Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson -> Restarting April 11th, 2023

[Aly]

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 neighbors 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...

[Carrie]

I'm going to have to catch this one on the next go around. I got behind on reads. Sorry

[Kira]

Chapter 1 – 8 : (view spoiler)[I am not really digging the whole villain POV going along the whole story, I feel like there’s no mystery here this way. The whole book is probably just going to be Hen obsessing over Matthew while he continues with his serial killing in a misguided sense of justice and I am NOT a fan (hide spoiler)]

[Kira]

Chapter 9 – 19 : (view spoiler)[Matthew has Mira wrapped around his fingers and I do feel a bit sad for her but mostly just annoyed. I guess from a reader’s perspective it’s really easy to see Matthew’s flaws but as his wife, Mira just isn’t ready to see what’s right in front of her (hide spoiler)]

[Kira]

Chapter 20 – 26 : (view spoiler)[Is this getting weird or what? I can’t wrap my head around anyone agreeing to meet a person they are sure is a serial killer and hear him out. What was Hen even expecting? This sadly is not getting better at all and now that Lloyed might turn out to be cheater, I don’t know what to expect (hide spoiler)]

[Kira]

Chapter 27 – 35 : (view spoiler)[This is honestly not making sense to me, is the author trying to showcase how good Matthew turned out to be by making Richard an even worse character? They both are clearly messed up and need help. I have no idea why I am reading this book (hide spoiler)]

[Kira]

Finished: (view spoiler)[OK I totally did NOT see that coming and now I feel stupid, it was a DUH moment for me and I am so angry at myself for not being able to connect the dots. It does redeem the book a bit in my eyes but I am still not happy about Matthew never going to trial for his crimes (hide spoiler)]

[Aly]

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RESTARTING APRIL 11TH, 2023

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[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Excited to finally start this! Hoping for tomorrow morning. I got this book via Book of the Month a million years ago!!

[Hina]

I'm so excited too!! I'll start reading it once I finish the book I'm currently reading.

[Hina]

Chapter 1-2 (view spoiler)[This is really interesting but I'm not sure where the climax is or what is supposed to be shocking since the author told us that he's the killer and everything from the beginning so I'm really curious what the plot twist will turn out to be! (hide spoiler)]

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

I made it to 17% of the audiobook this morning. I believe that's around Chapter 7. I haven't read the synopsis since I bought the book like in 2019 or something, so I am loving the set-up. I had no clue what it was going to be about.

So far I am really intrigued and the narration is fantastic!!

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Hina ♡ wrote: "Chapter 1-2 [spoilers removed]"I know what you mean, it is an interesting way to lay out the characters, knowing what we know about Mark. I am hoping it is going to develop into a nice little cat-and-mouse sort of situation!!

[Carrie]

I'm super behind on my buddy reads. I will catch up on this one soon. Sorry :(

[Hina]

Chapter 9-11 (view spoiler)[I really like how the heroine is in pursuit of Matthew. This creates an extra layer of suspense! Hen would be considered an unreliable narrator in most books with her bipolar issues. But we know she is on the right track with Matthew since we're reading his pov too. Can't wait to find out more about the mcs! (hide spoiler)]

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Hina ♡ wrote: "Chapter 9-11 [spoilers removed]"Yessss, exactly. I love that aspect too! I feel like it was really clever to format it that way!

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

I made it into Chapter 23 tonight and I am actually loving this. It's like a modernized Hitchcock and as a huge Hitchcock fan, it has me absolutely invested. I love all the different character perspectives because I feel like it is adding so much to the logic of the plot. IMO, this is really well done.

(view spoiler)[One of the most interesting aspects for me is that we are now getting Mark's brother's perspective. Like initially you feel like Mark is the big bad wolf, but it turns out, he is a mere demonic house cat compared to his brother. I also like thinking about that. They grew up in the same household that was pretty f*ed up, but they saw it differently. Mark, in essence, does what he does as like an outward expression of anger against men who treat women like his father treated his mother, yet his brother, was more on his father's side, punishing women he feel are like his mother. While Mark 100% saw his Dad as the bad guy, Richard (I think that is his name), his brother, saw their Mom as the bad one in the relationship. Very interesting idea to consider. (hide spoiler)]

[Hina]

Chapter 17-22 (view spoiler)[The way Matthew has Hen wrapped around his finger is making my blood boil. Poor woman. But it's honestly making the chain of events even more intense and intriguing. These two main characters are very unusual, as is this plot. Matthew is a contradiction, one moment he's the loving husband, he cares about his friend Michelle... and the next, a sociopathic killer. And Hen, well I'm not sure I'd go as far as to say I like her, but I do give her credit for being unapologetic about her mania and her determination to get to the bottom of the Matthew situation.

I couldn't believe how this section ended. I was so shocked! I was not at all prepared for Matthew to show up on Hen's doorstep ready to confess all. Where can this possibly go from here, with more than a third of the book left? I can't wait to see what happens next!
(hide spoiler)]

[Hina]

megs_bookrack wrote: "I made it into Chapter 23 tonight and I am actually loving this. It's like a modernized Hitchcock and as a huge Hitchcock fan, it has me absolutely invested. I love all the different character pers..."

