I read through this one really quite quickly as it was very predictable and you can see the twist and turns a mile off. Essentially a psychologists daughter introduces her new fiancé to her parents and the mum (the psychologist) recognizes the fiancé as is 99% sure that it’s a patient she treated 15 years ago while working on a murder case. Is the fiancé only with her daughter out of revenge or is this just a really weird coincidence? I’d go into more detail but I actually can’t recall the names of any of the characters, that’s how much of an impression the book made on me.

Thanks Netgalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I was immediately hooked. A psychologist is on vacation with her husband at their lake house when her daughter shows up with her new boyfriend who they've never met before. Turns out he may have been a patient of hers . . . And not just any patient but one involved in a murder case.

This story was fast-paced and ever evolving with so many twists and sudden turns I was reeling and desperate for answers. The ending was satisfying. The cast was well rounded and believable. The setting was a perfect back drop to the menacing lies and secrets and deceit.

This is a MUST READ!

Calling all psychological thriller buffs: T.J Brearton's 2021 release, Her Perfect Secret, is one you do not want to miss.

Emily is a therapist, who fifteen years ago helped put a woman away for the murder of her husband after treating eight-year-old, Tom, the only witness to the murder. Fast forward fifteen years, Emily and her husband are enjoying a vacation at a secluded lake when her daughter introduces her fiancé: a man who is the splitting image of the boy she treated.

I love an unreliable narrator, and this certainly does not disappoint when it comes to that. Filled with flashbacks and a slow unravelling of the past, the narrative is suspenseful and undoubtedly chilling. Just when I thought I knew what was happening, Brearton adds another level of complexity to the story and has me questioning everything I thought I knew. Simply brilliant!

Many thanks to Joffe Books for this ARC via NetGalley.

So good! Really enjoyed the back and forth plots and the ending was awesome. Definitely recommend. Great thriller! Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

Emily, a psychologist, treated 8 year old Tom after he witnessed the murder of his father. She helped him come to terms with what happened that night and his statement put his mother in prison. 15 years later, Emily’s daughter Joni introduces Emily to her fiancé, Michael. But Michael looks so much like Tom that it takes Emily’s breath away. Could it be Tom? Why does he say his name is Michael? Is he here to seek revenge for Emily’s role in his mother going to prison?

What follows is a thriller filled with lots of twists and turns. I could feel something building early on, but it still managed to surprise me. While I wasn’t racing to finish this one, I enjoyed it overall and would read more by this author. Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe books for allowing me to read a free ARC of the book in exchange for my honest review.

The psychological manipulation of this book is insane. In the best way! I absolutely adore T.J.'s writing style and I couldn't step away from this story.

Emily is a therapist who believes that a patient from her past has come back into her life... As her daughter's fiancé. Why is he back? Why is he pretending to be someone else? Is this some form of revenge? Is he even the same boy from fifteen years ago? The current and past family drama kept me interested and wondering how it all tied together.

I really wasn't expecting that ending. Maybe I'm horrible at predicting suspenseful plots, but I genuinely gasped several times in those last few chapters. Must read!

Emily gets a surprise when her daughter introduces her fiance to her and her hubby, well 2 surprises, first that her daughter has a boyfriend never mind getting wed and secondly….she recognises him, she hasn’t seen him for 15 years but she is sure it’s him…and she is also sure he recognises her…
We then find out the whys and how’s and who’s and as the book thunders on a at a fast pace more and more becomes apparent and more lies and secrets are unearthed by the chapter
I enjoyed this book, well written if a tiny bit OTT unrealistic at times but it was such a fast ever changing story it didn’t really matter too much, good characters, great settings and a low lying menace throughout meant it was a quick read with a keeness to find out the outcome
A good psychological drama adventure thriller family domestic mix up that will entertain any reader looking for all those things rolled into one

8/10
4 Stars

Her Perfect Secret was a fast paced, gripping read. It had plenty of tension and I read it in one sitting. Really enjoyable and entertaining.

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for my ARC.

Tom. The boy whose mother I helped put in prison for life. I recognise the sharp nose and the flare of the nostrils. His thick eyebrows and defined cheek bones. But mostly it's the eyes. Sea green. But my daughter Joni, keeps calling him Michael. And they're here at the lake house telling me they're getting married. I'm thrust back fifteen years, looking through photos of a violent and bloody crime scene.

