I did not love this book and struggled to get through the first half. It is beautifully written and well told, but I could not connect with Lucy. I have several patrons that will love this book and we bought copies for our library.

Top student Lucy is nearing her final year of university when she finds out she’s pregnant to her boyfriend Tom. Whatever she decides now will affect her promising law career. Tom’s well-to-do father is furious at the news and ensures that Lucy is left to deal with the situation alone. Part two opens with Lucy’s twins, now 17, having been accepted into the same prestigious school that Tom attended. Lucy has done everything in her power to ensure her kids succeed, to prove she’s done a fine job raising them on her own. But things are about to go awry ...
With an emphasis on Irish family ties, this is an engaging and heartfelt read about a determined single mum whose thwarted ambition may have consequences for the next generation.

3.5 stars, rounding up to 4 because I can! Lucy is a quintessential example of a helicopter mom. She finds herself pregnant at an early age (not a teenager, mind you, but it certainly wasn't planned!!) She is the perfect daughter and student, and she has the perfect supportive and loving parents. So already, she's ahead of the game. But lo and behold, her boyfriend ends up taking off (although it's not quite like it sounds - there's a twist), and she ends up raising the babies (yep, it was twins) all by herself. And she goes to extremes, because she's going to prove to everyone what an amazing Mom she is. Unfortunately, she pushes her children way too hard. The writing is well done. The story is heartfelt and honest. Lucy as a mother drove me nuts. She was always trying to do the right thing, but in the wrong way, and she never got over being "left". I so wanted her to get off the pity party, woe is me train long enough to realize she was doing to her kids exactly what had been done to her. All in all, a very good read.

Our Secrets and Lies affect more than ourselves. Sinead Moriarty shares the story of a single mother that never got to realize her dreams, but is determined her twins will realize theirs. This well balanced novel explores the roles of parent and child, peer pressure, decision making, dreams, and expectations, as well as love, in all aspects. I appreciated the complex character portraits drawn by Ms Moriarty, they made it easy to connect and dive into the story. Dialogue was appropriate to both character and situation, especially the teen age twins. I really was entertained by the story, it was paced evenly, though it seemed a bit repetitive in places. Im not sure if that technique was to emphasize a plot point, but it made the book seem a little long. Based on my enjoyment of Our Secrets and lies, I would read more from the author.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this in exchange for my honest review.

A great quick read. I really enjoyed the characters in Our Secrets and Lies and it was well written. Family dynamics and secrets along with our own hopes/fears all come to a head in this novel.

This book made me laugh and cry -- very well done!

Our Secrets and Lies tells the story of Lucy and her family. If you enjoy women's fiction, this may be for you.
Lucy was top of her class, ambitious and in love when she fell pregnant. The decisions that she makes from that point on fuel this novel. This book talks about many important issues in a way that is made part of the story. There is unplanned pregnancy and the difficulties of deciding what to do, teen drinking, sexting, bullying, etc. Characters are warmly drawn and each has a unique personality. My only quibble with this book is that it could have been shorter. Certain themes are repeated more than I felt that they needed to be. Overall, a good read though.

I’m so happy I read this book. It’s one that will hold your heart. Pull you in. Won’t let go. So good that I could not put it down. I loved it from cover to cover. A must read.

Though a good student, Lucy Murphy walks away from the hope of a promising career as a lawyer when she finds herself pregnant with twins. The father of the children, pushed by his own father, deserts Lucy in this time of need. Thus, Lucy raises the twins, Dylan and Kelly, alone. What Lucy does not realize is that her pent-up anger at her lifelong situation has become a major part of her life. She loves her children but has become too intense and over bearing. Can Lucy figure out what she is doing to her children in time to not lose them?

This is a good book about relationships. Lucy, though a bit too much, was obviously a solid, loving mother, who only had her children’s best interests in mind, whenever and whatever she did for them. However, she became so obsessed that she almost lost them. I did not like the father of the twins, who abandoned Lucy during the time she needed him the most, or his father, who refused to accept the fate of his son and Lucy’s pregnancy, banishing his son because of it. The story is not an unusual one, and I did like the fact that Lucy had a strong support system. As the story unraveled, I could feel the emotional grip it began to have on me, as I read along. This is the first book I have read by this author, but will now pursue more by her, after reading this one. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.

