by Nugent, Liz | Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Published 12/03/2026 by Penguin Books Ltd (Sandycove) in Ireland Hardback | 384 pages164 x 243 x 36mm | 598gThe deliciously dark new suspense novel from the international bestselling author of Strange Sally Diamond‘I couldn't stop reading! Absolutely a triumph!’ Freida McFadden‘What a read! A brilliantly dark and tangled web that every reader will be completely ensnared by’ Graham Norton‘An utterly gripping story about how one incident reverberates across time, damaging and destroying lives. I read it as if in a fever’ Shari Lapena---If my sister hadn’t been beautiful, none of it would have happened.Ruby Cooper and her sister, Erin, live an idyllic life in their close-knit church community in Boston. But when Ruby is sixteen, she is involved in an incident that causes her family’s world to implode.Across decades, the fallout leaves a wake of destruction behind Ruby in Dublin and Erin in Boston.Not that Ruby wants to think about the past.But it can’t stay a secret forever.---‘Absolutely gripping. Another utterly compelling, dark and unsettling piece of work that’s going to give me a book hangover for weeks.’ John Marrs‘Utterly compelling and brilliantly imagined … all the way to the last dark twist.’ Anthony Horowitz‘Once again, the incomparable Liz Nugent invites us into the darkest parts of the human psyche. I'm certain her legions of fans will agree: Ruby is her most unforgettable creation yet’ Catherine Ryan Howard‘Only Liz Nugent can create characters like these … this is a maestro at work. Another sensational read - clear your diary and prepare to be hooked!’ Sam Blake'Dark, fearless and compelling - unforgettable work from an outstanding and brilliant crime writer.' Jane Casey‘An absolute belter of a book. Liz Nugent at her dark and twisty best.’ Louise Kennedy‘Twisted and brilliantly observed’ Irish Examiner Culture Magazine'Addictive and awe-inspiring, from the first page to the last.’ Diane Jeffrey'Unputdownable, acid-sharp, and emotionally brutal — Liz Nugent at her most compulsive.' Dearbhla McTiernan‘An intense and gripping novel about a lie that destroys lives and unravels a family over decades. Liz Nugent gets deep into the heads of her characters and lays bare their most human impulses, no matter how dark. A must-read author at the top of her game’ Gilly Macmillan'Only Liz Nugent could have written this book ... an unflinching, darkly funny, sometimes disconcerting and always gripping story' Sinéad Crowley‘Liz Nugent is fearless in the places she will go to uncover our basest, darkest impulses. Utterly compelling.’ Tammy Cohen'I bloody loved it. Sublime ... dark and hooky.' Louise Swanson‘Another triumphant addition to her impressive catalogue’ Irish Examiner‘Layered, gripping, darker than dark (a LN trademark), and psychologically complex. Beautifully real, flawed, human characters. SUPERB.’ Will Dean'Nugent is one of my favourite all-time writers, and her latest is not just a crime novel, it's a study in humanity. Deserves to be massive’ Gillian McAllister‘Ruby Cooper is captivating and infuriating and tragic . . . brilliant storytelling’ Michael Robotham ‘I absolutely devoured this one. It’s an incredibly brave but really nuanced and layered book. It’s an absolute triumph – carried off by Liz Nugent only because she so skilled and humane a writer’ Imran Mahmood‘An intense and gripping novel about a lie that destroys lives and unravels a family over decades. Liz Nugent gets deep into the heads of her characters and lays bare their most human impulses, no matter how dark. A must-read author at the top of her game’ Gilly Macmillan‘So absorbing I forgot I was reading a novel and thought I was being told a twisted real-life story, full of shocking confessions and jaw-dropping revelations. Another masterclass in psychological suspense from one of my favourite writers’ Mark Edwards‘I LOVED The Truth About Ruby Cooper . . . it’s so thought-provoking and surprising’ Claire Coughlan'Another perfectly fiendish and twisty thriller … an utterly gripping story’ Irish Country Living
