The Prologue got me; I love Sarah, but her husband is shady. Something happened to Sarah and sister Maisey a long time ago. What happened to make Maisey leave the country and Sarah to receive a mysterious email, "I know your secret. I'm going to tell" I'm hooked!! Where's part 2?

I want to read more of this book. This small section was fantastic and left me wanting to find out what is going on in the main character's life and what happened in her past. I recommend.

3.25-3.5 STARS

From the outside looking in, Sarah Taylor-Cox appears to have it all. She lives a privileged lifestyle that includes a handsome husband, a beautiful baby boy, and a gorgeous house in the Hamptons. Truly, she is the envy of many. But looks can be deceiving. For in fact, Sarah’s life is a far cry from being perfect. Her husband, Warwick, is narcissistic, manipulative and controlling. Her mother-in-law is the same, if not worse.

When it comes to her own family, Sarah is guarded, keeping them at a distance and shrouded in mystery—especially when it comes to her sister Maisey—a nurse who travels to impoverished countries offering aid where needed. Once close, these sisters have been estranged for many years. But with her son’s christening looming on the horizon, a forced reunion might soon be forthcoming.

Even in a crowd, Sarah exudes loneliness. Add to the mix, the cattiness that surrounds Sarah, hiding behind the guise of well-meaning acquaintances and friends—people who only help to reinforce her low self-esteem and feelings of inadequacy. You can’t help but feel sorry for the woman who appears to have everything, and yet in reality, has very little at all.

But it’s the secret that Sarah holds close that is the most compelling component to this story.. A secret that Sarah fears will soon be revealed. And it’s this very secret that will have me coming back for more!

“Take it to the Grave” is a dark, psychological thriller that is served up into 6 separate installments. Personally, I have no issue with serial novels, as long as I’m not left dangling for too long in between releases. This is definitely not the case here, as it seems that all installments will release on the very same day. So, why then, is this story broken down into 6 parts to begin with? One can only conclude that this is nothing but a calculated ruse to hook readers in hopes of garnering more money for a novel that might not otherwise command such an exorbitant price. But, who knows… “Take it to the Grave” in its entirety, could very well, be worth every penny. Only time will tell. I, however, am intrigued just enough to want to give this story a fair chance.

The selection is too short to really come to any conclusions about the series.

A real page turner couldn't put it down characters are well developed

This book had me hooked right from the start. The very different lives of 2 estranged sisters and the mystery of their background had me wanting to find out more. I have already pre-ordered the next 2 parts.

Sarah Taylor-Cox appears to have the perfect life, but she doesn't -- not when her mother-in-law insists that Sarah has family attending the christening of Elliot. She invites her sister Maisey whom she has not seen in ages. Maisey has accepted which scares Sarah. Why? What does Sarah think will happen when Maisey arrives?

This novel starts out slowly but as you read, you become invested in the story. As iRead, I kept wanting to know more. Now I need the next part now. I am dying of curiousity!

This book held my attention just enough that I'll read the next part.

Sarah thinks she has it all, perfect husband, perfect house, perfect life, but we find this isn't true. Her husband and his mother are very subtle about it, but very condescending. Her friends are snarky and insulting also.

Sarah and her sister are both running from the past , each in their own way. I suspect we will find the past will catch up to them.

this unfortunately didn't work for me- i didn't connect on this

Sarah has the perfect life. Perfect husband. Adorable baby. House in the Hamptons. A life she doesn't think she deserves, a real upgrade.

Her sister Maisy is a nurse abroad, moving from developing country to developing country and never putting down roots.

The two haven't spoken in years, but they both continue to think back to a singular event.

The unifying feature in this first part of a serial is that neither of them trust anyone and they both appear to have a great deal to hide.

"I know your secret Sarah.

I'm going to tell."

This was a quick 20 minute read but as far as I can tell, the other chapters will be interesting. Consider my interest piqued.



4 stars.

Great start in Part 1 and now I'm getting ready to start Part II. Ms. Carter develops her characters well and the suspense of wondering just what the 'secret' is that lies between the sisters keeps one reading. I did find it hard to feel sorry for Sarah, who doesn't seem capable of standing up for herself in her in-law family environment, nor with her flirty husband. However, not knowing just what is behind her family mystery, it will remain to be seen why she is so submissive!

Thanks to the author; her publisher, Harlequin Special Releases, and Netgalley.com for the opportunity to read and review this new series.

