The Woman in the Window, by A.J. Finn

The Woman in the Window is a thrilling slice of contemporary noir peppered with more than a twist of Hitchockian suspense and deftly handled misdirection, with twists that you won’t see coming.

What did she see?

A chronic agoraphobic, Anna Jones hasn’t left her home in ten months. Spending her days and nights cocooned within the safety of her house, Anna retreats into the safety of the black and white films she binge-watches in the company of her cat and one-too-many bottles of wine. A former child psychologist, she used to have a busy life, a husband, a daughter. Now her husband has left her, taking their daughter with him, and Anna is left haunting the rooms of their house like a ghost, lost in her memories, too terrified to step outside.

Her one constant lifeline to the real world is her window, where she sits day after day, watching her neighbours. When the Russells move in, Anna is instantly drawn to them. A picture-perfect family of three, they are an echo of the life that was once hers.

But one evening, a frenzied scream rips across the silence, and Anna witnesses something no one was supposed to see. Now she must do everything she can to uncover the truth about what really happened. But friendless, isolated and under suspicion from those she wishes to help, will anyone believe her? And can she even trust herself?

Effortlessly combining contemporary debates about power, love, depression and the isolation of urban living with the electrifying tension of films such as Rear Window, Gaslight and Vertigo, The Woman in the Window was one of 2018’s most exciting and unmissable debuts.