Overall I enjoyed the book, but couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed when it ended, I thought it was rather abrupt. It’s written from the point of view of three characters, each chapter has the person’s name at the top so you know who is telling the story. I like this format, and the story flowed well. From the start I was invested and wanted to find out what was going to happen. I recommend this book, thank you #netgalley

Best friends Hollie and Niamh tell each other everything. They are the best of friends.
One day Hollie tells Niamh about a devastating discovery, swears her to secrecy, then vanishes. The villagers claim to know nothing. But when Hollie’s body is found, the police know one of the villagers isn’t just a liar, but a killer…

I really enjoyed this book, there were plenty of twists and turns to hold my interest and keep me guessing. I loved how there were two stories in this book that eventually crossed over into each other and how it was all tied together. I will say this for such a tiny village there were a lot of not nice people who lived there. But they all got the just dessert’s in the end.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Unfortunately I haven’t read much over the holidays but started this in the New year and finished last night just in time for release day today! So this is out now and if you like a psychological thriller this is well worth picking up.
It was easy to read and had my interest quickly which is what I really needed to be able to forget the real world for a while.
The writing was a slightly different style for me although I can’t put it into words why. I did wonder if I’d get on with it at the very beginning but the story quickly got me hooked.
Told from the points of view of two women and a girl it tells the story of two families in one very small English village and, as the title lets us know, everyone seems to have a Secret.
Trigger warning for domestic abuse and coercive control and general talk of child porn.
I really enjoyed this story and liked the characters especially Elise and Jo.

My first time to read Debbie Howells but definitely not the last! Enjoyed this domestic thriller very much. Great POVs and storyline that was easy to follow. Loved the characters!
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

So this was full on. I love a thriller and this did not disappoint.
Trigger for domestic abuse and suicide though. This was definitely not one for the faint-hearted. It was so good though - a great pace to it and definitely had some unexpected twists and turns to it. A tense psychological thriller was just what I needed!

I also was intrigued that this was set like an hour from where I live!
_
Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for this one.

You can never really know what goes on behind closed doors, can you? When a young woman goes missing in a small village the police soon realise that there are secrets waiting to be uncovered.

A dark psychological thriller that is totally gripping.

This is the book I’ve read from Debbie Howells, and to be honest it was a decent physiological thriller,Elise is married to her doctor husband Andrew who in public portrays a caring amiable persona,but behind closed doors he is a controlling bully who delights in bullying Elise and their daughter Niamh and having numerous affairs which he delights in taunting Elise about,.the police become involved when a child porn ring is thought to have its roots in the village where they all live.With plenty of twists and turns along the way and secrets being revealed it is a book that kept me interested to the final chapter.A good 4 star read from Debbie Howells.

Fabulous! What an absolute corker of a book! More twists than your local theme park rollercoaster and some absolutely horrid characters who make for a great read. Families, close-knit villagers who close ranks when push comes to shove, dubious financial transactions and secrets between friends, not to mention an occasional lie to distract from what goes on behind closed doors. All of this and so very much more kept me turning the pages in Debbie Howells' latest gripping tale so fast that I had whipped through it in under 24 hours. And that is a rarity for me!
Niamh and Hollie are the only 2 teenagers in the village of Abingworth and as such stand out among the residents. They live in each other's pockets, telling each other everything. Yet when Hollie goes missing, Niamh seems to be in the dark as much as anyone as to what could have happened to Hollie. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Elise is trapped in a loveless marriage to Andrew, a local gp. He is overbearing and manipulative. Two sudden deaths and the investigation into a children porn ring intertwines with Elise’s life. Her daughter knows more than she has admitted. Secrets she has kept for her brother and friend. Elise also has a secret that she hadn’t shared. The story is told from Elise’s viewpoint , her daughters and one of the detectives. Thoroughly enjoyable read

Thank you to the publishers at Avon Books UK and Netgalley for this e-ARC of The Secret.

The Secret is a multi POV novel set in a quaint English village. Elise, wife to a doctor and mother to daughter, Niamh, is in a loveless marriage with a serial adulterer. Niamh is one of only two teenagers in her small village, and Jo is the police officer called in to inspect the death of Niamh’s friend, Hollie.

Secrets are fervent in this village, with everyone seeming to be holding something back. While Jo investigates the disappearance and subsequent death of Hollie, secrets will begin to unravel in every direction. You’ll never guess the biggest secret of them all.

I enjoyed this book for the most part. While it was a bit repetitive at times, I was definitely interested in figuring out the secret that Hollie shared with Niamh shortly before her untimely death, and I have to say that I definitely didn’t see it coming. The ending was also a great twist. Overall though, the characters and dialogue were kind of bland and cliché-y.

The Secret releases January 6th!

