This is the first book I have read that switches between a third person and first person narrative. I was a little put off by that at the beginning but I am glad I continued to read it because the intention behind that became clear as the story progressed.

The narrative moves between the police and the murderer, which is not unusual. But in this book, you realise your sympathies lie with the killer since it is a tale of domestic abuse. I kept reading not to know who-did-it, but rather to find out what happened to the murderer at the end.

I have given only 4-stars for a different reason.
There seemed to be a lot of repetition of facts and I skimmed through quite a few pages because of that.
Also, the final page, which is meant to be a "big reveal" and "twist in the tale", doesn't quite add up with the evidence given before. How could that happen if he broke his neck?

Nevertheless, it is a good read.

There are helpline numbers at the end to support victims of abuse.

This book first drew me in because of the location, the tidbit of history we learn, and then the mystery and the determination of friends and family to solve it. I truly enjoyed it.

'Secret Places', the latest novel from author Heather Peck puts us smack bang in the middle of the grey area in a troubled woman's mind.

Goat farmer, cheese maker and weaver Tristan Smith is working on her North Yorkshire smallholding when a chance visit by archaeologists exposes a skeleton in an abandoned WW2 bunker. But it’s not a wartime casualty.

Tristan becomes involved in the search for the truth about her predecessors, as DI Greg Geldard follows a trail from North Yorkshire to the Norfolk Broads. He is seeking justice for a long-dead victim; but another casualty is hunting for a new life and a safe place to start again.

Peck knows how to put readers on edge whilst maintaining some mystery right up until she is ready to reveal secrets that drive this story along. Secret Places feels part detective thriller and part PTSD. Tristan is for the most part a likable character but she also has a dark side, which could be triggered when her freedom is threatened.

This isn't a long read and will keep readers gripped until its conclusion.

Great book that I recommend. Wow what an ending. I most enjoyed the POV of Rachel, who was the most interesting character I thought.

My thanks to the Author publisher's and NetGalley for providing me with a Kindle version of this book to read and honestly review.
Well written atmospheric clever descriptive this is an intelligent engaging read. Told from several points of view and past and present so you gather what's happening from different perspectives and various versions of what happened. Complex emotional and at times poignant a tale of abuse in all it's forms and the after affects.
WARNING :- Slight Spoiler alert.
Having finished the book I was pleased to read the Author state there was a sequel, which I assumed would deal with the aftermath of this book, and maybe deal with how several excellent characters moved on. However when looking up on Amazon I was somewhat gobsmacked that this book was the second in the DCI Greg Geldard series, in my opinion by far the least interesting character in the book and who by my recollection had a smaller part than brilliant Brizo the dog.
Recommended.

Don’t you just love it when you read a book and you’re reading it in full speed, the same pacing the story is going. That’s what happened to me here.

This book gave me Raymond Chandler vibes. We start with the detective in his apartment, a woman bidding his goodbye. He’s looking for a change in his routines schedule. A body is found is found in an observation base.

I think the reason it gave me Chandler vibes was because of the way it was written. It’s different. You can feel it. And I really like it. Even though the story is based in 2015, it has a noir vibe. And it works really well with detective stories.

I also noticed that the author has taken the time cultivate the characters and the plot. From the first chapter, the reader can sense the atmosphere of the story. It’s like a painted picture in my mind. The characters are established, their place in the story is known. I also like that all the characters are made important in some way. They don’t feel like they are placed randomly to fill a void.

The mystery is interesting in a way that I couldn’t predict it. I was so engrossed in the flow of the story that I forgot to rack my brain to guess. I truly enjoyed it.

I think I’d recommend this book to Agatha Christie readers and Raymond Chandler fans. It has the same atmosphere, mystery and the sense of urgency to find out more.

I’ll be posting my review on Goodreads and on my blog. I will also review the book on commercial sites.

How do you get a closed room mystery, without a room, but on a farm? With this mystery! when a dead body appears in a WWII closed off bunker, it becomes a closed room mystery, trying to figure out who had access to the bunker, and who the victim is! Geldard cant figure out who is dead in the bunker, and then when he does, how it was done. When the story finally evolves, you'll be equally shocked and not surprised, and find yourself rooting for the suspect, in an odd way. It's a page turner of a story and quick read!

My thanks to NetGalley, publisher BooksGoSocial, and author Heather Peck for the electronic copy.

This is just such an intriguing read: it's well-written, with good characters and believable dialogue, and I particularly enjoyed the format of the storyline which is told from past and present from the main character, Rachel's point of view, gradually colliding with the current police investigation moving from Yorkshire to the Norfolk Broads; there's lots of twists as the story unfolds.
Tristan Smith and assistant Chris work Coombe Farm in the Vale of York. Unbeknown to them, 75 years previously a WW2 underground bunker was built in preparation of any invasion. Following its closure it had been used by the landowners as a disposal pit for animal carcasses from the original large sheep farm. Out of the blue, two researchers from a museum in Parham, Suffolk, contact Tristan in order to access the structure and, on doing so, discover a human skeleton amongst the animal remains. One which had not been there since war time.
DI Greg Goddard and his team start their intricate investigation, which leads them to having to find Rachel Wade's whereabouts - last known to have moored a boat on the Norfolk Broads.

