This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended

Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!

This story was tantalizing, juicy, and fun! I found myself really enjoying this tale of thrilling twists and turns. A very addictive page-turner that I can highly recommend!

Jen and her ex-husband have been on rocky ground as he left Jen when he cheated on her with Ella. One day when Gracie is spending the weekend with her dad, Jen gets a call from her ex-husband to say there has been a car accident and Ella and Gracie are in the hospital. Ella got a few stitches but poor Gracie had her heart stop and had to be resuscitated and now is hanging on as Jen calls her "her little fighter". Meanwhile, at the hospital, Jen meets a doctor - Matt whom the pair strike up a friendship, and when Gracie comes out of the hospital - the pair start to spend more time together. During this time, Jen notices her daughter has changed and starts talking about things that happened when she was unconscious/ dead. Soon memories of the accident and other little details come to the light that all point to it being Ella's fault but who will believe a three-year-old? Who was Ella yelling to on the phone and who is Caroline to Ella? The book took an interesting twist when we start to learn more about Ella's past and also how Matt is connected to all the characters of the story. Gracie's Secret was a fast-paced thriller filled with lots of twists and turns and also has a strong focus on St. Michael and the Afterlife/Heaven.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

This was my first book by this author, and I can positively say that I really enjoyed reading this one. Its captivating. For sure I will be checking other books written by this author.

I’ve been listening to this in between reading physical books and ebooks on my kindle. So if I’m bathing, getting dressed, doing chores or driving audio books come out.

I’m late getting to this that’s why I downloaded the audio version. Playing catch up.
All avid readers know how that is, right?

At the beginning of this book until halfway I would think, family drama, but, was I oh so very wrong, It was so much more!

This had mystery, thriller and heartbreaking poignant moments inside this book.

It’s kept my readers nose into this at every chance I could get. I love it so much I now own the paperback to display on my bookcase.

The narrator I didn’t feel was the best as she always sounded so softly spoken even when it merited a harsher voice.
My other moan was that Gracie was written as a 3 year old but she seemed more like 5 or older really, her voice, vocabulary fitted someone older.
Hence the drop in one star.

But this was so cleverly written it.
The epilogue was so very sad.

.......
But at the same time......joyous for the future.

Thank you Bookoutour

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for providing a digital copy of this book for review. This is a fast, plot-driven read. The story revolves around a 3 year-old girl (Gracie) who winds up in a coma after a car accident with her eventual step-mother driving. After she emerges from the coma, she shares an after-life experience she had, which colors the rest of the novel. But the real mystery revolves around the new partners in the lives of Gracie's recently divorced parents. Personally, I found the characters a bit flat, but I enjoyed it for what it is. I will say that the ending did surprise me a bit (which is unusual for me), and it did explain the way the story was told, I just didn't see it in advance. Overall a fun read.

This book had so much potential for me, but sadly it missed the mark. I almost DNFed, but I kept plugging through. The book just completely dragged. I kept putting it down to read something else.

I thoroughly enjoyed Gracie's Secret and find it very hard to believe it is Jill Child's debut book. It was so well written and gut wrenching at times I just couldn't put it down I couldn't wait to see where it was going. The story revolves around Jen who receives a phone call from her ex husband Richard to say their daughter Gracie has been involved in a car crash. Gracie is the passenger in the car driven by Richard's new girlfriend Ella and when it is involved in a head on collision Gracie dies at the scene but is miraculously resuscitated at the scene by paramedics and rushed to hospital. Unfortunately she has a bleed on her brain and is in a coma. Jen spends every waking moment with her daughter and becomes involved with Gracie's pediatrician. Jen is furious at Ella for endangering her daughter's life she has never trusted her. When Gracie comes out of the coma she is different to the girls she was before the accident and she claims to have seen an angel and gone to heaven and the angel asked her if she wanted to stay or go home and Gracie chose to go home. Gracie also recalls what happened in the car before the crash and says Ella was arguing on the phone. This is a story of a mother's love for her child and I found Gracie's whole life after death experience extremely intriguing.

Thank you to Bookouture, Jill Childs and NetGalley for the arc of Gracie's Secret my review is honest and unbiased in any way.

This book was not what I thought it was going to be. The ending was intense but the majority of the book bored me a little. A very well written book however I did connect the dots quite quickly which left nothing to my imagination except how it would all play out. I didn’t expect the ending so kudos for that.

