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Table of Contents
About The Book
"An astounding and original thriller with a complex relationship between three women at its heart and an explosive conclusion." —B. A. Paris, New York Times bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors
The next gripping psychological thriller by the author of How I Lost You, Jenny Blackhurst’s #1 international bestseller, about a psychiatrist and patient relationship that turns not only toxic…but deadly.
Karen, Eleanor, and Bea have been best friends since childhood. They know everything about each other’s lives, or at least they think they do. Now in their thirties, though their lives are beginning to diverge: Eleanor is a young wife and mother who is struggling to cope with her many responsibilities; Bea is happy being single—or so she lets people think; and Karen is a psychiatrist who, despite the secrets in her past, considers herself the anchor of the group.
But when she takes on a new patient with issues she just can’t quite put her finger on, she begins to realize she may have put her dearest friends in danger. Because her patient knows more about these three women than anyone outside their circle possible could. Or should…
The next gripping psychological thriller by the author of How I Lost You, Jenny Blackhurst’s #1 international bestseller, about a psychiatrist and patient relationship that turns not only toxic…but deadly.
Karen, Eleanor, and Bea have been best friends since childhood. They know everything about each other’s lives, or at least they think they do. Now in their thirties, though their lives are beginning to diverge: Eleanor is a young wife and mother who is struggling to cope with her many responsibilities; Bea is happy being single—or so she lets people think; and Karen is a psychiatrist who, despite the secrets in her past, considers herself the anchor of the group.
But when she takes on a new patient with issues she just can’t quite put her finger on, she begins to realize she may have put her dearest friends in danger. Because her patient knows more about these three women than anyone outside their circle possible could. Or should…
Excerpt
Before I Let You In -1- NOW
Where would you like to start?
Hmm.
Is something funny?
That’s what I always used to say to my patients. It gives them a sense of control over the session. Except we both know I’m not in control here, don’t we?
Is it important for you to believe that?
I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to put me at ease so I open up and confess my darkest fears and then you can tell them I’m crazy. I feel crazy. You can write that down.
Why don’t you start at the beginning, Karen? When you first met Jessica Hamilton.
That’s not the beginning. It’s where all this started, I suppose, but it’s not really the beginning. It started way before all that, before I met Bea and Eleanor, Michael. It started with what happened when I was four years old.
Would you like to talk about that? What happened to you when you were a child?
No. I don’t want to talk about that, and they don’t want to hear about it. They want to know about how she died.
Go on.
You can’t fix me.
Pardon?
Those were some of the first words Jessica Hamilton ever said to me, the words I still hear on a loop in my mind. I remember thinking she was wrong, I fixed people all the time; it was my job. What I didn’t realize then was that she never wanted to be fixed in the first place; that was never her intention. I didn’t know it yet, but she was there to fix me.
Where would you like to start?
Hmm.
Is something funny?
That’s what I always used to say to my patients. It gives them a sense of control over the session. Except we both know I’m not in control here, don’t we?
Is it important for you to believe that?
I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to put me at ease so I open up and confess my darkest fears and then you can tell them I’m crazy. I feel crazy. You can write that down.
Why don’t you start at the beginning, Karen? When you first met Jessica Hamilton.
That’s not the beginning. It’s where all this started, I suppose, but it’s not really the beginning. It started way before all that, before I met Bea and Eleanor, Michael. It started with what happened when I was four years old.
Would you like to talk about that? What happened to you when you were a child?
No. I don’t want to talk about that, and they don’t want to hear about it. They want to know about how she died.
Go on.
You can’t fix me.
Pardon?
Those were some of the first words Jessica Hamilton ever said to me, the words I still hear on a loop in my mind. I remember thinking she was wrong, I fixed people all the time; it was my job. What I didn’t realize then was that she never wanted to be fixed in the first place; that was never her intention. I didn’t know it yet, but she was there to fix me.
Product Details
- Publisher: Emily Bestler Books (April 10, 2018)
- Length: 352 pages
- ISBN13: 9781501168840
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Raves and Reviews
"Blackhurst enhances this briskly moving tale about the depths and limits of friendship with expert twists and subtle misdirections."
– Publishers Weekly
"Nothing, we quickly learn, is as it seems in this meaty psychological thriller, which was published in the UK in 2016 and, like Blackhurst's HOW I LOST YOU (2017), racked up massive e-book sales before appearing in print in the U.S."
– Booklist
"An outstanding and original thriller with a complex relationship between three women at its heart and an explosive conclusion."
– B.A. Paris, New York Times bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors
"Utterly gripping—brilliant debut."
– Clare Mackintosh, internationally bestselling author of I LET YOU GO, on HOW I LOST YOU
"Blackhurst is such an amazing writer . . . she builds the tension so subtly, you'll be knocked back on your heels more than once."
– For the Love of Books Blog
"If you are looking for something that will get your mind going with possibilities, then pick this one up!"
– Under the Covers
"Fast-paced, addictive, suspenseful--couldn't put it down, loved it all."
– Book Collective
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High Resolution Images
- Book Cover Image (jpg): Before I Let You In Trade Paperback 9781501168840
