Ashley is a 35-year-old Domestic Violence Advocate, passionate about helping abused women escape desperate situations.

Ashley's also sick to death of living in a patriarchal society. After becoming engaged, Ashley is determined to retain her family's name even after her wedding, much to her traditional fiancé's dismay.

Feeling sentimental about her name, Ashley begins to research her family's history online but finds an anomaly on her mother's side that requires an explanation. Ashley then inherits a journal from her mother, full of the stories and secrets from the select women in her family who've served as the journal's caretakers. A journal passed down from mother to daughter and from sister to sister, in which each woman adds her own story and secrets.

Secrets that start in the present, in America, and journey back to the 1800s, in London, with a stop off in Ireland. Stories from Linda, Barbara, Elouise, Helen, Ruth, Agnes, Bridget, and Clara. Women who've suffered, whether from gender discrimination, sexual harassment, unpaid domestic labor, or people being prejudiced against them due to their Irish roots. Women with friends who've been assaulted or worse, women who've never been taken seriously by men, and women who've been ridiculed for their desire to vote.

Ashley also discovers that the women in her family have documented their criminal activities. Several murders are detailed in the journal, too, including the murder of one very famous man: a serial killer who vanished in the Victorian days without explanation, whose true identity is still unknown to this day.

No one knows what became of him - except for the select women in Ashley's family who've looked after the journal. They know, because it was their ancestor who killed him.