As in all communities that have been settled and populated for centuries, the stories told revolve around a limited number of families. Based on the wealth of the family, rules are different and gossip can bring down anyone who can't buy silence. Emily Gunnis paints the families in vivid colors of their social standings.

When tragedy strikes the well to do Hilton family, someone must be punished. Bobby James has never let discretion stop him from voicing his discontent with the wealthy Hilton family, so he immediately moves to the top of the suspect list. With few facts and fewer clues to follow, Bobby is pronounced guility by popular opinion. Though never convicted of a crime, his future becomes dark.

Fast forward.....Bobby's daughter Willow is the architect for a construction project planned for Yew Tree Manor, home of the Hilton family. As the project gets under way, a young girl is missing, the same crime Bobby was accused of so many years ago. But Willow will use her access to the Manor grounds to not only find the girl, she'll solve the long ago crime that ruined her family's name.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. A good twist and turn mystery thriller novel. Recommend

This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!

The Midwife's Secret
Author, Emily Gunnis
Available now, PB to be published 12.6.22

Thank you Headline Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review Gunnis's heart- wrenching and moving novel.

Told from multiple point's of view and back and forth between three timelines, the reader is taken on a journey through the dark pasts of three families: the Hilton's, the James's, and the Simms's, that bring them to where they are today- filled with resentment and emotion longing for the truth. Weaved together by buried secrets, lies, deceit, and betrayals, the ties between these families are shocking and full of twists.

In 1969, six- year- old Alice Hilton was last seen by her neighbor, Bobby Simms on New Year's night as she was searching for her puppy in the snow storm on her parents' property, Yew Tree Manor. The events of that night changed Bobby's life forever; and although he was never found guilty, the Hilton's tarnished his reputation and consequently, he led a difficult life filled with anger. Tragically, Alice was never found and Vanessa, her mother, now suffering with Alzheimer's and filled with regret, is tormented by that heart- breaking evening every day.

Today, Bobby's daughter, Willow is working on an exciting development at Yew Tree Manor with Vanessa's son, Leo Hilton. But when Leo and Helen's daughter mysteriously goes missing, the past rises to the surface and can no longer be left behind. Willow discovers that the land that is about to be developed on holds a dangerous secret and as she dives into both family's histories, she begins to unravel heart-wrenching truths that are filled with loyalty, deceit, love, and loss, So many wrongs from the past have come back to haunt the present and it's time for justice to prevail. Suspenseful, moving, and hard to put down!

Some difficult content that's tactfully written: miscarriage, rape, child abduction, violence/ tragic accident, TB, animals requiring euthanasia due to illness

4.5 stars!

The Midwife’s Secret tells the tale about a missing child. This novel was filled with many surprising secrets that slowly unraveled over time! The story is told in different timelines and focuses on three different characters. Each of the characters were very complex and grey. I liked how everything ended nicely. The only thing I did not like about the book was the romance felt a little underwhelming. Still, I recommend this for fans of Natalie Meg Evansville, Gill Paul, and Kate Morton!

DNF 26% - my brain space is not capable of keeping these alternating times, characters, and families straight right now. It’s just not working for me.

This book will definitely leave you thinking about the characters long after it is done!
Awesome plot that will keep your attention. The suspense was great!
I'm going to be watching this new to me author for more of her stories!
Yes, the three different time periods confused me a bit but once I figured it out it took off for me.
This story definitely deserves 5 stars! I highly recommend!
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book. This is a fairly complex novel, with three separate timelines. We get a family tree before we even get to the prologue, so you know there are going to be a lot of characters and relationships to keep track of. Admittedly it took me a bit of time to get everyone straight, and I had to refer back to the family tree multiple times, but overall I really enjoyed this well-crafted and well-paced story.

You know a thriller is really good when you feel like they did the big "revel" in the first several chapters. I kept saying to myself, could this book get any better? I hope this doesn't fall flat...
For years the Hilton and James families have been intertwined in Yew Tree, one in the manor and the other in the old vicarage. There is alternating timelines that are accurate and flawless, it will not leave you confused and it does serve a purpose in the story line.
When I say this book was addictive, I mean it. The character development is really great which I usually find lacking in thrillers/mystery's. Gunnis truly brings the best and the worst of humanity to play!!

This was my first book by Emily Gunnis but will not be my last friends!

