Before I Let You In by Jenny Blackhurst

My 4* Review:

Before I Let You In tells the story of three women, Karen, Bea and Eleanor who have been friends since they were young. Through thick and thin and plenty of ups and downs the three have remained firm friends and supported each other. But is all as it seems?

Well no, of course not. From the beginning the reader knows that something awful has happened, but has no idea what. Gradually as the book progresses we are given possible explanations for what happened but are kept guessing until the final pages.

The character development is excellent, all three main characters are well rounded and believable. The author clearly has knowledge of psychology and this adds to the believability of the story and characters.

I actually found the first half of Before I Let You In a little slow and at times confusing. The story was told from alternating viewpoints, but sometimes we were not told whose voice we were listening to and I found that difficult. I think that I need to know who it is to help me remember the story and what is going on. I found that by the time I got to the end there were parts explained that I’d forgotten about happening in the first place. This is highly unusual for me so I’m not sure quite why it happened in this book, and can only put it down to the events happening to a nameless person.

The last 30% was great, I just wanted to keep reading and to find out what was happening and who did what. I’m pleased to report that I had not worked it all out!

Thank you to the publishers, Headline, and Netgalley and TBC for an ARC of Before I Let You In.

Blurb:

Karen is meant to be the one who fixes problems.

It’s her job, as a psychiatrist – and it’s always been her role as a friend.

But Jessica is different. She should be the patient, the one that Karen helps.

But she knows things about Karen. Her friends, her personal life. Things no patient should know.

And Karen is starting to wonder if she should have let her in . . .

Before I Let You In is out on 28th August and is available from Amazon UK and Amazon US.