Clemmie's friends know her as Helen, and she is perfectly happy leaving her old life behind. When she goes to check on a neighbor in her complex, she finds he isn't there and discovers a mysterious object. She snaps a quick photo of the object and makes a mistake of forwarding it to her nephew who makes it go viral. What's more, there is a murder and Clemmie's fingerprints are found at the scene. Can she keep her identity a secret after all these years?

Clemmie is a semi-retired Latin teacher living in Sun City, a small community of senior citizens. When Clemmie takes a picture of an unusual object in her neighbor's house, she sets off a disturbing chain of events.

The parts of this story that I enjoyed the most were the chapters detailing Clemmie's backstory. It was heartbreaking to discover Clemmie's past, why she adopted the name Helen, and how that tied in with the present day plot. The beginning of the story is full of tension, and you don't know what will happen next. I wouldn't say I was on the edge of my seat throughout the novel, but I was pleasantly surprised by the twist ending.

I almost burst into tears when I saw that my FAVORITE author as a child wrote books I could read again as a single woman with no children (people tend to look at you weird when you browse that section with no kids and not being an educator) I was so happy. Caroline B Cooney has lost nothing in the years since I was in 4th grade and I still hung on every word. she is the reason I started reading suspense and hope she continues to write for adults. PS my niece is at the age where I think I will be gifting her the face on the milk carton for Christmas :)

Helen livesin a senior living village. She lives in a triplex. She discovers her neighbors nephew(?) has been murdered next door. But she isn't who she says she is and worries about discovery. This would be a good read for those MEtoo women who did not live in the 50-60s. Helens story is much like many of my friends stories back in the day. Homes for pregnant girls, swift adoption and the need to know. As Helen searches for information she gets to know her neighbors. Some are not who they seem.
Caroline Cooney wrote Girl on a milk carton ages ago. This adult mystery keeps her writing about social issues and human faults.
Recommenced for library purchase

I thought this was a fun romp and an intriguing mystery! I’ve read some books by Caroline B. Cooney in the past and I think that she is excellent at keeping the reader in suspense. I enjoy watching The Golden Girls, so when I found out that this book involved characters of an older generation, I wasn’t discouraged even though I’m in my early twenties. There were a lot of different threads in this book. Personally, I wish that the murder thread came in a little earlier; based on the description, I thought it would be more of a focus of the book. However, I was glad that the thread from the past was more involved than the description led me to believe. I found that thread more compelling than present day. In terms of the writing, I felt that the constant reassurance that this really was how it was in the good old days got a little grating. I understand that culture really has changed and it felt like that was talking down to me a little bit as a younger reader. I don’t think this really affected my enjoyment of the book too much, though. I think as a mystery, it was entertaining because I never knew what the next step would be and how all the threads would connect and I enjoyed the sense of place the descriptions of Sun City gave me.

Loved it!
I loved how Cooney not only did a fantastic job of developing Clementine, but provide emotional context for the era of events.
Now, we think ‘why didn’t she come forward’ or ‘why didn’t she report it’ or ‘why didn’t she ask for help’ and Cooney deftly incorporates the stoicism of the 50s and 60s into the narrative.

‘Before She Was Helen’ was a truly enjoyable read. I read it in a single sitting, turning page after page as the story artfully revealed one twist after another (without seeming contrived, formulaic, or forced). Each revelation fit perfectly and yet was so unexpected.

I love how the relationships where there but not fully explained until they needed to be- how was her great nephew related, exactly? And all th doubles of the retirement village - oh Cooney’s description was so vivid I would see the golf carts with silver haired seniors in sun visors gossiping away for lack of anything better to do.

Lovely, fun, and unexpected. Worth the read.

Maybe it was nostalgia, but I haven't read Caroline B. Cooney since 6th grade when she used to write YA. However, I've always had issues with her writing even in YA, and as soon as I started reading this book, I noticed the same things I disliked about her writing in YA, in this too. It's a cozy mystery that doesn't know how to remain so by putting some dark parts in it that weren't handled that well. Ultimately, this book wasn't for me.

This review contains spoilers.

