From the New York Times bestselling co-author of Mad Honey comes a novel about two women, centuries apartone of whom is the real author of Shakespeares playswhoare both forced to hide behind another name.

Young playwright Melina Green has just written a new work inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. But seeing it performed is unlikely, in a theater world where the playing field isnt level for women. AsMelina wonders if she dares risk failure again, her best friend takes the decision out of her handsand submitsthe playto a festival under a male pseudonym.

In 1581, young Emilia Bassano isa ward of English aristocrats. Her lessons on languages,history, and writing have endowed her with a sharp wit and a gift for storytelling, but like most women of her day, sheis allowed no voice of her own.Forced to become a mistress to the Lord Chamberlain, who oversees all theatre productions in England, Emilia sees firsthand how the words of playwrights can move an audience. She begins to form a plan to secretly bring a play of her own to the stageby paying an actor named William Shakespeare to front her work.

Told in intertwining timelines, By Any Other Name, a sweeping tale of ambition, courage, and desire centers two women who are determined to create something beautiful despite the prejudices they face. Should a writer do whatever it takes to see her story live on . . . no matter the cost? This remarkable novel, rooted in primary historical sources, ensures the name Emilia Bassano will no longer be forgotten.