A young woman stumbles onto an outback road at night and is lit up in the headlights of an approaching car. Who is she? Nobody knows, and she has lost the ability to speak.
This is how the story of the Unknown Woman begins. Angie, a freelance journalist, joins her childhood friend Bev, the police officer in charge of the case, to try to solve the mystery.
Dozens of people claim to know the speech-less woman. The stories multiply. In an urgent, unexpected finale, more questions arise.
Set in Sydney and the Mars-red landscapes around Broken Hill, Gail Jones’s The Name of the Sister is an elegant and thrilling novel that explores the unreliable terrain between the truth and the stories we tell each other.
andThe Name of the Sister
‘Intricate, absorbing, beguiling…A suspenseful, sombre tale, spun with an unwavering grace.’
‘Dripping with suspense and intrigue. Driven by complex female characters, this novel is an intellectual page-turner.’
‘It was an absolute pleasure to read this novel.’
‘Jones’s writing truly shines.’
‘5 stars. Inscribed, elegant writing and storytelling.’
‘Gail Jones is a great writer and this thrilling, intriguing book will delight her admirers but also garner the attention of those yet to discover her.’
‘One of the finest writers that Australia has ever produced.’
‘One of the most important and prolific literary authors working in Australia today.’
‘Sharp and intriguing…A lyrical and introspective story that explores loss, identity, femicide and the Australian public’s attitude towards women.’
‘Smart lyrical, and inventive.’
‘Jones writes beautifully…Pieces coalesce into a rich and suggestive novel about the very meaning of plots and plotting, the ideas and feelings we project onto unknowns, and the connections we draw to give events shape and significance.’
‘A thinking person’s crime thriller, The Name of the Sister shows just how well Gail Jones exacts her craft…An absolute pleasure to read.’
‘Jane Harper for the intellectual reader…Displays the characteristic Jones brand of critical intelligence and preoccupation with how truth is an individual perception.’
‘[Gail Jones] knows what she’s doing and it shows in the writing…[The Name of the Sister] is confident, it’s thoughtful, it’s playful…’
