Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “Under Your Skin” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

Under Your Skin

Sabine Durrant

3.65 · Rating details · 5,108 ratings · 531 reviews

In this page-turning debut from talented crime writer Sabine Durrant, a woman makes a chilling discovery in the woods that changes her life forever.

Gaby Mortimer is the woman who has it all. But everything changes when she finds a body on the common near her home. She’s shaken and haunted by the image of the lifeless young woman, and frightened that the killer, still at la ...more

Get A Copy

Hardcover, 295 pages

Published February 4th 2014 by Atria/Emily Bestler Books (first published January 1st 2013)

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about Under Your Skin, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Female Psychological Thrillers/Suspense Written by Women

1,030 books — 3,023 voters

So you love an unreliable narrator

32 books — 31 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.65 ·

Rating details

· 5,108 ratings · 531 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of Under Your Skin

Nov 26, 2018 Kylie D rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-crime, seasonal-challenges, monthly-challenges

Wow, what a book. It starts off with a bang, Gaby, a TV personality finding the body of a young woman while out for her morning run, then the rollercoaster really gains momentum when she is questioned by the police and arrested for murder. All the evidence is pointing to Gaby, so she resorts to desperate measures by enlisting a journalist to help clear her name. I found myself rivetted to this book, racing through to find out what happened to the girl. I did work out part of it, but as to the bi ...more

flag 113 likes · Like · see review

Apr 06, 2018 Gary rated it liked it

Another good novel by author Sabine Durrant however not quite fulfilling the standard of the previous books I have read of hers, 'Lie to Me' and 'Take me in' are well worth a read.
Gaby Mortimer finds a body on the common near her home and is frightened that the killer could strike again. But things get worse for TV star Gaby when she becomes the prime suspect and is forced to prove her innocence.
This is a decent psychological thriller full of the normal twists and turns but not Sabine's best wo ...more

flag 22 likes · Like · see review

Mar 16, 2013 Raven rated it it was ok · review of another edition

As regular readers of my reviews know, I will often admit to having minor quibbles with books that are usually of such a nature as to not impair my overall enjoyment of the story, but I’m afraid to admit that ‘Under Your Skin caused me many irritations- no pun intended.

Ostensibly this is a psychological thriller charting the experience of TV personality, Gaby Mortimer who according to the blurb ‘has it all’ but then stumbles upon a corpse whilst out jogging, and finds herself at the centre of th As regular readers of my reviews know, I will often admit to having minor quibbles with books that are usually of such a nature as to not impair my overall enjoyment of the story, but I’m afraid to admit that ‘Under Your Skin caused me many irritations- no pun intended.

Ostensibly this is a psychological thriller charting the experience of TV personality, Gaby Mortimer who according to the blurb ‘has it all’ but then stumbles upon a corpse whilst out jogging, and finds herself at the centre of the murder investigation. As the investigation proceeds, Gaby’s marriage and professional career begin to unravel, leading to much navel gazing and her unlikely personal involvement with a journalist who takes up her cause. Perhaps due to Durrant’s characterisation I found Gaby to be intensely irritating with her middle class smugness, which the author tried to offset with a complete over use of parentheses for the first 150 pages using these to either try to poke fun at the vagaries of the middle class from the author’s security of a middle class viewpoint that sounded hollow in its mockery, or for Gaby to try to grapple with her personal insecurities. Although the parentheses did subside, any sympathy I could have possibly had for this character was well and truly lost by this point, such was my annoyance with the over-egging of the middle class theme and the obvious markers in the story as to her guilt or innocence. As the plot unfolds, Gaby’s life and activities come under the scrutiny of the police and suspicions as to her involvement in the murder intensify Don’t get me started on the characterisation of the police protagonists, as in an effort to introduce some quirkiness to the lead investigator DI Perivale, who Durrant depicts as a long-haired ‘dandy gone wrong’, with a penchant for literary quotes, I’m afraid I found his whole character pretty unrealistic, and indeed many of the aspects of the police investigation, bearing little resemblance to police procedure. even allowing for artistic licence. Disappointingly, the ending was as I guessed, and I thought pretty well signposted from early in the book, so all in all I was left feeling a little flat.

