The Girl Upstairs

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Pub Date Dec 09 2021 | Archive Date Dec 09 2021

Description

How well do you know your neighbour?Would you trust them with your life?

I heard Emily before I saw her. The harsh smack of heels against cheap wooden floorboards. The loud phone calls. The incessant music.

I knew Emily before I met her. Discarded receipts in our communal hallway. Sticky leftovers in the shared food waste bin. Wine shop vouchers in the letterbox.

Now she’s gone missing, and I’m the only one who can find her. The only one who can save her.

Because I know her best, and I heard everything.

The Girl Upstairs is a spine-tingling psychological thriller of grief and obsession that explores how lonely London can be and how sometimes it’s our neighbours who see us most, who know us best…

A must-read for fans of Lisa Jewell and Sarah Pinborough.

How well do you know your neighbour?Would you trust them with your life?

I heard Emily before I saw her. The harsh smack of heels against cheap wooden floorboards. The loud phone calls. The incessant...


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ISBN 9780008485412
PRICE $5.49 (USD)
PAGES 400

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Average rating from 425 members


Featured Reviews

Great story with a huge twist at the end. I loved the main character. She was so well done and just likable. Great book that was written really well.

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Such a well written book. Kept me engrossed for a long time. Loved the characters plus the story.
Amazing work

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#TheGirlUpstairs #NetGalley
Awesome.
How well do you know your neighbour?Would you trust them with your life?
I heard Emily before I saw her. The harsh smack of heels against cheap wooden floorboards. The loud phone calls. The incessant music.
I knew Emily before I met her. Discarded receipts in our communal hallway. Sticky leftovers in the shared food waste bin. Wine shop vouchers in the letterbox.Now she’s gone missing, and I’m the only one who can find her. The only one who can save her. Because I know her best, and I heard everything.
Wao. This novel was a firecracker.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins One More Chapter for giving me an advance copy.

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A fly by the seat of your pants thriller. I was immediately intrigued about this book even in the first chapters. I was happy to see that it ended even better than it started.

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WOW! What did I just read? This book was incredible, I couldn't believe what I was reading. The storyline and the characters are so well built that you will feel you're there with them.... and then, that ending! I loved this book and have told everyone I know about it -a must! Thank you for my ARC.

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Emily is Suzie's upstairs neighbour and Suzie can hear every noise of her neighbour's routine until one day it goes quiet. Emily has vanished and Suzie is adamant something is wrong. Is Suzie just an interfering neighbour or has Emily left enough clues to prove otherwise?
This is a clever and engaging read! I really enjoyed the storyline for this book and it builds to a blinding climax. I really enjoyed the character's backgrounds being explained throughout which helped me to get in to the character's mindset. The storyline is unique, believable and held my attention for the whole duration. I'm really glad I've read this book and is definitely going to be a top read.

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Wow is all I can say! When I first started this I was a little iffy I won't lie. The way the author chose to write from her perspective, felt different than another book I had read. I mean it just started out boom! And I was like okay so now I feel like it's me they are talking about. As I kept reading I got use to it. I was trying to figure out what was going on with the main character at the same time trying to figure out what had actually happened. Towards the end it started to make some sense, and I was definitely blown away at the final twist. Definitely will be reading more of this author! Thanks Netgalley for the chance to review it!!

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Something about this book really appealed to me. I ve lived in a flat where you hear but rarely see or speak to your neighbours. I could really empathise at times.

The story revolves around Emily who goes missing. Her neighbour realises but seems to be the only one who cares.

This book is a great physiological thriller that really feels like emotive without really even knowing anything about Emily.

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In the very over-crowded world of psychological thriller writers there is a bright new star in the night sky:: Georgina Lees.
Suzie Arlington is cloaked in the claustrophobic intensity of London with all its dark secrets and seedy edges. Her narrative of events is tense and full of shocks and surprises.
The author has created a fine set of characters, written with compassion and empathy and some very cleverly placed red herrings.
I can't recommend this novel highly enough. It really is a must read!

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Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in return for an honest review.

The Girl Upstairs by Georgina Lees is a thriller seen through the eyes of Suzie who lives alone and is dealing with grief. She is constantly annoyed by her upstairs neighbour Emily who leaves things in the hallway and plays her music too loud. But when Emily seems to disappear, why is Suzie the only one who seems to care?

I loved this book and loved all the characters. It was a great read that hooked me and kept me reading until the end. I loved being able to see how Suzie viewed Emily from the outside but also getting an insight into Emily from her own point of view.

Definitely recommend!

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A very enjoyable book!

Suzie lives in a small ground floor flat in Islington. She is very much a loner, doesn’t interact and hates London, especially the crowds and noise. It is evident from the start that there has been a major tragedy in her life and, despite their best efforts, she pushes her family away and won’t discuss it.

