Emma and her sisters suffered a terrible tragedy after their parents were murdered under mysterious circumstances. Everyone in their small town knew it had to be one of them that caused it, and it was Emma that took most of the suspicion. None of them talk anymore, and they've all stayed away from the town and their childhood home since.

Emma is now married to Nathan. She's pregnant, which should be a happy occasion, but Nathan reveals he's lost his job. But Emma owns her parent's house, the house she swore she'd never go back to. Nathan convinces her to have them move into the house.

When Emma returns she is immediately met with suspicion and fear. The police still think she did it, after all these years, they just haven't been able to prove it. It becomes clear that whatever happened all those years ago, the consequences are still waiting for Emma and her sisters in that house.

This is my second Kate Alice Marshall book, I've really enjoyed both of them. Thank you netgalley and Macmillan audio for giving me an advanced review copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I'm new to this netgalley thing, but I just about lost my mind when I saw that I was approved for a Kate Alice Marshall-written/Karissa Vacker-narrated book. This was glorious. Super entertaining, twisty without being confusing and I was here for the sisterhood vibes. I loved Emma, JJ and Daphne for all their weird, dysfunctional and suspicious ways.

Karissa Vacker did an amazing job of giving each of the sisters their own distinct voices, as well as balancing the "then" and "now" differences that were required.

I still have a few Marshall books to read from her back catalogue, but I'm going to be sad when I run out and have to wait for only new releases.

I really liked the story line. However, it was very slow and it took me a while to get into. I wasn’t hooked till way later on and just powered through it. I really wanted to like it because I liked the story line but it was slow.

First and foremost I would like to thank Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for sending me an audiobook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was very much looking forward to reading and One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall because I really enjoyed my reading experience for What Lies in the Woods last year. Sadly, this reading experience fell flat for me. I’ve spent a few days since finishing to try to sort through what exactly my disconnect was here and this is the best I can come up with.


The good:
I found the concept to be compelling and interesting. I am a sucker for a good story of sisters. I was raised with sisters and know that, if done well, there are a lot of complexities that can be explored there.

The atmosphere in this book was well written. Creepy murder houses, unwelcoming small towns. I was on edge in this environment from the very start.

The formatting of multiple pov paired with time jumps was well crafted. This allowed the author to be able to give small bits of information to the reader to cast shadows of doubt as well as build tension and intrigue.

The audio narration for this book was well executed. There’s a decent sized cast in this book and there was enough differentiation between characterizations in this book that I was able to follow along with who was who very easily.


The not so good:

I could not suspend my disbelief when it came to the characters and their motivations. As the reader I wasn’t given a clear understanding of why any character did anything in this book. There were a few glimpses of clarity here and there, but then the same character I was starting to connect with would turn around and contradict what I thought I was finally starting to understand about them.

There were also a few instances that were outside my understanding of reality when it came to the world of this book. The portrayal of pregnancy didn’t read as real to me, someone who has gone through it on more than one occasion. The financial situations in this book also threw me off. If you can’t purchase a house without proof of income then how, 2 hundred pages later, are we opening credit cards? I don’t think adding details on finances was necessary for the plot.

Daphne’s weight in the book being used as a way to make her this sort of chameleon type character felt really weird to me. It came up multiple times as she hid in the shadows of this book. All she needs to do is change her hair a little bit and add makeup and not even her own family will recognize her? Mind you, they weren’t close, but this wasn’t used for recognition of her identity each time. There’s literally a passage about how you’re less likely to be noticed or remembered if you are a large person walking down the street.

Conclusion:

Even with the issues I came across while reading, I still ended up giving this a solid 3 star rating.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book through NetGalley. (However, it was already on my to-read list from the moment I knew Kate Alice Marshall had a second book coming out).

