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hi, I am a 40+ year old who loves jewellery and all things sparkly. I also enjoy trying out and reviewing new makeup products, finding stylish walking sticks, reading and writing book reviews. I will review anything from bird tables/ hedgehog houses to the latest fashion! My Instagram account is @sparkling_magpie

Friday 13 July 2018

Book Review: How to Keep a Secret by Sarah Morgan


How to Keep a Secret is written by Sarah Morgan and published by HQ.  Sarah Morgan is a prolific romance writer, nominated 4 times for the prestigious RITA Award and winning it twice.  This book is a departure from the traditional romance genre, instead this book focuses upon how and why her character keeps secrets from each other and what happens when they are found out..

How to Keep a Secret tells the story of three generations of Stewart women, all of whom have their own secrest to keep and hide.  The storyline is narrated by the four main characters: Nancy, Laura, Henna and Mackenzie.   They have all, for various reasons, moved back to Martha's Vineyard  Nancy, the matriarch grandmother knows she has not been the greatest mother to Lauren and Jenna, aloof and remained distant emotionally from them, more interested in her work as an artist than a mother, but can she ever tell the reason why she wasn't an A+ mum? Lauren and Jenna have their own secret to hide and made a pact years ago never to divulge it. Jenna feel that Lauren has always been the "golden child" and is concerned she will never have a baby, issues that add to already fractured relationships.   Lauren's daughter, Mackenzie, also has her own secret to keep whilst holding her mum at arms length in order  to hide her pain.

All their secrets come to ahead one summer as all the women are thrown together and their secrets start to unravel.

This book is well written and cohesive in structure, the stories naturally blend together and doesn't appear forced. A departure from Sarah's focus on romance, How to Keep a Secret is a book about family dynamics: emotions and relatives getting to know each other again, character flaws, fractured relationships being fixed as  individuals reconnect after secrets are exposed.


received this book via Netgalley and HQ in exchange for a honest review

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