The Secrets She Keeps by Michael Robotham
I thought this book was going to be another five star read but alas it failed me near the end but I can’t tell you why because that would spoil everything and I’m not that much of a jerk. I’ll only say that I was wishing for a meaner end to it all and I’ll leave it at that. Maybe I’m just in a bad mood because I listened to this through a haze of back pain and a bout of the plague. Or maybe it’s because I read it directly after the fabulously evil “Behind Her Eyes” by Sarah Pinborough. Either way it’s getting four stars from me because of the end and how bloodless it felt to me.
Agatha is pregnant. Her baby’s daddy is “over-seas” and is not returning her calls but she doesn’t let that worry her. “He was like an everlasting packet of chocolate biscuits” and she knew he’d be back so she could have another taste. She works at a supermarket and spends all of her free time spying on another pregnant woman named Meg. Agatha believes Meg has the perfect life and she tries to emulate her by getting the same haircut while daydreaming about them being besties. And then one day it happens! Meg’s life isn’t quite so perfect and she’s made some mistakes but the biggest one is letting Agatha into her life. . .
This is a book about secrets just as the title promises. Even though I’ve seen it compared to those “twisty” books, there is really no big surprising twist in this one. There isn’t even a little twist, just a much anticipated reveal and that’s fine by me. You know what’s going on as you are right there in the characters heads the entire time and it’s pretty easy to see what the “reveal” is because although these people lie to everyone else they don’t lie to themselves, at least not for very long. Some of them do horrifying and shocking things but the author managed to make me feel sympathetic towards them despite everything. That rarely happens. These people felt real. Messed up and desperate? Sure but always real. Their secrets were all eventually laid bare to the reader as the story comes to its tense and action packed conclusion. I think most people will probably enjoy the end so don’t pay any attention to me. Also, if you have a little voice in your head that you call ‘creature’ you probably shouldn’t listen to it.
The narrator is pretty awesome with the dual narration so go with audio if you like them.
Agatha is pregnant. Her baby’s daddy is “over-seas” and is not returning her calls but she doesn’t let that worry her. “He was like an everlasting packet of chocolate biscuits” and she knew he’d be back so she could have another taste. She works at a supermarket and spends all of her free time spying on another pregnant woman named Meg. Agatha believes Meg has the perfect life and she tries to emulate her by getting the same haircut while daydreaming about them being besties. And then one day it happens! Meg’s life isn’t quite so perfect and she’s made some mistakes but the biggest one is letting Agatha into her life. . .
This is a book about secrets just as the title promises. Even though I’ve seen it compared to those “twisty” books, there is really no big surprising twist in this one. There isn’t even a little twist, just a much anticipated reveal and that’s fine by me. You know what’s going on as you are right there in the characters heads the entire time and it’s pretty easy to see what the “reveal” is because although these people lie to everyone else they don’t lie to themselves, at least not for very long. Some of them do horrifying and shocking things but the author managed to make me feel sympathetic towards them despite everything. That rarely happens. These people felt real. Messed up and desperate? Sure but always real. Their secrets were all eventually laid bare to the reader as the story comes to its tense and action packed conclusion. I think most people will probably enjoy the end so don’t pay any attention to me. Also, if you have a little voice in your head that you call ‘creature’ you probably shouldn’t listen to it.
The narrator is pretty awesome with the dual narration so go with audio if you like them.
5
2
