Hi friends! Today’s book review is for This Secret Thing by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen.

Below you’ll find the description of the book provided by NetGalley, followed by my personal purposely short and sweet review and star rating. Thank you for dropping by!

*Disclaimer : I received a copy of this ebook for free from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Description :

Out of love. Out of protection. Out of fear. Everyone has a reason to lie.

Everyone in Raleigh, North Carolina, is talking about Norah Ramsey, the single mother accused of being a suburban madam. But Norah’s not the only one keeping secrets.

After her mother’s arrest, Norah’s teenage daughter, Violet, is devastated and alone. She has no one to turn to until her grandmother Polly arrives. Polly, long estranged from Norah, is running from her own troubles. Down the street, Bess, once Norah’s best friend, desperately tries to hide secrets while Casey, Bess’s daughter, flees college after a traumatic event, only to find that home isn’t the safe haven she expected. And Nico, the detective who has doggedly pursued Norah Ramsey in hopes that she will lead him to his missing brother, is drawn further into these women’s lives while facing his own domestic disturbance.

Scandal has brought each of them to a crossroads. Now, as they delve into Norah’s secrets, they must come to terms with secrets of their own—ones that still have the power to hurt or to heal.

My Review :

File this one under liked, didn’t love.

Pluses for me included multiple view points. I love that of any book, as it immediately elevates the storytelling for me.

The book in general was fun to read, I was definitely held in suspense for a lot of it.

But honestly, I was a little let down by Norah’s story, and the ending in general. Since the entire book revolved around Norah’s crimes/arrest, I was really craving some more back story, and her perspective of things. Instead we get everyone else’s view point and just a teeny snippet of the “why” at the end. I just felt like it could have been tied up a little bit better.

Three Stars
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