estate agent mentions one more option. There is a very unique house which the owner is willing to rent at a reduced rate in exchange for a few things in return from the tenants. The agent explains that the rental agreement includes a clause reserving the right for the owner, a famous architect, to arrange occasional tours for architecture students. In addition, the tenants are required to keep the house perfectly clean at all times and they are not to alter the decor in an way at all. There are more details, about 20 pages more, but, the agent says, the others are small things...

Immediately upon entering the house, Emma falls in love with it. She feels safe for the first time in a long time and is willing to sign any agreement which allows her to stay. Simon isn't so sure, but he wants to make Emma happy so he agrees.

The application process to live in the house, One Folgate Street, goes far beyond the typical reference and credit check. There is a very long screening process, including a lengthy questionnaire. If the applicants pass the questionnaire portion of the process (and very few pass), there is an in person interview with the architect / owner.

As luck would have it, Simon and Emma pass the application process. They cannot believe their luck! It seems too good to be true! But... shortly after moving in, they begin to wonder if living in all this perfection is really working for them. And what exactly was in the fine print of the 20 plus page rental contract? What have they agreed to? Who is the mysterious architect and what happened to his wife and child?

JANE
Three years later, Jane is looking for a new apartment after experiencing a life altering loss. She is desperate to wipe the slate clean and start over. She has quit her high pressure, high paying job and taken a part time job working for a not-for-profit organization she wholeheartedly supports. Sadly, this career change comes with a reduced pay check, which means none of the apartments she can now afford are even close to being as nice as her current one. She cannot stay where she is but has a hard time imagining living in any of the places her agent keeps showing her.

Hesitantly, the real estate agent mentions one more option. One Folgate Street, it is a unique house which is being offered for rent at a reduced rate in exchange for a couple things from the tenants...

After passing the interview process, Jane is thrilled about her new home. But quickly after moving in, someone starts leaving flowers on her front door. One day a card is attached saying the flowers are for Emma. Who is Emma?? How is she connected to this house? Is it just Jane's imagination or is something going on with the house? Who is this architect and is he somehow connected to Emma? As Jane begins to dig into these troubling questions, she finds that life at One Folgate Street may not be as serene as it seems.

WHAT I LOVED
First of all, it feeds my love of all things British! I like to do the immersion reading with both the audio and ebook. I hadn't really read any reviews on this book but chose it because it was nominated on the Goodreads book of the year list. It had me as soon as the audio started with the British accent. Yay, Brit-lit! With all that tea and "jumpers" for sweaters and "torches" for flashlights. Love it!

I love books with a suspenseful, slow build and this book perfected it!!! Wow. Little by little, the reader begins to sense that things are amiss. It would be too obvious to outrightly, tell the reader that this house is not the good deal it seems to be, so author, JP Delaney drops little hints throughout, making the reader wonder when the other shoe is going to drop. It had me on the edge of my seat from page one.

Good characters can make a book and this book was full of complicated, multifaceted characters!! And in keeping with the rest of the book, we find out slowly who each character really is, what their agenda is and what each is capable of. Even the house is a character, the reader is constantly wondering if the house itself has its own agenda. Edward, the architect, is fascinating. He's an enigma wrapped in a mystery. But Emma, she steals the show. I loved her Audrey Hepburn / Breakfast at Tiffany's connection. I won't say more and ruin it, except that she was fabulous as a character.

4 people found this helpful

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Robin Landry

Unusual thriller, great writing

Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2017

Verified Purchase

Clever, and very intertaining book. I'm not sure about the comparisons to Gone Girl, because this book doesn't have time for the intense character development of that book, because it has more characters, one being a very cool, and yet disturbing house. This book goes back and forth in time, alternating between two women who both rent a cutting edge 'smart house' from a mysterious architect who interviews new residents and gives them a set of rules. These rules are not just the 'no pets-no-kids' type rules--more like a 'lifestyle' set of rules with questionnaires popping up periodically that cause the 'smart house' to shut down all amenities until the questions are answered. A bit over-bearing, just like the landlord, a handsome, mysterious award winning architect who believes that our living spaces should change and define us. Now you get a sense of the weirdness of the house, and it's builder so it's on to two very damaged women who live in the house at different times. One, who's had her previous apartment burglarized, and the other woman who's had a stillborn child's. The plot moves back and forth between the two women as we learned what really happened. Since this is a thriller, I don't want to give anything away. Just have fun reading and trying to guess 'who done it'. Wonderful and thrilling writing.

7 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

'Addictive', no, readable, yes!

Reviewed in the United States on July 8, 2017

Verified Purchase

Great basis for a plot but for me, at first very confusing as to who was who. I mean, the two women, who both went through similar, if not the same, experiemces, and each narrating alternate chapters (in time), were for the first several chapters indistinguishable. Once each was clearly identifiable, the book got less confusing. The outcome? Illogical to say the least, i.e., the reader needs a certain amount of information to be able to 'have a go' at being a sleuth. That's part of reading a whodunnit, surely? I felt that any one of the several suspects put forward could have been the murderer and the 'outcome', as I said before, wasn't the only logical one according to the information the reader had had up until that point. Gave it three stars as it's easily readable, but surely that's the work of a brilliant editor. I'd rather say, yes, read it than don't bother and I'd love to hear other readers' opinions after having read mine.

4 people found this helpful

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K.B.

Lots of twists and turns but not a book for everyone

Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2017

Verified Purchase

Famed architect Edward Monkford chooses occupants for a home he rents out very carefully. Each renter must agree to an extensive list of rules in order to live there. Emma is eager to move after the home she lived in with her boyfriend Simon was broken into. She is willing to abide by Edward's rules to live there even though it means giving up almost all of her possessions. Jane has also suffered a personal tragedy and is eager for a fresh start. She finds herself drawn to Edward each time she is around him. But soon Jane starts uncovering some of the secrets of the house and the owner. The story alternates between the characters of Emma when she lived in the house and Jane who lived in the house after Emma.

I thought this was a good book in terms of having quite a few twists and turns and catching the reader off guard. It was a big page turner for me because I wasn't really ever sure where the author was going with the story. It definitely has a creepy factor to it and I'm not surprised to hear that the book is being developed into a movie.

Without getting into spoilers, I can see however why the book has stirred up some controversy. If you are looking for a fictional read that is a bit dark and keeps you in suspense, than I recommend this book. However, I would pass on this book if you have been unhappy with how women have been portrayed recently in mystery/suspense books. If it's a hot button issue for you, I can't imagine you would like this book.

42 people found this helpful

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