Elaine Stock's The Last Secret Kept attempts to blend historical trauma with family secrets, but struggles with believability. The characters often act on strange motivations that aren't fully explained, making it hard to connect with them emotionally. Some are either unbelievably good or bizarrely eccentric, lacking the nuance real people carry. The plot is riddled with holes—key events happen without setup or follow-through, leaving the reader puzzled. While the backdrop of wartime Germany and post-war life in the USA provides a compelling setting, the execution falls short of delivering a cohesive or impactful narrative.

For historical fans, this one is a must-read!
The storyline alternates between the years of WW2 and the beginning of the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961. It is a novel of unexpected twists and turns, set in times of great world tumult. It is a story about different “barriers” that human beings can erect. Some are“walls”of concrete that can literally separate people. Others, often just as impenetrable, are formed within human minds when certain people are viewed as “imperfect”, “different”, and therefore possibly “useless” and “dangerous” to society…

*I received a digital copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.*

This book is a dual timeline story that was done right! I was never confused as to whose story we were reading or when it took place. The characters in this book captured my heart from the very first chapter. My emotions were pulled between feeling joy, sadness and anger, often all at the same time. Three strong women fighting for justice for a man wrongly accused because of who he is and each fighting their own history of being wronged and finding their truth, during a time of global turmoil- makes you think about life and the everyday injustices then and now, as well as perhaps wanting to know more about your own personal family history. I was sad when I reached the end because there were no more pages to read about them. I look forward to hopefully hearing what happens next for each of them in a future book.
I would also like to say how much I appreciated the author using the terms and phrases of the time periods for which this was written in. I am grateful that society has changed and no longer uses these words on a whole, but I do believe there is something to be said for accurately depicting the times of which one is writing about.
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC book.

It’s the early 60’s when women are just starting to step out into the working force. A touching story of a woman lawyer taking the case of a man accused of murder. It’s a good story.

With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an independent review.

On publication, I will post the blurb and my review on my blog.

This is the first book in Elaine Stock’s When Hope Calls series. This is a time split novel that goes back to the mid forties than jumps to 1961. Some of the characters are used in both time frames. Secrets have been kept and readers will get to learn these secrets when they travel back in time to 1941. The war years are set in Berlin Germany and the post war years are in the United States in a town called Bridgehaven.
There are three main characters in the book. Gina, Kenny and Fanny. The characters Helene and Uncle Raymond play strong roles in the book. I was totally drawn into this book from the prologue. It was entertaining and realistic. It was well researched in the current events that happened during the time frames used in the story. The author did a fantastic job of going back and forth between the time frames. Since some situations have been left unanswered I feel that they will become a part of book two.
When Kenny finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time the police suspect that he killed a man who has harassed him repeatedly . Newly married to Gina he’s not wanting to spend years in prison or possibly face a death sentence for a crime he didn’t commit. Fanny Stern, defense attorney offers her services to Kenny in hopes of proving his innocence. Odds are stacked against Kenny. Can Fanny bring her client justice in a court system dominated by by men? Back in the forties Gina and Helene are living through the hardships of a war. Find out how the two time frames connect when you read this book.
I highly recommend The Last Secret Kept to readers of WWII fiction . If you enjoy reading war stories and books about murder trials you will love this book. I couldn’t put it down. This book is scheduled to be released on 4/24/25
I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions expressed here in this review are solely my own.
#TheLastSecretKept #NetGalley

Set in 1961 this is a story about women that makes a difference to the lives of others.

Kenny is accused of murder and Gina and Fanny are the women who are tasked with not only helping him prove his innocence but also to show him that he is worthy of love.

This is an amazing read. It has great characters who are warm and likeable and I adored how the story unfolded.

It has all the history of the Berlin wall coming down and I think that this was also a metaphor for how the characters deal with the events concerning the three of them

Fabulous