I really wanted to love this book. The beginning flowed pretty well but towards the middle and the end it seemed to get muddled and I couldn't remember some of the flashbacks.

***I received a comped copy of this book for my review***

The premise of this book was excellent! It was jam packed full of excitement. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what was going to happen.

Unfortunately, I could not finish the book.
I struggled with the storyline, the writing and the characters.
Not for me, sorry!

To be honest I struggled to get into this book. I tried to start it several times and it just didn’t grab me. I can’t pin point exactly why and thusly I struggle to write an honest review. The story line was good, well thought out. The characters were acceptably developed. There was reasonable suspense. I did find the view point changes to be choppy and abrupt throughout and the story was a bit dragged out. For me this just didn’t pack a punch it felt a little bland and mediocre

A thriller that you cant stop reading . Good twist that held my interest in the book . It kept me wanting to know more. It did drag out in places but in saying that I still really enjoyed reading it.

A very enjoyable thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. The characters were intriguing, the setting and story was great and I liked the style of writing. A good twist at the end that you don’t see coming. The first book I have read by this author and I’ll certainly be looking out for more in the future. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading suspense thriller
Thank you netgalley and publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

Whilst exploring the grounds surrounding her new cottage Ellie is approached by friendly neighbour ‘Jake’ who she impulsively invites for tea. He accepts and shortly after meets Neil - Ellie’s husband and their 2 children.
Unbeknown to Ellie, her and Jake have previously met, but his surgically altered face prevents any recognition, all of which is fitting perfectly into his plan.
Just as Ellie finds a text on Neil’s phone learning he has betrayed her, Jake makes his move, kidnapping them both. Jake then informs Ellie that she is to partake in a game whereby she has to guess his real name. 3 failed attempts and he murders Neil.
Will Ellie and Neil survive? Are there more twists to come regarding Neil’s levels of deception? You’ll have to grab a copy to find out

Was a great thriller. Very enjoyable. Id definitely recommend to my fellow thriller reading friends.

A very enjoyable thriller. A very enjoyable thriller. A very enjoyable thriller. A very enjoyable thriller. A very enjoyable thriller.

Whew chile! This was a fast paced, wildly entertaining, page turner that gave me heart palpitations and kept me up all night wondering what the hell is going on, what the hell is going to happen and who the hell is he? Ah, heavily suspenseful. I love, I love! This was definitely a “just one more chapter, ok one more, my last one” type of read.

Ellie and her husband Jake have ditched the kids at camp for two weeks and are excited to have some alone time at their new cabin in the woods. They meet the creepy new neighbor who ends up taking them hostage, threatening to cut off Jakes limbs, and kill him, unless Ellie can tell him his name. We travel back in Ellies memories of different men she’d encountered in the past to see if she can remember this sick fu<€.

Could it be the acne face next door neighborhood from childhood? Her sister’s abusive ex boyfriend? Her former handsy boss? She only gets 3 guesses. She’d better think quick, and answer right, before Jake has to die.

I loved that the story got wilder as it went on, just when you think the gig is up, boom! New twists. I also really enjoyed each character’s backstories. Though there were some unrealistic things throughout (george clooney look-alike) and grammatical/formatting errors, this is one book I could not put down.

At first glance, Ellie and Neil have an idyllic life. They've finally saved enough to buy their cottage in the woods, their kids are off to camp, and Ellie is ready to reinvest in her marriage. Her husband seems interested and loving.

And then Ellie meets the neighbor.

Despite all the horrors that befall them, by the end of the book, I don't think I liked any of the characters, though I felt sorry for all of them. I think the discomfort many felt from this book was the visceral way Ruddy was able to describe the emotions and actions of her characters. Her tone and descriptions depicted the bleakness of the kidnapper's upbringing and were necessary to show why he became the man he was. I did guess Neil's secret early on because of the foreshadowing - again another backstory that was necessary to the plot. The only thing I had trouble with in the book was with transitions (or lack of) within chapters - where the author went directly from talking about Ellie, to what was happening with Flora (the detective) and the investigation into Ellie's kidnapping.

It's definitely worth hanging in there as the author truly finds her pace as the book progresses.

Thanks to Dundurn Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader's copy for review.

This was a pretty good book, overall, but I feel it absolutely could have been shortened. There was just so much writing devoted to backstories and such and it seemed to drag at times. Otherwise, it was an enjoyable book. I would recommend it, but to a select group of people. 3.5 rounded up to 4.

I absolutely cannot rave enough about Tell Me My Name! This is a 5 star for sure. I was hooked from the first page and could not get enough. Just when you think the story has reached its peak, it drags you back in.

The book opens to a terrifying scene. A woman tied to a bed, a man looming over her claiming to know her. Her husband bound to a chair on the floor. All he wants is one simple thing. For her to tell him his name. The consequences if she doesn’t? Her husband starts losing body parts. But how can you say the name of someone you don’t remember let alone recognize?

The book follows Ellie and her husband Neil, as well as Ellies captive, Clive. It flashes back to their earlier lives, giving insight on how they ended up where they are today. It really added depth and understanding to the plot and allowed an ease of relate ableness to the characters.

