The Woman Before Me

This book was riveting! It will draw you and hold tight until the end. Reminiscent of Gillian Flynn. This a masterful story of suspense. The build up is incredible and will leave you stunned!

Wow! A real page turner and best reviewed without revealing any plot details, as uncovering the story is gripping and I couldnt wait to find out what happened next. looking forward to reading more from this author.

Awesome........a haunting, well written novel. The story captures you with the first paragraph, the ending leaves you with mixed emotions. Any woman can find parts of herself in the three main characters Rose, Emma and Claire. All sides written with the reality of everyday life in different relationships, the things some take for granted and being the outsider looking in. What would you do to keep some one and hurt them at the same time..............what would you do to fill an emptiness in your life...what would you do with someones fate in your hand? A must read.

It is quite a feat to take a handful of unlikable characters and morph them into a story that is actually enjoyable. Ruth Dugdall has written a creepy stalker kind of mystery that showcases a woman who is up for parole after being convicted of killing a baby. The descriptions of the prison system will make you cringe as will every character. An early effort from Dugdall, who has written other books that I haven't had the pleasure of reading, her passion is evident.

Provided by the publisher

This is a reissue of a book which was the winner of the Crime Writers Association Debut Dagger, as well as winning the 2009 Luke Bitmead Bursary, being shortlisted and longlisted for other awards and appearing on prestigious book lists. With such good credentials, I feel surprised that I had not previously read it, but the joy of new editions is that you can find authors you may have missed and novels you may like. I am pleased to add both this book and Ruth Dugdall to my list of books and authors that I most certainly do like and I am glad that I discovered both. Ruth Dugdall worked as a Probation Officer for almost a decade and her knowledge with the world she writes about is evident in this intelligent and fast paced thriller.

Rose Wilks is in prison for the manslaughter of a baby, Luke Hatcher, son of her friend Emma. Both women gave birth at the same time – but Rose’s baby son died, while Luke lived. A chance encounter after the women leave hospital, leads to Rose infiltrating Emma’s life and quickly becoming indispensible as a babysitter and confidante. Now Rose is up for parole and Cate Austin, new Probation Officer at the prison, has to decide whether or not to recommend her for release. Cate is a woman with problems of her own. Her husband has left her for another woman and she is a single mother to daughter, Amelia, working in a male dominated profession in what is, effectively, a demotion. She has to put aside her own maternal feelings about a child killer and look at the case dispassionately. This is not as easy as it sounds in a book which abounds with obsessive love – both romantic and maternal – and looks at the guilt women often feel about their role as a mother.

Gradually, as the novel unfolds, we learn of the life story of Rose; her troubled past and rather manipulative and secretive manner. She is an unreliable narrator and this book has many plot twists and surprises before we reach the truth of what happened on the night that led to the death of baby Luke. This is a really good read, told from the viewpoints of Rose, Cate and also Emma. The author manages to make all the characters sympathetic, so you are really involved in what happened and the build up of events. If you like intelligent and well written thrillers, with realistic and interesting female characters (I may be wrong, but I suspect this book will appeal more to women than men) then you will enjoy this. I will certainly search out the authors backlist and look forward to future books.

I received a copy of this book, from the publisher, for review.

Fans of INTO THE DARKEST CORNER and GONE GIRL will like this psychological thriller. For me it made a great vacation read- I didn't put it down until I reached the end.

Wow. A seriously impressive novel from an author I will now be paying close attention to. Ruth Dugdall is clearly interested in psychology and seems to have a great understanding of it. She explores some huge issues such as how much our past shapes our future and how we cope with loss.

Her ability to write a character like Rose and yet retain the reader's sympathy speaks to her skill as a writer. I was left feeling slightly bereft at the end of this book - always a good sign. And I still wonder now, what would I have done in Rose's shoes?