This is a book with six parts. Part 1 was a real teaser and makes me want to read the other five parts. Sarah and Maisey are sisters and it seems they had an awful childhood, full of abuse. They have not seen each other for several years. Maisey often works abroad as a nurse doing good work. Sarah appears to be married to the perfect man, but there are hints that this is not the case. Sarah receives an email "I know your secet. I'm going to tell." And there the first part ends leaving you wanting more.

A fast-paced, character driven thriller that leaves you hanging for the next book in the series. Highly recommended

Excited for what is to come in this series. I really enjoyed the characters and got sucked in. Can't wait to see where part 2 goes!

Serial novels are the bane of my existence. On one hand, I love them because they are short and if written right can definitely make you want to read the next book. But if written wrong, they can turn you off of serial novels. Unfortunately, Take It to the Grave is the latter.

I couldn’t get into Sarah’s story. She came across as a neurotic mess that is haunted by something in her past. There is only the barest of clues given, a memory of her and her sister with their father playing in a meadow. Again, I know this is a serial so I know that the clues to the mystery would be dragged out but I really expected more background given. The relationship with her in-laws was toxic and her husband came across as a jerk. I mean, she had to hide the fact that she wasn’t breastfeeding from her mother in law (who was the mother in law from hell) and had to deal with her **friends** making unacceptable comments about her weight.

Maisey, however, was the complete opposite, in ways. She was damaged goods like Sarah but in different ways. She has difficulty maintaining any close relationships and kept people at arm’s length. Towards the end of her story, it is told why she is the way she is but it doesn’t explain the weird flashbacks about the baby or the fact that Maisey has the compulsive need to lie to people to keep appearances up.

I will say that the author did do a great job setting up the scenario for the rest of the books but I do wish that some of the extra scenes really didn’t need to be in the book. Like the sex scene in the Porta potty. I really could have not used to visual of Sarah getting off in one of those. I think I actually gagged while reading it.

The end was very compelling and if I liked the book, I would have loved to read the next one. But unfortunately, I will have to pass on it.

How many stars will I give Take It to the Grave: 2

Why: I couldn’t connect with Sarah or Maisey. I also thought that some of the clues that showed up in the book about what happened to Sarah and Maisey didn’t give enough information. Also, the sex scene in the Porta potty really, really grossed me out and was the final straw in me not liking the book.

Will I reread: No

Will I recommend to family and friends: No

Age range: Adult

Why: Sex and language

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**

Sarah has a handsome rich husband, a house in the Hamptons, a new baby, a "perfect" mother-in-law and some very snarky friends. Sarah is having trouble losing her baby weight and binge eats. Everyone keeps calling attention to her weight. Her husband even talks about it to his golf buddies. I couldn't believe that people were so rude, but then I am not rich and living in the Hamptons. I could sympathize with Sarah and I really despised her mother-in-law and friends. MIL is insisting on inviting Sarah's family, with whom she hasn't been in contact for years (I gather they are the definition of dysfunctional) to stay for a week, so she sends a letter to her sister Maisie, a nurse with Nurses Without Borders hoping that Sarah never receives the letter or will surely not come. To Sarah's dismay Maisie accepts. Then Sarah gets a letter that says "I know your secret . I'm going to tell". This is not the beginning as the description states. This comes at the end of this installment and leaves us hanging. I do not like serial books. If I am really involved in a book I want to read the whole thing, not wait for installments. At least they will all be released at the same time, but at $1.99 per book this makes the story $11.94 or $9.98 if you buy it as 2 boxed sets. This is more than I generally pay for Kindle books so even though I really enjoyed it I doubt that I will buy it. Maybe the library will get it.

Take It To the Grave is the first installment of six parts by Zoe Carter. The story is interesting but I never expected it to be so short. I had thought each installment would be book length or close to it, instead it is only five chapters. I was given a copy to review but feel cheated by the length.

This was an interesting first installment. I enjoyed both of the sister characters, but am wondering how they were estranged and what happened between them. I really enjoy Sarah and her thoughts about her snooty mother in law. I would definitely like to continue with the next book to see how the mystery unravels. The author did a great job creating suspense.

I felt that this wasn't a long enough book segment to get hooked enough to want to buy parts 2-6.

I hated this book. I don't understand marketing this as a serial. I highly doubt anyone would want to keep reading this.