Emotional...heart-breaking...hopefully...real. A book for all mothers to savor. Another winner by Sinead Moriarty.

Another great story of family and friendship from this author. Well worth reading

Lucy is a top student with plans to complete legal studies and possibly be first in her class. Lucy becomes pregnant and faces difficult decisions which impact her future. Feeling the pressure to be perfect, Lucy has unrealistic expectations for her own children, without realizing what is truly going on in their lives. The female characters in the story are all strong and supportive. Family relationships are complicated and are at the heart of this book. I recommend for fans of women’s fiction

This is my third book my Moriarty, and it won't be my last. She has the ability to create an engaging story with just the right balance of darkness and light. Her characters feel real and the exploration of the mother/daughter relationship beautifully done. Recommended!

Review: This is an unbelievable good book. I was unable to put this down once I had started reading it. Emotional throughout of a mothers hopes and dreams for her children. If I only had one word to describe this book it would be powerful.

Our Secrets and Lies is well written. I enjoyed the plot and the characters very much. The plot focuses on a mother and her daughters relationships, her dreams for them and their own dreams. Will she let go and let them follow their hearts?

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

Lucy has her hopes and dreams for a glittering career shattered when she has an unplanned pregnancy. She becomes a single mother with the support of her family.She pins all her hopes on her twins for them to live out her unfulfilled career. She is ultra strict and very controlling.

I had such a dilemma with this book. Whilst I liked the family dynamics and enjoyed some characters I really could not engage with the character of Lucy at all. I just didn't understand the reasoning for her decision making and reasoning.

Beautiful, heartbreaking and thought provoking. Another wonderful story by this author, one which takes the reader on an emotional journey alongside the characters. I loved this stunning, wonderful tale of love and motherhood, friendship and family and highly recommend it to everyone.

Well done drama about a woman who basically lives through her children. Talk about a tiger mom! Dylan and Kelly bear the weight of Lucy's disappointment at having to give up her own dreams. Simplistic but true. It's not until the twins are 17 that things come to a head. I felt for everyone in this tale, except Tom who is a dope. It's a nicely written quick read that will make you shake your head more than once. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I would like to thank Bookouture and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Our Secrets and Lies’ by Sinead Moriarty in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Lucy’s dreams of becoming a top lawyer are put on hold when at the age of twenty-one she becomes pregnant. Lucy decides to have an abortion but before she can tell Tom that she’s changed her mind and wants the baby, Tom’s father Gabriel sends him away to America to complete his education. Lucy gives birth to twins, Dylan and Kelly, and brings them up with the help of her parents, Billy and Toni, sister Jenny and friend Sarah. Both twins are awarded scholarships to St Jude’s where Dylan is a successful football player. Kelly wants to go into fashion design but Lucy forces her to study Law thereby living the life she wanted for herself.
‘Our Secrets and Lies’ is a thought-provoking story of love and how a mother eventually has to realise that her children are individuals and shouldn’t be coerced into something they don’t want. The story was beautifully written, it touched on the consequences of social media bullying and ended with a fitting conclusion.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is a familiar enough story: a young woman finds herself pregnant and the father is nowhere in sight so she becomes a single parent. In this instance, she is pregnant with twins, which makes things tougher. She does, however, have a wonderfully supportive network of family and friends and they all rally around to help her.

There are so many strong and interesting characters in this book that it really added to my enjoyment of the story. Lucy is a very strong woman and has brought up her children very well, but at what cost? She wants nothing but the best for them, always, and yet is her protectiveness and stubborn attitude that her children must strive for the top driving them away from her?

This was a thoroughly modern tale of single parenthood and there are many times when I was surprised at the direction the story was going but it all made a lot of sense to me. I got completely emotionally involved with Lucy and for that reason, I think this book deserves 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read this book. A beautiful poignant, heart breaking and often funny read. Lucy is a single pregnant girl. Abandoned by her boyfriend she has huge decisions to make! About to enter her final year as top of the class studying law what will she do?? And what will the future hold?? I absolutely loved it. And it honestly deserved the five stars. I highly recommend it.