The effect of names and the split-second decisions, big and small, that we all make are at the centre of this brilliant debut.
Irish-born Cora takes her nine-year-old daughter, Maia, along to register the name of her newborn son in England in 1987. Stuck in a hellish marriage to a monster who is also a well-respected family doctor, Cora is supposed to name the baby Gordon after his father as is tradition in his family. But she doesn’t want her son to be weighed down by the name of an abusive, domineering man who has made her life a living nightmare, she also wants him to have his own name and identity.
Maia wants to name him Bear as it sounds warm and cuddly, Cora wants to go with Julian, which she likes from her book of baby names. She knows it’s a big decision to make and the fallout will be huge if she “disobeys” her husband.
The story then brilliantly splits into three threads, moving between England and Ireland, one where he’s named Bear, one Julian and one where he’s called Gordon and we catch up with each boy every seven years.
It’s more about the decision to give a particular name that sets each timeline up and each boy is different in temperament and shaped by the varying circumstances they grow up in but still recognisably the same child. The decisions also affect the lives of Cora and Maia and secondary but important characters whose impact in each thread differs.
There’s trauma and intense heartbreak but the story is also compelling and beautifully woven through time as it looks at issues such as domestic violence and the burdens carried by these families. The characters are also wonderful and will stay with you long after reading - an absolute must-read of 2025.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

An unbelievable debut. I will remember reading The Names for a very long time. The skill of weaving three strands, over countless years alongside beautiful language is genius. My heart ached as we caught up with Bear, Julian and Gordon. I think this book is very special and I urge everyone to read it. I've already bought the hardback to pass to my mum! I can't wait to read Florence Knapp's next novel.

What’s in a name? This is the question posed in Florence’s debut novel and what a rollercoaster it is. Before I read it I was inclined to think it just a take on the ‘Sliding Doors’ premise but it is so much more. At times tender and heart warming and in the next uncomfortable and distressing. It had me crying and cheering in equal measure. This is destined to be the book of the summer and a great reading group book.

This is a powerful book about a wife who lives in terror of putting a foot wrong. One stormy day and in spite of knowing the fallout it will cause she decides to register her new born son with a different name,. We are all given names at birth do these names define us? Told in 3 different timelines which, while disjointed but adds to the sickening underlying story of marital abuse and a mother trying to save her children and herself, A complex story shows that there are no easy answers. With thanks to the publisher and @netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

I absolutely devoured this book. Such a brilliant concept, it really delved into trauma and the tendrils it spreads through people’s lives. It was a much heavier subject matter than I assumed from the cover, but it was so beautifully executed, I was completely invested in these characters and their stories

Three different names, Bear, Julian & Gordon. Bear is 9-year-old sister Maia's choice, Julian, Mum Cora's choice, & and Gordon, "chosen/imposed" by dad Gordon & his family, a tradition that isn't open to discussion and has to be upheld!
Three choices each with consequences, what happens in each different scenario of name is chosen.
Bear - the name chosen by 9 year old Maia who likens the soft cuddly qualities of a bear to her snuggly baby brother and her expectation he will become big and brave.

