The Neighbor's Secret - L. Alison Heller

Cottonwood Estates is the place you want to live and raise a family in. Good schools, low crime - and wonderful neighbors. That's the setting for L. Alison Heller's newest novel, The Neighbor's Secret. I love this premise - it provides a wide open palette for the author's imagination. 

The Cottonwood Book Club officially meets once a month, but they've got numerous email chains on the go, keeping a close eye on their neighborhood. The monthly book club email reminder is priceless - quite witty. I quite enjoyed them. (And truth be told - it's a club I would join in a heartbeat)

There's a slew of club members, but the book focuses on three of them. Lena is an older long time resident of Cottonwood. She has closeted herself in her home, but is convinced to join the club. There's an undisclosed secret in her past, one she skirts around. And that only whetted my appetite for finding out what it was. Annie too has a secret she's tucked away. But her focus is on her teenaged daughter Laurel - her behaviour has become worrisome over the last few months. And last is Jen. Her son Abe is troubled, more than she lets on or acknowledges. A vandal is now targeting Cottonwood and scandals are simmering. 

Short flashbacks from the past gives the reader more of an idea how the present has been impacted. Heller does a great job of eking out bits of the secrets, dropping hints and clues that left me thinking I had figured out Lena's past. I'm happy to say that I was not completely right about the final reveals. I'm always glad when I can't predict endings.

The suspense was not as high as I had expected going in. Yes, there is some, but the focus is more on the relationships between mothers and children, wives and husbands, friends and acquaintances. 

The Neighbor's Secret is a well written, slow burning tale that will ask you - how far would you go to protect the ones you love? See for yourself - read an excerpt of The Neighbor's Secret.

Where the Truth Lies - Anna Bailey

Anna Bailey's debut novel Where the Truth Lies has just released.

From Atria Books: "When seventeen-year-old Abigail goes missing, her best friend Emma, compelled by the guilt of leaving her alone at a party in the woods, sets out to discover the truth about what happened. The police initially believe Abi ran away, but Emma doesn’t believe that her friend would leave without her, and when officers find disturbing evidence in the nearby woods, the festering secrets and longstanding resentment of both Abigail’s family and the people of Whistling Ridge, Colorado begin to surface with devastating consequences."

Where the Truth Lies is a simmering cesspool of a tale. Bailey gives us multiple points of view through a number of characters. Within those points of view, the time frame moves from past to present, allowing the reader access to the background of the players as well as the how and why of what's happening now. While the mystery of Abigail's disappearance or murder is always there, it isn't the driving force of the plot. Instead it serves as a catalyst for an inevitable final reckoning amongst townsfolk and within families.

 I found I had to pick up and put down the book numerous times. I can only take so much ugliness, cruelty, bigotry, abuse of power, brutality and intolerance in one sitting. Gentle readers, this is most def not a book for you.

There are 'good' characters and others that are downright despicable. Those who still have goodness in them struggle mightily to exist in this town. I shouted out loud more than once for them to run, leave, get away and leave this godforsaken place behind.

My visceral reaction to Bailey's novel speaks to the strength of her prose, character development and descriptions of time and place. That being said, I did find overall that while well written, it was also overwrought in terms of the depravity in this town and it's inhabitants.

Bailey was born in England and raised in England but moved to Colorado after university. In 2018, she returned to the UK Where the Truth Lies, Tall Bones, inspired by her time in the US. Which is a little scary.... 

See for yourself - read an excerpt of Where the Truth Lies.

The Dilemma - B.A. Paris

Bestselling author B.A. Paris is back with a new book - The Dilemma.

Livia has been planning her fortieth birthday party for twenty years. She never had the wedding she wanted, so this party will be all she dreamed of - and it has to be perfect. But as the day of the party draws near, Livia has decisions to make. She has a secret, one she knows she needs to share with her husband Adam....but when?  Before or after the party? Adam has a secret as well. One he too is in a dilemma about - when to tell Livvy? And each of their children have secrets as well.

The narrative changes from Livvy to Adam in alternating chapters. We come to know each of them and their extended circle of friends as well. The driving question of course is what those secrets are. Paris does a great job of stretching out the reveal, with foreshadowing, hints and partial truths giving the reader another reason for just 'one more chapter.'

Neither Adam or Livia want to hurt their spouse by revealing their secrets. But as they each hold theirs closer to their chest, the complications and implications from those decisions start to compound. Therein lies the dilemma.

Paris's previous books have been suspense tales and that's what I went in expecting. The Dilemma is a page turner, but not a thriller. Instead it is an exploration of family relationships, dynamics, decisions,friendship, love and loss. The reader can't help but ask themselves what decision(s) they would make. Read an excerpt of The Dilemma.