The First Girl

By: Claire McGowan

Narrated by: Esther Wane

"Delivers with both style and substance. . . Claire McGowan is one of my favourite authors and this is a truly first-class read."—Louise Candlish

She believed her serial-killer ex was innocent, but now history is repeating itself. What does she really remember?

Writer Karen Walker knows more than most about murderers. Her first love went on to become The Bagman, a notorious serial killer now locked away for life in a maximum-security prison.

Karen has spent her life running from the weight of having loved him, defended him and, ultimately, leading the police to his door. But now, ten years later, just as she’s about to publish her account of his crimes, a young woman is abducted in horribly familiar circumstances.

It can’t be The Bagman…can it? He’s safely behind bars, thanks to her. But she has to know for sure.

Returning to the hometown she thought she’d left for good, Karen is drawn into a deadly game of cat and mouse with the man she’s never escaped. If there’s any chance of saving the kidnapped girl, she’ll have to face up to what really happened back then, once and for all…

©2025 by Claire McGowan. (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“The only thing scarier than your boyfriend being a convicted serial killer is the news that he might not be…The First Girl has a brilliant premise that delivers with both style and substance. Claire McGowan is one of my favourite authors and this is a truly first-class read.”—Louise Candlish

Predicable

Kind of entertaining but full of Unnecessary red herrings, unsatisfying ending, and puzzle that ended up being shockingly shallow

Promising story, but dull execution and disappointing ending

While the storyline had potential and was intriguing at times, the execution left much to be desired. The narrators delivery was dull and lacking in energy, which made it difficult to fully immerse in the narrative. Despite the interesting plot points, the pacing felt sluggish, and many moments dragged on longer than necessary. The ending, unfortunately, felt like a letdown, failing to deliver the satisfying conclusion that the story deserved. Overall, while the premises had promised, the lack of engaging narration And a disappointing ending made the book feel underwhelming.

Not a bad story.

It had some predictable story points, but was a good enough story. Narrator was ok. I don’t love when they read with anxious, shaky voices the whole book just because it’s a murder mystery/thriller, so that got a bit old.

Just ok

It was a predictable ending to a main character’s story that was self-cantered and didn’t really evolve.

too slow

hated the British accent had to delete from account just me also thought plot drug on and on