Leave the Girls Behind by Jacqueline Bublitz is a gripping novel that combines suspense with deep emotional insights. The story follows Ruth-Ann Baker, a bartender and amateur detective, as she revisits a haunting case from her past involving a suspected serial killer. When a new disappearance mirrors the old case, Ruth is compelled to uncover the truth, leading her on a global quest. Bublitz’s writing is engaging, with well-drawn characters and a compelling plot that keeps the reader invested. While some parts may drag slightly, the overall narrative is powerful and thought-provoking, making it a rewarding read for fans of psychological thrillers

I received an ARC of this book from Atria via NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. I was prepared to give this 5 stars until about 2/3 of the way through, when it suddenly veered into unbelievable territory. I read this book eagerly, always looking forward to picking it up again. Though I am not normally a fan of supernatural elements, the idea of the ghost girls didn't really bother me. I saw them as a kind of imaginary friend. I enjoyed Ruth's relationship with her uncles and her boss; her boss in particular provided comic relief. I could 100% imagine the bar where they worked.

I was pretty shocked at the what I would call the "main" twist. It makes you rethink a lot of what you have read. However, as I noted above, shortly thereafter it really becomes a suspension of belief.

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Who flies around the world at the drop of a hat staying in the homes of perfect strangers?

But the end is what really took stars off for me. As I saw from other reviewers, I don't really understand what happened! The end did not answer all the questions, and I think it was insinuating a villain is not who we thought. I don't like endings like this where I am kept wondering.

Nineteen years ago, 7 year old Ruth’s best friend was killed by a suspected serial killer. Present day, another girl goes missing from the same town, and Ruth, who can’t let go of the past, is sure there’s a connection to her friend’s murder, even though the killer has long since died. Leave The Girls Behind is a melancholy journey that delves deep into Ruth’s psyche as she tracks down three women who she believes can prove that her friend’s killer had an accomplice who is still active, all while struggling with her own demons. The writing is mellifluous, but the pace is a little slow, as the book is long on musing but short on any sustained drama. The roles of certain characters is a little confusing and the ending felt sufficiently unexplained, but overall it’s a quality read, 3.5 stars. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a great crime book - no doubt about it. But at 60 percent it changes from a great book to an AMAZING book with some pull the rug out from under you sort of twists!

Ruth-Ann is a bartender. About 20 years ago, her childhood friend was murdered by a serial killer. The death has tainted her life and she is still suffering as well as obsessed with what happened even though the killer is behind bars. When another young girl goes missing from her town, Ruth Ann's obsession take over her life. Following loose threads and clues related to event, she travels internationally to meet with three very different women about their connection to the original killer. It's sharp and new and thrilling!
#atria #atriabooks #leavethegirlsbehind #jacquelinebublitz

I really liked Jacqueline Bublitz's first novel so I was excited to read this. Ruth-Ann Baker wants to find out what happened to a missing girl which may be tied to her childhood friend who was murdered. Sign me up. But I am not one for ghosts so the book lost me on that. So yes there were plenty of twists overall and I did enjoy this book because it was a thriller. I just did not know what I was signing up for.

"Leave The Girls Behind” initially presents itself as a straightforward mystery or thriller but unfolds as a deep dive into a young woman’s quest to uncover the truth about her traumatic abduction at seven. The narrative explores how such heinous acts affect families and communities, and how people can be misled and manipulated by predators.

Ruth-Ann, the protagonist, is courageous in her search for answers, but her unreliability as a narrator due to her childhood trauma makes it hard to connect with her. The supernatural element of deceased victims visiting her adds an intriguing layer, but its purpose—whether it’s survivor's guilt or seeking justice—remains unclear.

Tracking the numerous characters and their connections can be confusing, and the addition of another name, Julie Jordan, complicates things further. The ending leaves much to be desired in terms of clarity.

Despite these issues, the writing is solid, and Ruth-Ann’s relationship with her uncle Joe and his partner Gideon is a highlight of the story.

OOOo y'all this book could have been amazing and tbh it had all makings of a cult classic. I think what lost me was that i didn't feel super positive about the MC and her search for her friends killer. I really wanted to root for her but I think it just didn't capture my attention like I thought it would. I do feel like with a few tweaks it could be even better maybe a bit more redeeming character traits but other than that I didn't hate this book at all. It just didn't grab me either.

A good idea but boy did it drag! It’s hard to put my finger on how it went wrong but the pacing was off and the “reveals” were not super satisfying.

I’m puzzled why it took place in 2015. That seemed strange to me since there is nothing special about that year plot-wise and it didn’t even give the author the bonus plot device of having characters be unreachable via cell phone or internet.

It was also tricky to remember the timeline for all of the characters.

Ruth Ann Baker is 26 years old. What we know about Ruth is that she is originally from Hoben, CT and is now living in New York City working as a bartender. She dropped out of college where she had been studying Forensics with the aspiration of becoming a Criminal Profiler after what she refers to as an “episode.” We also know that Ruth’s best friend was killed 19 years ago by Ethan Oswald and that Ruth has not been able to let her death rest, believing that Beth had not been Oswald’s only victim. When Ruth receives an Amber Alert regarding a missing young girl in her hometown of Hoben, Ct, she puts her criminal profiling skills to task as she Nancy Drew’s her way to finding evidence to support her claim that Oswald had other victims and to also prove that he may not have acted alone.

