Since Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn proved such a big hit with readers and cinema-goers there’s been a whole slew of domestic noir thrillers – think chick-lit with a dark side, a twist and usually a grisly murder or two.

Some have stretched credulity too far, others have had a big reveal you could spot before the end of chapter one. But among the tsunami of psychological thriller/romances have been some gems.

One was I Let Go by Clare Mackintosh, founder of the Chipping Norton Literary Festival, and now another Oxfordshire author has come up with a goodie. The Girl Before by JP Delaney – the pen name of Beckley writer Tony Strong – offers a fascinating premise.

An architect has built a stark but beautiful home in London which he lets at a very reasonable rent.

However, prospective tenants must go through a strict vetting procedure and agree to a set of exacting rules.

The story follows, and is split between, present tenant Jane and Emma, who lived there previously: the catchline to the title being “Everything that’s yours was once hers”.

As well as being a gripping read, it throws up some thought-provoking questions: What possession couldn’t you live without? being the first thing asked by the house’s enigmatic creator.

It builds tension nicely as Jane finds herself wondering just what happened to Emma at One Folgate Street.

A film version is being made by Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard making it the third Girl book adaptation to hit the big screen after the excellent Gone Girl and the less impressive (in celluloid, the book was better) The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins. Delaney says he’d decided on the title long before those books were published but the novel does fit in well with them as a clever thriller that’s a real page-turner.

The Girl Before by JP Delaney, Quercus, hardback £12.99, paperback £7.99, kindle £1.99

See Oxfordshire Limited Edition for an interview with Tony Strong.