Emily is a young girl who moves into the upstairs flat. The walls are thin and the floorboards are bare, so every noise penetrates down to Suzie. Plus, Emily likes her music loud.

The start of the book gives the story from Suzie’s point of view, then as the story progresses, Emily’s side of the story is told, continuing with chapters from both sides.

I really like the style in which this book is written, it is definitely an attention grabber, would highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley.

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Atmospheric and creepy, compelling and with a wonderful sense of place. Exquisitely written, what a talent! All the right elements for an edge-of-your-seat domestic thriller!

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Missing…?
Big cities can be the most lonely of places and London is no exception. Perhaps it’s our immediate neighbours that know us best of all, the people who live right next to us, on top of us, below us. When Emily goes missing it’s her neighbour that seems to know her best of all, that seems to know her movements, her comings and goings and who seems to have heard all aspects of her life. What has happened to Emily? Spine tingling psychological suspense told with tension mounting prose, a pacy storyline and credible characters. Engaging reading from start to finish.

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I really loved this book!! It had so many twists and turns. It kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next!! This was my first book by this Author, and it won’t be the last!! Quick read!! Highly recommended!! You won’t be disappointed!!

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Depressed and lonely Suzie develops an intense dislike and interest of her upstairs neighbor. Yet, when the neighbor Emiiy goes missing, Suzie seems to be the only one interested. Using amateur detective skills she begins to search for answers out of a sense of guilt. Told from the perspectives of both women, this book keeps one on the edge of their seat. As the story unravels, you will learn more about why Suzie can't let go of Emily's disappearance even though her family and police to tell her to do so. You will love this novel if you liked The Girl on the Train or books by Ruth Ware. This book may not be your cup of tea if you don't like suspense. I would recommend this book for adults and high school juniors/seniors.

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The girl upstairs is noisy. She plays her music loud and late into the night. Her neighbor downstairs, is not amused. It's bad enough that she can hear every step she takes, into every room.
A great read. Full of twists and turns.
I recommend this book.

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A gripping read, packed full of twists and turns, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was hooked almost instantly, intrigued by the characters as well as the events.

This was a new author for me, and I look forward to reading more of her work in the future.

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Amazing story with twist and turns that grip you in, i really love this authors style of writing. The character development was really nice to read along too. So very well written, kept me engrossed and have the feeling which i love like i'm sitting on the edge of my seat. I would highly recommend, great work. I am writing my honest review for an arc, thank you netgalley, Harper Collins, One More Chapter for this.

Highly recommend thank you 5*

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I have lived in a ground floor flat with a herd of selfish and uncaring elephants above me and so could immediately empathise with Suzie, barely coping with her own tragedy and imposed on every minute of every day by the loud music, shrieking friends and clumping heels of Emily upstairs.
However, when all goes quiet Suzie discovers that there was more the Emily than she could have imagined andshe inserts herself into the police missing persons investigation when she feels they are failing the girl she once despised.
There are so many suspects revealed throught glimpses into Emily's life that you chase down dead ends several times before the absolutely unexpected reveal!

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This story is a wonderful psychological thriller with twists and turns that will keep you guessing. Suzie is a young widow, living by herself, having a difficult time moving on with her life. She is obsessed with her upstairs neighbor (Emily) and her comings and goings. Not only does she notice who she visits with, when she leaves, the mess she leaves in the hallway, but also, the noise that she makes. Suzie becomes angry with all of the commotion from her upstairs neighbor and eventually lodges a complaint. However, before you know it, the noise stops. There is no movement from above. What has happened to Emily? Suzie becomes an active participant in the investigation. What has happened to her upstairs neighbor? This book kept my interest and I was excited to get to the end. I highly recommend it. I will be looking for other titles by this author. If you enjoy psychological thrillers, this is the book for you. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

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I really enjoyed this book, I liked how Suzie’s story slowly revealed itself and the impact it had in her being determined to find out what happened to Emily. I thought this was well written, with a twist I didn’t really see coming. Very enjoyable and I struggled to put it down due to wanting to know what happened next.

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Oh, my! I found this to be an unputdownable psychological thriller that pulled me in and never let up until the last page.

Suzie is a young woman, living alone in a ground floor flat in Islington, North London. She's obviously going through a hard time, although, it's not clear why? However, she's in a bad way and is not happy with the issues she experiences with her various neighbours who rent the flat above. Then the latest tenant disappears.

What follows is Suzie working through her own issues whilst trying to establish what has happened to her neighbour - or, indeed, if anything has. We are also told the story from the perspective of the neighbour; another young woman called Emily who recently moved to London to start afresh, but, who appears to have a history of running away.

