Before You Knew My Name
A Novel
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4.2 • 67 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Winner of Crime Debut and Readers’ Choice Awards—Sisters in Crime
Editors’ Choice/Staff Pick by The New York Times Book Review
“A brave and timely novel.” —Clare Mackintosh, internationally bestselling author of Hostage
This is not just another novel about a dead girl. Two women—one alive, one dead—are brought together in the dark underbelly of New York City to solve a tragic murder.
When she arrived in New York on her eighteenth birthday carrying nothing but $600 cash and a stolen camera, Alice Lee was looking for a fresh start. Now, just one month later, she is the city’s latest Jane Doe. She may be dead but that doesn’t mean her story is over.
Meanwhile, Ruby Jones is also trying to reinvent herself. After travelling halfway around the world, she’s lonelier than ever in the Big Apple. Until she stumbles upon a woman’s body by the Hudson River, and suddenly finds herself unbreakably tied to the unknown dead woman.
Alice is sure Ruby is the key to solving the mystery of her short life and tragic death. Ruby just wants to forget what she saw…but she can’t seem to stop thinking about the young woman she found. If she keeps looking, can she give this unidentified Jane Doe the ending and closure she deserves?
A “heartbreaking, beautiful, and hugely important novel” (Rosie Walsh, New York Times bestselling author), Before You Knew My Name doesn’t just wonder whodunnit—it also asks who was she? And what did she leave behind?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bublitz's powerful, heartrending debut follows two jilted women who move to Manhattan. Alice Lee leaves small-town Wisconsin on her 18th birthday after her former teacher ends their affair. Ruby Jones, 36, departs Melbourne, Australia, when she realizes the coworker she's been sleeping with still intends to marry his fiancée. Though Alice and Ruby arrive in New York almost simultaneously and rent places mere streets from each other, their paths don't cross until a month later, when someone rapes and murders Alice in Riverside Park, and Ruby finds the corpse. Alice had no wallet and nobody reports her missing, so she becomes a Jane Doe. Her spirit lingers, however, nudging Ruby to investigate the true identity of "Riverside Jane" while living her own life more fully. Alice narrates from beyond the grave, intercutting her and Ruby's stories to maximize tension, resonance, and drive. Using keenly rendered characters and poignant prose, Bublitz crafts a richly textured, deeply feminist murder mystery that spotlights the victim rather than her killer. Readers will eagerly await Bublitz's next.
Customer Reviews
Touching story
Lovely story. Recommend
Loved it!
This is one of the best books I ever read, and I read a lot.
So many emotions!
“Before You Knew My Name” was not at all what I expected upon reading the synopsis. A mystery turned thriller turned feel-good story; I felt so many emotions throughout the time I was reading - tearing up during the final pages.
A tale of two women whose paths cross in New York City as they both flee a man who has broken their heart. The only catch - one of them is dead.
I absolutely loved how Bublitz interweaved Ruby’s and Alice’s voice into one, in a way that you were still able to determine who was speaking. This book provokes so many questions & a lot of deep thinking. An enjoyable choice on a cold night!