This is the perfect summer read! Interesting characters, quick pace, good writing, a cool “what no way” moment and a satisfying ending. My suggestion would be to go into this without reading the blurb- that gives away way more info than necessary. If you liked Jar of Hearts you will like this and if you haven’t read Jar of Hearts totally do that!

This is my first book by this reader and it certainly won’t be my last.
This psychological thriller was full of unexpected twists and turns.
Chilling, and terrifying this is the story of a parent’s worst nightmare. A family torn apart by one moment in time. What unfolded, was an intriguing and compelling story story that had me hooked!
Emotionally charged and suspenseful, the story unfolded seamlessly.
Overall I enjoyed this story however there were elements of this story that were predictable and didn’t seem realistic.

4 Nothing As It Seems Stars
* * * * Spoiler Free A Quick Review
Jennifer Hillier takes the universal nightmare for anyone and whips up a multi-layered tale in this book Little Secrets. The title alone gives us the tease.

The level of detail in the disappearance of the mother's child is chilling. It touches on everything a parent would feel. From that moment the story is off and running.

We have the married couple, the FBI, a PI, and the friends who support them. All of these factors are important. All play a part. As many months go by without the recovery of the child, the mother is discovering new things about her husband and his involvement with another.

The book is in multiple parts to leading us to see how these layers play out. Stay focused and continue to the end because the payoff falls right into place.

A gifted copy was provided by author/publisher for an honest review.

"Little Secrets" by Jennifer Hillier is brilliantly plotted, emotionally charged, intensely riveting, and highly addictive psychology thriller. I couldn’t put this fantastic book down! A big Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy of the book. This outstanding page-turner is definitely one that you will want to add to your reading list.

Book Synopsis: Marin Machado is the mother of four-year-old Sebastian who is taken while they are out doing some last minute shopping for Christmas. After a year of searching there are still no answers as to where her son is. But for anyone looking at Marin’s life from the outside it looks perfect. She is a very successful hairdresser, wealthy, in a marriage people envy, and yet she’s also the mother of an abducted child no one has found. Inside, she has not moved on from that day. She struggles with the anguish and guilt of losing her son. She and husband Derek don’t really communicate, and she’s secretly hired a PI since the FBI stopped actively looking for Sebastian. And then the PI drops a bomb in her life: she hasn’t found her son, but she accidentally found out Derek has a mistress. All it takes is one little secret...and now Marin has something else to obsess about.

What a wild ride. Full of twists and turns. Loved it. Marin and Derek lost their son in a crowed market place and expect a random since money wise they are doing okay. When none comes they turns to old friends and new friends who they think they can trust. Thank you Minotaur Books and NetGalley for allowing to dig deep into the world of the rich and they not knowing who you can really trust.

This book was outstanding. It gives new meaning to the word gripping. The author does an incredible job of building characters who are real, nuanced humans. It’s an examination of what happens when your worst nightmare comes true and what happens when people are pushed to the brink. I highly recommend reading this book.

WOW! This was my first Jennifer Hillier book and it definitely won’t be my last. Little Secrets was a roller coaster of emotions to read. Most thrillers I read I can kinda figure it out before we get to the end. Not this one! There were twists and turns that kept me guessing. I DID NOT see that ending coming!

Wow! This is one of the best thrillers I have read lately. Marin takes her son Christmas shopping, lets go of his hand to send a quick text and he is gone! Every mother’s nightmare. This gripping thriller has characters that are beyond complex. As a golden couple, people would assume Marin and her husband have it all. Things are not what they seem. The depth of the characters from the main ones through supporting ones are all so complex that it defies the imagination. I couldn’t put this book down!

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What a great read! Not your typical child kidnapping story. I loved all of the layers to this one. It took me a few chapters to get into because it's been a while since I've read a third person narrated story.

Towards the end of the book, I did have an inkling of who was responsible for some things, but I thought the unraveling of the reveal was so well done. The writing was gripping and I think this will be my next go to thriller recommendation!

This was a 4.5 star read for me, but am rounding it up to 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Little Secrets is another masterpiece from Jennifer Hillier. It’s described as a domestic suspense tale or a psychological thriller, but it’s so much more. As with all of Hillier’s books, it’s a fast-paced, heart-pounding, pulse-racing story that reveals something you didn’t expect on every page, which means you can’t stop turning pages and once you pick it up you can’t put it down.

The worst day of Marin Machado’s life happened almost a year and a half ago. Her four-year old son Sebastian was kidnapped from Seattle’s Pike Place Market. Of course she blames herself: it was the holiday, busy, crowded, Seb was whining for candy, she was harried, looking for gifts and looking at her phone. She and her husband took all measures to try and find Seb, but postings, newspaper ads, offer of rewards, nothing worked and Seb is gone. And the perfect life, perfect marriage, perfect careers, perfect family is gone. Marin can’t move on although everyone, tells her to do so, and she hires a private investigator to pick up where the police left off, gave up in her estimation.

And the investigator has news. But not the news Marin wants or expects. Derek, her beloved husband of 20 years, is having an affair. With a much younger woman. Talk about betrayal, the final straw, the thing she just can’t deal with. But maybe she can. She is impotent to do anything about Seb’s disappearance, but she’s not powerless to do something about this. Despair turns to rage. She will get rid of that woman. She’s not going to lose everything. So she sets things in motion.

