Before The Blood Dried by J.J. Lucie
They told her the memories weren’t hers.
They lied.
When Eleanor “Ellie” Hale wakes up in Arlington Hill Psychiatric Hospital, her mind is not her own. Flashes of another girl’s life—another time—flicker behind her eyes. The doctors call it delusion. Ellie calls it proof.
Hidden deep in the hospital’s forbidden wing is The Spiral Protocol—a government experiment from the 1940s that rewired human consciousness and buried the evidence. As Ellie pieces together fragments of a girl named Clara through stolen files, her dreams twist into memories and her identity begins to fracture. In this chilling blend of gothic horror, historical intrigue, and psychological suspense, J.J. Lucie pulls readers into the shadowed corridors of the mind—where trauma blurs with truth and sanity is a fragile illusion. Before The Blood Dried is a descent into identity, power, and the terrifying question: What if your memories were never yours to begin with?
About the Book
Genre
Psychological Thriller / Historical Fiction / Gothic Suspense
Themes
Memory, Identity, Trauma, Government Experimentation, Consciousness
Perfect For Fans Of
Memory, Identity, Trauma, Government Experimentation, Consciousness
Lucie’s debut novel merges noir psychology with atmospheric horror, delivering a story that lingers long after the last page. It’s not just about what’s real—it’s about what you believe to be.
Themes
Identity & Memory
Explores how memory defines who we are—and what happens when it’s stolen.
Science & Morality
Confronts the cost of progress when ethics are sacrificed for control.
Psychological Horror
A haunting journey through the blurred line between perception and madness.
Feminine Resilience
Ellie’s unraveling becomes a story of reclamation and power.
Why You’ll Love It
Immersive, Cinematic Prose
Every page feels like a film scene unraveling in real time.
Twists Within Twists
Layered reveals that challenge what readers think they know.
Atmospheric & Intelligent
Equal parts chilling and thought-provoking.
Emotionally Resonant
More than a thriller—it’s a reckoning with the ghosts of the mind.
About the Author
J.J. Lucie writes where haunting history meets psychological suspense. Known for her immersive prose and emotional depth, she crafts stories that excavate what time tried to bury—truths hidden in forgotten asylums, fractured families, and the silences that shape us.
Her writing has been described as lyrical, unsettling, and enduring—thrillers that dare to illuminate what lies beneath the surface. Before The Blood Dried marks the arrival of a bold new voice in literary suspense—one unafraid to ask the hardest question of all: How much of us is really ours?
Before The Blood Dried: A Psychological Thriller by J.J. Lucie
Get Your
Copy Today!
Before The Blood Dried is available now in paperback and Kindle editions.
Buy
Now On
Franklin's Proud Publishings!
Published Authors
Take the leap.
