Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson // BOOK REVIEW

"They had a secret, the two of them, and there was no better way to start a friendship than with a secret."

Book: Before She Knew Him

Author: Peter Swanson

Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

Synopsis: Hen and her husband Lloyd have settled into a quiet life in a new house outside of Boston, Massachusetts. Hen (short for Henrietta) is an illustrator and works out of a studio nearby, and has found the right meds to control her bipolar disorder. Finally, she’s found some stability and peace.

But when they meet the neighbours next door, that calm begins to erode as she spots a familiar object displayed on the husband’s office shelf. The sports trophy looks exactly like one that went missing from the home of a young man who was killed two years ago. Hen knows because she’s long had a fascination with this unsolved murder—an obsession she doesn’t talk about anymore, but can’t fully shake either...

What I thought about it...

This is my first book of Peter Swanson and I know this is definitely not going to be the last. This is a jaw-dropping thriller. Though at first we already know who the killer is – and I never thought I’d like a story that way cos I prefer to keep guessing who the culprit is – the story is progressed excellently that I didn’t expect the plot twist of this story. The twist was solid, amazing. It made my jaw dropped that I need to reread a few pages back just to make sure I was not missing anything and that I was really reading what I was reading. I didn’t see it coming, well I thought I know what’s gonna happen but then I reached the end and BAM! There’s so much more!

Though I didn’t finish it in a day or two because I’ve been busy with work and I was kind of worried that I may not feel the story because I kept putting it down, I was still affected by it that when some secrets were revealed about each of the characters I was sad and hurt for Hen, the lead female character. I like that Hen is strong and brave even if she’s battling with her mental health issues and her husband’s infidelity. Though I felt like I was more attached to Matthew’s character than I do with Hen’s and the reason maybe is because Matthew’s POV is much more interesting than hers.

Overall, this book is fantastic and as mentioned, this will not be the first and last book of Swanson that I will read.  This book is not a letdown and I will definitely recommend it to mystery-thriller lovers like me. This book is captivating, compelling and a quick-read.

MY RATING

★★★★☆