Cora knows she is taking a big chance disobeying her husband and the expectation of his family that, of course, there's no question their son will be called Gordon. Cora also knows that deep down, there will be a price to pay. She prepares by having friend Mehri take Maia swimming with her own daughter Fern. When Mehri offers to keep Maia for tea, Cora immediately accepts knowing it gives her time to tell Gordon and deal with any fallout before Maia arrives home. Cora hides Bear, her precious baby in a cupboard upstairs and prepares to tell Gordon the news. She greets him at the door, takes his coat, kisses him on the cheek as is expected of her all the while dreading what is to come.
When Cora reveals the name Bear, at first Gordon seems to think it's a joke and he smiles....then the anger explodes & the violence begins which continues until finally Cora shouts for help, which leads to the death of a bystander but freedom for Cora, Maia who has witnessed the abuse as she has grown up and the baby brother she named Bear.
Gordon is sent to prison, and Cora tries to build a new, happier life for herself and her children with support from friends Mehri & Roland. Cora is never truly free of guilt that her freedom came at the cost of another man's life and every year lays flowers on his grave thanking him for his intervention that day. It's only years later that Bear puts two and two together and realises this strangers death is connected to him and his name.
Julian - is the name chosen by Cora, meaning 'sky father', so in Cora's heart & mind still honouring his father Gordon without giving him the exact same name. Maia is excited as her name means mother, and her brothers name means father. It's another bond they will share.
Cora cooks Gordon's favourite meal, Maia helps set and decorate the table. When the name is revealed Maia chatters excitedly about it meaning sky father, trying to distract her father from the brewing anger. Gordon sends Maia off to run a bath, leaving him alone with Cora. Gordon is immediately abusive towards Cora and aggressively pushes her face into her half eaten meal, telling Cora he won't be letting this go. Cora silently says to herself this will be the last time knowing further violence is on the immediate horizon.
Seven years later, after being registered as Julian, he, along with his sister Maia, are living a new life with their maternal grandmother, Silbhe, in Ireland.
Further details of what happened that night, seven years before, are not revealed. Maia does discuss that she remembers hearing everything as she had covered Bears' ears, so he did so had no hands to cover her own ears.

Gordon - the name imposed, demanded and expected by Gordon and his family leaves Cora so disappointed in herself & resentful that she just went along with a name she didn't want, she finds it difficult to bond with baby Gordon. She finds it difficult in many ways and
her husband Gordon uses these 'failings' and 'neglectful acts' as a weapon within his abuse, and he threatens to take the children away from her! So despite choosing the name Gordon, the one her husband and his family wanted, Cora still suffers violence & abuse. Even when Maia reaches out to her maternal grandmother, Silbhe in Ireland Cora refuses to leave, knowing in her heart that Gordon wouldn't hesitate to take her children from her and deny her any contact with them. Which would mean leaving them at the mercy of an abusive man.

There's so much more to the book than the sections I have shared, each of the three names/lives/directions have their own positives and negatives.

I felt instant empathy with Cora, the descriptions of the familiar feelings of walking on eggshells. The overwhelming urge of wanting to keep the peace and please someone who will never be satifisedno matter how much you give or do for them. The instinct and protectiveness of moving your child to another room doing an activity meaning they hopefully won't hear and witness their fathers' outbursts. Then finally getting out, trying to rebuild a life but at the same time never being able to trust another man fully, wondering what their trigger would be to aggression, anger and violence.

I loved Maia's character, a second mum to her baby brother, and a peacemaker, pacifier, whenever possible. Sadly you don't realise how much Maia was aware of until later in the book as she grows older.

Then there's Bear, soft, cuddly, brave, and strong, or Julian 'Sky Father' or Gordon expected to follow in his father's and grandfathers footsteps. Whichever name Cora's baby boy is given, he may have elements of both parents, but it doesn't mean he has to or will become like his abusive father. He is also 'nurtured' and experiences life in different ways in different scenarios.

Although the book depicts a relationship that has domestic violence, there's also loving, caring, and romantic relationships within the book.

The book shows three alternating versions of the characters' lives covering thirty-five years. Each version of life presents its own version of healing, life going on despite the scars and shadows caused by domestic violence, and that ever present feeling that your abuser is 'out there' and could reappear in your life any time he feels like it.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing reading The Names was that though it brought back my own memories of domestic violence i enjoyed reading it, found it thought provoking, and I hope it raises awareness of 'what goes on behind closed doors' and gives those that are quick to say 'Why doesn't she just leave' something to think about.

Summing up this book is about the choices we make and the different paths we take and what they lead us to in the future, but the book is also a totally honest depiction of Domestic Violence and why it's not as simple as just leaving the situation, especially when children are involved and the abuser a well respected member of the community"

What a debut!

