About The Book
Book: The First Girl
Author: Claire McGown
Standalone or Series: Standalone
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication Date (UK): 18th February 2025
My Review
Thank you so much to Tandem for including me in their Thrills & Chills Book Club. There couldn’t be a more “me” club and everyone involved is so lovely.
For the next six months I’ll be channeling my inner Veronica Mars while we investigate the very best new thriller releases from Thomas & Mercer, an imprint of Amazon Publishing.
The first case we were assigned to work was The First Girl. This had me hooked, it was hard to put down and stick to the agreed readalong schedule. Indeed some detectives even put in some over time and read ahead as we couldn’t wait to find out what had happened! Discussing theories with the group made it even more fun, especially seeing which ones turned out to be right.
This is a fictionalised true crime novel that makes you think about the ethics of consuming real-life crime stories. Karen’s childhood friend and first love, Aaron, has spent the last decade in prison. He turned out to be the serial killer known as the Bagman – and Karen was the one who put him away. Now, another girl has gone missing, and the infamous but unpublished Bagman symbol has been found at the scene. This drives Karen to return home to South Yorkshire and confront her past. Real-life cases, infamous criminals, and the women linked to them are woven into the narrative, making Karen’s story feel all the more real.
I loved this. Such a strong start to our book club! Thank you again to Tandem for including me.
Note: I received a free copy and also related Book Club goodies in order to take part.
Beth Reads Crime 
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