Rating 3.5 Stars

The value of a secret depends upon whom you're trying to keep it from. You may think it's worth a lot. I may think it's worthless. Someone always has to pay.

Who can keep secrets? Two women Agatha and Meghan. These women are different but driven by passion. Agatha has a back ground that adds to the plot of baby thriller. She wants a baby for reasons that stem from her childhood or lack of. Meghan has everything going for her, a successful career as a mommy blogger in the England area. A husband that is successful in the sports world and two young children a boy and a girl and another on the way.

Agatha is obsessed with Meghan and the life she has. She knows everything about her unbeknownst to Meghan. A creepy stalker. And that is all I am going to say about that.

The author has shown both of these women as victims which I think was played well as you get in the head of each woman. It is their secrets that drive them and they both have them. It is their secrets that could take all that they hold dear away from them and the stakes become high.

I enjoy reading the English books and diving into the English culture and using my English accent as I read in my head with words like arse and the such. With a character and plot driven narration, you will be at the edge of your seat wondering how it all will end.

A Special Thank You to Scriber and

I received a copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Why I wanted to read this book:
Because it was compared to The Girl on the Train and In a Dark and Dark Wood. Two books I enjoyed.

What I liked about this book:
-I enjoyed the female characters. Meg seemed to have it all, is sincere with her relationships and remorseful for her mistakes. Agatha is just “boil the rabbit” crazy.
-Witty humor and lots of funny one liners.
-The friendship reminds me of “Single White Female” for married couples. How well do you really know your friends?

Intriguing relationship drama. The grass always looks green on the other side of the fence. However, things are not always as they appear.

What I didn’t like:
There were several times I didn’t agree with a characters’ actions and I didn’t feel it was well supported. It didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment of the book.

This was the first book I have read by Michael Robotham. I enjoyed it so much I plan to start his Joseph O’Loughlin series and “Life or Death”.

Great standalone psychological thriller from one of my favourite authors. I couldn't put this down. The author used two female narrators and both were convincing. I thought he dealt with the whole question of infertility and childlessness very compassionately.

Meghan seems to have it all, nice house, handsome husband, two lovely children and an 'oops' baby on the way.

Agatha works in a supermarket near where Meghan lives. She becomes obsessed with her and her life. In an attempt to make friends she creates a situation where they bond together over their shared situation- their pregnancies, babies due at nearly the same time.

But things are not exactly as they seem. Meg's life is not quite as golden as Aggys perceives. Aggy too is not the person she appears.

As their lives become more intertwined, events spin out of control.

It's difficult to say too much about this book without giving away the plot and it is important for the reader to find out things for themselves. I would have hated to know what lay ahead and spoil the impact of this story.

This is a gripping page turner. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for this five star read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I found it engrossing and I kept reading quickly to get to the end because I had to know what would happen.

Very engaging, psychological story. The characters were well thought out and written so real, from their damaged pasts to not so perfect lives. I gave this 4 stars on goodreads.

4.5 stars! This was a highly addictive, fast paced and character driven read.

I loved the way this story was told! The author, Michael Robotham, did a fantastic job with the two female narrators, Meg and Agatha. Character development was definitely a 5 star experience in this gripping novel! I was completely engrossed in Meg and Agatha’s lives, hanging on their every thought and word to see what would happen next. I felt as though I was actually right inside their minds, feeling their feelings, and weighing out decisions with them.

The storyline revolves around one of my worst nightmare’s as a parent. This made for a heart-pounding, anxiety driven, nail-biting reading experience. Even though the plot was a terrifying nightmarish situation for me, I couldn’t put the book down – I had to know what would happen next. I was thinking about this book even when I wasn’t reading it. Robotham does an exceptional job slowly revealing the pieces of this shocking story - he kept me hanging on every word. The title of the book, “The Secrets She Keeps” is perfectly fitting for this novel!

There were a few aspects of this story that seemed far-fetched to me which took away slightly from my rating. However, I was able to accept it and move forward to continue enjoying this addictive story.

A big thank you to NetGalley, Scribner and Michael Robotham for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I read Michael Robotham's last book, Life or Death, and really enjoyed it so when I saw this book available, I jumped on it. This book was even better than his last.

The characters and the plot have been well thought out and developed. I cared for and felt invested in all the characters - their struggles, their plights and their every day existence. The writing was flawless and flowed really well. It built suspense and tension and I found it very difficult to put down.