Taking her newborn son to be named, Cora and her little daughter Maia discuss what to name the baby. Will it be Gordon, after his abusive father; Bear (Maia's choice) or Julian (the name Cora sees as a middle ground that might offend less than Bear)?

Three narratives rise up from the mother's choice, with three different lives for the boy and his family. In the first narrative, two men die many years apart and one goes to prison; in the second, a woman dies; in the third, no one dies but the characters make some appalling sacrifices. Maia in particular, already terrified of her father in the first chapters, broke my heart, always wanting to do the right thing in all three narratives (and always gay, though sometimes she takes longer to work it out).

Bear is an easygoing hippy type who struggles to settle down, even though his girlfriend Lily is clearly the one. Julian makes a life in Ireland with his grandmother Silbhe and has no desire to return to the UK, meeting Orla and setting up his own jewellery business. Banker Gordon fumbles his encounter with Lily and his life is distorted by his father wanting to make him in his own image - but will he find a way to redeem himself?

An unputdownable book which plays fluently with hindsight (anything with Paris in the autumn of 2015 is going to be a difficult read) and sometimes it borders on relentless, but the comfort it offers - when it does - is real and earned. One of my top books of the year.

The Names is a beautiful, heart-wrenching story featuring split timelines where we see how a in-the-moment decisions can affect a life so profoundly…

Cara is with her 9 year old daughter Maia, and her tiny baby boy, heading to get him registered. Her husband wants him to be called Gordon, following generations of tradition. We then follow three different versions of the story: one where Cora names her baby Bear - a suggestion from Maia; one where she decides to call him Julian, a name she had been considering for a while; and one where she obediently registers him as Gordon to appease her awful husband.

Her husband’s reactions to each of the three possibilities change the course of the family’s lives, each in different ways.

I love ‘sliding doors’- type books and The Names is a brilliant example, with excellent writing and characters that feel convincing and well-rounded. Reading the different ways that Cora, Maia and particularly Bear’s lives pan out made me race through this book in a day.

This book also made me feel SO incredibly angry at times. The domestic abuse featured in its pages is really difficult to read and made me utterly incensed at the depravity of her husband, but it also demonstrates how hard it is to escape this kind of awful treatment, especially when you have children.

It’s a hard read at times but still completely absorbing and there are plenty of lovely moments too. I absolutely loved this book and can’t quite believe it is a debut!

I loved this clever take on the Sliding Doors narrative that asks ‘what’s in a name?’ A compelling and terrifying depiction of coercive control and physical abuse over three versions of a lifetime, but which still manages to be uplifting and focus on hope and beauty.

Very lovely, sad and also hopeful. No criticisms although ultimately it felt a little light - i think i wanted to think more, feel more than i ultimately did

I was really blown away by Knapp's debut, highly recommend it. Its less a story about naming and more about all the different people we have the potential to be as our lives take different paths. Its a haunting exploration of abuse and its ripple effects and I think the dark content needs to be clear - the book goes there, and it doesn't allow simple answers but balances well the dark with the light. I think the Gordon storyline, with the difficult look at growing up with an abusive father and staying in an abusive marriage may be difficult for a lot of people, but Knapp clearly knows what she's doing and doesn't shirk from really exploring that darkness. Massively recommend for bookclubs and will be an easy hit for fans of tomorrow, tomorrow and tomorrow or one day; I actually enjoyed this far more than either of those.

Thank you for my copy of The Names by Florence Knapp. I was hooked from the first page. It is a beautiful meditation on the significance of a name and the impact certain moments can have on the unfolding of lives. The three part narrative worked wonderfully and I didn't want it to end. This is a wonderful book that I will be recommending to friends and family.

Cora is on her way to the registry office to put her newborn son's name on his birth certificate. She has a decision to make whether to name the child Bear, as suggested by her nine-year-old daughter; Julian, a name she loves, or Gordon, after her husband to keep it in line with his family's tradition. Does she want her son to potentially turn out like his cruel father? How will her decision she made for him impact the rest of his life? A massive congratulations to Florence for this stunning debut novel. It's touching and heartbreaking.

