Joe is back

Do you remember your first time with Joe? I do. Vividly. I was having a week away on my own in a small seaside town in Suffolk. It was February. I’d picked up this book called You by Caroline Kepnes. I admit I didn't know anything about the book, and the author was new to me, but I liked the sound of the blurb on the back. On one particularly grey, cold afternoon, I decided to treat myself to a nice hot relaxing bubble bath. A real pamper session – just me and my new book. The bath was nice, and it was long, and it involved many top-ups of hot water just so I could stay in the warm suds to read another chapter and then one more. I stayed in that bath for over two hours turning page after page, until I realised other than the bathroom, the house was in darkness and I was at the very back of the building. Someone could have snuck in, and I wouldn’t have heard them. I was no longer in Joe’s head. He was in mine! Mid-chapter (yes seriously), I jumped out of the bath, threw on some clothes and switched on every light as well as checking every cupboard and under the bed.

Despite my increased heart rate and paranoia from the day before, we were back together again the next day until the book was done. 

Then he returned in book 2, Hidden Bodies, and we saw his antics in LA. I loved this book. It seemed to shine a light on the dark underbelly of the city and the people who are attracted to live there. It was another great read and Joe; well, if you’ve read the series, you’ll know. 

And now here we are with book 3 – You Love Me. At the end of this one, I was almost tempted to say, ‘Poor Joe,’ but surely, I can’t feel sorry for this man, but he is kind of likeable. In this book, we find Joe living in small-town America and in a place with virtually no crime and a zero murder rate. He very much hopes this will keep him on the straight and narrow. I don’t want to give too much away, but as usual, things don’t turn out quite how he expects. 

As with the other books, I enjoyed his obsessive personality and his search for love. It’s an intense read being in his company, hearing the words he speaks running in conjunction with what he’s really thinking. We’re definitely in Joe’s world and in Joe’s head, and thankfully there was no cross over this time. It’s not often in writing that we get to spend so much time inside someone’s head, but it’s well done and gives the reader real insight into what’s going on. There's also some wonderful observations of life seen through his perspective. In many ways, thank goodness, real life doesn't work this way, and we don’t get to read everyone’s thoughts. It’s much easier to take other people’s words at face value. 

If you like Joe and enjoy reading about his exploits, this book will be no exception. He’s back, and he’s trying really hard to do the right thing. I’ll let you decide if he achieves it.

This one is due to hit the shelves on 1st April. Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for enabling me an early trip to Joe's head.