The book started off very slow and I did put it down a couple of times, actually completing two other thrillers in between reading this one. Not only was the pace slow, but it was challenging trying to understand exactly why the MC was making the choices she was making. Case in point, we keep hearing about this “episode” that Ruth experienced when she was 21, but it is unclear as to what actually happened to her. A lot is explained later in the book, but it would have helped to understand her better had we known her story at an earlier point in the book. I honestly had to go back and reread the book to gain a better insight into the character and the seemingly illogical choices she seemed to be making. What I discovered was a traumatized young girl with mental issues who had been seeing a therapist, which said therapist was temporarily unavailable to her. All of a sudden, the fact that Ruth was seeing and interacting with her best friend, who’d been dead for 19 years, along with other deceased girls, made more sense. Understanding the traumatic events that Ruth herself had experienced made it clear why a young woman would go traipsing across the world on a wild goose chase on nothing but circumstantial information and hearsay. Ruth was obsessed with finding closure for Beth, herself, and the other girls and that meant figuring out Ethan Oswald’s connection to this new missing girl.

I didn’t find the story nor the characters to be plausible. Although she had obvious mental issues, it just didn’t make sense for her to travel solo across the globe to meet people she knew nothing about and without anyone knowing where she was going and why. If you’re trying to find out about a serial killer and you believe they did not work alone, why would you meet up with people in their circle without finding out all that you could about the individuals, let people know where you’re going, take someone with you, or even hire a private investigator (she had the money to do so). Additionally, all the information that Ruth had uncovered seemed to come from online true crime communities that she belonged to or from the deceased girls. Having had some education into criminal profiling, she should have known that she didn’t have anything factual to connect Oswald, nor anything of substance to help solve the new case. But, understanding trauma and the drive behind Ruth’s search, it makes sense that she would persist until the ghosts of those girls are finally laid to rest.

I wasn’t a fan of the ending, as it leaves the reader with many unanswered questions and a feeling of having gone on a journey in vain.

I thank NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book and provide this review strictly voluntarily.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the advanced reader copy.

I enjoyed the first half of this book--it was compelling and the twist mid-way through was unexpected but satisfying. The second half of the book started to fall apart for me, especially as the details of the mystery unfolded. The connections between characters felt stretched at times (not quite believable that they would've been connected at all) and the last chapter left me confused rather than satisfied with how things turned out.

You couldn't have asked for a better book—I had never read anything like this that wasn't non-fiction. I hope this book catches on with social media and they blow it all the way up. A good suspense read for the fall and it could be read in a single sitting or weekend. Thanks NetGalley and Atria Books for the early copy of the book.

Leave the girls behind was beautifully written and an interesting take on an unreliable narrator. I loved how I was discovering the past along with the main character and the twists for both the character arcs and the plot were nicely done and set up well. Eloquently written thriller.

enjoyed this for the most part. I liked the storyline and Ruby’s quirky character. However, the story started to get confusing once the climax came to a head. I’m still not sure it felt resolved and I still don’t know if I understand what happened fully at the end. I don’t know. I’m still mulling it over in my mind.

Thank you to Net Galley and Atria books for this advanced e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was fantastic. I really enjoyed reading it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC!

Fast paced thriller about a woman who is haunted by the ghosts of several girls who were murdered in years past, including her best friend. Although the case of her best friend was solved and the killer brought to justice, Ruth feels there is more to the story and starts investigating the possibilities, including more victims that may not have been linked to him.

I really should've read the other reviews before I tried this one. Leave The Girls Behind reads more like a YA mystery.
I really liked Ruth's character, her dog and her job as a dive bar waitress.
Ruth's diving into the amateur detective business to investigate her friend's murder from 19 years earlier literally brings out the ghosts. The spirits of several murdered girls materialize to help Ruth with her investigation into a missing child. And that's when the story just felt weird to me. Bublitz brings in some unique and twisty detective work, but the ghosties were a bother.
Literally leave those girls behind and let Ruth play detective on her own.

This one had so much potential but it started really slow for me. I liked the story and where it was going but it had a lot of names and moving parts that was a little hard to keep up with. If you start this book and struggle I highly recommend pushing through to the ending. Not a spoiler but if seeing and talking to dead people interest you this book could be for you!!
Thank you NetGalley for the arc!!
This was more a 3 1/2 for me I am going to search for some more books from this author because I feel like maybe if I was more used to her writing style it might have been better for me.

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC of Leave the Girls Behind by Jacqueline Bublitz. I really expected to love this book, but unfortunately I struggled with feeling engaged with the story and the characters. I was initially intrigued by the serial killer aspect, but something was lacking for me.

Ruth is a young college dropout out turn amateur detective. Her best friend was killed by a serial killer when she was a child. When another girl is missing, Ruth believes that this killer may have had a hand in her friend’s death.

I feel like this book could’ve been really good. I liked the premise of her being able to see dead people to help solve crime, but for some reason it felt all over the place. And not just that- it failed to grab my attention. I am not really sure why- I can’t pinpoint what really went wrong here except the writing style. I feel like it could be edited or written differently to make it better, because it was a good premise.

Unfortunately this one was just not for me. I’ll be fair to say that I just read an AWESOME book right before this, so maybe this one following that one just made it seem worse.

Thank you to Netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting premise as the ghosts of a serial killer’s other victims guided the main character’s search for the truth behind the death of her childhood friend 19 years earlier. Occasionally, the story was quite predictable. At other times, the twists and turns were surprising. Did the serial killer work alone? Was a recent child abduction connected to events almost 20 years ago? Sometimes it was difficult to follow the plot as it jumped around. Still, it was an enjoyable read