Mystery Thriller about a LA PR exec and her private investigator ex who uncover a dangerous conspiracy led by the world’s most powerful people, whose deadly sights are now set on them.

1/5 stars: This is a stand-alone by Marr which is a Mystery Thriller that features a ruthless PR executive and her ex and the man she betrayed, a top private investigator, as they team up for one job. But the job proves more dangerous than either imagined as they they uncover a hidden web of influence and set off on a globe-trotting adventure where they’ll have to rely on each other to expose the truth… and stay alive. Marr's writing and character work are nicely done. Marr tackles some heavy subjects, so take care and check the CWs. Unfortunately, this just wasn't a book for me; leading me to DNF it at 9%.

I received this eARC thanks to Hyperion Avenue in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

1.5 ⭐️ The synopsis made this one sound so fun. Unfortunately, I don’t think the book delivered on its promises and I was bored from the start and never pulled in. 😕 For me, the story lacked character development and the overall execution was lacking. In trying to be a mystery coupled with some romance and a bit of action/adventure, it lacked tension and caused all three to fall well short of their mark. I was hoping for a fun Mr. and Mrs. Smith type story, and I think perhaps that’s what the author was going for, but I was left wanting in the end.

My thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for a complimentary advance copy of this eBook, out 7/30/2024.

Thank you, NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the copy of Your Dark Secrets by Elle Marr. I loved Marr’s other books, but I’m not sure why I couldn’t get into this one. It was hard to stay engaged in the story, even though there were some good parts it never piqued my imagination. Addison or Connor were not compelling characters, so while the juxtaposition of their circumstances was intriguing, it wasn’t enough to define their personalities. It was more of a cozy mystery than the thriller I was expecting, so it didn't really hold my interest. I think if you love cozy detective mysteries you would love this, it just wasn’t for me.

This books plot was really thought about but I did find the writing was a bit mismatched. The characters were not my favourite as they didn’t appear likeable and the plot just fizzled out at the end. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc.

This book had good bones, but poor execution. The plot itself was well-thought-out and interesting, but it got bogged down by too much internal dialogue. This made it very slow until the end. The ending felt like it came out of nowhere, with no foreshadowing leading up to it. A disappointment for me! Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

I love the cover and I love this authors books. They never disappoint.

The book was interesting and well written. Some of it is dark but is also enjoyable.

In the book we follow Addison a PR Professional and lives in LA. She wants to get to the top and she will do whatever it takes to get there. Addison proves this as her EX Conner she ruined his career and now he is at rock bottom because of Addison. When they are brought back together they must work together to find out why bad things always happen to them. I.E. Murder.

Some parts fell flat but for the most part i enjoyed the story and plot.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review.

A fun read, somewhat dark, intriguing enough to keep you going, 3.5/5 (rounded up).

Addison Stern is a high-powered PR professional with a sleek look and sleeker tactics in LA. She will do what she needs to get to the top. Connor, her contrasting PI ex is has been hitting rock bottom in Las Vegas after Addison ruined his career. Despite the tension between them they're forced to work together and sparks reignite in a race against time to find out what's going on and why murder seems to follow them.

Not as heavy on the romance as expected, this is a light read in the sense of depth, but keeps you wondering. Enjoyable overall!

I really wanted to love Your Dark Secrets—the synopsis was so gripping and unlike any thriller I've read before! While this book does add a romance subplot to the story dynamic, it is also underwhelming in its execution and I found myself bored with both the thriller and romantic elements of this story. The book begins at a quick pace, majorly lags in the middle, then rushes the ending, which was disappointing and underwhelming. I felt like the author tried to incorporate a lot of talking points within—which isn't necessarily a bad thing—but nothing was handled properly and that made the conspiracy aspect fall apart for me and I rapidly lost interest afterward.

🚨 pub date 7/30/24

Thank you to Hyperion Avenue and NetGalley for providing an ARC!

Unfortunately, “Your Dark Secrets” is just a miss for me. I really wanted to like this book. The cover is catchy and the storyline is intriguing. I did like that the story took them to several places and that there were a lot of secrets to uncover. It had suspense but it was drawn out and at times confusing. It didn't really ever have that moment of not being able to put it down that I look for in books. There were way too many moving parts and the reveal of the conspiracy totally fell flat after the way it was built up. I keep waiting for some big time players to get involved and that never happened. So much of this story felt unbelievable and shoe-horned into the direction the author wanted to take it. The ending was quite disappointing but that last chapter left me totally shocked. The characters to me were not all that likeable and I just couldn’t get into it, the way I wanted to. Thanks to Elle Marr, Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for an e-arc in exchange for my thoughts. Even though this wasn’t my favorite of her books, I will still check out what she writes next.

SYNOPSIS
- Addison is a successful LA PR executive at the Ovid Blackwell Group, and she is really hoping to become a partner soon.
- Addison finds one of her clients, Phinneas, dead. Addison becomes a suspect.
- Connor is Addison’s ex, and he is also a private investigator. They didn’t exactly end on amicable terms. Addison apparently ruined Connor’s professional reputation, and he was forced into an unwanted, early retirement. Connie left LA, and he moved to Las Vegas with a pretty big gambling problem. Connor’s former client seeks him out for an assignment, and he winds up back in LA doing the PI assignment.
- Connor and Addison end up teaming up.

