Emily, a woman with an anxiety disorder, witnesses a hit and run that kills a woman with a baby right in front of her. Her first thoughts are that it was meant to be herself or that her ex is somehow behind it. She finds out who the woman is and begins to stalk her Facebook profile, even attending her funeral.

She becomes obsessed with the life of Rose and without intending to actually take over her life, starts to fill some of the empty spaces Rose has left behind. The protagonist, Emily, is neurotic. I won't go into detail but it all unfolds as the story goes along. She does prove you don't have to like or identify with the protagonist to enjoy a good story.

A lot of hints are dropped early on that there's something off about the situation. Apart from Rose being killed of course. Working out what's going on under the surface is part of the interest factor. Mystery readers would definitely enjoy it. Questions include was Rose murdered? If so, who was behind it?

Uncovering the truth leads Emily to find that more than one person close to Rose is not as they seem. For the most part, I found the story well written and enjoyable. Emily's concerns and need to deal with her anxiety and past history is well represented, though it could have gone further in some situations that would make a person without a disorder get anxious.

I didn't like the end. I liked the way it was plotted, but a final twist was made a little too easy and the very end just didn't ring true. It was doing okay until the very last line, which really blew it for me.

Overall though, it was a good read and although I guessed the first part of the ending, I couldn't be sure until I got there.

This is a really good read. There are so many twists in the plot. I was kept on the edge of my seat guessing right up to the end. I did not warm to Emily. She was needy and insecure but I feel her character needed to be like that. This book tackles domestic violence really well. This book is definitely worth reading and I will be looking out for more books by this author.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

A gripping story with lots of twists so that I didn't know who to trust or who was the "baddie" . Highly recommended

This book touches on a lot if sensitive subjects. Spousal abuse, depression, suicide, and using alcohol and pills.
The title and story centers around a woman names Rose. Even though there is only a brief meeting of her as a "live" character. She still brings a lot to the story. Emily just wants to love and be loved. She seem to attract all the wrong type of men. Controlling, mean men. She must learn to find herself, love herself, forgive herself, and learn from the past and let it go.
This is a very interesting book. It's storyline is strong and keeps you guessing right up to the end.
I would definitely recommend.
5 Stars

I thought this book was very well written, authentic and intriguing. A very enjoyable read and good to read something set in Derry too!

I liked the premise of this novel as it sounded similar to Alys, Always which I thoroughly enjoyed. However I didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped. When Emily lets a stranger step out in front of her and that stranger is killed, Emily proceeds to take over her life. But it turns out Rose's life wasn't as perfect as it looked.

I guessed all the twists very early on in the novel and although I raced through it to see if I was correct, I found I didn't enjoy the reveals because I'd guessed them. At times the writing and pacing was a little repetitive and slow - which also didn't help. The plot is fairly linear though it's told through two narrators and I wanted to know a lot more about Emily and her background.

I know this is Claire Allan's first thriller and as I liked the idea, I'd be interested to see what she writes next in the genre.

Thank you to netgalley and Avon for this eARC.

Emily witnesses a fatal road accident where a young mother selflessly sacrifices her life for her young son. She does not want to be involved so does not stay at the site of the accident, but she cannot get the trauma of what she had seen out of her mind. She is at a serious crossroads in her life; lonely, recently out of work and living her life behind closed curtains after her last relationship ended disastrously. She becomes obsessed with the young mother’s sacrifice and with all the details reported about her life. What she learns about the young mother Rose paints a picture of the life she would love for herself. Rose was married to Cian, a fledgling author and their toddler son who was adorable. Their home was sumptuous and everyone loved Rose. She had myriads of friends and, as they outpoured their grief, Emily felt pangs of jealousy. She wanted a life like Rose’s. Then an idea flashed into her mind and it was then that her life changed beyond all belief.
Emily applies for Rose’s job. She reinvents herself and everyone is taken in by her ‘new self’. Rose’s work colleagues actually like her and gradually Emily learns more and more about Rose. The hit-and-run accident investigation turns up evidence that suggests that the accident could have been a murder and Emily strongly feels that she could have been the intended victim. But when Cian and his toddler son visit the dental surgery to register Jack for his first appointment, Emily is attracted to Cian and sets about befriending him. It works and Emily is beyond delighted. Soon she hopes to have Rose’s perfect life all for herself. She has the feeling that she had, for once in her life, been in the right place at exactly the right time when she was witness to a crime.
This novel romps along at a cracking pace. A second murder muddies the water for suspects of Rose’s demise and the police are aggressively pursuing several different lines of enquiry. Emily cannot turn the clock back as she unwittingly becomes more and more embroiled in the action, more involved than she ever could have imagined. The press are braying at her heals and soon Emily is in deep need of escape.
I really enjoyed this novel about obsession, jealousy, abuse, paranoia and secrecy. It was well written with some interesting characters. I felt sorry for Emily in the first instance but then I thought she became the victim of her own deception. In like the way some of the characters were played off against each other, causing further intrigue. I enjoyed the crime investigation with its various twists and turns and I was really surprised by the shock ending. This novel is a good, absorbing read. Thank you for my copy, received through my membership of NetGalley and from publisher Avon, all in return for an honest unbiased review.

