Jennifer Hillier is a great author and this book was very captivating and had me on the edge of my seat. The pacing was fantastic and was a page turner for sure. Highly recommend.

"Little Secrets" by Jennifer Hillier is a chilling and suspenseful thriller that delves into the darkest corners of the human psyche. The novel follows Marin Machado, a woman consumed by grief and guilt after her young son, Sebastian, goes missing in a crowded shopping mall. As Marin's marriage unravels under the weight of their shared loss, she becomes obsessed with finding the truth about what happened to her son, even if it means uncovering painful secrets from her past.

Hillier masterfully crafts a tense and atmospheric narrative that keeps readers on the edge of their seats until the very end. The character of Marin is complex and compelling, her raw emotions and relentless determination drawing readers into her harrowing journey. As Marin delves deeper into the mystery of Sebastian's disappearance, she uncovers shocking revelations and unexpected twists that challenge everything she thought she knew.

The supporting cast of characters, including Marin's husband, Derek, and her best friend, Sal, adds depth and dimension to the story, as each grapples with their own demons and motivations. Hillier expertly explores themes of grief, betrayal, and the lengths people will go to protect the ones they love, weaving a tangled web of lies and deception that keeps readers guessing until the final page.

Overall, "Little Secrets" is a gripping and thought-provoking thriller that will leave readers breathless. With its fast-paced plot, nuanced characters, and spine-tingling suspense, it's a must-read for fans of psychological fiction. Jennifer Hillier proves once again why she is a master of the genre, delivering a haunting and unforgettable tale that lingers long after the final chapter.

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

Little secrets can unravel your life faster than you can imagine. Her world ended and everything she held dear came apart. Each secret will keep you desperate to find out more.

This book had me HOOKED!!! It’s packed with so many secrets, from all characters, so much emotion….. I cried for Marin and what she was going through, her miracle child goes missing, her personal life is in shambles, and the people who were supposed to be there for her are not who they seemed. It was a wild ride that’s for sure. 80% into the book I solved the case but I didn’t expect the story to TWIST the way that it did. Totally enjoyed it…

Well this book title is certainly apt. I’ll admit it took me a long while to really get into this as I couldn’t see how all of it would come together, but once all the little secrets were revealed, I liked how everything fit and it made for a good story.

Another win from Hillier! Really enjoyed this one. Didn’t suspect any of what ended up happening. So good!

Little Secrets was my introductory ear-read to author Jennifer Hillier and it won’t be my last! This story was quite riveting and the lines between good and evil are definitely blurry here. After her four-year-old son is taken in broad daylight in a packed Seattle marketplace, Marin has lived her life just going through the motions. Video footage shows Sebastian leaving the area with someone dressed as Santa and no trace of him is ever found. She had one attempted suicide several months ago, but she had made a promise to herself that if Sebastian is found dead, she will be following him.

Fifteen months later, Marin is seeing a therapist, participating in a support group and has hired a private investigator to keep searching. Through the P.I., Marin discovers her husband, Derek, is having an affair. Though I do not condone Derek’s actions, their marriage is practically nonexistent. They rarely see one another or speak and for all intents and purposes are living separate lives.

The rage that Marin feels is so palpable and so blinding in its intensity it drives Marin to do the unthinkable and remove the threat to her marriage from her life. While I had a hard time with Marin’s decision, I certainly understood it and I felt massive quantities of empathy and compassion for her. It’s certainly easy for someone to Monday morning quarterback the situation, but how can any of us say, with complete certainty, how we would react to our child being taken and then having this bombshell land in our laps? I enjoyed that this story dives into Marin’s choices and her thoughts and feelings about it, which drive her to make other choices.

I really wanted to hate the other woman, Kenzie, but she elicited some empathy and compassion from me too once I got to know her backstory and understood what was driving her motivation. As with Marin, I didn’t approve of the choices Kenzie was making in life, but she is one of those characters that make an impact. She’s a survivor, she’s had loads of experience getting the short end of the stick and she knows that nobody is going to look out for her so she has to do it herself.

Marin’s best friend, Sal, was also an interesting character and his unwavering love for Marin was keenly felt. I also enjoyed the scenes with Marin and her support group, listening to their experiences and how they were coping with their own loss and pain.

This story packed quite a punch and Ms. Hillier does a wonderful job of drawing the reader into Marin’s life with all the feels. I began to feel anxiety whenever the private investigator reached out, terrified at what news she had to impart. Please, God, let Sebastian be found alive. I went with the unabridged audio format for this book and I think my enjoyment of this story was in great part to the wonderful narration by Kirsten Potter. Her performance brought these characters to life and their thoughts and emotions were portrayed realistically.

