Book Review: Our Little Secret by Roz Nay

Desire, passion, first love, and the turning of time all play factors in this wonderful, power-packed thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat, turning pages. Enjoyable, heart-pumping, and just what I needed.

Angela is left in a stark interrogation room with nothing but a revolving line of police officers entering, all with the same questions about her ex, HP. His wife Saskia is missing. Just what does Angela know about it?

Detective Novak becomes the main interrogator, letting Angela go back ten years to tell how she knew and fell in love with HP. Roz Nay goes deep inside the thoughts of Angela to find what has kept her ticking all these years. We are given snapshots of the life Angela wanted and expected to always be there.

HP and Angela were best friends; there was always that extra pull deep inside of Angela towards HP. They were closer to each other than anyone else. It wasn't unexpected - and yet it was when it finally happened - when they fell in love. Was it meant to be? Was it meant to last? What if HP meant someone else?

Saskia's vanished, hasn't she? It's kind of terrible, although deep down, in a part of me I'll never let anyone see, I don't mind if she doesn't come back. That sounds bad, I know. But people can't always control their thoughts; they just control what they do about them. Saskia came in like a hurricane that summer, ripping whole dwellings apart, and maybe Mom is right. The energy you put out into the world does change everything.

Angela has her own thoughts on what has been going on. Could she be protecting someone? Who has been telling the truth, and who is living the lie?

The way we live now, most people veil their destructiveness and dress it up as love. They clothe it and feed it and take it out on the town as their socially acceptable form of desolation. They do as much damage as the next person.

I really enjoyed this cat-and-mouse thriller. Our Little Secret kept me guessing until the end. I look forward to what Roz Nay will come up with next.


Thanks go to Simon & Schuster Canada and Roz Nay for providing an ARC copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Our Little Secret - Roz Nay 
On sale: June 6, 2017

Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9781501142802

E-Book
ISBN: 9781501142864


Get to know more about this author!



Roz Nay grew up in England and studied at Oxford University. She has been published in The Antigonish Review and the anthology Refuge. Roz has worked as an underwater fish counter in Africa, a snowboard videographer in Vermont, and a high school teacher in both the UK and Australia. She now lives in British Columbia, Canada, with her husband and two children. Our Little Secret is her first novel. Visit her at RozNay.com, on Facebook Roznay1, or follow her on Twitter @roznay1.





Cross-posted on Goodreads

From Just Beyond My Bookshelf

Book Review: The Twilight Wife by A.J. Banner

None of us is bound by the past.

Kyra Winthrop, after barely surviving a diving accident, remembers very little of the last several years of her life. She can't remember the accident, her time in the hospital, or even her married life. She is fortunate to have a patient husband, a few good friends, and a wonderful island she can recuperate on.
But is this enough to give Kyra the life back she once had?



The Twilight Wife is a good, fast-paced story full of mystery. I enjoyed the well-created, suspense-filled scenes. The twists and turns kept me engaged, and I loved the scenery of the remote island in the Pacific Northwest. I correctly guessed some of the plot line early on, but I really enjoyed the mystery behind why it happened that way. It was good to read a book that brought shivers to my spine.

A.J. Banner has packaged up a nice stand-alone novel in The Twilight Wife. There was one passage that was of particular interest to me. It resonated deeply within me, and I felt a connection to the character as I read further.

What makes a woman so sure of herself? She has to know who she is, and to know who she is, she needs knowledge of her past. She remembers falling in and out of love, making a decision to marry or remain single. She remembers the choices that define her. But I don't have that advantage.

Thanks go to Simon & Schuster Canada and A.J. Banner for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

THE TWILIGHT WIFE - A.J. Banner

Publication: December 27, 2016

ISBN: 9781501152115

Don't forget to check out more by this author!

 

A.J. Banner graduated from high school in southern California and received degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. Her first novel of psychological suspense, The Good Neighbor, was a #1 Kindle bestseller, and was named by Harper’s Bazaar as the next Gone Girl. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and five rescued cats.

Cross-posted on Goodreads

From just Beyond My Bookshelf

Book Review: In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

Nora is invited to a hen (bachelorette) party, but it’s been ten years since she’s seen or talked to the bride-to-be, Clare. After contacting Nina, the only other person she knows on the invite list, Nora begrudgingly agrees to go to the party, only to find out that Nora’s ex and the groom-to-be are one and the same.

As Nora tries her best to appear happy, her old friends and anew acquaintances remind her of why she left town after graduation without looking back.

• Clare – Nora sees, after only a few minutes, that Clare hasn’t changed much from her stuck-up, popular days
• Flo – very high strung, intense, and trying to become a replica of Clare; appears as the most psychologically unbalanced member of the party
• Nina – outspoken and uncensored Nina still hasn’t learned to watch what she says before she says it; the part of her that was once envied is now seen as her downfall 
• Melanie – too wrapped up in her six-month old to enjoy anything or be a team player 
• Tom – seems to fit right in as one of the girls 
• James – Nora’s first love that she thought she’d gotten over, and now he’s to marry Clare

In a Dark, Dark Wood is very readable with lots of suspense and thought-provoking moments slipped in throughout the story. It is very well crafted and I will definitely enjoy returning to it.

I wish to thank Simon & Schuster Canada and Ruth Ware for providing me with a review copy for an honest review.

Cross-posted on Goodreads