A secret room kept hidden for over 50 years plays a major role in the story of multiple generations of the Hilton and James families.

This novel takes place during three different timelines. This can be confusing at times, but there is a handy family tree at the beginning of the novel. This is the classic story of the haves versus the have nots and the way their lives are connected. The novel was face paced. The historical aspects of this novel were very intriguing and my favorite part of the novel.

I want to thank Netgalley, and Mobius Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

There was just so many amazing things to love about this book. I felt that it stayed true to the periods that it covered, provided easy to follow timelines, and had such an incredibly layered story that was intricately woven. The characters were well written and well developed. I loved that this book flirted with the resolution a bit and took you on such a great journey. I could not put this one down and would love to read more from this author in the future Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

Thank you, NetGalley, Emily Gunnis, and Mobius Books for the opportunity to read this book!

The Midwife’s Secret by Emily Gunnis ended up surprising me. It is a complex story that jumps between three time periods. In 1946, Tessa James is called to a woman in labor. There are complications and the local doctor is out to get her, but she won’t see a woman suffer. When she arrives, she is too late. The blame for Evelyn Hilton’s death falls on her and she is imprisoned. In 1969, Evelyn Hilton’s grandaughter, Alice goes missing. Suspicion falls onto a local boy named Bobby James though no one can prove it. In 2017, Sienna the daughter of Helen and Leo Hilton goes missing. History seems to repeat itself. Or perhaps there are dark secrets that bind the James and Hilton families.

Let me start by saying that I am extremely grateful for the family tree map at the beginning of the book. The beginning throws many characters at you from different time periods and it does take some time to work out how they are all related. But, once everything falls into place it becomes a beautifully tragic family history.

Tessa James’ story is heartbreaking because she could have saved herself, but as a midwife, she choose to take her patient’s secrets to the grave. In history, midwives have been the ultimate ally for women in their time of need, when they are most vulnerable. Tessa’s story, while fictional, provides a little insight into how women’s health is viewed by men.

I did enjoy the Hilton-James history. While I did predict some of the outcomes, it is layered and complex all the same. Lordy, I could not stand Vanessa. She just goes along destroying lives instead of opening her eyes. But I loved Willow and Nell and watching their history unfold. This is definitely a book for those who like mystery, family dramas, and historical fiction. I rate it 4 out of 5 stars.

This book had me from the first page. 2 families with a complicated past - 2 missing girls and 1 crazy ride. It took me some time to figure out where each of the characters belonged (the family tree helped) but overall an amazing book!

I received The Midwife's Secret as part of a NetGalley giveaway.

Willow James is a budding architect about to finalize plans for a development at Yew Tree Manor. What her colleagues don't know, however, is that Willow has ties to the place: for generations, Willow's family lived at the vicarage on the manor's property and fostered tenuous ties to the wealthy Hilton family who reside there. As a boy, her father, Bobby, was suspected in the disappearance of Alice, the young Hilton daughter, a weight that has had devastating reverberations for him ever since. But when another Hilton child goes missing on the eve of construction, it's up to Willow to discover the dark history that has bound these two families together for 70 years.

I like a good dual timeline/family secrets plot, and this certainly delivered. I do wish Willow had been a single woman instead of shoehorned into a relationship that was tangential to the plotline and her character, and which didn't get enough development to be truly important other than to give Willow a stereotypical warm and fuzzy happy ending. Just once I'd love to avoid the trope that a woman must have a love interest to be complete. Aside from that, though, I liked the tangled nature of the relationships between the families and the way that it was resolved, and the darkness that lingered over much of the narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read and give an honest review of this book.

Five generations of the Hilton and James families intertwine in this story.
It begins with the arrest of a midwife after being called to a home to help with a delivery. However, the mother and infant were already dying because of the mismanagement of the delivery by the local doctor. The midwife was blamed for the death of the woman and her infant. At her trial, the midwife refuses to testify in her own defense because of all the secrets she knew about the women that were her clients. She did not want to endanger them.

This book has many plot lines that weave in and out. It changes time periods
and characters age and change over time. Some readers might struggle with this. The author kindly included a family tree at the beginning of the book that helps clarify the relationships between the characters. It is a handy reference.

There are two main mysteries in this story. One involves the disappearance of a little girl on a snowy New Year’s Eve. The other happens decades later and involves the disappearance of another little girl, on a snowy day.