My Final Verdict: Overall, this story was equally intense and convincing. At the heart of the story, my main concern was who took Sebastian and what happened to him. My need for closure was strong and Ms. Hillier delivered on all fronts. I highly recommend this story to readers who love thrillers and novels of domestic suspense. All the threads are neatly tied off with this story, though I can’t say it ends with a happily ever after, there is hope for healing.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of Little Secrets from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this and will continue to read Jennifer Hillier books. This one really drew me in right away and I couldn’t put it down.

This definitely wasn’t my favorite Jennifer Hillier book, I was sad that I had it all figured out at 50%.

Jar of Hearts and the Freak/Creep duology were flawless so maybe I went in with too high of expectations.

She still remains one of my favorite thriller writers to date!

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 4 ⭐️ for Goodreads.

This was my second book by Jennifer Hillier and I keep asking myself why did I wait so long?

While the book deals with a couple hot topics such as cheating and kidnapping, it was eye opening, a look at what one goes through and what one might end up thinking/doing.

It was an edge of your seat, page turner with a few twists and turns, some predictable, some not, but it keeps you turning those pages!!

If you haven't read any of Jennifer's books what are you waiting for? Don't be like me, starting reading them now!! I'm off to start What We do in the Dark.

#Marin #Derek #Sal #JR #Julian #Cheating #Kidnapping #PageTurner #LovedIt #NetGalley

This was my first book by Jennifer Hillier but it will not be my last. The twists and turns in the plot kept me guessing, and even when I thought I had it all figured out, I did not. Even without being a mother I could feel Marin's pain from Sebastian being taken. I read this book in two days because I just had to know what would happen. This was 5 stars all the way!

** ARC received from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Hmm. I'm not sure how I feel about this one. It kept me reading which is good but it fell a little flat at the end for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC of "Little Secrets" This was my first Jennifer Hillier book and I am hooked on her now! This book was very suspenseful! I liked this book second best of hers with "Jar of Hearts'" being my first favorite!

Thank you to Jennifer, Minotaur Books, and Netgalley for an advance copy of Little Secrets.

Marin’s life was amazing. Great husband, successful business owner of multiple hair salons, and a beautiful son, Sebastian. And then their son is taken when she lets go of his hand during a Christmas shopping trip and her world falls apart. After a year of no answers and a cold case, Marin doesn’t even remember the person she used to be, the marriage she used to have. The private investigator that she hired to pick up where the cops left off has found something…not about Sebastian, but about her husband and his new (younger) girlfriend. Discovering that her husband has looked for comfort outside of their bed pushes Marin to get moving. She refuses to lose another member of her family, and she knows someone who can help her solve this problem.

I’ve seen a ton of hype about this book over the last couple of years, and I am here to say that it is well-placed hype. I will also say that I pride myself on having no triggers, nothing is too much for me to handle…and this book almost got me. Having a toddler and imagining him being taken was almost too much for me. So if that is an issue for you, read with caution. I am glad that I got through it because it was a fantastic book.

I tend to go into books blindly, so I did not know the plot prior, and I was totally misdirected into thinking that this was a book about tracking down her missing son, so when we took the turn into trying to get rid of the mistress, I was surprised. There was so much going on at every turn with two pretty heavy duty topics, but it didn’t feel overwhelming or hard to keep straight.

Marin was also very easy to love, despite the fact that she wanted to off her husband’s lover without even knowing if she even knew of Marin’s existence. I think we have all had similar feelings, but some research should be done before making that drastic of a decision! Regardless, her resilience and determination to get her life back on track regardless of what she has to do to get there was something I really enjoyed about her, for better or worse.

This as my first Jennifer Hillier, I have several others on my TBR and look forward to reading them.

A great read by this author. I definitely recommend checking this one out!
Thank you NetGalley for providing a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

TWISTYYYYYYY wow i was not expecting that at ll. Im not gunna lie I was a little bored at first but it quickly picked up and I'm so happy I stuck with it.

One of Jennifer Hilliers best. The book that made me a fan of hers, Marin is just such a fun lead character,

This was a twisty tale that had me guessing until nearly the end. Four minutes is all it took for her son to be taken while she was on the phone with her husband and distracted and a year and half later there are still no leads to where he is. Marin is still struggling in her day-to-day even though she is back to work but when she gets a call from the PI she hired to come to her office she is not expecting to find out her husband, Derek, is having an affair. This leads her down the road to stalking the other woman and when she drunkenly tells her best friend about this woman he comes up with the solution of knowing someone to get rid of the body (thinking she will do away with her husband). Twists and turns and finding out all the interwoven parts kept this one moving at a pace that could not be stopped. I will be putting this author on a must buy list from now on.

This was my first Jennifer Hillier book and I absolutely loved it. Every piece of the story falls into place . I was so shocked on the ending and never ever expected that. This storyline was amazing. I definitely would recommend