“The Names” looks at how one choice—what to name a child—can change a life. The book follows Cora and her children in three different versions of their future, shaped by whether her son is named Gordon, Julian, or Bear.

The novel deals with some sensitive themes (domestic abuse) however, is dealt with with care and sensitivity. The timelines can be a bit tricky at times, that said; it is a beautifully written and emotional read, one that is full of memorable characters.

I thought it was very clever, the way Florence Knapp created three distinct interwoven alternative narratives around Cora and her children's lives in 'The Names'. This is the poignant story of one family and the terrible domestic abuse suffered by Cora at the hand of her seemingly upstanding doctor husband. Despite the gritty, upsetting subject matter, the story was told with great sensitivity, I enjoyed it very much.

How different life can be from a turn in the road, a quick decision on the naming of a son. This is heartbreaking, joyful, tragic and life affirming, each of three stories bringing every emotion.

The Names was a wonderful surprise to me, and it caught me off guard how much I enjoyed this book! The premise sounded interesting, but Florence Knapp navigates the concept masterfully, and delivers the goods with an unforgettable tale of how life can change on a single decision.

I was sceptical at first at how a simple name change could truly affect the future of a character, but the context from the opening chapters quickly put any doubts I had to bed. The domino effect of events spreading out from the prologue in three directions was absolutely excellent, and showed off a lot of depth and variety in its character development. Watching some characters play a starring role in one reality, and fade into obscurity in another is fascinating! The tiniest moments really can have a huge effect over the course of a life, and The Names captures the gravity of that concept perfectly.

I wouldn’t call this a comfortable read, as there are strong themes of domestic violence and abuse throughout; these themes are highlighted and captured marvellously, but it definitely makes for an emotional and uncomfortable read at times. I also found the novel to become more challenging to follow the further into the narrative you get. With three alternate timelines of the same characters going about their lives, and the jumps forward in time during which jobs and relationships change, it can be tricky to keep tabs on everything that’s happening! It’s the gift and curse of such a premise, and I happen to think The Names handled it relatively well, though I still found myself getting a little lost towards the end.

What a highly original and fantastic book.
How does your given name impact your personality, your social interactions and ultimately your path in life. The whole basis of this book is genius and the delivery is brilliant.
The Names by Florence Knapp is a mesmerizing exploration of identity and destiny. The central premise, a child living out three different lives based on the names his mother could have chosen, turns what we often take for granted into a thought-provoking journey.

Florence Knapp's storytelling is captivating and masterful. This novel is a brilliant reflection on how something as simple as a name can shape our experiences and choices in profound ways.

The depth and creativity in this book make it a must-read for any book club, and even for those who usually shy away from such gatherings. It's a gem that you won’t want to miss out on, and it’s bound to spark meaningful discussions.

Highly recommend!

I have read quite a few books recently on domestic abuse but this one was at times hard to read. The book is primarily about what name should be given to Cora’s son. Her husband insists on the family name of Gordon. Three versions of the story are told over the years from when Cora takes her baby to be registered to when her son is grown up with his own family. In one version of the story, the boy is named Gordon, in the second version he is Julian and in the third he is Bear. The story shows what happens after Cora’s husband finds out what his wife has done. The suspense makes this book a real page turner. Each story is well told and each one different and at times heartbreaking. Bear, Gordon and Julian make different choices. An interesting idea. At the end of the book the author’s note talks about artworks in the book. The artworks add an additional interest.

I’m a big fan of those ‘if only’ type stories like The Midnight Library, Life After Life, The Versions of Us or even Sliding Doors so The Names fits the literary bill perfectly.

One small change – in this case, the choice of a baby boy’s name – can impact not just those directly affected, but also, children, parents, those people who, except for a twist of fate, could be your wife and mother of your child or someone you fell out with in school. The story sweeps us from 1987 to 2022

They say thar grief is the price we pay for love so although I loved large parts of this book, you will definitely need a box of tissues too.

Moving, poetic, emotional and fully deserving of your reading time.