The Woman Before Me

Hall. It can’t be easy getting time off from a children’s ward. I imagine it is a heartrending

I rode the roller coaster of her moods.

“I put it to you that the proper verdict is that Rose Wilks is not guilty of murder. She is not guilty of manslaughter.”

Sometimes, things are not as they seem. And sometimes our closest friends can be the enemy.

have waited nine months for the trial. The time a baby takes, though all that grows inside me is fear.

haven’t slept for two night

encrusted on the cutlery.

want to capture the memory of it.

Ruth Dugdall worked as a probation officer for almost a decade; two of those years were in maximum security prisons in Suffolk, including work with children who have been convicted of murder. Ruth’s writing is heavily influenced by her professional background, providing authenticity and credibility to the crime genre.
The Woman Before Me was Ruth’s debut novel and won the CWA Debut Dagger Award and the 2009 Luke Bitmead Bursary. Her other novels include The Sacrificial Man (2011), The James Version (2012), Humber Boy B (2015), Nowhere Girl (2015) and My Sister and Other Liars (2017).
She currently lives in California.

There’s a large picture on the wall, a print of the Eiffel Tower, a place she visited on her first honeymoon. On the work surface are unwashed plates, remains of their last meal encrusted on the cutlery. I thought she was