After avoiding it for years and still the main suspect in the murder of her parents, Emma and her husband return to her childhood home. Coping with all the life changes, the continued separation from her sisters, and the accusations from her husband, Emma tries to put the pieces together of what happened all those years ago. The story goes back and forth in time and from different perspectives. (which is especially great if you listen to as an audiobook like I did.) It was a nice pace, the back and forth flowed nicely and there were a few great twists. The author's writing kept me intrigued and even elicited strong feelings from me over the characters (I HATED Nathan from the first moment he hit the page).

It's definitely I book I will recommend to my friends to read.

One part domestic thriller, one part chilling mystery, one part sister drama. Everyone has secrets. The relationships reek with damage. Great narration.

No One Can Know was a very engaging read and I finished it in one day. It was a bit dark for me and I wasn't surprised by the conclusion, but I enjoyed all of the twists and turns and thought it was very well-paced. I've read one other book by Kate Alice Marshall and I will go back and check out the ones I've missed.

The narrator of this audiobook did a great job and I appreciated how she differentiated each character. I recommend picking up the audio version if you are able to do so.
 
Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Flatiron Books for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Flatiron Books and Macmillan Audio for gifting me an audio ARC of the new thriller by Kate Alice Marshall and narrated by the wonderful Karissa Vacker - 4.5 stars!

Emma finds out she's pregnant on the same day that she learns her husband, Nathan, lost his job and they lost money on a house downpayment. With no other options, Emma tells Nathan about the house she co-owns with her two estranged sisters. But going back there means going back to the house where her parents were killed and she was accused of their murder.

Kate Alice Marshall has once again crafted a twisty thriller that will have you glued to the pages. And the narration by Karissa Vacker was stellar as always, and just made the audio experience better. There's a lot of secrets here, and I liked unraveling them all, especially the relationship between the sisters. The story is told from the sisters' POV in both the past and present. It has that small town atmosphere, where everyone knows everyone, meaning everyone thinks they know everything about you and it's hard to get away from those perceptions. Pick this one up for sure!

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio for an ALC via NetGalley for this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Emma and her husband are in a bit of a pinch, and he pushes for them to move back to her small hometown and into her family home, which has been kept in the family but vacant since her parents died when she was a teenager. But once they arrive in town, her husband quickly sees that fixing up the house to sell is a larger task than he expected and Emma is not exactly welcome in the town.
Emma, Juliet, and Daphne are sisters - Juliet the oldest, Emma in the middle, and Daphne the youngest. In the sections of the book from the past, the sisters are in high school. After their parents’ double murder, Emma works to protect her siblings. An event like this may bond siblings in some cases, but in their case they become estranged, never discussing that night or what has happened since.
While mostly focusing on Emma’s perspective, the book alternates between the other sisters' views, with segments in the present for all three along with segments in the past. Little by little the reader learns what happened back then along with what’s happening now.
I enjoyed the author’s debut adult thriller last January, but this one left me wanting more. I don’t know if it was due to the mix of past/present chapters, as well as the different sisters’ perspectives, which made it a bit confusing. Perhaps it would have been less confusing reading an ebook or print copy? I’m not sure. It also seemed too long, as I kept checking to see how much more time was left, since I had lost interest. Even though it was long, I had some questions at the end.
Unintentionally, this was the 3rd book in a row I’ve listened to narrated by Karissa Vacker, which was a delightful coincidence. I highly recommend her narration, as she is an amazing storyteller who makes each story come to life. I think she did as much as she could with this one. The book will publish this Tuesday, with print/ebook available through @flatironbooks

This book was alright to me. I found myself struggling to get into it and found myself disappointed towards the end. I do like multiple POVs in thrillers, and I did enjoy it in this one. But it took me around 50 pages to finally get into this one. It felt like there was more to Emma that could have been shown, I was not that connected or a fan of her because it felt like something was lacking. And the ending had me reeling in confusion with the amount of twists and unnecessary things going on. This was alright, but I was not the biggest fan of this book.