Great story but I did not really like Emily. She is a lonely insecure person who wants love, security and acceptance. When I look back I think the only people that I liked was Rose and Jack. This is a story about domestic violence as well as love with a lot of jealousy and lies thrown into the mix. I would recommend the book and the author as the story was well written.

Emily is deeply unhappy with her life, and things seem to take a turn for the worse when an accident happens in front of her. Rose is killed, and Emily feels guilty that she had allowed Rose to go in front of her.
Emily becomes obsessed with what she sees as Rose's perfect life and formulates a plan.
I really liked the idea, but found the pace uneven. In parts it is slow, with many distracting sidetracks. I did keep reading to find what happened next, but feel it would have benefitted greatly from tighter editing.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC

This book was a very fun read, full of twists and turns and a story that was both creepy and complex. I was completely hooked on the main character and her journey throughout the story. I loved all the plot twists!

Emily let’s someone walk out of a lift in front of her, a car kills a mother killing her straight away and Emily finds that she is unable to move on.

The mother Rose leaves a job opening, just as Emily loses hers so she finds herself stepping into Roses shoes and then she meets Cian, Roses husband who is missing his wife and she realises that she could have everything she has ever dreamed of. But then she finds out that Roses life wasn’t so perfect after all.

I really enjoyed this book. It was told in chapters of both Emily and Rose which was very easy to follow. The storyline was good and kept me turning the pages until I found out what had happened.

I found I just couldn't put this book down! A great debut novel.

How I loved this twisty tale. Emily, who has taken quite a few knocks in life especially where her love life is concerned witnesses a mother getting run over in a hit-and-run. She becomes obsessed with Rose, stalking her Facebook page and lusting after her life with a loving (but grieving husband) and baby boy. She applies for Rose's job at the dental surgery and is given it. Everyone deserves second chances...don't they... But Emily is about to find out Rose's life wasn't all it was made out to be.....

Dramatic and complex this book was fabulous.
Something as simple as a misunderstood message on a laptop begins this book, and the events that follow create a nightmare...
Simple gestures can have dramatic results, some horrific......
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, easy to follow the characters, and I didn't expect the story to unfold the way it did....brilliant

Her name Was Rose is a very atmospheric, compelling thriller by an author I did not know before. The story really grabbed my attention, and though sometimes it was a little slow, I definitely enjoyed the book. Recommended!

I knida enjoyed this book. The twists were unknown, so were a surprise. I did feel as though it went on for a long time...The ease with which Emma got embroiled in Rose's life was astonishing. Left lots of questions in my mind, how why when and where...type of thing. Then to finish off, another mega twist.

A compelling, dark psychological thriller. Unexpected twists and turns throughout and a strong female lead who you initially expect to be flaky but surprises you by the end..

Lots of twists and turns, nothing is quite as it seems. A really good psychological thriller.....a page turner. You just think you know what's going to happen next when another element is brought into play. I couldn't put it down. The characters are well drawn and comp!ex with their own demons. An excellent read!

Really enjoyed this book and finished it in a day. The story is seen through Emily's perception but also Roses story evolves to show that not everything is as it seems. Emily wanted Roses life as she thought it would make it happy. Looking back on her Facebook Emily thought Rose had the perfect happy life but as we learn a status can hide many truths

I thought I would enjoy this book but it did not live up to its promotion material. I liked the premise of someone stepping into the life of another woman who had been tragically killed and discovering the truth about her predecessor but I could not warm to Emily who was selfish and self-centred and just weird and too stupid to believe at times! The plot was all over the place with Ben Cullen and Emily's past mysteriously fading away and then quite predicable with the revelations about Cian. Minor characters hopped in and out to aid the story - Maud, brother, parents - but they actually dragged me, as a reader, away from the man in events. The twist I didn't expect didn't just ring true. Who does that?! It's a well written novel but it was too far-fetched for me.

I enjoyed this but wasn’t exactly gripped by it. I found the main character Rose a bit naive and annoying at times throughout the book. I also thought it was a bit long winded and went on a bit. I figured out the twist so no big surprises.