I’m sure this will be marketed with comparisons to the excellent Elizabeth Haynes Into The Darkest Corner or S J Watson’s Before I Go To Sleep, and will no doubt be a contender for the Richard and Judy Book Club, but sadly I was disappointed, despite my initial expectations as a fan of the psychological thriller genre. Shame.
...more

flag 18 likes · Like · see review

Feb 12, 2019 Mandy White (mandylovestoread) rated it really liked it

Shelves: audible, z-read-in-2019, z-tbr-shelf-challenge-2019

Well that ending was unexpected!! I listened to this on audible ,read by Tracey Ann Oberman and really enjoyed it. Great story, so many red herrings!

flag 19 likes · Like · see review

Mar 10, 2014 Becky rated it it was ok

This book was just okay. I didn't have the killer figured out, which is always a good thing. I just couldn't get past that there were so many useless words and not enough content with the mystery and investigation. I found myself skipping paragraphs a few times because what was being said didn't matter to the story or the mystery. It just seemed like filler. ...more

flag 17 likes · Like · see review

Jul 08, 2014 Selena rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2014

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

flag 13 likes · Like · see review

Mar 17, 2017 Tracy Fenton rated it really liked it

I listened to this book on audible and have to say first that Tracy-Ann Oberman nailed it. She was absolutely brilliant.
This is a twisty psychological thriller which is told through Gabby Mortimer, a daytime TV star who stumbles upon a dead woman whilst having her morning run. Suddenly finding herself as the main suspect in the murder, she is determined to prove her innocence, but the evidence keeps pointing back to her. Perfect for fans of dark, twisty thrillers.

flag 13 likes · Like · see review

Sep 23, 2015 Chelsea Humphrey rated it liked it

Gaby Mortimer truly has a cushy life. A beautiful woman herself, good looking husband and daughter, along with all the spoils that accompany a posh job and she's got it all. Until she she happens across a dead body. What starts as an ordinary witness helping the police turns into a ticking clock pushing Gaby to turn suspicions off of her and for the police to find the real killer.

Even though I had guessed the ending from early on, it was still a fun read. I found myself questioning my guesses a ...more

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Jan 20, 2014 Shandra rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arc

A solid four stars. Any spoilers will be clearly marked.

When viewing the description of the book, you are greeted with “If you like GONE GIRL, you’ll love… UNDER YOUR SKIN.” Look, UK

happy dance photo: happy dance happy-dance-o.gif

Did someone say Gone Girl?!?!?!?! I'M IN!!!!

The storyline is not Gone Girl, but the feeling I'm left with at the end is quite similar to how Flynn made me feel. I was slapped with the crazy at the end and I'm absolutely loving this feeling!!

squeal photo: The Colbert Squeal ColbertOMG.gif

So Gaby stumbles across a dead body while on her run. She phones the ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Aug 29, 2015 John rated it it was ok

This is a book that I read at breakneck speed, mouth open, pages scorching at the edges, etc., only to find myself slamming at full velocity into an ending that disappointed and infuriated me. I spent the last fifteen pages or so murmuring to myself "no, no, no" and wondering if I should throw the book at the wall. I'm all for authors pulling the wool over our eyes, but here I felt I'd been not so much part of an intellectual game as just lied to -- the way I'd feel about a TV conjurer whose stu This is a book that I read at breakneck speed, mouth open, pages scorching at the edges, etc., only to find myself slamming at full velocity into an ending that disappointed and infuriated me. I spent the last fifteen pages or so murmuring to myself "no, no, no" and wondering if I should throw the book at the wall. I'm all for authors pulling the wool over our eyes, but here I felt I'd been not so much part of an intellectual game as just lied to -- the way I'd feel about a TV conjurer whose stunts were based not on skill and craft and misdirection but on trick photography and film editing. Even in tales with twist endings there should be a kind of trust between author and reader; here I think that trust was violated.

