The Girl Upstairs

A good read. storyline is very good. I read it very fast.

I enjoyed the story, liked the realistic characters and a well written storyline.I will be starting the next book immediately.

The book is is short chapters which makes it easy to pick up and put down. The plot is relatively straight forward and simple, but doesn’t really have that much depth or intrigue written into it. It’s all relatively straight forward and obvious, with a little realistic areas in parts. Quite enjoyable overall, perfect for sunny days.

Really enjoyed the way the book brings all of the characters to life. Lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing.

Good book and price

So I was flicking through Instagram on Saturday morning and I saw an ad for this book as it was on special offer at 99p. I followed the link and it seemed like my kind of book so I bought it and started straight away as I was just chilling on the sofa after my staff night out the night before! Well, I ended up reading it in the hairdressers chair in the afternoon, the queue for the chippy in the evening and in bed that night-not going to sleep until I reached the very last page. It’s not often I get so excited over a debut novel I had taken a chance on but The Girl Upstairs is fantastic! It’s just so beautifully written with a central character you are never quite sure about and another that is unraveled so carefully it was like unwrapping a delicate and fragile present.Suzie lives in a ground floor flat underneath Emily, a young woman in her early twenties. Emily is portrayed as a selfish neighbour-noisy and uncaring of those around her-but as we find out more about Suzie we come to realise that she is judging her actions without knowing much about her even though she appears to know EVERYTHING! But the devil is in the detail here and it’s not until Emily goes missing that the overheard lifestyle of the girl upstairs becomes a significant part of who she is but why she has suddenly vanished? Suzie is obsessed with finding out, so obsessed that there is obviously something in her own past that demands she investigates Emily’s disappearance herself when the police don’t seem very interested in helping…I absolutely loved this book! It’s not fast paced or action packed but it creates a wonderfully atmospheric flow throughout the slowly revealed plot. It played with my emotions too as I realised I had misjudged some characters early on and the revelations when they came weren’t the ones I was expecting so I felt that element of shock as the shattering truths were uncovered. It’s a book I didn’t want to end and when it did, I felt momentarily bereft as though I had lost someone very close to me and I wanted to know where they are now and what they are doing! And, for me, that’s the sign of a brilliantly created fictional storyline-one that felt real and engaging throughout.A highly recommended 5 star read for me!

I thought this was exceptional .best book I’ve read for a while , just could not put it down.

Rating: 3.7/5With her debut novel Georgina Lees has produced a slow-burning, but ultimately captivating and impressive psychological drama.Suzie lives alone in a ground floor flat in London. For reasons that will become apparent over time, she is not a happy spirit and has become quite reclusive. She could certainly do without the indirect intrusion into her life of Emily, her noisy, inconsiderate upstairs neighbour. But when Suzie does finally get the silence that she craves, it brings not relief, but concern. Where has Emily gone? And why does nobody seem to care?Considering this is the author's debut novel the writing and structure displays a surprising level of maturity and dexterity. "The Girl Upstairs" won't appeal to everyone. It is very much a "slow-burner" and does take some time (perhaps a little too long) to get into its stride - but, as the narrative develops and the backstories of the key protagonists are gradually unveiled, it becomes an increasingly engrossing read.Georgina Lees does a fine job of creating the oppressive sense of loneliness and isolation that can be felt by someone living in a largely faceless and friendless city such as London. The story is told in the first person, primarily from Suzie's perspective, but later also from the viewpoint of Emily. I have to say that there is no clear distinction between the voice given to Suzie and and the one assigned to Emily. If it weren't for the fact that Emily's chapters are signposted as such and written in italics it would be difficult to distinguish between her and Suzie. Under normal circumstances I would be critical of a writer for failing to give individual characters clear, distinct voices. However, in this particular instance, I have to acknowledge that it may be a deliberate ploy on the part of the author to convey the similarities between the two women and their predicaments. So, regardless of whether it is the result of intentional design or merely a happy accident, it works.A well-written, character-driven, psychological drama mystery that marks a fine debut.

This one grabs hold of you from the first page!!! It is hauntingly beautiful and secrets pile atop one another and then are peeled back layer by layer by an expert author who writes with intense emotion!!! LOVED IT!!!:-)

Easy to read and as psycho thrillers go, pretty mild though definitely intriguing.I was already into the last quarter before I worked it out. Doesn’t usually take me that long so must definitely be a good one.

Good read

This is my semi-spoiler alert, safe for now but I'll warn before the (semi) spoiler.I really liked the book in general. Parts were at a slow pace but not slow enough that I didn't want to read to know what happened. I had several guesses early and those turned out to be wrong. Being wrong early isn't bad. Later in the book I correctly guessed something and to me, it was too obvious by then. A couple of things made the book a lot less enjoyable.I won't give any detailed spoiler but I will generally comment on the last quarter of the story. If you you don't want to read commentary on the end, stop reading now.I was disappointed that my later guesses were right and there were no additional twists. I felt that I'd been led to believe part of the interesting outcome but the actual outcome was dull and unsatisfying for me. It felt unfinished to me at best and at worst the narrative deliberately offered a contradictory plot. Seeming emotional connections were just dropped at the end. Writing and characters worth almost 4 stars for solid effort. Finale plotting was perhaps worth 3 stars. Rounded up to 4 stars for the overall story line.

I really liked it, this book was the first one after a long time and brought me back among the books🩵 It has a kinda slow start but then something happens, idk what, and you just can’t put it down. What I didn’t like much was the end of it, it felt rushed but overall ok 👍🏻