The Girlfriend
Published on 11. September 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
464 pages
978-1-0350-9382-3 (ISBN)
Description
Now an Amazon Prime TV series starring Robin Wright, Olivia Cooke and Laurie Davidson.
She loves your son. She wants your life. How far would you go to protect him?
'I was blown away' Jilly Cooper, author of Rivals
* * *
A gripping and chilling debut psychological thriller, The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances is the story of a mother, a son, his girlfriend and an unforgivable lie.
Laura has it all: a successful career; a long marriage to a rich husband; and a twenty-three-year-old son, Daniel, who is kind, handsome and talented. Then Daniel meets Cherry. Cherry is young, beautiful and smart - but she hasn't led Laura's golden life. And now she wants it.
When tragedy strikes, a decision is made and a lie is told. A lie so terrible it will change their lives for ever . . .
* * *
'The mother-son psychological drama that'll have you racing to the end' Good Housekeeping
'Sharp, sinister and addictive' Sunday Mirror
'A wildly delicious psychological thriller' Red
She loves your son. She wants your life. How far would you go to protect him?
'I was blown away' Jilly Cooper, author of Rivals
* * *
A gripping and chilling debut psychological thriller, The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances is the story of a mother, a son, his girlfriend and an unforgivable lie.
Laura has it all: a successful career; a long marriage to a rich husband; and a twenty-three-year-old son, Daniel, who is kind, handsome and talented. Then Daniel meets Cherry. Cherry is young, beautiful and smart - but she hasn't led Laura's golden life. And now she wants it.
When tragedy strikes, a decision is made and a lie is told. A lie so terrible it will change their lives for ever . . .
* * *
'The mother-son psychological drama that'll have you racing to the end' Good Housekeeping
'Sharp, sinister and addictive' Sunday Mirror
'A wildly delicious psychological thriller' Red
Reviews / Votes
I was blown away. The Girlfriend is the most marvellous psychological thriller . . . I couldn't put it down and kept sneaking upstairs to read another few pages . . . Michelle Frances is a writer we're going to hear a great deal about. Please read this genuinely exciting novel -- <b>Jilly Cooper</b> The Girlfriend is a taut psychological thriller, the evil chillingly drawn. Every character is layered and beautifully twisted. Makes me consider running background checks on any potential spouses my children bring home! -- <b>Karen Rose</b> A juicy thriller and utterly compulsive reading -- <b>Jenny Blackhurst, author of <i>How I Lost You</i></b> An original and chilling portrayal of twisted relationships -- <b>Debbie Howells, author of <i>The Bones of You</i></b> Brilliantly twisty, a sharp, sinister and addictive read -- <b><i>Sunday Mirror</i></b> Reminiscent of Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl, BBC producer Frances' psychological thriller features a dangerous triangle . . . All will relish the tension and surprise delivered by each development as they try to identify the villain and discover the truth right up to the shocking conclusion . . . Frances' crime debut will please those who want to keep reading in the Flynn zone. * Booklist * Impressively compelling debut; the tension positively oozes from the pages . . . keeps the reader on a knife-edge throughout -- <b><i>The Press Association</i></b> A fab debut with two twisted women at its core -- <b><i>Prima</i></b> Tension oozes from the page -- <b><i>The i Paper</i></b> Book of the week -- <b><i>Bella</i></b> A fantastic psychological thriller . . . we couldn't put it down -- <b><i>Take a Break</i></b>More details
Edition
Media tie-in
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Pan Macmillan
Target group
Interest Age: From 18 years
Edition type
Media tie-in
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 29 mm
Weight
314 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-0350-9382-3 (9781035093823)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
04/2017
Pan Books
€14.49
Available for download
Person
Michelle Frances graduated from Bournemouth Film School in 1996 and then from the master's programme at the American Film Institute, Los Angeles, in 1998. Returning to London, she has worked for several years in film and TV as a script editor and producer for both the independent sector and the BBC. The Girlfriend is her first novel.