Product Description

A kind and well-loved woman was brutally and inexplicably murdered—the pregnant wife of a respected police inspector—and her death has left Scotland Yard shocked and searching for answers. Perhaps most horrifying of all, the trigger of the weapon that killed her was apparently pulled by a stranger . . . a twelve-year-old boy.

The anatomy of a murder, the story of a family in crisis, What Came Before He Shot Her is a powerful, emotional novel full of deep psychological insights, a novel that only the incomparable Elizabeth George could write.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #47345 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-01
• Released on: 2007-08-28
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 736 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780060545635
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"George is in top form here." (Washington Post Book World )

About the Author

Elizabeth George is the New York Times bestselling author of fourteen novels of psychological suspense, one book of nonfiction, and two short-story collections. Her work has been honored with the Anthony and Agatha awards, the Grand Prix de LittÉrature PoliciÈre, and the MIMI, Germany's prestigious prize for suspense fiction. She lives in Washington State.

Customer Reviews

Ambitious but flawed
This is a definite departure from the Lynley series and is quite absorbing for the first several hundred pages. But I started to skim sections at around page 300 as situations and dialogue got repititious and the central action of the book was delayed beyond reason. It's admirable that George focused on a little-known aspect of British life, but some of the characters started bothering me--did all the black women have to have insatiable libidos? All the black men have to be either sociopathic or narcissistic? And the piling-on of misfortune was almost insulting to the characters: With such a litany of woe, one would expect a Columbine at the end, not a single murder. George is no Doestoevsky when it comes to exploring the criminal mind.
No, what was more interesting to me was why GEORGE chose to commit the murder in question. After lovingly crafting an interesting character over a series of books, she brutally kills her off for no real reason. Now George is forcing her readers to suffer through volumes of doleful mourning from a character who was never a barrel of laughs to begin with.
What's your excuse, Elizabeth?

Engrossing and tragic
I'm writing this as a rebuttal to some of the reviews here. Much has been said about how bad and depressing this book is. I feel that these reviewers went into reading this book with the wrong expectations. This book is a description of a modern tragedy. It is very clear from the title and the back cover that this is the backstory of Helen Lynley's murder, that there is no happy ending to be found here. And how can the lead-up to a murder be anything other than depressing?

But the writing is brilliant. Time and again I found myself pulled along with the characters, wanting them to make better choices, even though I knew the ending in advance. If you're looking for a fun way to pass the time, this is not the book for you. But if you're looking for a book to make you think and feel and maybe cry a little; a book you experience, rather than just read; pick up What Came Before He Shot Her.

Waste of time
What a complete waste of time! I took this book with me on a recent trip and read it only for lack of something better to do on the long flight. The idea of providing a different perspective to Helen's murder was fine, but 100 or so pages would have done nicely. Blathering on for over 700 pages was so unnecessary and tedious. Just downright maddening! I kept waiting for the real story to start but instead was assaulted by page after page of repetitive drivel. Do yourself a favor and skip this one....I'm not even sure I'll try the next one after this colassal let-down.