So, what about the 279 pages before that betrayal?

Gaby Mortimer is a daytime TV star, which means she has big hair, winning ways and more intelligence than you'd imagine. Out for her morning run on London's Wandsworth Common she comes across the strangled body of a young woman. She contacts the cops on her mobile phone from more or less corpse-side to report her discovery. Within a matter of days, however, she discovers that she has become their #1 suspect: the dead woman kept a file of clippings about Gaby, owned some of Gaby's discarded clothes, and even had in her flat a receipt drawn on Gaby's credit card.

That circumstantial evidence might seem pretty powerful . . . except that surely the cops might think it pointed rather more plausibly toward Gaby's husband Philip, especially when it emerges that the dead woman was pregnant? However, the cops let Philip jet off for a week-long business trip in the Far East while Gaby remains the sole focus of their attentions.

Philip aside, other possible suspects are totally ignored by the cops, which I found very hard to believe, and similarly for Philip's absence during his wife's ordeal: even with their marriage on the rocks, surely as a matter of duty he'd have come scurrying home to stand by her?

There were further plot points concerning which I thought I was being asked to suspend my disbelief a tad too far. At the same time, though, Durrant is a good enough writer that this didn't trouble me too much. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.

Until . . .

Yep. That ending.

I'd be very much open to reading another thriller by Durrant, but I'd hope that it'd avoid the gimmicked ending. A thriller writer to watch, but perhaps not as yet entirely to trust.

...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

May 04, 2013 Bill Kupersmith rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Having read Claire McGowan's The Fall and Jane Casey's Missing, as well as encountering Tana French's odious Scorcher Kennedy--not to mention my favourite of all, Alex Marwood's The Wicked Girls--I fully expect that the police will attempt to put you in the frame for the crime whether guilty or not if it helps their solve rate. So I knew when Gaby found the body that she'd become the number one suspect even though the evidence against her is incredibly circumstantial. (After all, anyone could wa ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Nov 01, 2015 Michael rated it did not like it

Do you want to know what gets "Under my skin"? Books like this that has no direction or plot. Just a bunch of sentences on top of each other, refusing to give the reader any reason to continue reading. I have said numerous of times in the past that I am extremely picky rater of thrillers. There is only a selected number that I love, due to the suspense and how fast paced the story was. I look for the book to get me from the first page, or at least have my intrigued. This on the other hand was aw ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Feb 04, 2014 Helen rated it it was ok

Shelves: mystery-thriller

I'm not reading any more books that claim to be for fans of "Gone Girl." ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Jan 23, 2014 Ally rated it really liked it

Shelves: first-reads

I won a copy from Goodreads First Reads.

I knew it!

Sorry, I can't explain fully what I just said, but I can explain that I suspected the killer halfway through the book. Oh, the number of suspects started to rise and red herrings started popping like flowers in springtime, but I managed to figure it out. (I had two suspects. Two, and only one is...)

*Squeals*

Under Your Skin is definitely creepy. Not as creepy as a Ghost town during Halloween, but nearly as creepy. This book is probably inspired by I won a copy from Goodreads First Reads.

I knew it!

Sorry, I can't explain fully what I just said, but I can explain that I suspected the killer halfway through the book. Oh, the number of suspects started to rise and red herrings started popping like flowers in springtime, but I managed to figure it out. (I had two suspects. Two, and only one is...)

*Squeals*

Under Your Skin is definitely creepy. Not as creepy as a Ghost town during Halloween, but nearly as creepy. This book is probably inspired by American Psycho, or at least for some parts. Words like ax murderers made me slightly suspicious of a certain character. And no, I will not be telling you who that is. It's only January, far before the publication date, which is February 4, 2014. If you want to know who did it, read it off someone else's review, because I'm not saying a word. If I said a mere syllable, it will ruin everything. (But I might give you hints).