The characters actions are what you would expect from someone in their predicaments, with the exception being the captor himself. You want to feel sorry for him, to an extent, but want to hate him also. He flashbacks to his childhood, and you can tell by the way he was raised, why his mental health is where it is. It doesn’t explain everything, such as his obsession with Ellie.

The husband, Neil, made calls that made me shake my head and said why? What were you thinking? Ellie remained strong and brave and never quite fighting. I do think that the detective and the police presence could have been stronger, especially given the nature of the crime and the situation. They were more of an after thought it seemed, as if they need to be there, but they weren’t quite up to par.

As you near the ending, secrets start coming out. Things start getting tied together. I won’t spill any spoilers, but I was pleasantly surprised, as I am usually pretty good at guessing the twists. I highly recommend Tell Me My Name and look forward to reading more from Erin Ruddy.

I want to thank the author, Erin Ruddy, the publisher Dundurn Press, and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

Tell Me My Name by Erin Ruddy- This one, if done right, would make one heck of an intense movie! Ruddy knocked it out of the ballpark with this thriller. Twists and turns paired with scarring psychosocial mind-blowing events, kept me on the edge of my seat.
Elli and Neil have had some rough patches in their marriage, but overall it’s been a good ten years. They have two beautiful children and just bought the cottage of their dreams. Then they meet their neighbor, a George Clooney looking gentleman who is way nicer and younger than their realtor described him as. Warning bells should have gone off.
Elli is kidnapped by an obsessed, psychotic killer who likes to play dangerous games. His first game is simple, “Tell Me My Name”, but the consequences for wrong answers are deadly. Neil will do anything to get his wife back, but first, he has to find her. #netgalley #TellMeMyName Publish date: June 30, 2020

The premise is great but not executed perfectly so this is a 3.5 review which easily could be rounded up to four with a little rewriting which I hope happens as I was reading a pre-publication Netgalley arc. My first novel by this author and I see so much potential for her next outing - without too many characters and unnecessary internal dialogue. This is a good domestic noir, with a woman desperately searching her memories in order to save her life.

After ten years of marriage, Ellie and Neil have bought the new lake side cabin home of their dreams and are looking forward to reigniting their relationship while their children are away at camp.

After only two days into their newest chapter, a series of events leads to Ellie waking up tied to a bed with her husband strapped to a chair in their neighbors house. Her captor tells her that she is his soulmate, and that she will have three chances to tell her his name, or else her husband will die.

What follows was a promising start to this new thriller as Ellie must delve into her past to try to place this man who has admittedly changed his own face, causing him to be unrecognizable to her.

Unfortunately, this whole story kind of went off the rails for me after shortly after. The whole riddle of who her captor is is solved fairly quickly, and thus leads to her kidnapping and ultimately the most imcompetent police proceedings imaginable.

Try as I might I could not find any of the characters likable or relatable. I found myself internally screaming at the investigator’s seemingly bumbling attempt at finding Ellie, and also wanting to punch Neil for all of his unnecessary interference. On top of that, the antagonist’s over the top Fruedian issues made me overly uncomfortable, and not in a good way. Overall, the twists and turns throughout the story did not engage me, and I found the whole “husband’s dark secret” twist to be unnecessary filler overall.

I wish I could have enjoyed this more, and I know my opinion is not shared by all, so hopefully this will be an enjoyable read for others.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Dundurn Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! Although there were times when I felt the writing got too busy with details and backstories that weren’t necessarily important, the book still had me on the edge of my seat.

If you’re a fan of psychological thrillers that are a mind trip, then definitely check this out. I look forward to more from Thur author!

Thank you to Netflix and dunburn for the opportunity to review this book.. I've never read a book by this author but I must say I enjoyed the book as a whole.. I enjoyed the writing style and the plot twists.. There was parts I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next or parts you talked about the characters as to why they did something.. Lol.. Although I do think the book rounded up quickly after the main event but over all I was satisfied and would continue on reading from this author.. recommend? Yes ~ Happy Reading ~

Tell Me My Name by Erin Ruddy, 332 pages. Dundurn Press, 2020. $16.
Language: R (119 swears, 52 “f”); Mature Content: R; Violence: PG13
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - NO
AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW
Ellie is a 40-year-old wife and mother of two, happy with her life and excited about the new cottage they’ve just bought. With the kids at a summer camp, Ellie and her husband have the place to themselves and are looking forward to the alone time -- until their neighbor cuts in and insists that he belongs with Ellie. This neighbor kidnaps both of them and is prepared to kill Ellie’s husband if she can’t remember his name.
Everything that I was expecting of the story from the summary was only the first third of the book. As the story continued to evolve, the ending was artfully hinted at so as to still astonish me but not feel random, which is how I like my mysteries. Unfortunately, I found this book to be full of sexual content I did not want to read, and I skimmed over several scenes. Overall, this book is well-written but not very enjoyable to read. The mature content rating is for alcohol and substance abuse, groping, sexual harassment, nudity, fingering, oral sex, mentions of prostitution and rape. The violence rating is for a car accident, kidnapping, mutilation, gore, mental and physical abuse, and murder.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Fast paced and hard to put down!
A suspenseful thriller with a twist.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this thriller.