(view spoiler)[I totally agree! I thought Matthew was crazy enough but learning about his brother and seeing things from his pov made me feel like Matthew is nothing compared to that monster! And I really liked your analysis about Matthew killing men who treat women like his father treated his mother while Richard does the opposite. I'm having so much fun reading your opinions! (hide spoiler)]

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Matthew!!!! Not Mark 😄😂🤣 Sorry, Matthew 😏

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Hina ♡ wrote: "Chapter 17-22 The way Matthew has Hen wrapped around his finger is making my blood boil. Poor woman. But it's honestly making the chain of events even more intense and intriguing. These two main ch..."
Yessss, I agree about both of their characters and that twist. I wasn't expecting that either!!! It's quite interesting 💙

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Hina ♡ wrote: "megs_bookrack wrote: "I made it into Chapter 23 tonight and I am actually loving this. It's like a modernized Hitchcock and as a huge Hitchcock fan, it has me absolutely invested. I love all the di..."Thank you! I am enjoying reading yours as well! It's helping me notice/consider different things. This book is really good too, so that helps! The author has given us a lot to think about!

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

I made it to Chapter 29 this morning and soooooo much is happening. Some nice reveals and progression of the plot. I think I know in what direction this is going and I'm actually pretty jazzed about it. (view spoiler)[I know that Matthew's wife now realizes what he is/does. I liked how it was revealed, like the stuff connected to the beginning of their relationship that she always wondered about. I am interested to see if she confronts him on it or keeps it to herself, or I don't know, maybe turns him in? I also wonder if she is going to try to talk to Hen about it, since Hen made those accusations against him to the police. Also, Hen and Matthew are continuing to build their relationship, wondering if they are going to partner up on a certain something...can't wait to find out!!! (hide spoiler)]

[Hina]

Ending (view spoiler)[I've finished the book a few hours ago but forgot to write what I thought about it. It was a five star read until the last chapter. That ending was honestly so unnecessary. Hen has met Dustin before and it turns out that he attempted to rape her, it's just so clichéd. I was so happy throughout the entire book because of how original everything was, at least for me since I've never read something like it before, but the ending lacked originality. So the five star rating that I was so sure I would give to this book turned into four stars. But overall I had so much fun reading it and it was 100% better since I was buddy reading it with you, I don't think I would've had as much fun if I was reading it alone. Let me know what you thought about that ending too! :) (hide spoiler)]

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

I finished!! I loved it, 5-stars!!! Hoping to write a full review later, all I want to say right now is, I enjoyed this wayyyyyyy more than I expected!! Wow.

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Hina ♡ wrote: "Ending [spoilers removed]"I finished too!!!! It was 5-stars for me! (view spoiler)[I'm so sorry that final scene let you down, Hina! Bummer. I liked it a lot. My main reasons were that...when Hen was sort of obsessed with Dustin's case, like in the beginning, when you were finding that out, it was like, well is that just her going back to her obsessive tendencies? Is her bipolar not under the control that she thinks it is? So, this to me was like validation, she very much had a reason for being so intimately concerned about his case. Then there was the side, like, it made me sort of wonder, did Matthew know what Dustin did to Hen? I know he never outwardly stated that, but maybe he didn't know Hen was the woman. Like if he had been following Dustin, maybe he saw them leave the bar together or something. She did say it wasn't long after that happened that Dustin was killed. But also that aside, it made Hen and Matthew's relationship feel sort of fated in way, like they had been tied together for longer than either one of them even realized and that ultimately, Hen was the one who brought to a stop what he was doing. Like after Matthew is arrested and he mentions in his musings about the trophy, how he did leave it on display and maybe part of him was hoping that someone like her would come along and stop him; that to me added to the sort of fated relationship, or a full-circle feeling, you know what I mean? I'm so sorry that you had to bump it down to a 4, I hate when that happens!! (hide spoiler)]

I had so much fun reading this with you, Hina. It was such an enjoyable reading experience and way more fun having someone to chat with about it!!! xx

[Hina]

megs_bookrack wrote: "Hina ♡ wrote: "Ending [spoilers removed]"I finished too!!!! It was 5-stars for me! [spoilers removed]

I had so much fun reading this with you, Hina. It was such an enjoyable reading experience and..."

I'm glad you liked the last scene! What I like the most about reading is how each reader can interpret things in different ways, I didn't think of the ending that way but now that I've read your analysis it makes much more sense! I had a really good time reading this with you and I hope we get to read another book together soon! ♡

[megs_bookrack ((struggling to catch up))]

Hina ♡ wrote: "megs_bookrack wrote: "Hina ♡ wrote: "Ending [spoilers removed]"I finished too!!!! It was 5-stars for me! [spoilers removed]

I had so much fun reading this with you, Hina. It was such an enjoyable ..."Oh my goodness, I absolutely agree. It is always so fun to read what other's think. Reading is so subjective and hearing other people's thoughts on stories always helps me to look at it from a different angle. I love that! I hope we read together again too! It definitely added to the reading experience! So fun