The plot is strong, with a few convenient plot holes. Of course, everything will explain itself eventually. It will explain everything in the last few chapters. (Oh, I just told you where the identity of the murderer is discovered and confirmed).

The murder of the body, which is the very same body Gaby found, is a crime of passion. Let's simply say it that way. This book and problems remind me of The False Prince, but with a murder instead of a missing prince.

Gaby Mortimer isn't right in head. When she tells her POV, you know instantly that something is off about her. Maybe it's because she just discovered a dead body or maybe because she knows something even darker. (I know the truth, but I'm just talking this way on purpose). In an unhappy marriage and surviving a mundane job, she's thrust into the world of law and creepiness, without a warning. (Heh...without a warning).

One character seems to be quite unusual. Jack Hayward? Or something like that, correct? Anyway, he threw me off the path. A very good trick created by the author. I was momentarily distracted by the red herring. But after careful evaluation, I manage to cross him off the list, leaving only two major suspects in the murder. Readers, who already read this book, probably can guess who are my top suspects. One is a man. One is wife.

The ending. Oooo! I want to know what will be the fate of the killer. I think karma will see a bit of action, but I don't know. The ending of Under Your Skin is throwing me into a loop.

Rating: Four out of Five

-ofpaperandwords.blogspot.com ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Jan 08, 2014 Diane S ☔ rated it liked it

2.5 News personality, Gaby, while jogging finds a body in the park near her house. This act will change her life, her marriage and her job. This book is marketed as psychological suspense and for me this novel did and did not deliver.

In places I felt the writing was awkward, in other places it was very good, I never warmed to or liked Gaby so it was hard to feel sorry for her or to root for a positive final outcome. I found her naiveté irritating. seriously, she works in the TV industry, yet she ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Jan 07, 2014 Paul Pessolano rated it it was amazing

“Under Your Skin” by Sabine Durrant, published by Emily Bestler Books.

Category – Mystery/Thriller Publication Date – February 04, 2014

It is not often you come across a cozy British mystery that incorporates not only a murder mystery but one that has many twists and turns and an unexpected ending. If this is something you are looking for, “Under Your Skin” is your cup of an excellent British tea.

Gaby Mortimer is a British TV personality that is part of a morning show called,” Mornin’ All”. On an ...more

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Aug 07, 2017 Michelle rated it did not like it

Shelves: dnf, bought-own

I wanted to like this book. I really did. I read her other book Remember Me This Way and really enjoyed it but this one left me disappointed. I read the first 100 pages and then skimmed my way to the end and what a disastrous end it was. Such a shame.

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Jun 01, 2015 Maggie Boyd rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2015-reading-year

Gaby is out on a run when she discovers the body of a young woman in the woods. She calls the police, answers their questions, goes to work (she's on a show like Regis and Kelly), discusses the horror of it all with friends and colleagues. The police come back. More questions. Gaby starts to get a slight sense that things may not be all they seem.

While the cover tells us that Gaby "has it all" any grown woman knows there is no such thing. Your husband may be perfect to strangers but at home he ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Sep 25, 2015 Linda Strong rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2016

Reading the book's blurb, I was eager to get my hands on this one. Sad to day, it did not quite live up to my expectations.

Blurb .. Gaby Mortimer is the woman who has it all.

Hmmm.. that's not how I see it. Yes, she's successful in her work. Yes, she has a husband, but it is soon apparent that he's got another life going on.

One day, while out walking, she comes across the body of a young woman. She finds herself the prime suspect. She seems to take the whole investigation as a joke. Even her husb ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 04, 2018 Alma Marta rated it it was ok

Shelves: a-to-d-authors, finished-with-difficulty

I'm on page 206 and still waiting for something to happen. There's only 300 pages in the book. Not impressed especially after just reading The Fourth Monkey. I've been told there is a twist at the end so I'm hoping it won't let me down. I don't particularly like the protagonist. From the outside she appears to have everything but has too little time to enjoy it. Her husband is drifting away from her and her life is very superficial, everything is about appearances as in so many peoples lives now ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Sep 08, 2015 Petra rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-english, thriller-mystery-crime, 1-star, adult-read

No. Just, no. This book was not for me, at all. It was boring and just full of the main characters ranting about every day life. Not exciting, not clever, and the ending just felt so illogical that I can't even. And it's sad, because I really thought it would be great. ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Dec 28, 2016 Jo rated it really liked it

Shelves: british, mystery-thriller-adult, scribd

Definitely more from this author!