This is a fascinating and complex story, but tackles the subject of domestic abuse, coercion and control. Rachel loses all sense of self-worth during her marriage to Matthew - who then abandons her. She starts a new life with dog Bozo on the Broads and falls into the same trap when a local shopkeeper, Phillip, muscles-in on her life - leading her to some very desperate thinking, and actions, leading to a very dramatic ending.

Held my attention throughout.

Very intriguing story and wonderful story telling. Unique perspective used, first and third person and it works nicely here

A very interesting story crafted in an unusual way.
This is the first book I have read that switches between a third person and first person narrative. I was a little put off by that at the beginning but I am glad I continued to read it because the intention behind that became clear as the story progressed.
The narrative moves between the police and the murderer, which is not unusual. But in this book, you realise your sympathies lie with the killer since it is a tale of domestic abuse. I kept reading not to know who-did-it, but rather to find out what happened to the murderer at the end.
I have given only 4-stars for a different reason. There seemed to be a lot of repetition of facts and I skimmed through quite a few pages because of that. Also, the final page which is meant to be a "big reveal" and "twist in the tale" doesn't quite add up with the evidence given before. How could that happen if he broke his neck???
Nevertheless, it is a good read.
There are helpline numbers at the end to support victims of abuse.

Wow that was a crazy ending! But thus book was very interesting! It had such a unique storyline! I mean things like this do happen in real life! This book had intrigue, drama, lots of heartache and heartbreak! It definitely had a lot to do with domestic abuse! So readers be aware! It was a great story though! I definitely recommend reading this book! Its well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

An easy read with a twist I wasn't expecting. Changing the POV mid way was interesting and I don't normally like it when books do that but this was different and it carried on to the end of the story, with the result that you see the story from a completely different perspective. Look forward to the next one in the series. Thanks for the ARC

I loved the character of Tristan Smith with a great work ethic making the most of her goats by not only selling cheese made from their milk but rugs made from their wool. Also loved Ben, someone you could rely on. The message of bullying and coercive behaviour was interwound into the book with a piece at the end about how to get help if it affected you. There was a great twist to the story.

Secret Places by Heather Peck is a crime mystery with a an unexpected kick. When I was invited on the tour this book cover stood out and I was curious before I read the synopsis.
Secret Places is set not too far from me on a farm in North Yorkshire and Heather Peck has actually used the local dialect within the story, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Goat farmer Tristan Smith (female in case you wonder), has a skeleton found on her land and finds herself in the spotlight, not only with the media but with the police too, when they start by thinking her a suspect. Luckily they start to look into previous owners of her farm and she finds herself drawn into the search for the truth behind the skeleton. Simultaneously in a different part of the U.K, the Norfolk Broads, we meet Rachel Wade, wanting a new start but torn with leaving Coombe Farm, will she walk away?
This is as I said a crime mystery with a kick. The kick being the underlying topic of Domestic Violence and the effects it has on the victim and everyone around them too. Heather Peck has brought this into the story in a way that doesn't overpower the actual main thread and she has found the balance with this terribly sensitive topic and I applaud her for that alone. Domestic Violence is very close to my heart as I have suffered forms of it and gone on to volunteer for a DV Helpline in my past.
Back to the book, the characters were nicely drawn with the domestic abuse helping to make me care for them. The one character that touched me was Rachel, she embodied a few women I have helped and yes I wanted to knock some sense into her head but I also understood. There are some colourful characters in this story and they made this a story that could have been written about a village anywhere in real life.
A book that I really enjoyed, for the main story of a crime and for the excellently dealt with topic of Domestic violence too. An interesting and entertaining book for me.
Thanks to Random Things Tours and Heather Peck and Siverwood Books for my copy of the book and my place on the tour.

I really liked this book, even though it felt a bit uneven at times. But for a first outing, it was great. It's a DI Greg Geldard book and I'm assuming, the first in a series. We first get introduced to Tristan Smith, goat and sheep farmer, on whose land archeologists find a skeleton in a WWII bunker. DI Gillard heads the investigation into what proves to be a murder. But the main character ends up being the former owner of the homestead, Rachel, whose husband mysteriously vanished. Beaten down psychologically by her husband and consequently another man, she is a fascinating and sad character. I got mad at her at times for making mistakes over and over again. Even her dog, Briso, much loved, is at times in danger because of Rachel's decisions.

Thank you Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for the eARC.
Even though it felt a bit uneven at times, I really enjoyed this book and thought it was terrific for a first outing. We start with Tristan Smith, goat and sheep farmer, on whose land archeologists find a skeleton in a WWII bunker. DI Greg Gillard and his team investigate what proves to be a murder and end up trying to find the ex-owner of the homestead, Rachel, whose husband mysteriously vanished. After that she sold up and is now impossible to find.
She is a fascinating character; beaten down psychologically by her husband and consequently another man, she and her dog Brizo are basically on the run. She made me mad at times; making the same mistakes over and over, to the point she even endangers her beloved Brizo.
It's a great story and I hope there will be a second Gillard book, maybe even with Tristan again (another excellent character), as I believe it's the start of a series. Highly recommended!

A body is found in an old bunker, we figure out who it is. Suspicion is cast on the landowner and the previous landowner.
I enjoyed this book. I liked the farm and nature descriptions. The story was solid.
There were some formatting issues on the kindle download, like lines dropping and random paragraphs inserted.
There were lots of characters and lots of POVs, sometimes repeating scenes, which was a bit boring. I most enjoyed the POV of Rachel, who was the most interesting character. Big thumbs up for the shelter dog adoption :)