Emily is a psychologist. Fifteen years ago she had helped put a woman in prison. Now, she thinks Michael is the woman's son. But Michael is engaged to Joni, Emily's daughter. His name was Tom when he was the prime witness to the murder of his father.

The story is told from Emily's perspective. The pace is fast in this suspenseful read that's also been well written. The plotline is gripping, filled with twists and the story held my attention throughout.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #JoffeBooks and the author #TJBrearton for my ARC of #HerPerfectSecret in exchange for an honest review.

Her Perfect Secret by T. J. Brearton immediately grabbed my interest and kept me turning pages late into the night. This fast paced thriller was full of twists and turns I didn't see coming. Brearton kept me guessing until the end. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to a friend. Great for those who like fast paced mystery thrillers.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

I loved this one. Very fast paced, had me turning pages as I tore through it – I had to see how it would end. The characters were well rounded and the narrative felt believable. Gave me chills. Solid five

This was too slow for me. I prefer thrillers to be fast paced or at least more-engaging. The plot was interesting but the writing style just didn’t grip me enough.

My review of Her Perfect Secret by T.J. Brearton

I kept wanting to skip pages to see what would happen.

Not really sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

Couldn’t warm to any of the characters, didn’t really believe in any of them but was keen to know how it ended and it did keep me reading well in to the night.

I’ve read other books by T.J. Brearton and will definitely read more, but would only consider this one average.

A fast paced and engaging thriller that is a quick and easy read. well written with a compelling sotryline and good characters. there twists were well thought out and unpredictable. I enjoyed it,

HER PERFECT SECRET
by T.J. Brearton

Where to begin? I wanted to love the book. Yet, it was so slow-moving. There were the usual deceit and lies. It seemed nobody had any redeeming value or something to make them real or stand out for me. There were times I forgot who was who. Sorry, I just did not get the "full picture", I was just reading words.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle by Joffe Books and #NetGalley for my honest opinion. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Entertaining, fast paced, quick read. Thrilling and captivating to the very end.

A captivating psychological thriller. Its every parent's worst nightmare, when your daughter introduces her fiancee and its someone who you are not happy with. What should Emma do, when as a practising clinical psychologist, she believes she first enountered Michael the fiancee, fifteen years ago on a murder case? Is he out for revenge?
An interesting and intriguing read, full of details, written from Emma's viewpoint, before and after. It kept me guessing with a totally surprising ending. Well worth the read.

My thanks to Joffe.books, T.J.Brearton and Netgalley.
I just finished this book around 10 hours ago. I suppose the fact that I can't even "for the life of me." recall the main characters name, should say something!
This book had my least favorite trope. The unreliable narrator. I had an idea that she wasn't to be entirely trusted from early on. There were a few clues.
I don't, and will never like stories like this. It just seems underhanded and lazy.
Thing is that it gets even worse. Unreliable is one thing. What happens here is compounded.
Willfull amnesia? Nuts!
Such a waste of my time.

This was a pretty heavily layered book but it was one of those pesky onions that the skin kept sticking and you couldn’t quite move past it. The pacing just felt off and the story lingered on the same topic for a bit too long and then in the end it all crumbled together.

Emily is a psychotherapist and had a client named Tom who was 8. He was a key witness to the murder of his father. Fast forward fifteen years later and her wild haired daughter Joni brings someone home who looks just like Tom except she calls him Michael. Is it the same person? And if it is, what is he doing there?

It was a good surface psychological thriller but the characters really irked me. Their actions didn’t make any sense, they fell a bit flat in the way they were represented and I just couldn’t really get engaged as much as I wanted to. It was a fun book overall and I give a solid 3.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for the eARC.
Emily, a psychotherapist and Paul, her husband, are stunned when their daughter, Joni, shows up with her fiance, Michael. After so many short-lived boyfriends they can't believe Joni is actually planning to get married. But Emily is even more shocked. 15 Years ago she treated a young boy in deep shock: he had seen his father killed by his mother. But that boy was called Tom, wasn't he? She is 99.9% sure and wonders what game Michael is playing, if he's seeking revenge for the fact his mother has been in prison for a decade and a half.
This is an intense read, I had to remind myself to breathe occasionally, and what with the twists and turns I couldn't figure out how the ending was going to come together. But it did, in a shocking, unbelievable way ... whoa, I did not see that coming!
Definitely recommended for lovers of psychological novels!