This story follows three sisters who haven’t seen each other in years, after the murder of their parents.
Emma, Daphne and JJ were born into a house with very strict and hard to please parents. When their parents are murdered, everyone blames the rebellious daughter Emma. But with all the secrecy, was it Emma or someone else who killed their parents?
Years later, Emma’s husband Nathan looses his job and Emma is pregnant. They move into her parents old house with the plans of fixing it up and selling it. But with Emma being back in the town that suspects her of murder, truths start becoming uncovered.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for an ARC audiobook. I love Karissa Vacker, and would listen to any book she narrates but I do wish there would have been three narrators, one for each sister.

I really enjoyed this novel. I liked the past and present chapters and how it alters between the three sisters with Emma being the main focus. I didn’t want to put this book down, it was so gripping. And every time I thought I had it figured out, I was thrown through a loop. I loved every minute of this novel. Highly recommend!

No One Can Know how I really feel about this book…

Kidding! You know I’m going to tell you…

I read ‘What Lies in the Woods’ when it came out last year and I was so captivated by it! When I heard about this one, I was just as intrigued, but I was unfortunately let down.

Synopsis:
Emma hasn't told her husband much about her past. He knows her parents are dead and she hasn't spoken to her sisters in years. Then they lose their apartment, her husband gets laid off, and Emma discovers she's pregnant―right as the bank account slips into the red. That's when Emma confesses that she has one more asset: her parents' house, which she owns jointly with her estranged sisters. They can't sell it, but they can live in it. But returning home means that Emma is forced to reveal her secrets to her husband: that the house is not a run-down farmhouse but a stately mansion, and that her parents died there. Were murdered. And that some people say Emma did it.

What I liked:
- It was twisty and compelling at times.
- The beginning and ending were good! It just lost me in the middle.

What I didn’t like:
- surprisingly, I didn’t like the characters. I think that’s why it was so hard for me to like this book.
- As I said above, the middle lost me. When listening to my reviewer’s audio copy, I kept checking how far in it was because it just felt like the pacing was off.

Overall, this book wasn’t bad per say, it just was a bit of a let down because the authors previous book was just so good. I don’t like when this comparison game happens because I want to give each book a fair shot, but c’est la vie.

This thriller started off strong but unfortunately became a bit muddled. I loved the premise and stuck it out in hopes that the resolution would make the journey worth it… jury’s still out.

The audiobook was narrated by the always wonderful Karissa Vacker. She brought some much needed emotion to the story during moments that fell flat.

Typically domestic thrillers with multiple POV, especially between family members works really well but this one was quite confusing. I am all for female empowerment but all the men in this book are just god awful and read like bad caricatures.

Overall, this one was a miss but I would love to check out whatever Kate Alice Marshall does next! 3.5 stars rounded up.

This was my first book by the author and I was completely hooked from page one! A woman and her husband move back into her childhood home where her parents were killed and she was accused of their murder. I mean, the concept alone had me hooked, It is definitely for a reader who likes a thriller that is more plot driven than character, which is great, just something to note! I was impressed by Kate Alice Marshall’s ability to draw me into the story and keep me turning pages. Great work and can’t wait to read more!

I have mixed feelings about this one. The beginning was definitely more interesting than the rest of the book. I found myself losing interest quick. I thought was way longer than it needed to be and by the end I still had so many unanswered questions 🫤
I did love the setting of the book and the sisters different POV’s.

Emma is the problematic child of super controlling parents. Her older sister Juliet is the perfect daughter, doing everything her parents want, and her younger sister Daphne is the favorite of their dad. That's why when both their parents are found murdered in their living room Emma becomes the main suspect of the crime.

But nothing is as it seems. Juliet has a secret life and Daphne has a strange obsession with gore. Emma decides to take hold of the situation and protect her sisters. So, for many years all her hometown considers her to be the killer. Then, she has to go back to her old house and new questions arise.

This book is a great thriller, murder-mystery that goes from present to past revealing bits and pieces of information as we meet new characters. I found most of the characters to be extremely annoying - but I guess that's what the point. I almost skipped all pages with the husband. This man is the worst person on earth for all I care, but Emma was also annoying because a lot of her problems could be solved if she only TALKED to her sisters or to her husband. Juliet was annoying for being a self-centered ass and Daphne is annoying for making decisions without talking to others. I guess the conflict could be solved with TALK.

