This is a romantic suspense worthy of the name. Action right from the start, twists and turns throughout, evil faced and mostly conquered. Rowan and Joe meet under unusual circumstances and then join forces to get revenge on someone they both have good reason to hate. Some of the things they encountered had my eyes bugging out and my breath catching. The romance between them took more of a back seat to the suspense of the story than I prefer, but that didn't diminish my enjoyment of the story. It's amazing they made it through alive and very satisfying that they did it together.

Rowan has secrets that she's kept since her mother and baby sister were murdered. She lives in an isolated lighthouse that she's remodeled for her safety that's within sight of the murderer's private island just waiting for her chance at revenge. She gets a surprise visitor one night that isn't who she thought he was and after she let's her guard down she realizes what a big mistake she made. Joe Grantham, if that's even his real name, has a vendetta of his own against this evil man and he blackmails Rowan to go with him as a distraction. Will either of them make it out alive?
This story started right out with a bang and the action never stopped. I loved reading about her lighthouse remodel and it's many secrets and traps. The backstory of her history with the Torvals was exciting and explained a lot about her thirst for revenge. She was such a strong female heroine. I had trouble connecting her and Joe romantically though. The romance angle was thin and barely discussed so by the end of the novel your just smacked with this instalove proposal out of nowhere. No wonder Rowan was confused about him! Overall it was a good exciting story though.
Thanks to Harlequin Trade through Netgalley for the advance copy of this book. The opinions in this review are my own and given voluntarily.

Immersed in Christina Dodd's "Every Single Secret," I find myself entangled in a riveting tale of vengeance and deception.
Rowan Winterbourne, harboring a haunting past, lives in solitude with a burning mission—to avenge her mother's murder by the ruthless Gregory Torval. The arrival of Joe Grantham shatters her isolation, but trust becomes a perilous game as they infiltrate Torval's island for a perilous mission.
Dodd masterfully weaves suspense, romance, and action, keeping me on the edge of my seat. With each twist, the stakes soar, and as dark truths unfold, Rowan faces a gripping choice between revenge and survival.
An exhilarating rollercoaster of emotions, "Every Single Secret" is a must-read for lovers of romantic suspense.

If you’re looking for a romantic suspense read that’s fast paced and keeps you at the edge of your seat then this is it! It’s full of action and I loved the chemistry between Rowan and Joe.

DNF. I did not have an interest in this particular book. I tried twice to continue forward, but struggled. I felt this book did not flow well for me. Thank you for the advance copy.

EVERY SINGLE SECRET – Christina Dodd
Canary Street Press
ISBN: 978-1335008503
March 5, 2024
Suspense Thriller

Along the California coast – Present Day

Everyone in town knows Helen Lamb as the reliable owner of a handyman service. An elderly man she has grown fond of has an unusual request for her one day. He just found out he is dying and wants to go out on his terms. He wants Helen to find an assassin to kill him. Did he know that Helen has the contacts to get it done? Did he know that Helen’s real name is Rowan Winterbourne, and she has been hiding from the one man she intends to kill when she gets the opportunity? Or rather, finish the job she started several years ago because she wants revenge for the killing of her mother and stepfather.

Rowan makes contact with someone to kill the elderly man as requested. That night, a stranger shows up on her doorstep at the remote lighthouse she lives in. His name is Joe Grantham, and he must be the assassin, but why is he here? And why is Rowan letting her guard down? Joe insists that he knows what Rowan wants to do—kill Gregory Torval—because he needs her help to get onto Raptor Island. Rowan agrees and later learns that Joe isn’t the hired assassin as the elderly man was killed while she was having sex with Joe.

The two arrive on Raptor Island and it is like a world of its own. Torval rules with an iron fist and if you don’t go along with him, he will punish you. He is taken with Rowan. When she agreed to come with Joe, she was under the impression that she would be introduced as Helen, but Joe tells everyone that she is Rowan. Will that put a target on her? It is like a crazy circus on the island with Torval’s wife dressed like a black widow and various women trying to get in bed with the man. It's his birthday weekend so it is a big celebration with celebrities and plenty of women. Joe told Rowan that he is there to steal back an address book belonging to an elderly woman. He doesn’t say why but she is glad to go along with his ruse as it gave her an opportunity to get on the island and finish the work she had once started: killing Torval and his evil enforcer.

EVERY SINGLE SECRET is a dark suspense that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Rowan is an avenger with a heart of gold when it comes to helping people. After her mother was brutally murdered, her stepfather took Rowan underground and sent her younger sister to live with another family in secret. Rowan hopes one day to see her sister, but in the meantime, keeps tabs on her. Rowan is an experienced technology expert, and she always watches her back. Even her lighthouse home is rigged in case of an emergency attack. These skills will help her if things go bad on Raptor Island. Meanwhile, she isn’t completely sure she can trust Joe because even his motives are suspicious. Who is Joe Grantham exactly?

There is plenty of action to be found in EVERY SINGLE SECRET and there are so many twists and turns to keep one engaged. Readers will be rooting for Rowan to get her revenge and the bad people taken care of. If you enjoy a suspenseful read that keeps you wondering what’s going to happen next, then don’t miss EVERY SINGLE SECRET.

