"What Came Before is a remarkable achievement - a smart, fast-paced mystery that asks important questions about identity, family, and race. And, like the best of its genre, it's loaded with puzzles: What really happened on the day Abbie Palmer's mother killed herself? Who is the mysterious woman who shows up on Abbie's doorstep, and why would anyone want her dead? Gay Degani's prose is at all times lucid and compelling, and her exciting story will keep you glued to your chair." ~ Clifford Garstang, winner of the 2013 Library of Virginia Award for Fiction for 'What the Zhang Boys Know' "With engaging characters and a compelling mystery, Gay Degani's What Came Before draws you in and doesn't let go. If this had been a movie, I wouldn't have left the cinema for more popcorn. A brilliant and complex whodunit with a memorable, imperfect character at its helm." ~ Christopher Allen, author of 'Conversations with S. Teri O'Type (a Satire)'