{"product_id":"you-first-a-joe-goldberg-prequel-you","title":"You First: A Joe Goldberg Prequel (You)","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eCaroline Kepnes \u003c\/b\u003eis the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of the \n\u003ci\u003eYou \u003c\/i\u003eseries, which was adapted into the blockbuster Netflix hit show. \n\u003ci\u003eYou First: a Joe Goldberg Prequel \u003c\/i\u003eis her fifth book in the series. She is also the author of \n\u003ci\u003eProvidence.\u003c\/i\u003e Caroline's work has been translated into many languages. She graduated from Brown University and then worked as a pop culture journalist for \n\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e and a TV writer for \n\u003ci\u003eThe Secret Life of the American Teenager.\u003c\/i\u003e She is also the author of dozens of short stories. Most recently, \"The Bad Friend\" was selected for \n\u003ci\u003eBest American Mystery and Suspense \u003c\/i\u003eand \"Room 24\" was nominated for a 2025 Shirley Jackson Award. Caroline grew up in Cape Cod, and now lives in Los Angeles.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReading Line\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNew York Times bestselling author of the hit YOU series, now on Netflix\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\" \n\u003ci\u003eYou \u003c\/i\u003ehas always mirrored the culture. The first book was published the same year as \n\u003ci\u003eSerial\u003c\/i\u003e debuted, kicking off our burgeoning obsession with true crime and our tendency to romanticize the male perpetrators while often homogenizing their overwhelmingly female victims into cautionary tales. . . . In a way, the \n\u003ci\u003eYou \u003c\/i\u003eseries has been about the male loneliness epidemic before it had a name.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eTIME\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The most distinctive voice in thrillers is back with a master class in tone and tension. A deliciously dark treat--Caroline Kepnes is in a league of her own.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Lucy Foley, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Midnight Feast\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Joe Goldberg at his most raw and vulnerable before love curdled into violence . . . Caroline Kepnes delivers a dark, disturbing, and utterly compelling origin story that feels chillingly authentic, with writing so sharp and character work so precise it makes every turn feel inevitable.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Liv Constantine, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Last Mrs. Parrish\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A Y2K setting, adolescent anxiety, laugh-out-loud details, and a drum-tight, propulsive plot: This book is everything you ever wanted in a \n\u003ci\u003eYou\u003c\/i\u003e novel and then some. Buckle up, because Teen Joe's mind is a dark, dark place--and I loved every second of my visit.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Andrea Bartz, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Last Ferry Out\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"At last, we have the answers to who Joe is. . . . Caroline Kepnes has created an unnerving, astounding psychological portrait, a book you can't close until the last page is turned. Deep, dark, twisted and beautifully written.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Catriona Ward, \u003ci\u003eUSA Today \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eNowhere Burning\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Psycho\u003c\/i\u003e meets \n\u003ci\u003eYou've Got Mail \u003c\/i\u003ein this scathing, brilliantly written antihero origin story that asks, When it comes to love, are we all monsters?\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Sarah Langan, author of \u003ci\u003eGood Neighbors\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Unsettling, intimate, and oddly hot, darkly seductive and impossible to put down, \n\u003ci\u003eYou First\u003c\/i\u003e creeps under your skin.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Lukas Gage, author of \u003ci\u003eI Wrote This for Attention\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Kepnes has fun dropping Easter eggs into the narrative and getting creative about the precise details of Joe's burgeoning criminality. The result is a wicked treat for series fans and newcomers alike.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"In this revealing prequel, fans of Kepnes' \n\u003ci\u003eYou \u003c\/i\u003eseries will revel again in Joe Goldberg's incisive wit and love-crossed menace. . . . Joe's all-caps commentary offers laugh-out-loud humor, and his increasingly unhinged narrative turns pages.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"An excellent addition to an already legendary series, this one is sure to please longtime readers and those looking for an easy entry point to the character's exploits.\" \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e--CrimeReads\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\"The most distinctive voice in thrillers is back.\"--Lucy Foley, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Guest List\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Midnight Feast\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eHow did Joe Goldberg become Joe Goldberg? What led to his first love . . . first obsession . . . first kill? Find out in the highly anticipated prequel to \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author Caroline Kepnes's hit You series, which inspired the blockbuster Netflix show.\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJoe Goldberg is ready for his life to start. He's seventeen years old, working in Mr. Mooney's bookshop, falling in love with every girl on the subway all while wondering who will be \n\u003ci\u003ethe one\u003c\/i\u003e. He knows what he needs: A woman who will force him to get his GED, go to night school, and make something of himself. But who would ever fall in love with him? \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThen he spots it: MISSED CONNECTION, NYC Bookstore Babe. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSomeone is looking for \n\u003ci\u003eJoe\u003c\/i\u003e. And that someone is Vail Gunderson, a production assistant with a passion for rom-coms. The only catch: she's twenty-four, which means that Joe has no choice but to lie about his age...and, naturally, nearly everything else in his life. Joe thinks he's found true love, but when Vail needs more convincing that Joe is her happily ever after, he's determined to convince her...no matter \n\u003ci\u003ewhat \u003c\/i\u003eit takes... \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWith her incisive and darkly comedic prose, Caroline Kepnes captures Joe poised on the edge of manhood, entering the vicious, dog-eat-dog New York dating scene for the very first time, and buffeted by forces that will determine what kind of man he will become--and how he will write his own twisted love story.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 03\/30\/2026 (EAN 9780399591464, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eBooklist\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/01\/2026 (EAN 9780399591464, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 06\/01\/2026 (EAN 9780399591464, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Random House","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496242970902,"sku":"9780399591464","price":36.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9780399591464.jpg?v=1783058017","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/you-first-a-joe-goldberg-prequel-you","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}