Before She Was Helen is a murder mystery set in a retirement village. I really liked the character Clemmie, and I loved the details about her community of Sun City and the cast of interesting characters who are her neighbors. This had the makings of a really fun cozy mystery.

Early on, however, the book took a very dark turn. There are two storylines in this novel, and one of them delves into a backstory of a disturbing nature. The light and amusing tone of the writing did not match the serious topic. I was unprepared for the sinister turn in the plot, especially since I choose not to read books about sexual assault. In this case, the child rape was treated so superficially, and was explained with simple statements like, “back in those days people didn’t believe anyone who was raped, and no one used that word.” I had to deduct a star from my rating because rape is used as a plot device.

This turned out to be a very different book from what I expected.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader’s copy of this book.

This book was not at all what I expected! I thought it would be a puzzling mystery that gets all wrapped up neatly by the end. Instead it’s full of twists and surprises and heartbreak and even some laughs.

There’s a lot going on in this book and it kept me guessing until the very end. Of course by then I was cheering so hard for Clemmie - such a brave, smart woman.

Such a good book!

The entertaining story of Clemmie is told in alternating time lines and emotions. Helen/Clemmie was living her happily ever after....well maybe....until without much thought, she shares a unique photo with her nephew, who quickly posts it online. As her normal life quickly unravels, we find ourselves drawn into the hard lived journey that got her here. Told as the story of her life, this was a unique, entertaining book and I will definitely be sharing with my book friends.

Helen lives in Sun City, a retirement community in South Carolina and teaches Latin part time.
She has two phones, one for her neighbors and one for her relatives, who know her as Clemmie.
Her somewhat creepy next door neighbor Dom texts her every morning so she knows he is okay. One morning she doesn't receive a text and she eventually uses her key to go in and check on him. He isn't there, but she does find a beautiful object, like a work of art. She impulsively takes a picture of it and sends it to her nephew. Soon, it is posted on the internet and she is fielding many questions about it.
It begins to threaten the closely guarded secret concerning her identity.
Then the police find a body next door and the enigma that is Clemmie begins to unravel.
This charming, humorous and offbeat mystery was very entertaining and fun to read. Clemmie/Helen is a delightful character and I would love to read more about her.
Thank you Poisoned Pen Press for the e-ARC via NetGalley.

Wow, I really loved Clemmie - what an awesome character! I really liked the other characters too, even the not-so-good ones. This was a very original story and I couldn't put it down. Although I think the end of the book was intended to give such closure, I wish I'd gotten definitive closure on whether Billy and Clemmie ended up connecting, though - the whole book was based around how much Clemmie had hidden herself, which would have made that very difficult if not impossible. Also, for the very adult topics of this book, I felt it was written in rather a juvenile style. This bothered me less as I got more into it, though. Would definitely recommend!

This was a good mystery and also a thriller. All action happens in just some days interspersed with lots of flashbacks that go slowly explaining to the reader why Clemmie became Hellen and when. It's a really sad story, hers. My heart broke for her many times, and for all the women who went through the same things (and still do) in a world still dominated by males in which the women are made to feel responsible even for the crimes committed against them.

I was completely involved in the story and it has a good pace. The flashbacks don't interrupt but rather seem to interweave perfectly with the current days part of the novel. The twist I did not see coming and I believe it was well executed even if a bit far-fetched. All in all a great read.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review

When Clemmie goes next door to check on her difficult and unlikeable neighbor Dom, he isn't there. But something else is. Something stunning, beautiful and inexplicable. Clemmie photographs the wondrous object on her cell phone and makes the irrevocable error of forwarding it. As the picture swirls over the internet, Clemmie tries desperately to keep a grip on her own personal network of secrets. Can fifty years of careful hiding under names not her own be ruined by one careless picture?

Did I pick this book because I loved the Face on the Milk Carton books? You bet! However it was not what I had hoped. This was set in a retirement community so it was a little bit different for me. I would call this more of a mystery than a thriller but it was still a decent read nonetheless. This was a book that told two different stories for Clemmie; her current life and her life that led up to where she is now. The past story really was much better than the current. The current was slow moving and not as mysterious or thrilling as I had hoped. I was left confused as to what happened to Dom and Johnny and even confused with Joyce and how there was zero motivation for the killing really. I was also confused because the pov changed constantly without notice and it was hard to keep up.