Overall 3.5 ⭐️

The most important person in Jen's life is her daughter Gracie, when she is involved in an accident in a car driven by her ex husbands new woman she finds it hard to move on. Most of the story is told as Jen speaking to Gracie, with some parts told by Ella. Matt who Jen meets in the hospital while Gracie is in the ICU becomes a big part of her life. I found it an easy enough read but was not really getting the secret element of the book.

This modern thriller was ok. I did find the story a bit strange an nothing like the synopsis. There are better to read.

Loved this emotional thriller that kept me guessing. Thanks to publisher and Netgalley for the advanced reading copy.

I wish there was some way to indicate this book was 10 stars in my opinion. The book blurb gives a pretty straight forward account of the story. 3 year old Grace is almost killed in a car accident and her mother Jen starts to notice some strange and bizarre occurrences once she comes home. Grace starts telling Jen stories about Ella, the car's driver and her ex-husband's girlfriend . Little did Jen know just how intertwined Ella and her life would become. I never in a million years would have predicted the last several chapters in this book, it was breath taking. I will be looking for Jill Child's 1st book, Jessica's Promise on my next trip to the bookstore. If you only have time for one book pick up this one. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

While at the grocery store, Jen receives a call from her ex-husband telling her to get to the hospital quickly. Their daughter Gracie is in a coma after having been injured in a car accident and his girlfriend was the one driving. When Gracie comes out of her coma she begins telling stories about things that sound otherworldly and she relays things about the girlfriend who was driving. This was an interesting and emotional read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The author’s choice to write from Ella and Jen’s points of view was a smart one. I felt like I enjoyed the book more having more than one view as I was reading. Great for anyone that likes suspense novels!

This was a really gripping domestic drama with all sorts of twists and turns!

Jen is a newly single mom who gets the phone call all mothers dread - her 3 year old daughter, Gracie, has been in a car accident. To make matters worse, the driver of the car is her husband's new girlfriend, Ella. Things are touch and go for awhile, but Gracie eventually makes a full recovery. To Jen's surprise and concern, Gracie begins telling strange stories about visions and sights she had while she was near death. Some of them seem to lead to a secret that Ella may be hiding from everyone.

As I mentioned, lots of twists and surprises in this book that really kept me engaged. There were portions of the book that I simply didn't want to put down because I had to know how things would play out.

There were several suspicious characters including Ella and also Matt, Jen's new boyfriend, both who seem to have ulterior motives. While I was able to guess early on what some of the twists would be, I was still tearing through the pages so I could see what would happen and how it would all unravel.

While the visions Gracie revealed threw me for a bit of a loop and I didn't LOVE those parts, I could see how they were very important to the story. The ending was jaw dropping and kind of anger inducing, but it kept me riveted. I will definitely read future works by Jill Childs.

When Jen gets a phone call from her ex husband it is her worst nightmare...... their 3 year old daughter Gracie has been in a car accident and has had to be resuscitated. When Jen finds out that her farther wasnt even there and it was his partner driving she is furious and sets out to prove that it was Ella' s fault.

A good story that draws you in right from the start. It works well being told by Ella's point of view as well as Jen's and although I found that I didn't really like Jen I still couldn't put it down

I picked up this book as the cover was extremely enticing. A mother's intense love for her child was the core root of this story.

The story started with a phone call asking the mother Jen to come to the hospital where her 3 year old Gracie was admitted after the vehicular accident. This scene itself would put a shiver down any mother's spine. Gracie did recover from the head injury and coma, but she started describing certain events which were a bit eerie and something like an out-of-body experience.

In the hospital 2 things happened, Jen learnt that the car at that time was driven by her husband's girlfriend Ella, who was on the phone, distracted while driving; Jen was awash with anger, but the police did not take her accusations seriously. (no idea why, I thought driving and talking on the cell phone was a crime, especially if there is an accident). And she met Matt, a kind and courteous paediatrician and love blossomed.

Jill Childs' debut was interesting. It made way for the possibilities of life enveloped in spiritual and mysterious occurrences. A mother's love for her child, especially after such an life changing event was well described by the author.

Though Gracie's visions were pivotal to the story, it took a suspenseful direction in the mid half of the story. Narrated from Jen and Ella's POV, the book had its moments. I didn't like any of the characters Jen was a bit weird, Ella indifferent, and Gracie was too mature for a 3 year old (her dialog suited a 5 or 6 year old).

Though different, the book did keep me occupied for the whole afternoon.