An emotional, slow-burn, wonderful story
The Secrets You Hide is impossible to summarise without giving away spoilers. I honestly think that the best way to get into this book is with knowing the bare minimum. It is an emotional rollercoaster of a thriller, with minimal twists and turns but amazing emotional investment in the characters.
Georgia is a wonderful main character who is immediately sympathetic and someone who I was rooting for throughout. As more and more about her past is revealed, I just wanted her to come out on top at the end. It is great to have a main character whose flaws do not completely overshadow the rest of their character, giving a more realistic take on a person who has survived a lot of trauma and carries a lot of guilt as a result. I loved Oli as well, although there is a brief scene around half way through that seems incredibly out of place for both characters, slightly annoying but nothing comes of it really. The villain of the piece is a surprise, and I was caught off guard. The ending also left me emotionally drained. I loved it.
The plot is most definitely a slow burn however it is done really well. Although there is not much action, the reader is still invested in the story and wants to know what is going on. The fact that mental illness is shown in both a negative and positive light is really good, although perhaps a little stereotypical in terms of the negativity. The positive portrayal (if that makes sense) is more of a feature in this story, and the negative comes in the final chapters meaning it is not the central focus which is nice to see.
All in all, this story shows how a slow burn thriller should be done. It is gripping, fun and emotional, with the reveal being a particular highlight as I was well and truly led up the garden path. Many thanks to readers first and the publisher for sending me an e-copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Georgia is a wonderful main character who is immediately sympathetic and someone who I was rooting for throughout. As more and more about her past is revealed, I just wanted her to come out on top at the end. It is great to have a main character whose flaws do not completely overshadow the rest of their character, giving a more realistic take on a person who has survived a lot of trauma and carries a lot of guilt as a result. I loved Oli as well, although there is a brief scene around half way through that seems incredibly out of place for both characters, slightly annoying but nothing comes of it really. The villain of the piece is a surprise, and I was caught off guard. The ending also left me emotionally drained. I loved it.
The plot is most definitely a slow burn however it is done really well. Although there is not much action, the reader is still invested in the story and wants to know what is going on. The fact that mental illness is shown in both a negative and positive light is really good, although perhaps a little stereotypical in terms of the negativity. The positive portrayal (if that makes sense) is more of a feature in this story, and the negative comes in the final chapters meaning it is not the central focus which is nice to see.
All in all, this story shows how a slow burn thriller should be done. It is gripping, fun and emotional, with the reveal being a particular highlight as I was well and truly led up the garden path. Many thanks to readers first and the publisher for sending me an e-copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.