The quaint village of Abingworth is cloaked with deception. Everyone has a secret and no one is to be trusted. Hollie and Niamh are best friends. After Hollie reveals one of her darkest secrets, she vanishes. Later when her body is discovered; many of the villagers suddenly go from being neighbors to suspects. What secret is worth killing for? Who is responsible for Hollie’s death? This mystery has many secrets, some of which are disturbing. The story was a little slow paced at the beginning, but picked up towards the end. The final twists were jaw dropping and unexpected. Thank you NetGalley and Avon for my copy.

This was an exciting psychological read. It was uncomfortable to read in places but extremely well written.
I didn’t actually much like Niamh, though he upbringing and vile father probably had a part in that. I also didn’t warm to Elise but that’s not to say they weren’t written well. They definitely were!
The book seemed too slow down towards the end and become quite obvious and then a very sudden twist to finish
I will definitely search out more books by this author

This book was a bit hard to read in places, a family suffering metal and physical abuse.
It had me really captivated and reading very late to find out what happened. The very end was totally not what I thought, but I love the way that Debbie Howells manages to get you immersed in the storyline.
Thank you netgalley

I have just spent about three days with Elise. Elise seems to have it all, a job where she travels to different cities on a weekly basis, a daughter doing well at school, a grand house in a tight knit village, and a husband who is the village doctor. So why does driving home fill her with dread? Why is her life shrouded in secrets?, and what kind of devastation will it take for the secrets to be shared?..
A tale about abuse, and loss. and control, and fear. A book with well developed characters. A quick easy read.

This is an intense psychological suspense. The multilayered plot and relatable characters make this a book you have to finish.

The themes are noir-crime but they are sensitively written. Told from two unreliable protagonist viewpoints this is a poignant story with immersive suspense.

The third viewpoint from the detective on the case adds a police procedural element. The detective is complex and insightful.
The final twists resonate.

I received a copy of this book from Avon Books UK via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

The story was set well, but I really struggled with Andrew, I didn’t find him believable. I did enjoy the story and the stories entwined were compelling. I kind of guessed the plot twist but it was definitely worth the read.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

This book was a fast paced psychological thriller that grabbed your attention right from the start. The characters in this book all seemed to have a dark aura around them and the book was written with multiple points of view which made the flow easy to follow.

The story revolved around a small village in the UK with an ongoing investigation into a child pornography ring. Add to this the dark secrets of the Buckley family, the disappearance of a local girl and sometimes unreliable characters, this book kept me guessing right to the end. The Buckley family included Elise, (mother/wife/airline flight attendant), Niamh (teen daughter/student/friend) and Andrew (father/husband/local Doctor). The secrets of this family and the small community in which they lived intertwined and provided the backdrop for this quick moving storyline.

I enjoyed reading this eARC and would like to thank the publisher for the opportunity to review.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books, this book is terrifyingly a compelling page turner, I anxiously enjoyed this story and whilst reading it “it felt like watching a movie peeking through my fingers that were covering my eyes” and yet I could not put it down. Midway through, there were parts that made me feel squeamish and quite uncomfortable and I feel it’s worth mentioning there are particular triggers throughout the story regarding child exploitation and domestic violence and yet I was so engrossed in the unfolding story I was compelled to keep on reading.

The idyllic village of Abingworth, where everybody knows everybody, it really does go to show, non-one ever really knows what goes on behind closed doors, over the neighbouring fence, down the end of that leafy secluded drive-way. How well do loving parents know what their adored children get up to, who they mix with, or the secrets they are hiding from their parents.

I couldn’t help repeating to myself throughout the story a headline ‘Only 10% of people are good’ that Elise a flight attendant, Niamhs mother, had noticed on a passenger’s magazine, and I felt as the story evolved there was never a truer word spoken. To me it felt it was ringing true of a lot of Abingworth villagers. It began to feel like I could count out on my fingers who that 10% of people were and it began to look a lot like only 10% of the people weren’t deceitful, cheating, or lying.

This is a really good read, plenty of plot twists with an ending I did not see coming, I do recommend you read this book, and other books by Debbie Howells you will not be disappointed.

This book simply has to be one of the best books I have read in 2021!

I have not read Debbie Howells before, but after reading this one, I´m certainly going to add her to my list of outstanding authors.

The storying line is utterly compelling, two friends, Hollie and Niamh, one telling the other her secret, and what a secret! This book has everything, intrigue, murder, domestic abuse, blackmail, all brilliantly drawn together by the author. And as for the ending, never saw that coming!!

Sensational book!

My thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

This was a great book. The chapters were fairly short and told from different POV’s.

There were lots of characters some I really disliked. Lots going on too, and this will keep you guessing until the very end.

It was interesting reading from Detective May’s perspective and seeing things from their side.

This was my first book by this author and I will definitely be reading more.

Thanks to Avon books Uk and Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.