A clever, compelling read a great mixture of grief, betrayal, secrets, lies, manipulation and murder.

I'll probably get flack for rating this 4, but I don't have the 3.5 option, which is probably more true for me. That said, it's not a 3. I did receive this in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Net Galley and Bookouture. This mystery/thriller had a good plot, and an ending that surprised me in one sense, and not in the other. There was a dark, interesting twist. It did keep me reading, and I only give a 3 or under if I can't continue reading it. I wouldn't have stopped...but, I didn't really care about the characters...none of them, including the injured daughter or the mother. Being a mother, I was highly irritated with Melanie. I came close to liking her husband, but then there was an incident that just didn't ring true and it turned me from him. So, the plot = great, characters = not as much. That said, this is still worth the read.

Having been eager to read this book, I have to say I was left a little deflated after finishing it. I found it overlong and repetitive in parts, which made me lose interest rather quickly. I really wanted to love this book, but sadly it didn't do much for me.

This was a good mystery that ended differently than I expected. It drug in the middle when Melanie was desperate to find the person who attacked her daughter, Beth. Then the story picked back up, Melanie grew stronger and the end was perfectly done.
Advanced reader copy courtesy of the publishers at NetGalley for review.

Melanie Oak seems to be leading the perfect life, with a loving husband, teenage daughter and lovely home. Then Beth doesn’t come home one day; the teen is found beaten nearly to death and Melanie’s world comes crashing down. Who would want to hurt her lovely, kind daughter? There must be someone who knows something. Determined to find out what happened, Melanie sets out to uncover the truth. Little does she suspect that Beth had secrets, things her mother never guessed, things that could get both mother and daughter killed. I was able to guess who the attacker was, but the suspense was top-notch and the characters were likable and believable