Carol Wyer set the bar high by leaving readers jaws open and hearts broken in The Blossom Twins, the fifth book in the Detective Natalie Ward series. I have been waiting for this next book with bated breath. Never fear. Ms. Wyer did an exceptional job at matching the tension, nail-biting and heart-stopping drama in The Secret Admirer.

Natalie has spent three months recovering from an unbearable personal loss. She decides to go back to work and becomes immediately immersed in a case that is bound to give her very sad reminders at every turn.

Natalie and her team do their best to find the killer of a college student. A note signed “an admirer” was found that proved the young woman was targeted. By whom? Natalie begins interviewing the girls fellow housemates and students. This book does not miss a punch. Gripping from the very start, the intrigue does not stop until the very end.

The deeper Natalie's investigation goes, the more disturbing details are revealed, and one that hits far too close to home. More murders are discovered, and now Natalie’s search intensifies as she must try and find the connection and the culprit. As Natalie works feverishly to prevent more murders, lies and duplicity run fast and hard. Don’t miss this incredible book! If I have any problem with this at all, it would be wondering how I am going to be able to wait for book seven.

*Reviewer’s note: Although part of a connected series, enough information is given about past events throughout the pages of each story, thus each book can be read as a standalone.

Many thanks to Bookoture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Fans of the series know that the previous book ended with some question marks as to Natalie’s future. No worries, because Natalie is back with a case that hits close to home, and she tackles it with her usual professionalism. As always, the author does an outstanding job detailing the investigation. I loved how this one took some twists and turns; it certainly kept me guessing! Ms. Wyer has undoubtedly hit her stride with Natalie, and this page-turner is both author and heroine at their best. Although this can be read as a stand-alone, I would recommend reading the series (or at least the previous book, The Blossom Twins), because this story builds on previous events more heavily than past books.

I was blown away by the Blossom Twins a book that featured DI Natalie Ward. That one made me cry until early morning. But The Secret Admirer went a step further. It gave me shockers that had my hands trembling right at the beginning of the book.

A fatal gruesome attack on a young girl with her entire life ahead of her, an only child of a loving mother and Natalie Ward went back to work to head that investigation.

Having read almost all of author Carol Wyer's books, I knew that I was in for a rocking ride. What I didn't know was that the ride would start from the get-go. The tale was intriguing where the investigation led to minimal clues. I too was left scratching my head trying to decipher the identity of the killer.

The book had twists, absolutely shocking ones, my stomach fell and my hands became cold on reading that. The author had a wickedly clever mind to think up such a plot twist. The story had layers, different nuances and expressions. Each page told me something different. Of all the books I have read, and I have read a lot, this was the most complete ones.

There was a sense of poetry to it, a flow to the way she amalgamated the past, present, and future of Natalie's life and to a small extent of her team mmembers' too. There was nothing incongruous in the prose. Each section felt as if they belonged to tell me a story, if I would sit down to listen. And believe me, I listened. I savored every word that the book told me.

I had a lump in my throat at certain sections. I felt loss keenly and I understood Natalie Ward just a bit more. What can I say more about this book? It was everything and something more. Very, very different. It was Carol Wyer at her best showing me her sensitive and wicked side. Both made me smile.

Read it to believe it. But read the series from the beginning, then you would love DI Natalie Wards as much as I do. She is special.