The characters are interesting and the story is tangled but it is well developed.
It is worth looking into.

This is my first book by this author and I found it a but hard to follow. I was intrigued by the synopsis of the book,but the story is told in 3 different timeliness so it was a tad confusing. It was a fairly decent story, but I figured out the mystery and the villan early on.

• Thank you to Mobius Books and NetGalley for providing this Advance Reading Copy. Expected publication date is December 7, 2021.

The Midwife’s Secret is a totally captivating thriller that kept me up way past my bedtime turning page after page as fast as I could. Emily Gunnis is an international best-selling author because her writing is so gripping and relatable. This is the heart-wrenching tale of two girls who go missing from the same home, Yew Tree Manor, decades apart. As we learn about the connection that the Hilton and James families share, we learn the devastating story of an innocent midwife from the past, who holds the key to the disappearances.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was so excited to read The Midwife’s Secret by Emily Gunnis but was left bored and confused. I enjoy a complicated, thrilling plot, but this book missed the mark. It was overly complicated to the point where I wished it was over.

3.5 Stars

One Liner: Too many things maybe.

Yew Tree Manor has seen a lot of tragedy and hides many secrets. No one knows what happened to Alice, the seven-year-old girl who vanished one evening in 1969.
It’s 2017, and the Manor is all set to be demolished to develop a new series of buildings. However, history repeats when Sienna, the six-year-old of Leo Hilton, disappears the same way. Leo is Alice’s elder brother and the current owner of Yew Tree Manor.
Willow James is the architect overseeing the project. She’s the daughter of Bobby James, the last person to see Alice alive, the boy who grew up into a broken man in a detention center. Willow knows there are secrets around her and intends to dig out the truth, come what may.
The task isn’t easy, of course. The story began sometime in 1945 and much before that. Willow’s great-grandmother was a midwife and lived in the Vicarage on the grounds of Yew Tree Manor. She was wronged and declared guilty for a crime she didn’t commit, and things have never been good for long ever since.
Can Willow put an end to the pain and justice for her family?
Confused by the blurb I wrote? The story pretty much moves on similar lines. It was a little easier because I copied the chart provided on the first page of the book and referred to it.
The story moves in three timelines with different characters as the focal points. All of it is the limited third person, and some sudden shifts were confusing. Not the ones between the chapters but the shift between immediate past and present in the same chapter.
The beginning is slow but picks up pace as more information is revealed. The twists were transparent enough to see most of the time. I’m not sure if this would be classified as a mystery as such.
What I Like:
• The track dealing with Tessa (the midwife) and how much hatred women like her had to face.
• Bella was an effective character, and Nell was cute as a child.
• Sienna was endearing despite having a limited role in the book.
What Could Have Been Better:
• With so many characters in focus, I couldn’t feel for any of them. Tess and Bella were the strongest. Willow’s arc didn’t feel effective enough. There wasn’t enough of her to feel a connection.
• Charlie felt more like a prop than Willow’s boyfriend. He goes in and out of the story, and I feel bad for him.
• There were too many themes in the book, and none of them got full justice. The midwife’s secret isn’t even a secret, as it was revealed during the initial pages. I was expecting another bigger secret that would turn things upside down in the present, but that didn’t happen.
• I love happy endings. Still, this one felt a little too neat and convenient.
To sum up, The Midwife’s Secret was underwhelming, which could be due to many topics it tries to handle at once. The effort is commendable. I liked the portions related to the title.
Thank you, NetGalley, Mobius Books, and Headline Review, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
*****

I was intrigued by the blurb of this book. I love a good mystery that is solved by looking into the past.

The book really tells three stories, one story for each generation of the Hilton family, owners of a large manor and farmland. Each story is intertwined with the James family, who live in the vicarage on the Hilton estate. The chapters are told from the point of view of one of the Hiltons or one of the Jameses and they jump back and forth in time between the stories. Also many of the characters are children in one part of the story and then adults in another, or young adults and then older adults. The constant time switching is essential for telling this kind of story but in this case with the same locations and many of the same people in different times, it did get confusing in places (but that might be on me for not reading the chapter headings carefully enough. A date setting is given at the beginning of each chapter).

This was a quick and easy read and there were a few intriguing twists that I wasn’t expecting although the answer to the main mystery was fairly predictable early on. I’m left feeling like this book was just fine, I wasn’t overly wowed by it.

3 stars