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jun 19, 2020 Ludwig Reads rated it liked it

At first, I was very intrigued by the plot: a woman who goes for a run early in the morning only to discover the body of a woman who looks just like her. I loved the mystery aspect, but then came the uninteresting dialogue and periods of time where nothing happened. By the end, I was very underwhelmed. If you’re an avid thriller reader, I think you’ll figure out what happened very early on.

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

May 16, 2014 Sonja rated it it was ok

I won this book a few months ago thru a contest on here and had finally gotten to it. Unfortunately, I didn't really get into it at all. The first hundred pages or so were especially boring to me. Discounting the murder and the whole prime suspect trying to clear her name thing, nothing happens.

One morning while out for a run Gaby discovers the body of a girl. Initially she is just the person who found her, but soon enough she becomes the prime suspect and the cop in charge is totally out to ge I won this book a few months ago thru a contest on here and had finally gotten to it. Unfortunately, I didn't really get into it at all. The first hundred pages or so were especially boring to me. Discounting the murder and the whole prime suspect trying to clear her name thing, nothing happens.

One morning while out for a run Gaby discovers the body of a girl. Initially she is just the person who found her, but soon enough she becomes the prime suspect and the cop in charge is totally out to get her. Despite appearances that she has a perfect life with a great husband and sweet child, all is not what it seems. She doesn't love her job as much anymore and her husband is increasingly distant. She has maybe one or two friends and their nanny is not a warm person. Day by day she feels like she's losing control of her life in one way or another. Eventually she recruits the help of a journalist in order to try and clear her name and the story becomes somewhat more interesting. Though, not very. Around the middle of the book, I just didn't care anymore and decided to read the last few pages. Knowing then the truth of it all, I became mildly interested in finding out how it all came to pass and was able to read the whole book thru. The end was the most interesting part even though it still didn't leave me excited or with any emotion for than matter. The real killer didn't come as much of shock though. (view spoiler)

I had issue with the way some of the characters acted in this book. Gaby never actually stuck up for herself and did what she wanted. She always did what her husband wanted or what she thought he would expect. Including pretty much giving up all of her own friends. So that was a little annoying, but I know that that happens for real so okay. Then you have Philip. How stupid he was for believing such crap told to him by a coworker!(view spoiler) And then there's Ania. Poor, sweet, little dead Ania. Yeah right. She lost A LOT of my pity about her murder when we found out what she had said. (view spoiler) ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Nov 07, 2013 Sandy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