Patti Fischer
Romance Reviews Today

Rowan AKA Helen is an intriguing young woman, and paranoid to,the hilt.
I loved her tricked out light house, outfitted for every contingency. Rowan has had a rough life and succumbs got the charm of Joe who wants to retire with him to the island of hell.
My favorite character was BeBee because she exuded stealth, avarice, and a zest for life that Rowan needed to witness.
I loved all the James Bond gadgetry and fighting techniques mentioned.
Dodd slammed a missile into me with a huge revelation that I didn’t see coming so that was a big surprise.
Unlock the secrets of this one!

What an adventure! On a dark and stormy night, a man shows up at Rowan's door. At first, she thinks he is an assassin, then she thinks he might be a nice guy and then he blackmails her into going with him the one place she should avoid. Rowan wants revenge against Torval for all the misery he has caused her family, but to walk right into his home, she thinks Joe must be crazy. Can she trust this man? Rowan has been living as Helen for years and when they arrive, Joe just announces her real name. Toval immediately wants to kill her, but he can't. There are so many twists and turns to this story, and you can't be sure if Joe is a good guy or not. For his own gain, will he sell out Rowan? She isn't sure who he really is. Good story!

3.5⭐️

Big thanks to NetGalley & Harlequin Trade Publishing, Canary Street Press for the ARC copy of this one!

I felt very sucked into this book and needed to know exactly what was going to happen. For the most part, I did really enjoy the writing style. However, towards the end I started to notice that the MC seemed to have two sepearet personalities. On the one hand, she was strong & amazing & then on the other hand it seemed like she couldn't really think for herself? It somewhat took away from the story for me because it almost felt like we were tracking two different people at times.

I do have to say that Chapter 19 was a SHOCK! I was definitely not prepared for that one lol

Overall though it did have a couple of great twists that I wasn't prepared for! I like how it ended as well & thought it was a good way to finish everything out!

Be on the lookout for this one starting 3/5!!

This book started out as a thriller. Helen was very prepared to protect herself. From her physical and mental strength, her resourcefulness, to her preparation and booby trapping of her home, to her job, which was to help people with any type of problem that they might need help with - like finding an assassin.

Then Joe shows up at her home and after some security checks, she lets him into her lighthouse home and then into her life. He knows her real identity and background. She agrees to accompany him to the island "castle" of the man who killed her mother and sister, and who had tortured her adoptive father.

The evil man had built an island empire where everyone quaked in his presence, except his even more evil wife and his perceptive and smart mistress. But once on the island, I found a lot of things that made me laugh because they were so "over the top."

Helen, who is now known as Rowan, makes an exciting escape, but runs into some interesting people on her journey home.

There are a lot of twists and turns to this story. I found it quirky and an interesting read.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

This was a great page turner and lots of twists and turns. Very enjoyable. I enjoyed getting to know the characters Joe and Rowan. Thank you for the ARC.

Romantic suspense that is more than a bit implausible but still highly readable. Rowan has been hiding out, even using the name Helen, but she's taken in by Joe, who then then ropes her into trip to Raptor Island where the man she's been seeking revenge against is. Twists, turns, bad decisions - all of it adds up to a page turner that I'm sure others will like more than I did.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Christina Dodd, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing this fun romantic suspense novel for my honest review. This has everything I want in a Christina Dodd novel. It is fun, twisty, fast paced, full of action, and has plenty of romance. If you enjoy romantic suspense novels then I highly recommend this one! I read this book very fast and enjoyed every minute! Thank you again for allowing me to review this book.

I tried a few times to read this but it’s just not my thing. There is nothing inherently wrong with the book. It’s your typical action based romantic suspense. I just didn’t see depth in the characters and it wasn’t for me.

Thank you to netgalley for the copy of this book.

I think maybe I should have known this book would not be to my taste. I tend to like complex characters. The way this book started was directly into the action. There was no time to see into Helen’s (Rowan) psyche. Literally boom! And the interaction between her and Joe just felt stilted to me.
Overall just not my cup of tea but I’m sure there will be people who love it.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Another great read from Christina Dodd! Rowan has been living in a lighthouse off the California coast for a few years trying to stay under the radar from the man who killed her mother when Joe Grantham shows up wanting her to accompany him to Raptor Island. With that beginning, Every Single Secret, is off to a quick start! Fast paced romantic suspense that you won’t want to put down!!

In EVERY LITTLE SECRET, Rowan Winterbourne lives a solitary existence in a lighthouse that she booby-trapped against intruders. She has however, failed to consider what happens when she opens the door to the trap who is Joe Grantham. She asks no questions, assuming he is someone she hired to do a job. She even sleeps with him, and too late realizes she's been had.

Joe wants to take her to the unimaginatively named Raptor Island to face the killer of her family and to help Joe with a few shenanigans of his own.

I was often confused, frequently stunned by the poor story telling, and overall disappointed with this effort by an author I usually like.

I'll hope for better in the future.

Rowan lives in a lighthouse so she can watch everything that happens around her…and anyone who approaches. It quickly becomes clear that Rowan is hiding from someone and will do what she has to do to protect herself. When she is presented with an opportunity to face her fears and her past, she decides she will confront those monsters! The result is a terrifying trip to an island where she will be tested again and again. I enjoyed the secrets, twists, and action of this book!

Rowan lives life as Helen, she’s always looking over her shoulder and constantly on the move as there has been a hit order on her since she was a teenager.
Joe enters her life with a proposition to enter the lions den for revenge and hopefully to put the “ order” to rest!
Joe and Rowan had so much chemistry ! A fantastic read by this author