Carloine b Cooney was an author that I grew up with as a child and I loved all of her work so when I saw this one I was immediately pulled towards and and then the description had me hooked. I was a little confused at the beginning of this book because our main character, an older woman in an old age home seems to go by two different names Helen, as well as Clem or Clementine. I found this made the book very hard to follow and I wasn't able to fully immerse myself into the story like I normally am. Not my favourite book and I struggled to finish it which is amazing considering how much I love Mrs. Cooney's previous works. I did like the whole mystery of it however I did find myself being continually pulled out of the story for one reason or another. Unlike her other works that I grew up with this one will not leave a lasting impression unfortunately. The ending of this book I found to be way better than the rest of it, it gave that huge twist that I was waiting for through the whole thing, however I did find it very hard to connect to the characters.

Thank you so much to net galley for sending me a copy of this book. I did not finish this book due to not really caring for it. I think if you love this author you would love it but she is just not for me.

I definitely remember reading Cooney's books for young adults in between my Sweet Valley reading when I was young. So, when I saw that Cooney had a book for adults coming out, I was definitely intrigued. Set mainly in Sun City, South Carolina, Clemmie is living a double life as Helen Stephens and it's all threatening to come crashing down when her curiosity gets the better of her. The book alternates from Clemmie's past - and how she came to be known as Helen - and her present predicament.

It's an engaging read and while Clemmie's is the main perspective, there are a few other offered as well. The past for Clemmie is a painful one and the villain is especially horrible here. But, other than repeated violence, and the age of the. main characters, I am not sure that this reads all that differently from a young adult novel. The ultimate ending is honestly a bit of a let-down... it's abrupt and not as satisfying as I hoped it would be. The modern storyline does have some twists, but that storyline isn't really as engaging as Clemmie's past... it's not a bad book by any means, but it's not really a satisfying one either.

I fondly remember reading and enjoying Caroline B. Cooney’s books as a child/young adult and was very excited to be able to read this one. It was ok and I felt it did not live up to the standards I had of her when I was a child. I found the characters unlikeable and naive. I also feel like there were a lot of loose threads in the story and would have liked for them to be tied up in the end. Nice mystery and I like the storytelling from different characters. Overall though - just ok - didn’t love it but didn’t hate it, was just hoping for more.

What an absolute delight this book was!!

The story was set in a retirement village in South Carolina, just over the state line from Charlotte, NC. However there was ample back story about Clemmie and how Clemmie became Helen. Clemmie/Helen was born in the 40s as was the author. I particularly liked the way this senior-citizen-author spoke of life growing up in the 50s. She told it like it was – like I experienced it and not like so many moderns want to believe that it was.

Yes, there were many opportunities and avenues denied girls/women, but that merely caused them (us) to become smarter and more wily in the way they addressed problems they encountered from societal norms of the day.

It was delightful to see how this same shrewdness was utilized in the various adventures in the retirement village.

Characterization was excellent as were all the elements that go into making a great read! I highly recommend this to everyone.

I’m thankful to NetGalley and the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press, for this early release in exchange for an honest review. I’m particularly thankful for introducing me to this new author.

Clemmie/Helen now in her seventies has never had an easy life.
She was raped by a teacher as a teenager back in the 1950's
You did not report these sort of crimes back during these times. You did not share these secrets with people for fear of being called a liar.
This man harassed Clemmie for years and followed her through college as well.
Finally she actually changes her name and her life; therefore becoming Helen. He will not find her!
She has now at present day, settled down in a retirement community and only keeps in touch with her estranged family through text messages and the occasional phone calls.
Her family had no idea of the abuse Clemmie/Helen was subjected to for all those years.
Living in a quiet retirement community is just the way Helen wants it.
However, there is a murder and the body is found in the apartment next to Helen! How did this happen and who is the murderer?
Read this novel to find out! You will love it!
I truly adored and admired Clemmie/Helen.
She is a strong, determined lady that we could all stand to be like!
Excellent book!