From the outside, one would think Gaby Mortimer had the perfect life. A successful, handsome husband, an adorable daughter, glamorous career as cohost on a morning show & a beautiful home in an affluent part of London. They'd be wrong.
The house is great & Millie is a sweetie. But Gaby & Philip are not the people they used to be & have drifted apart. And at work, Gaby has the feeling they are planning on trading her in for a younger model. She does her best to keep up the facade in both places bu From the outside, one would think Gaby Mortimer had the perfect life. A successful, handsome husband, an adorable daughter, glamorous career as cohost on a morning show & a beautiful home in an affluent part of London. They'd be wrong.
The house is great & Millie is a sweetie. But Gaby & Philip are not the people they used to be & have drifted apart. And at work, Gaby has the feeling they are planning on trading her in for a younger model. She does her best to keep up the facade in both places but the stress is getting to her.
Things really start to unravel when she stumbles over the body of a young woman while running in the park. Before she knows it, she's the prime suspect. DI Perivale seems to have it in for her. Incessant questioning & a night in jail lead to her bosses suggesting she take a few days off...TV speak for "you're fired". And don't even start on the throng of press camped on her front lawn. All while Philip is attending meetings in Singapore.
There are peripheral characters that flesh out the story, notably her BFF Clara, a determined journalist named Jack & Marta, the nanny.
The novel has a good premise. The problem is how long it takes before you really get invested in the characters & start to pay attention. It's almost as if a different author wrote the last third, by far the best part of this book.
Initially, I found Gaby a difficult person to like. She comes across as brittle, flighty & fake. I know she's desperately trying to hold on to her life but her personality & behaviour make it hard to feel any sympathy for her & you really need to for the story to work. Philip is depicted as absent & self centred, a bland & pretentious kind of guy. It's only in the final pages that they become interesting & more three dimensional.
The plot itself is promising but you have to care about the characters or find them compelling to get into a book, preferably early on. Much of the dialogue is initially superficial & a tighter edit on Gaby's endless streams of consciousness would have helped. I know other reviewers have mentioned the way DI Perivale was depicted. I didn't have an issue with his character but PC Morrow comes across as a giggly schoolgirl spouting all kinds of nonsense. A more realistic characterization would have added some much needed weight to the story, particularly in the beginning.
As with all books, it's a matter of taste. If you've read something by this author before & enjoyed their writing style, no doubt you'll like this as well. ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Sep 09, 2013 ☕️Kimberly rated it really liked it

I decided to take Under Your Skin on a date. 4.5

First Date: We meet Gaby Mortimer. At first glance, she seems to have it all. A posh home, a successful husband and a beautiful daughter. She is a successful television anchor for the local morning show and local celebrity. The woman has a live in maid and nanny for cripes sake. I was a tad jealous. We meet Gabby on a run through the park where she discovers the body of a murdered woman. The tale is told from Gabby’s perspective and at first her t ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Aug 28, 2015 Sheri rated it liked it

Shelves: poverty-class-issues, male-female-power-sex-attractivenes

Meh. It was entertaining enough, but nothing special. I really dislike me some unreliable narrator. And my red flags were flying early when Gaby lies to the police about touching the body. Of course, one was suspicious of Phillip immediately and all the arrows (clothes, credit card receipt, soil) point to him; Gaby's insistence of his innocence was just unbelievable. I think the whole Marta selling clothes on ebay twist was my favorite; it did throw a wrench into my thoughts for a few pages. Ult ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Aug 17, 2013 Cleopatra Pullen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, crime, favourite-2013

A must read for 2013 for anyone out there that loves a good whodunit. Gaby Mortimer, the female half of Mornin' All's daytime television programme, finds a body on one early morning run. She calls the police, gives a statement, goes home and gets ready for work. Over the next few days more details and evidence are found by DI Perivale which appears to tie Gaby to the dead young woman, Ania Dudek, evidence that Gaby can't explain.

This book is firmly set in today's world, Gaby's job as a minor cel ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Oct 05, 2015 Barbara Elsborg rated it liked it

I'm right on the fence with this one. I liked it and didn't like it at the same time. Not very useful. I'll say nothing about the twist. I think the issue with the story for me was that it was slow up until Jack came into it. At that point I really wished it hadn't been written in the first person. I desperately wanted to hear someone else's point of view but we are stuck with a rather whiny narrator who's not that reliable. I think if we'd had Jack's POV too, I'd have loved this a whole lot mor ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jul 13, 2016 Paige Abergel rated it really liked it

I loved Durant's book "remember me this way" so this seemed like a great one to try. I loved it, not as much as remember me this way, but I loved it in a different way.

This book is a solid 3 stars but earned the 4th due to the shock of the ending.

The twist makes me want to go retread the beginning. I was really shocked and slightly confused. Mostly, I think this could've been pulled off better if we had heard more than one voice (Gaby's) throughout. Although I see why Durant did it this way. V ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review