The Secrets We Hide - Karin Slaughter

THE SECRETS WE HIDE

KARIN SLAUGHTER

*****

Welcome to North Falls—a small town with big secrets.

The house at 1601 Iris Drive looks like any other in the quiet, residential street. But rumours are rife about the Vickery family – a couple in the midst of a volatile separation and a daughter with secrets of her own.

Then one afternoon gunshots ring out. Allison Vickery is found murdered in her own kitchen, her teenage daughter bleeding and left for dead. Her husband suspiciously absent.

Everyone in North Falls thinks they know what happened. Gossip and rumours spread like wildfire. But the truth is far more shocking than anyone could ever have imagined.

Secrets are everywhere in this small town. Everyone is hiding something. It's up to Detective Emmy Clifton to uncover the truth, but the deeper she looks the darker it gets…

MY REVIEW

*****

You can always be assured with a great read from Karin Slaughter; and as I read and enjoyed the first book in the North Falls series (We Are All Guilty Here), I was excited to pick up the second – The Secrets We Hide.

Alison Vickery is found shot dead in her home with her daughter in critical condition. There’s a suitcase hurriedly packed in the hall, a car idling on the drive and an abusive husband nowhere to be seen, so it seems to be a cut and dry case. However, as Emmy and her sister Jude are quick to learn, there is more going on in the town on North Falls than meets the eye…

This is a second book in the North Falls series, and although the case itself is quite standalone, there’s a lot of background information and character development, so it may be best to read We Are All Guilty Here first. Emmy and Jude working together makes for a great dynamic, particularly after the death of their mother and with one of them harbouring a big secret from the other as well. We learn more about their characters, as well as getting to know more of the personalities and family dramas of North Falls.

The plot itself has a lot of twists and turns, and a case which seemed very simple from the outset suddenly spirals into a much more complicated situation. Karin Slaughter ensures we are following at every step of the way, however, using a great technique which is employed by Emmy’s father in the first book. The characters prompt each other with ‘what do we know’ and ‘what do we think we know’ throughout, which allows the reader to get caught up on important information without it feeling like too much of an information dump. It also means the plot is essentially summarised to ensure that the reader is following along, before springboarding into another direction. It’s an effective technique and helped to keep me engaged and focused throughout.

The case is solved and tied up in a satisfactory manner which took me a little by surprise. There’s also a lot of action sequences, particularly at the beginning and the end which helped keep the stakes high and the tension tight. The book leaves some open threads in regards to its characters and so I’m sure it won’t be the last time we visit North Falls - I’m excited to see what the next instalment has in store for us.

Overall, The Secrets We Hide is another tense thriller from Karin Slaughter. Thank you to NetGalley & Harper Collins UK – HarperFiction for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

LINKS TO BUY

Amazon UK

Waterstones