This is a gripping read, beautifully and heartbreakingly told and I definitely need a spell before I can move on from this fabulous 5* read.

Definitely a 'must read' from me and I'm really grateful to Sara Roberts at One More Chapter books / HarperCollins UK and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this cracker of a book.

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‘Neighbour thrillers’ featuring a lonely protagonist, often disengaged from mainstream society, who becomes obsessed with the person next door, is a rapidly growing thriller segment, with novels by Sabine Durrant, Louise Candlish, A.J. Finn and Paula Hawkins having set the bar high. Georgina Lees adds to this her own, very promising thriller. Her protagonist is Suzie, a young widow in London who is still grieving. She becomes first upset and then increasingly upset with her upstairs neighbour Emily, a vivacious but inconsiderate student. When Emily goes missing, however, only Suzie can reconstruct what happened and who can find Emily. After all, Suzie has heard, read and seen everything there is to know about Emily….
A fantastically constructed ‘slow release’ thriller with gradually building tension and insights into the many different facets loneliness can take. I am grateful to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC provided in return for this honest and unbiased review of this thriller that I recommend wholeheartedly.

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Thank you Net Galley for the ARC of The Girl Upstairs
by Georgina Lees
HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter
Yes!! what a fantastic read, I recommend this novel, Could not put this book down
Suzie owns the lower flat and has a neighbor upstairs, she can hear everything that Emily does, from cooking dinner to using the bathroom. Suzie can't handle the noise, but suddenly there isn't any noise after a big party that Emily had for her birthday. Suzie has had some events happen in her life that are slowly revealed as we read this novel. She then takes it upon herself to try and figure out where Emily has gone
This is a page turner with lots of twists and turns and an unexpected ending.

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Enjoyed this book thoroughly. The story came together well and the plot played brilliantly. A real page turner. The author has done well to portray the feelings of the characters and really make you feel what they do.

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The twists! The turns! Such a great story. I thought it was going to go one way but then it did a total 180 on me and I loved it. A must read for mystery lovers.

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The Girl Upstairs starts off with slow suspense and just builds up from there - I couldn't stop reading because I wanted to find out what happened!

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Emily has gone missing and nobody seems to be worried about it, except for her downstairs neighbour who has gotten to know Emily from afar, but nobody can be trusted, can Emily be saved?

This was a great read that kept me up at night as I wanted to know what had happened to Emily and why.

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Terrific story told in through the eyes of Suzie, builds slowly at the start then quickly pulls you into the mysterious disappearance of the once noisy neighbour in the flat above. Having argued with her neighbour before she disappeared, Suzie is initially curious, the worried that the girl hasn't returned. The Police and her family are doing enough to find the girl, and Suzie decides that she needs to find out what's happened. A great read full of tension.

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This is a story of a second chance.

Suzie lives downstairs from Emily.  Emily who is young, loud, popular and an inconsiderate neighbor. At least that is how she is perceived by Emily who is depressed, a bit of a hermit and resents everything about life.

Emily suddenly disappears for days and it seems that only Suzie, the complaining neighbor is concerned. That’s because when Suzie's husband walked out after an argument no-one went looking for him and was found dead from an accident. Suzie is convinced that had she gone looking they may have found him alive and rescued him. The fact that no-one is concerned about Emily’s disappearance now becomes her crusade in life.

It is a very sad book about a woman looking to redeem her ghosts by getting it right the second time.

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This book was really great and grabbed my interest right away. What I really liked was there weren't to many characters to keep track of. Something that is very different in thrillers lately. It starts out with our main character Suzie having to deal with her upstairs neighbour Emily. She doesn't mind Emily however the noise all of the time really gets on her nerves. It gets to a point where Suzie can tell exactly where Emily is walking and how many people she has over and it is really driving Suzie crazy. Not sure what to do Suzie makes a complaint to her super about the noise, and after a harsh interaction with Emily, Suzie is please when it seems that Emily has taken their advice and decided to keep the noise down, or has she? With Emily suddenly missing, Suzie becomes an active player in her whereabouts, as everyone is left questioning what really happened to Emily? This book was very different than a lot of thrillers that I've read lately but I couldn't get enough of it. I found the characters very easy to relate to and since there weren't to many of them it made it much easier to get lost in the story line. This is the kind of thriller that gets people taking, and I also believe that this one would make a great movie. I loved everything about this book. If you are a big thriller fan than this is one story that you won't want to miss out on, the only suggestion that I have is to clear your schedule though because you won't want to put this book down once you start. Great read I'm so glad I got the chance to read it, this is one that everyone will be talking about when it comes out and I'm glad I got to read it first.

