Published: January 12, 2022

Bookouture

Pages: 318

Genre: Psychological Thriller

KKECReads Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Anna-Lou Weatherley was born in Hampshire and grew up in London, where she still lives with her partner and two children. An award-winning journalist and women’s lifestyle writer for over fifteen years, she is the former editor and acting editor of J-17 and Smash Hits, respectively. She has written for all the major glossies including, Grazia, More, Company, and Marie Claire, among others.

“Well, they wouldn’t be secrets if I told you, would they?”

Evie is everything a rich wife and mother should be, surrounded by beautiful things. She adores her only child, Libby, and is only too ready to brag about how smart, talented, beautiful, kind, and just perfect Libby is. But Evie is about to find out the hard way, and she doesn’t know her daughter at all.

Holy. This was a r i d e . Fast-paced and engaging, and impossible to put down. I loved how the story was told, through alternating perspectives with a bit of the past woven in.

The characters were all so well done, even if most of them were horrible. The secrets are revealed after a tragedy, and the majority of the characters are just ugly people.

Evie was a lovely character, though she is definitely naive and utterly too trusting. She has the best redeeming arc, and she ends a lot stronger than she begins.

Jim is a dirtbag who ultimately redeems, but his journey was pretty rough. He is an example of the best of intentions. I do believe that he wants to be better by the end, and I do think he regrets the way things happen.

Una is the worst kind of friend- the one who secretly envies and covets what you have, all while claiming you’re her best friend. Her storyline just made me angry, but I could also see where she was coming from.

Tom is just a complete jerk. Nothing is redeeming about his character. He thinks he can do whatever he wants and answer to no one. The shenanigans he pulls are infuriating and make my blood boil.

Dan Riley was such a beautiful character. He was so full of ambition, dedication, determination, and humanity. I loved how much internal dialogue we got with him, and I loved how he wasn’t willing to settle for anything less than the truth.

Libby. Oh, Libby. There was nothing likable about her whatsoever. She was selfish, shallow, mean, and just ugly on the inside. She is the epitome of a mean girl. Her storyline is unfortunate, and she is a disturbed young woman. She was a master manipulator, and she knew how to play the game.

The twists came out of the darkness and smacked me in the face. As secrets were revealed and the plot thickened, I thought I knew how things would work out, but I was wrong.

I enjoyed the writing style, the character development, and the plot overall. It was a fast-paced read that was impossible to put down. Definitely, a must-read!