The book covers some interesting topics and is thought provoking. I will not go in to the themes of the book or give a rundown of the story as I feel it is would detract from the enjoyment of the book. Read it for yourself - you won't regret it. It gave me the feel of Big Little Lies as well as Gillian Flynn due to very normal, everyday women featuring in the story but beneath the mask and behind closed doors there is a different story which the reader becomes privy to. It is a very enjoyable read and Robotham is becoming a favourite author of mine as a result.

🌟🌟🌟🌟 Thrilling Stars
Why have I never read anything by this author before?
I will certainly be checking out Michael Robotham's back catalogue of fiction in the future, I enjoyed this bucket loads.
This is so how you make a page turning Psychological thriller, it hooked from the start, drawing me in and I was so engrossed in this I finished it in a few hours.
It's one of those easy reads where you lose track of time, so wrapped up in the story you get.
So The secrets she Keeps is one of those novels that the least you know the better it is so I'm going to try and keep this as spoiler free as possible.
The story revolves around two expectant mothers Agatha and Meghan.
These two females are like chalk and cheese, the only thing they have in common are their babies, Agatha watching Meghan from afar living her perfect life with her gorgeous husband and children can't help both admiring but also envying Meghan's Picture Postcard lifestyle.
Agatha herself is stacking shelves at an upmarket supermarket while waiting for her baby to arrive.
She then goes home to her little one bedroomed flat where she patiently waits for her absent ex to return her calls.
So As you can see the lifestyles of these two ladies are polar opposites.
When their lives intertwine the fallout is epic with twists and turns that knocked my socks off.
The secrets she keeps has so many layers to it and as this story was slowly revealed to me in stages I loved discovering each and every one of those levels.
It was full of diverse well thought out individuals and we are reminded throughout that what is often portrayed to the outside is only a glamour or mask we use to hide our true selves.
That even the most self-assured person is human under the facade they present and that the grass isn't always greener.
We also get to dip our toes into the mires of mental illness and maybe at the same time gain an insight and understanding into what motivates and drives us to behave in a certain fashion.
The characters in this, through flawed with some undesirable traits were also very surprisingly likeable in their humanity.
It's so much easier to identify with imperfect people.
So that's it I'm going to leave this here and urge you to take a chance on this excellent thriller, that has action and angst in spades so if you like your fiction gritty with human character's I am sure you will enjoy The secrets she keeps as much as I did.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with an advanced reader copy of the secrets she keeps. This is my own unbiased honest opinion.

Excellent Psychological Thriller! Agatha wants what Meg has because Meg has enough with her already perfect life. Meg's life is far from perfect however and it's about to get a whole lot worse! Highly recommend!

I normally love Michael Robotham's books. I am certainly a huge fan of his Joe O'Laughlin series. Unfortunately, this book just didn't work for me, and now I can't even find my notes. My fault, I'm sure as I think I've burnt out on psychological suspense.

It certainly had Robotham's quality to it, but I found myself not liking any other the characters. That rather killed it for me.

I shall keep reading him, but I'll keep reading the O'Laughlin series.

Review. The secrets she keeps. 7/11/17. Scrivener ***

Two women. Two big secrets. One tragic event they share.. Meghan and Agatha couldn't be more different in social status, lifestyle, background and, most importantly, in the ability to give birth. Both of them are hiding critical secrets, desperately afraid of certain life-altering secrets being revealed. They become friends in a seemingly accidental way, but when a crisis occurs, the web of lies begins to unravel, with kidnapping, heartbreak, and murder ensuing. I enjoyed reading this book, and, although it was not unputdownable, I was always happy to return to it, and quickly became engrossed in it when I did.
The intrigue depends on the two protagonists being well described and believable, and, for the most part, this is true. However, to me, it felt a bit "off", as if I were reading about people from a different culture, and did not always ring true to my experience of being a woman, or to the lives of women I know. The glorification of childbirth is something that seemed overdone, and towards the end I felt it was a bit preachy, being a little too explicit about conclusions the readers should be able to deduce for themselves.
Regardless, I enjoyed this book quite a bit. I especially liked the compassionate way he described the perpetrator, portraying her as a complex character, with many reasons for this terrible act she committed. I also think his description of someone struggling with mental issues was credible and handled very well. I liked both women, which made the suspense more intense, and was glad that there was a relatively happy ending for them both.

Note: I received an eARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

POW, right in the kisser! Wait. There's not one iota of violence in this tense thriller. The POW is just a WOW!

Agatha is a psycho, and oh is she a good one—so creepy and twisted! Her plan is clever and her prey, who is an acquaintance, is clueless. I love well-drawn psychopaths, just love them (as long as they’re on a page and not on my street). I get all busy trying to understand how their sicko mind works, and in this case I loved all the ingenious justifications that she came up with for the horror she wreaked. Agatha is not exactly cold-blooded, it’s more that her past (and no doubt her genes) have made her mental and she can’t stop what she’s doing.

