Quite a mature piece of writing where Isla rushed to her sister’s home when she got a call from her nephew about Annie perishing in the fire. But all was not as it seemed. Truths were found in the ashes of a life that had been burning long before the fire.

Having read nearly all of S. E. Lynes books, I would say I liked how the story pulled its surprises right till the last page. The writing kept the feeling, that I was not being told the truth, alive right through. It pulled me into the book further.

The characters were complex and had lived many lifetimes in that single life. Isla was the one I was most connected to as she was pulled and pushed by others, seen and unseen. Though I didn’t like her as a sister. She was just not good enough a support.

Some parts had too much of narration with repetitive thoughts and time jumps. But the book got interesting when the court case started and continued on to become explosive right up to the end.

A slow burn suspense that would pluck the strings of the curiosity till the final page.

Her Sisters's secret was a brilliant read. It was unputdownable.
Isla gets a phonecall from her nephew telling her that her sister and her husband have been killed...
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Her Sister's Secret by S.E. Lynes was another brilliant read. All Susie's books I have read I have enjoyed. I am always hooked within the first few pages and all my jobs for that day, goes out of the window and I just have to sit there and read my kindle.

I can Highly recommend this book and all her books. they are a 5 star read!

Big Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for this ARC

Wow wow Wow. Another unputdownable brilliantly plotted story from this absolutely wonderful author. Loved loved loved this one. One of my best reads of the year.

Do not pick up this book unless you devote time to read it because once you start…there’s no going back.

Susie Lynes is amazing at causing readers to experience that jaw dropping twist that all readers of thrillers hope for.

You know the one… it happens when the plot seems to maintain your interest and then… BAM! She reveals the twist that causes your jaw to ha g open and question all you knew or thought you knew about the story.

This story is packed full of shady characters. The best example is Dom… I mean, if you don’t hate his disgusting guts almost immediately, I would question what book you were reading! It seems so obvious that Annie and Isla have secrets that have caused them to fall out or lose touch.

But what are the secrets? What are they hiding? I love how the story is told from multiple perspectives across time periods and the plot slowly reveals the truth behind how Annie and Dom met their fate.

The truth will shock you and definitely leave you breathless! I hugged my kindle at the end. And I’ll leave that right there in order to avoid spoilers

Her Sisters Secret is a great thriller. I haven’t read a book I haven’t liked by this author.
Isla received a phone call, it’s her nephew, Cal, telling her that her sister and husband are dead. Isla travels to her nephew hoping they can help each other with their loss but things don’t always go to plan as Isla finds very quickly that something is amiss and Cal is arrested for the murder of his mother. Isla is shocked to discover that her sisters life wasn’t quite as it seemed. On the outside Annie and Dom had the perfect life whenever Isla visited, which wasn’t often over the last few years but as Isla soon realises through talking to Annie’s friends and neighbours her sisters life was far from happy.
This was a gripping read that I enjoyed and like the twists and turns and I didn’t guess the big reveal which is a thumbs up from me. I’m not talking too much about it as you are best coming in blind as I think you’ll enjoy it so much more.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! This book is so refreshingly brilliant. For me, it ticks all the boxes when it comes to psychological fiction. I personally think it’s quite brave to compare a novel to something someone like Lisa Jewell might write, but in this case the comparison completely stands up.

“Gossip’s a dangerous thing. It can be life or death.”

Ultimately, there is tension and suspense throughout this book. We are pointed towards a few different scenarios of what could have happened, and as readers we play out the outcomes of each. It is clear that gossip, half-truths and lies play a huge role in this book and the way it is cleverly plotted make it difficult to choose a side. However, I loved reading from the multiple perspectives.

“Love and hate. Embracing and fighting. A thin line.”

The book explores lots of oxymorons and extremes of emotion, including love and hate. It also hints at the dangers of faking it when it comes to love. Due to this book being highly charged and emotional, there are lots of explosive scenes but none quite like the ending. There is a killer twist which you will not predict, and I absolutely love it.

This book is so well written too, in every sense. Yes you have the multi-faceted characters, the elements of suspense and the good plot line, but they also exist in the majority of the psychological fiction I read. What takes this book to the next level is: the careful organisation of the structure, which makes you feel like you are peeling off layers of an onion to reveal some level of transparency. To continue the simile, it can become quite painful as you become impatient to reach the satisfying moment when all will be revealed. However, it is absolutely impossible not to enjoy the rollercoaster in the book, too.

This book also has a really strong psychological element which, surprisingly I do find lacking in some books in this genre. You can see the character’s heads are being messed with, especially Isla, but you feel like your head is being mashed too. This is a great feeling because it ensures you are completely engrossed and invested in the book.

Another clear talent of S E Lynes is providing droplets of just beautifully written truths or descriptions, ones that make you stop and think, and a couple of which I have included here. She does not leave it up to the plot to engage the reader and you get the sense that she has poured over every word or sentence to get the mood and message across in just the right way.

Finally, you have to give credit for the ending. There will be absolutely no spoilers here but you will not see it coming. It takes us out of our claustrophobic village setting and takes us somewhere quite different…. it’s so good!

I am going to finish here by saying that this book and author comes highly recommended, and I am definitely bumping her previous book, The Housewarming up the TBR!

📚 BOOK REVIEW 📚 Her sisters Secret by S E Lynes - publication date - 13th July 2021.

