Hidden Bodies
| Company type | Novel |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing |
| Founded | February 2016 |
| Founder | Caroline Kepnes |
| Products | Thriller novel |
Hidden Bodies is a thriller novel authored by Caroline Kepnes, released in February 2016. Serving as the follow-up to her 2014 work, You, this book was partially adapted into the second and third seasons of the Netflix series You.
Kepnes continued the series with the publication of You Love Me in 2021.
Synopsis
Following the murder of Guinevere Beck in You, Joe Goldberg relocates back to New York City, managing Mooney’s bookstore while maintaining a discreet profile. He begins a relationship with Amy Adam, an eccentric bibliophile who later steals from the store and escapes to Los Angeles. Feeling betrayed, Joe pursues her westward, driven by a desire for vengeance.
Once in L.A., Joe is disillusioned by the shallow celebrity lifestyle but remains fixated on Amy. He secures employment at a bookstore, assimilates into Hollywood social circles, and becomes enamored with Love Quinn, a wealthy and emotionally complex woman from an influential family.
While dating Love, Joe covertly searches for Amy. Upon locating her again, he is taken aback by her apathy and chooses to release her, redirecting his obsession entirely toward Love. Concurrently, Joe begins an affair with his landlord, Delilah Alves, an astute local journalist who grows wary of him. When Delilah uncovers incriminating evidence of Joe’s offenses, he murders her and conceals the crime.
Joe also encounters Henderson, a well-known comedian and predator. After Henderson makes a vulgar joke about Amy, Joe investigates further and exposes Henderson’s exploitation of underage girls. Convinced he is enacting justice, Joe kills Henderson by pushing him down a flight of stairs.
Love’s twin brother, Forty Quinn, is an unstable, drug-dependent aspiring screenwriter. Joe endures Forty’s behavior to remain close to Love. During a drug-fueled trip in the desert, Joe poisons Forty with LSD intending to kill him; although presumed dead, Forty survives and coerces Joe into ghostwriting his screenplay.
Forty ultimately dies in a car crash—a convenient resolution for Joe. Nevertheless, Joe’s past deeds catch up with him; after heightened investigation and errors on his part, he is apprehended and incarcerated by the story’s conclusion.
The narrative ends with Joe still obsessing over Love from prison, convinced she will rescue him and potentially bear his child—underscoring his ongoing delusions and narcissistic tendencies behind bars.
Reception
Anthony Breznican of Entertainment Weekly commended the novel as a keen satire of narcissistic culture, stating that Kepnes "hits the mark, cuts deep, and twists the knife".
TV adaptation
In February 2015, Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble announced plans to develop a television adaptation of the novel at Showtime. Two years later, Lifetime acquired the project and accelerated its production. You premiered on September 9, 2018. Prior to its debut, Lifetime renewed it for a second season on July 26, 2018; however, on December 3, 2018, Lifetime declined to continue with season two. Subsequently, Netflix picked up the series for its second season, which premiered on December 26, 2019, incorporating elements from Hidden Bodies.