The chapters alternate between Agatha and her prey of sorts, Meg. It’s first-person narration, which I happen to love because I feel like the characters are talking to ME, and I usually don’t feel the least bit detached. I feel privileged that the characters are letting me in on their well-guarded secrets. Naturally I was more enamored with Agatha because she was so smart and unpredictable. And then I would feel all weird that my fascination with her made her chapters more fun to read. Meg was sort of bland and predictable, so I was slightly less thrilled to get to her chapters. I did like her, though, and she was super well-drawn. And she has her own secret and the anguish that comes with it. Also, she does a really cool and unexpected thing at the end which will keep her secret hidden forever.

All is not as it appears.

A book usually gets an extra star if the twist is a doozy, and that’s the case here. What's funny about a twist is that there's this disbelief as you're reading along. Wait. Wait just a minute. Did I read this right? I’m thrown for a loop. So I reread. When I realize that yep, I did read it right, I can barely sit still. I marvel at the ingenuity of the writer for coming up with the twist, and I marvel at its timing and its delivery. Long live the skillful twist. It just makes everything fun.

There are no profound ideas to mull over, no ah-ha moments of the literary kind. But there are plenty of ah-ha moments of the plot kind, which left me in awe. I didn't miss the literary because I was so wrapped up in the story. I was eternally surprised at what complicated and clever thing the psycho would come up with next. She is confident and thorough, but of course she runs into situations that she isn’t expecting, which messes up her plan. This just increases the tension. This book is pure suspense and I couldn’t put it down.

How far will someone go to feed their delusions? How does a family cope with loss, and how can they stay hopeful? These are questions that I hardly had time to worry about. Guilt, blame, and suffering on Meg’s side; madness and calculation on Agatha’s side.

One minor complaint (which, thankfully, doesn’t entail me dragging the huge Complaint Board out of the shed): The voices of Agatha and Meg aren’t distinct enough. But because there is such a clear difference between the bad guy’s and the good guy’s actions, it never got confusing.

Thrillers aren’t my favorite genre, and I am totally stingy when it comes to giving them 5 stars. But I didn’t hesitate at all doling out the full 5 stars here. I definitely will be checking out Robotham’s other books. An excellent storyteller who really knows how to ratchet up the tension.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

I love fast-paced thrillers and this one didn't disappoint. It felt a little bit like Girl on the Train at first, but it had some unique twists in the story. One of the most frightening things to me in this day and age is the fear of falling victim to a stalker. In this book, the narrarator is the stalker, so it feels as though the terror is magnified because you see it coming and you can't warn the victim. It was terrifying and brilliant. I highly recommend it to my thrill-reading friends!

This was truly a gripping thriller- as in, it grabbed my interest and I could not put it down!! Just when I thought I knew the direction things were headed, the plot took another twisty turn. Highly recommend!

Nothing is what it seems... And it's terrifying!!! My mouth fell open too often while reading it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an e-copy of this book.

Great book! Robotham does not disappoint, have loved all of his book and this is no exception. Writing is superb with characters that come alive on the pages! Can't wait for his next book.

This book is set in London in the present time. It is about two pregnant women and their different lives. Agatha is single and works in a grocery store stocking shelves and Meghan writes a parenting blog, has two children and has a life that Agatha sees as perfect.
Agatha spends all her spare time watching Meghan, every day finding out a little bit more about her life and habits.
Meghan has secrets and her husband also has secrets, Agatha discovers some of their secrets but not all of them.
Agatha has secrets also.
This book has a sinister creepy feel to it. Gradually the lives of Meghan and her husband Jack and Jack’s best mate Simon are revealed. Each chapter switches between Meghan and Agatha and ever so slowly we find out what Agatha is planning. Fantastic ending.

Agatha is pregnant. Every day from her spot at the convenience store window where she works she sees Meghan. Meghan is also pregnant. Without knowing she is being watched she goes to her Mommy's meeting to talk with her posh friends about the trials and tribulations of being a mommy.

Both women are hiding secrets. Agatha's is dark and very twisted. She is, among other things, going steal Meghan's baby. Because you see, Agatha is only pretending to be pregnant. Meghan is hiding the secret from her husband that this baby may not be his...

This is an interesting and dark book. The secrets women keep, how they develop and how they keep building worlds around lies is really riveting. What is more fascinating is that Michael Robotham is able to depict the worlds of these two women and make them collide all with remarkable insight into the characters' psyche.

I received an advanced copy of this book and was just really caught up in world of these two ladies and how everything would unravel. A good read.