And we’re off. To say much more would spoil the story. Nothing, nothing, nothing is certain. Just when you think you’ve found that one person that can be trusted or that one scenario that is true, an aha moment pops up and all those little hints you missed fall into place and you wonder why you didn’t see it. Now you know. But then it happens again – and again. Until you can hardly bear the suspense.

Little Secrets is a wild ride. Strong plot, fast pace, riveting characters, a flood of emotions. You’ll feel Marin’s hurt and betrayal, Derek’s helplessness and hopelessness, Marin’s friend Sal’s frustration and Derek’s lover Kenzie’s ambition and hope.

I received an advance copy of Little Secrets from the author via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. I recommend this and anything author Jennifer Hillier writes with hesitation.

Little Secrets was an edge of your seat book. Marin’s life stopped the second her four year old son was kidnapped at a store. Her marriage is falling apart. Her husband is having an affair with a 23 year old. Marin had it all. Wonderful husband precious son. Doing well financially. Loves her job But that’s all gone Since Sebastian’s kidnapping.

I really enjoyed this book! This was a page turner. I was drawn in by the abduction of the son but the twists and turns kept coming. Some parts were quite shocking. Well written with great character development. First book I have read by this author and it will not be the last.

Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier starts off with quite a bang of an opening and continues to provide the reader with a thriller that reads quickly, especially as you approach the stunning finale. Marin is out shopping with her young son when every parent's worst nightmare occurs. Marin and her husband then need to deal with the fallout of the tragedy. Marin relies on her coworkers and friends to help her but soon discovers that she might not know who to really trust. Read and enjoy!

Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier touches every parent’s worse nightmare! In the Prologue, a very well-off power couple are ar the downtown open market. Marin Machado is finishing up her shopping and holding on to her four-year-old son Sebastian’s hand. Her husband, Derek arrives at the market and calls his wife. While getting er phone out of her pocket, she lets go of her so so hand. After a minute on the phone, she looks around and her son has disappeared. As a parent and a reader, my heart sunk. This section was really well portrayed by the author. In Part I we move forward sixteen months to find out Sebastian is still missing. As the story is told, there are flashbacks to what happened, and we meet several characters. All of the characters have their secrets. At times the story dragged and I kept asking myself, “What about Sebastian?” As the story progressed, some of the secrets made me not feel empathy for the main characters. There are lots of twists and turns and maybe a few too many coincidences. It was a good, quick read. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review,

Following the disappearance of her only child, a woman tries to save her marriage in this perfect blend of thrills and a study of grief.

Full disclosure, I have been having an especially hard time reading thrillers during my social distancing. I think I must have subconsciously decided I needed happy endings for mental stability. This past month I have read a lot of romances and literary fiction, which I also love, but I have always loved a crazy book prior to stay at home orders.

Little Secrets, with twist after twist, really brought me back to the thriller genre. It reminded me that a good story is a good story, and I don't need a certain category of ending to satisfy some self-imposed checklist.

I really enjoyed Jar of Hearts more, and I will be making the rest of Jennifer Hillier's books part of my summer reading list.

Oh what a tangled web we weave! The big question in this book was who was doing the deceiving? At first it seems pretty straight forward missing boy story but then things get all twisty and finally Ms. Hillier starts to peel back the curtain a little at a time to give the reader the full picture. The only issue for me was that the middle part seemed to drag on a bit and Marin seemed to get a bit obsessed about the wrong thing. I was surprised and disappointed at a couple choices Marin makes, one big choice in particular. I would have gone another way with that, but it worked well for the story. (I'd tell you what it was but that would be a spoiler and I don't want to ruin your fun reading this book!) The end result was a good solid read. I will say that with all the deceiving and twisting you almost forget it started with the abduction.

This psychological thriller is largely told from the perspective of Marin, a mother who's child was abducted over a year ago and then the young woman her husband has been having an affair with.

Marin is completely broken when she discovers her husband has been having an affair with a young graduate student working as a barista. Suddenly Marin has something to put her angst on and she ultimately makes a decision she then desperately tries to take back.

The book definitely was a roller coaster of emotions and the differing perspectives had me going back to see if I could have missed signs of what was too come.

Although the story started to drag at one point, it very quickly made up for it with one hell of a final twist that I never saw coming! It's definitely a good psychological thriller that is ultimately worth your time!

Many thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review

Little Secrets was an entertaining read that ventured to the dark side. While not too graphic, there was definitely some content that some would have trouble reading. I thought the strength of the writing surrounded the pain that the parents, especially Marin felt over the loss of their son. Her grief was palpable. I found the descriptions of her hair styling business a bit over the top, being familiar with the area it seemed unrealistic that there were that many A list celebrities going to Seattle to get their hair done. The ending / who done-it was a bit predictable but I didn't mind. Fairly quick, entertaining read.

4.4 - it's not easy for me to stay immersed in an e-book... but this one had me from the first screen; delightfully flawed (and/or evil) characters and several red herrings had me flipping pages quickly, and one plot turn was jaw-droppingly good

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book. My reviews can be read on my GoodReads account here: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1335387-kelly