The Girl Next Door by Phoebe Morgan | @Phoebe_A_Morgan @HQstories

| ABOUT THE BOOK |

Perfect mother. Perfect wife. Jane Goodwin has spent years building her picture-perfect life in the quiet town of Ashdon.

So when the girl next door, sixteen-year-old Clare Edwards, is found murdered, Jane knows she must first protect her family.

Every marriage has a few white lies and hers is no exception. Jane’s worked hard to cover up her dark secret from all those years ago – and she’ll do anything to keep it hidden…

| MY THOUGHTS |

I thoroughly enjoyed Phoebe Morgan’s debut novel The Doll House when I read it last year but this one? Hoo boy! It’s on a completely different level and I absolutely loved it! From the very first pages, I could already tell I was in for a treat.

Have I mentioned yet how much I love small town settings? Life in the quiet town of Ashdon seems picture perfect. Nothing much ever happens here until the day sixteen year old Clare Edwards is found murdered. But even though we get a few flashbacks about Clare’s last day on the planet, this story isn’t really about her. It’s more about her neighbour, Jane. From the beginning, I sensed there was something off about her. Jane is very much about appearances and didn’t come across as particularly likeable. Yet it is also rather obvious that the mask she wears hides lies and secrets, making her instantly fascinating and intriguing.

At the heart of The Girl Next Door is quite a dark and disturbing topic. You just never know what goes on behind closed doors and this story is no different. So deliciously twisted and incredibly cleverly done, I found myself utterly engrossed. The pace was spot on and the storyline was so immensely compelling that I kept flipping the pages faster and faster.

Plenty of secrets and lies are to be discovered in Ashdon and of course, there is the death of Clare that needs solving. I thought I had this figured out, then kept changing my mind and ended up getting it entirely wrong. This is one of those books that lends itself perfectly to be read in one long reading session. It’s incredibly addictive and the few moments where I had to put the book down for pesky things like dinner, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Ultimately, this left me rather sad and angry at the injustice of it all but I loved every single word on every single page and I can’t wait to read more by Phoebe Morgan! I highly recommend The Girl Next Door and Phoebe Morgan is without a doubt one to watch!

The Girl Next Door is available to buy!

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