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Suzie lives in a downstairs flat in London – depressed, lonely, and extremely frustrated with her noisy upstairs neighbor Emily. The floors are thin, and Suzie can hear EVERYTHING – Emily’s music, her phone conversations, even her bathroom habits. So when Emily’s flat suddenly goes quiet, Suzie knows there’s something wrong.

In Suzie’s opinion, no one seems to care enough about Emily’s disappearance – not her parents, not her coworkers, not even the police – so Suzie is determined to get to the bottom of things. At first, I couldn’t understand why Suzie would care so much about finding a neighbor she was so irritated by, but as the story evolves, Suzie’s motivations are revealed.

Georgina Lees’ debut novel is a cleverly written slow burn that packs an emotional punch. While obviously a psychological thriller, it’s also a story of redemption. Suzie is sympathetically portrayed and my heart ached for the trauma she had been through. The first half of the book is very atmospheric, while the second half picks up the pace with plenty of twists and red herrings.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. I thought it was a bit slow to begin with, it seemed to drag on with not much story, then it changed. Brilliant book well written, heartbreaking at times when suzie was remembering back. And then Emily’s POV was really good too. I felt so sorry for her after her story. It was an amazing ending I never even thought of Mike to be honest. I was thinking Darren. So I was stunned at the end. Brilliant storyline and the characters where amazing too. Definitely worth 5 stars.

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This book was a page turner from beginning to end. We have all had that neighbor that is just obnoxiously loud. But have we all asked them to stop and they just don’t? And then maybe we see something we shouldn’t see when we go over - like maybe their life is in danger? So we call the police to place a noise complaint. And that is the last time we see the neighbor. They have disappeared. What do you do? Highly recommend. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

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I am still at a loss for words. I have been chasing that Gone Girl high for so long when I read thrillers, and this one finally hit the mark. It completely nailed the isolation get agoraphobia of modern urban living. Now I am suspicious of everyone in my neighborhood because the book stuck with me that much!

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Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.

This is the story of 2 women Suzie and Emily each with a story to tell. This is a well written thriller with a twist. The sadness and devastation of each main character jumps off the page . Read this book you will not be disappointed . 5 stars

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A gripping thriller that had me hooked from the first page right up to the very end. Well worth a read.

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This review is hard to write because there were many things I didn’t think I would like. The premise sounded amazing - and it was. It was written in a really clever way, mainly from the POV of poor Suzie, widowed, odd and a bit of a nosy neighbour, I found it quite hard to empathise with her, or really get on board! She is obviously going through a trauma, so on I went reading it thinking how I wasn’t sure if I even liked the book, when BANG - I was sobbing! Feeling every bit of her pain! And then the noisy neighbour disappears! And suzie really just wants to find out what happened! By the end I had a girl crush on Suzie! Excellent, original and I can’t recommend it enough!

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This took me a couple of chapters to get into, but once I did I read the whole lot in one sitting. Both chilling and yet dad this book covers a gamet of emotions. A great story.

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Suzie is always a loner and you can't help but feel she is a bit of a recluse, surrounding herself with books in her London flat. She likes to hear the hustle and bustle outside but also doesn't like noise especially from Emily in the flat upstairs. Then she takes a,package in for Emily and goes upstairs to give it to her, the door is slightly open and so she goes in! Emily is missing and the something about the flat feels wrong. Where has she gone? Has something happened to her? Suzie wants to help find out, but just how far will she go to find the truth? And what has happened to her in the past?

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This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

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I really enjoyed this book! Well written but definitely a slow burn type of thriller! The main character started as a bit unlikeable but then you realize it's actually sad. She is very depressed and creepy. Recommend!

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Suzie lives in a downstairs flat in London, her new neighbour above her, Emily, is quite a noisy neighbour and after a complaint to Emily, to the landlord, Suzie makes a complaint to the council.
Then Emily disappears and with what happened before, Suzie takes it upon herself to find out what has happened to her.
This was a great book, learning why Suzie is like she is, why she doesn’t sleep in her bedroom and seems to have basically given up, but then her getting up and being determined to do what she couldn’t do in the past.
First, I thought she was one of ‘those’ neighbours, but there is so much more to her, and I loved reading the book and her layers peeling back and finding out more about her.
By the end of the book, I really liked Suzie, she was one determined lady.
There were a lot of twists although I did guess who the culprit was around halfway through the book. It was still a gripping read and I really enjoyed reading it.

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A very clever unusual read. A lonely nosy downstairs neighbour hears the woman in the flat above her and thinks she knows everything about her. and her life. But does she? and why is Susie so obsessed with Emily’s life? A claustrophobic read that has brilliant twists and turns

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I absolutely loved this book. Really reccomend you try it. The plot was really engaging and the characters were the same. I got very involved in the upcoming ending and it was not disappointing.

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