MY THOUGHTS
- Multiple POVs and timelines - Addison (present), Connor (present), and Phinneas via recorded voice notes (past).
- Lacked the suspense/thriller aspect. Felt more like a rivals to lovers romance.
- Premise was good, but execution fell flat for me.
- Characters are very one-dimensional & lack much depth.
- I didn’t like how Addison would randomly talk in third-person in her POV chapters (e.g., the whole chapter is in first-person, then random sentences say things like “Addison Stern always gets what she wants.”)
- All the Kevon Bacon references. Why?? Seriously?
- 400 pages with slow pacing. This should have been majorly cut down in length.
- Many legal aspects didn’t make sense to me. Why was the FBI involved? Why would the FBI mail a packet to your residence to tell you that you’re a person of interest?
- The reveal of who is behind everything wasn’t satisfying. It made no sense at all & was illogical.
- The ending was not satisfying.

TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️not for me. although premise was intriguing, let down in a lot of ways.

Thanks to Hyperion Avenue and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchanges for an honest review. This book will be published on July 30, 2024.

Didn't finish this book, too juvenile and trying to hard to make something out of nothing.....
Couldn't warm to Addison, and too convenient that the PI was found and got into her apartment. Confused about the guy that got killed - didn't finish it.

This book was good! I loved the twist. The character were good as well
. I would recommend if you like mystery books. This was my first by this authors and it won’t be my last .

A mystery and romantic thriller with a fun rivals-to-lovers trope. Addison, a PR executive and her ex-boyfriend and private investigator Connor find themselves needing each other much to their chagrin. I liked that they had a history and backstory complicating their current-day relationship as they travel around the globe, desperate to uncover the truth and unearth secrets before they become casualties. If you like multiple POVs and crazy plotting, you'll probably be a fan of this book.

This read had the foundation to be really good, but there were a few things that were a miss for me. However, it did pull me in and make me want to know what happened all throughout which I’m taking as a win!

First, I wanted to love Addison so bad. Our little powerhouse PR woman rising to the top for her hard work. But she just wasn’t super relatable to me. She had a very hard surface to break, lacked emotion, and was cutthroat as hell at the start.

Secondly, the ending had a great twist that I wasn’t expecting but then it twisted again and I wasn’t sure how to feel about it. I feel like it could have ended a couple chapters short.

It is a multi pov read, and one POV is more like an interview style which I actually really like & it added a lot of seeds all throughout.

Thank you NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the digital ARC in return for an honest review.

When an LA PR executive and her ex boyfriend (who happens to be a former con man turned PI) are unexpectedly linked to a series of murders that unravel a dangerous conspiracy, what could go wrong? Addison Stern is used to getting her way through whatever ruthless means are necessary. When her top client is found dead, and whispers start linking Addison to the murder, she is brought face to face with her ex (who she happened to send to an early retirement) Connor. Connor has once chance to salvage his career but can he trust Addison? As the two globe trot from Asia to Monaco and Vegas, danger follows them. While they have agreed to team up, can they really trust each other? Addison is used to hiding secrets for the rich and famous but apparently the biggest secrets are being hidden from her.

While I liked this novel, it felt a little clunky at times with a lot of characters, locations and minor plots to sift through. I am hoping it was brought together a little more tightly in the editing process but Elle Marr doesn't disappoint. The ending was unexpected!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I really wanted to like this but I just couldn’t. I didn’t feel like there was enough depth for me, yet I pushed through til the end. It was good, just not for me!

This is the first time reading this,author. The read was definitely a page turner, it had me up way into the night!! I enjoyed the different perspectives between Connor and then Addison telling the story that took you all over the world and then back to LA. The stories that Addison spun were so detail oriented and specific and she did it spur of the moment it was awesome. I enjoyed the rivals to lover romance very much.It took me almost til the end of the book until I figured it out which made it a very good romantic thriller!! I look forward to reading more books from this author.

The premise of the book sounded very interesting to me. I like a good mystery novel. Unfortunately this one fell very flat for me. I found it to be very slow except for the big twist in the end.
It was very hard to follow as it jumped around so much and thru multiple POVs.
You couldn’t really understand the characters too much. Addison was very much wanting to be pushed forward to a promotion but it never really said why.
I wasn’t a big fan. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for the honest review

This book wanted to be a lot of different things and came up short. There was both too much happening and not enough of what counted. It has an intriguing start with an introduction to a FMC that’s just on the edge of unlikeable but a power woman at the top of her game and a MMC at the bottom of his. The story has an interesting blend of pharmaceuticals, high end fashion, and glamorous lifestyles that draw you in, but it ultimately failed to deliver.

I disliked the story overall because:
- The characters felt very superficial (there was no depth to the why behind their behaviors, backstories, etc.). There’s a bit of development in the first chapter and then you never see it agin until the 70% mark and even then that’s touch and go, missed opportunities.
- There was no suspense, and the guessing game was lacking. I did not find myself trying to connect the dots or wondering who did it. Does this make the story a cozy mystery? I don’t know the genre but I felt like this could have been one.
- The evil villain monologue: ugh
- Kevin Bacon: really?

This was a heart pounding, suspenseful thriller with the romantic touch. Elle Marr gives you the feeling like you're the one traveling with them and you just don't want to put it down. I felt connected with the characters. Very enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Elle Marr for the advance copy of this book for my review.