Ruby, thirty-six years old, leaves Australia and a relationship that’s going nowhere, to start a new life in New York. At the same time, eighteen-year-old Alice arrives in New York, leaving her small home town in Wisconsin and a different kind of failing relationship. Although the two never meet, their lives become entwined after Ruby finds a dead body on the bank of the Hudson River.

“I want my name back.”

“Before You Knew My Name” by Jacqueline Bublitz

• Glanceabook: “Both of the main characters are given powerful voices which suit the book’s feminist perspective, and much of the writing is devoted to delving into their thoughts and feelings. If you’re looking for action, there’s not a lot of it in this book, but this does not diminish the suspense that builds to a wholly plausible ending. A gripping read.”
• Guardian: “The characters at times feel a bit over-engineered… But the plot doesn’t feel unbelievable. Bublitz invests us in the lives of these two women, which drives the narrative forward with all the suspense and tension we expect from crime fiction – but with complex characters and themes that linger for longer.”

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