The characters are annoying but their lack of communication is what makes things interesting. This is definitely a page turner!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy is exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kate Alice Marshall, and MacMillan Audio for graciously sending me the ARC audiobook for review. All thoughts are my own.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book, especially in its audiobook format narrated by the always excellent Karissa Vacker. The story unfolds in a small town, blending family drama with the complexities of a police force rife with 'good ole boy' attitudes.

What captivated me most was the brilliant character development, exploring the perspectives of the three sisters, Emma, JJ/Juliette, and Daphne. The narrative's clever use of present moments and flashbacks to the past added a dynamic and suspenseful layer to the storytelling.

The story revolves around the sisters reconciling their memories of the night of the murders of their parents and, told from each sister’s POV, how each perspective eventually gives us the whole story, adding a gripping element. Emma's character faced the town's rumors and assumptions, creating a compelling tension throughout the book.

Overall, the book expertly navigates family dynamics, small-town gossip, and police intrigue. Karissa Vacker's narration enhanced the experience, making it a captivating listen. Highly recommend for those who enjoy a mix of mystery, murder, and familial relationships.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced listeners copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had an absolute blast with "No One Can Know" by Kate Alice Marshall! This twisty thriller kept me on the edge of my seat with its secrets, and the three sisters at the center of the story added a dynamic and engaging element.

“No One Can Know” is about Emma, with a mysterious past, faces a crisis when she and her husband lose their apartment, he loses his job, and they discover she's pregnant while their finances dwindle. In a desperate move, Emma reveals a hidden asset: her parents' house, jointly owned with estranged sisters. However, returning to the mansion forces Emma to disclose dark secrets—her parents' murder, rumors of her involvement, and the family's silence on that fateful night. As Emma navigates reconnecting with her sisters and managing her new family, old secrets resurface, unraveling family and town mysteries, endangering them once more.

While the twists didn't necessarily hit me like a bolt out of the blue, mostly because they make a lot of sense based on the information we have, I found them enjoyable. The character dynamics were such a highlight. I loved the relationship between these sisters and how their parents’ abuse affected that relationship.

What truly enhanced my experience was the immersive audiobook narrated by Karissa Vacker. I credit the combination of Marshall's well-crafted writing and Vacker's excellent performance with making it such a cinematic experience.

"No One Can Know" is a journey into a world of family secrets, small-town mysteries, and the dangers that come with unspoken truths. The dual-timeline storytelling was executed flawlessly, allowing me to piece together the puzzle while being thoroughly entertained. Highly recommend if you're looking for a thrilling ride that keeps you guessing until the very end!

Overall, it was a really fun read; it was well-paced and engaging all the way through. The massive amounts of secrets that everyone is keeping from each other keeps you wondering at what twist will come next.

Rating: 4 stars.

Falls short compared to "What Lies in the Woods."

Emma and her two sisters grapple with a haunting past that has lingered for years. The siblings, who had drifted apart, find themselves brought back together when Emma and her husband return to their childhood home—the very site of their parents' unsolved murder. As Emma settles in, memories from that fateful night gradually resurface, prompting her to question the events she witnessed. Buried secrets among the sisters start to unravel, leading to the revelation of long-concealed truths.

While the book showed initial promise, I struggled to connect with any of the characters and yearned for a more gripping and suspenseful atmosphere. In the end, it proved to be an average read.

3 sisters, 2 dead parents, many suspected subjects. 👀 Emma and Nathan find out that he was laid off from his job and with a surprise baby on the way, they need to save money fast. They decide to move into Emma’s parents old home, inherited when they were murdered. Once they returned back to her hometown, the past is brought to the surface and the case for her murdered family is continuing to be investigated. This was pretty good.. but nothing to rave about. Multiple POVs with multiple time frames. Got confusing at times, but finally knew what happened by the end. 😅 Thank you to @netgalley and @macmillianaudio for this ARC!