Annie was a single mum, when she met Dom, a kind and loving man, who would give her a good life for her and her son. Leaving her parents and sister in scotland.

Years later,‘Annie’s sister Isla, gets a call from her distraught nephew..... his mum and stepdad have died in a fire ...... so of course Isla immediately leaves her now home London, to find out what has happened. Not everyone’s lives are what they seem ......

I have read a few books by this author and this one ..... well holy sh*t!! I worry about this author .....,, where does she get these ideas from lol?!
Gripping book with a hell of a twist - perfect!!!!!!

#arc #netgalley #SELynes #bookouture #bookstagramshaz

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Her Sister's Secret by S.E. Lynes was a bit of a slow starter for me, but more than made up for this in the final third of the book, and I was virtually flying through the pages as I neared the end.

Isla's sister Annie has had a difficult time, falling pregnant at 16 and raising her young son alone. Things change, however, when she meets and marries Dom, and the two begin to jointly manage a successful holiday cottage rental enterprise on the Scottish coast. So when Isla receives a call from her nephew Callum telling her that both Annie and Dom are dead, her world shatters. When Cal himself is accused of murder, Isla knows that she must find the truth of what really transpired behind the closed doors of this seemingly idyllic domestic tableau.

Told with all of the intensity and palpable tension that we have come to associate with the writing of this talented author, this is one that you won't want to miss.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an ARC.

This is a psychological Thriller.

We are introduced to Isla Andrews who gets a phonecall from her Nephew to tell her that her sister and her husband have been killed.

This will keep you on the edge of your seat with all the twists and turns throughout the whole book.

The writing was poetic which is a new way that I've read these books with and it was a refreshing take on the genre.

I was given a copy of Her Sister's Secret by NetGalley for my honest review. I absolutely loved this story!

Set in Scotland, Her Sister’s Secret is a beautifully written, poignant and powerful story of sisterhood, family relationships and how nothing is what it is perceived to be.

A gripping thriller with an unexpected ending. The characters were very realistic. I felt like I knew them.

I highly recommend this 5 star read.

Great book! I knew something wasn’t quite right as the story went on but I didn’t suspect that ending at all!

This story was told from two perspectives over past and present storylines, the story is beautifully written
and the beauty of Scotland and England is profound with beautifully described descriptions and i truly enjoyed this story.

Loved this book. It was intense and had my attention right from the beginning through until the end. The author does an incredible job of pulling you right into the main characters' minds and yet still I didn't see the end coming! And then when you think it's resolved, another twist. Highly recommend!

Thank you to the author, Bookouture, and NetGalley for the ARC.

Although this book took longer to read than it would normally that was my circumstances, not the book. The book did appear a little slow but the final third was absolutely brilliant. The story was about Annie, her son Cal and Annie’s husband Dom and what led to the death of Annie and Dom. The story goes from the first phone call from Cal to his Auntie Isla (Annie’s sister) through the trial for murder and beyond. The ending was superb and nothing like I had imagined or guessed at. Another superb novel by Ms Lynes.

Oh that ending!
Isla's world crashes with one phone call. Callum, her nephew, tells her Annie, his mother and Isla's sister has died tragically in a fire.
Isla drops her life to rush to his side. After the initial investigation, the police determine both Annie and her husband, Dominic, are both brutally murdered before the fire. Shockingly Cal is arrested for Annie's murder. And the secrets are just beginning.
Dealing with her sister's tragic death, Isla is forced to cope with Annie's life - all the secrets Annie spared her.
I loved these characters- Annie building an amazing life regardless of her life troubles. Isla embracing her sister's legacy- her friendships, business, desperate to know what really happened.

Annie and Isla are sisters; Annie is married to Dom and they live in a gorgeous house by the sea, whilst Isla lives in London. One night, Isla receives a phone call from Callum, her nephew. He tells Isla that Dom and Annie are both dead so Isla heads off to Dorset.

As a habitual reader of novels by Susie Lynes, I couldn't wait to get started on this novel. It was equally as good as the others I've read, and I found it captivating. The twisty tale is artfully narrated through Isla in the present and Annie's flashbacks. The clarity of Susie Lynes's writing made it an easy storyline to follow, and the evenly paced and tense plot went down a treat. The author's writing is of a variety that any thriller fan can appreciate -first class - and she was able to create a tone of intensity that continued until the very last page. A mesmerising and riveting story. 😊

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Bookouture via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

This was one of the best thrillers I've read this year. The writing is great, with good characters and a well built suspenseful story. I expected the twist from early on, but that did not ruin the book for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

A solid psychological thriller with so many twists. Well written and compulsively readable. It has all the elements that will keep you guessing - plenty of secrets and small town types who keep to themselves. You will feel all the emotions throughout this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

This is a fantastic domestic thriller told by sisters Annie and Isla in past and in present. Isla in the present with flashbacks from both sisters. This story is set in Scotland and in Dorset and Susie's descriptions of both places really pull you in, with the coastal setting particularly creating a moody atmosphere to the story. The plot is brilliantly woven and makes for a gripping read! Plenty of twists and turns and wondering who to believe in this suspenseful read!

The characters are well written and one of them I really detested! Lynes makes you question how well we know our closest family and friends and how far we would go to help someone we love? This was a real page turner for me that I raced through to find out who was to blame!