I enjoyed reading this. The mystery behind Tamsin and Carl kept me guessing. Liz made a lot of dumb moves…more than necessary…and her mom was awful beyond belief. But still a good read.

Advanced reader copy courtesy of the publishers at NetGalley for review.

This is the first book I have read by Tracy Buchanan but it won’t be the last. Worth following her on social media. A fast paced, well written book that I couldn’t put down. The chapters alternate between the past and the present. The suspense keeps building and just as you think you have worked it all out, you find that you haven’t! Teenagers and adults will both enjoy the mystery. A book about friendship and also difficult relationships but nothing too deep. A satisfactory ending. Thank you, Netgalley for an advanced copy.

'Secrets Between Friends' is an excellent title for a book full of secrets, lies and friendships. The chapters alternate between 'now' and 'twenty years ago' when the narrator and we witness the aftermath of a horrible crime, as the battered body of a young man is consigned to the waves. That immediately draws me into the story and I want to know more!

There’s good and not so good in this novel. The concept and the plot are intriguing and the mysteries are spun quite well. They keep you guessing as you get snippets along the way. The characters in this were indeed unique, very well description of each one and the background description made me feel like I was actually there while reading the book.

Thanks to #NetGalley for giving me an e-arc of #SecretsBetweenFriends in exchange for an honest review.

Book Title: Secrets Between Friends
Author: Tracy Buchanan
Publisher: Amazon Publishing UK ~ Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Mystery
Pub Date: October 25, 2022
My Rating: 4 Stars

This was not the book for me. The characters felt flat and unbelievable. To me it did not feel that the characters stayed true to themselves. The ending had characters acting completely opposite of how they acted in the book. It could be just the protagonist's perception of the other characters changed, but it did not feel that way to me.

Twenty years ago teenagers Liz, from a rough part of town, and Tamsin, from the Manor House become friends. Tamsin is an introvert, protected and homeschooled by her mum. They have recently moved to the seaside town of Easthaven from London. Are they running away from something? Into the mix comes Gabe, grandson of the local hotel owner. We learn early on that Gabe died in a suspicious incident. We don't learn what until much later. Moving on twenty years, divorced postie Liz is back in Easthaven with her two daughters and to her surprise Tamsin is back at the manor. They have a lovely chat, however later that week Tamsin changes attitude and Liz is convinced she's a different person. She becomes a sleuth and gets into all sorts of bother as she tries to unravel this. Deceit, imposters, violence and betrayal. An excellent read. #netgalley #secretsbetweenfriends

An enjoyable read.
Seen through the eyes of the main character, Liz, we join her as she reunites with her best friend for the first time in many years. Following a traumatic event they have each been keeping a secret but now it looks as though it may finally come out into the open, threatening the life Liz has now.
The story is well told, mainly set in the present but the flashbacks to the past start to flesh out the earlier events and begin to build the bigger picture. Thankfully all loose ends are tied by the conclusion of the book.

Two sentences into the prologue and I felt chilled. This is a book that you will not want to put down. It is full of mystery and intrigue. What really happened all those years ago? The answer is very cleverly kept from us until almost the last page. This is where all of that mystery and intrigue is brought to a head. Whatever is going to happen and what catastrophes and life threatening events might take place!? Great ending. Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Would totally recommend you read it.

'Secrets Between Friends' is an excellent title for a book full of secrets, lies, friendships and enmities. It raises questions about the nature of relationships - what creates good friendships or good families, what spoils those relationships and can they be restored.

The chapters alternate between 'now' and 'twenty years ago' and sometimes it's hard to remember what happened when or which iteration of a character is currently being read. And occasionally the style grated with me - for example, "Carl burning the dress Tamsin's mother got her as she watched on with a glass of champagne in her hand, like she was at the theatre or something." Maybe it's a literary device to show how the thought processes or streams of consciousness are now created by those currently in their late thirties, but I found it irritating.

The plot is cleverly created, with the Journalist-turned-Postie 'Lizbeth with an L' trying to hold together the different threads of her life - single parent of two girls, one a grouchy teenager; an irascible and unloving almost-invalid mother; an angry ex who's trying to get sole custody of the girls; local friends - and enemies, including a demanding and untrustworthy landlord; a job she didn't really want and from which she was thrown out in another town; and secrets of what has happened in the past overlaying it all.

When Tamsin, her former best friend from school days, returns to the seaside town and then seems to change completely overnight, Lizbeth's worst fears are ignited again and she relives the summer of twenty years ago and the horrific accident which totally changed the lives of the two friends. When Liz is suspended from her job yet again, she is terrified that it will count against her in the court case for custody of the girls, Ruby and Mia; yet she is brave enough and determined enough to put her life at risk in order to save the lives of two people she loves.. Will the truth from twenty years ago save her - and allow her to retain custody of her beloved daughters?

A clever plot, with some interesting twists; enough suspense to keep one interested; a very introverted heroine who even keeps a notebook with her to jot down every thought and action; and a slack (modern?) style. A good beach read, and no steamy sex scenes. which is aways a good thing!

This book was a page turner from the very beginning, I just had to keep reading to find out what happened next! I found myself really warming to Liz and hoping she’s have a happy ending and solve the mysteries going on within the book. I really enjoyed the twists and how fast paced the book was.

In Secrets Between Friends by Tracy Buchanan, two young girls become best friends and share mutual feelings for the same young scoundrel of man. The three of them have complicated lives and one day tragedy struck.
20 years later the the secrets of that tragedy slowly start making themselves known.
When I think of secrets I have with my friends, it’s mostly relationship secrets about problems with children or the difficulties of our parents.
But are my secrets truly safe with my friends, or will they be told one in the future?

#SecretsBetweenFriends
#TracyBuchanan
#NetGalley

This intriguing story takes place in a small fishing village in England that has many rows of pastel painted cottages that are described as a melting pot of ice cream. High on a cliff is the Lakewell Manor, This was the home of Liz's very best friend, Tamsin who moved away twenty years ago.

Liz's dream had been to be a journalist although she is a Postie and drives a Royal Mail van. She's divorced with custody of two daughters, however in a couple weeks she will go to court because her ex-husband is suing for custody of their daughters. Liz and her daughters are living with her mother who is ill and needs constant care.

What a surprise it is to learn her old best friend is back!. Tamsin's family has owned the beautiful manor on the cliff for many years. While out delivering the mail, although she doesn't have any posts for the manor, she stops by anyway and finds Tamsin out in the yard. The two friends quickly pick up where they left off twenty years ago and the story then goes back and forth between the present and their teenage years.

There is a interesting cast of characters both in the present time and the past. Secrets are revealed that have been hidden for twenty years. There are mysterious circumstances even in the present that compelled me to keep turning the pages quickly to the end.

This is a fascinating story, both mysterious and yet sometimes funny. There are fun, delightful characters as well as few that could be described as an antagonist or scoundrels.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book. All comments and opinions are my own.

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

This one took a bit to get into but was enjoyable enough as it got going. Perfectly serviceable thriller. 3.5 rounded up

I love this Thriller of 2 girls from opposite sides of the seaside town of Easthaven in more ways than one from 20 years ago. Liz & Tasmin have shared secrets that will keep You gripped. All the way through.

So when Liz returns after twenty year later and see's Tasmin one day and but the next day seems to change altogether something needs to be looked into. It takes a while for all the truth to out but the lives of several of the folks in town may never be the same again.

Whilst dealing with all this Liz is fighting to keep custody of her 2 girls in a bitter divorce that isn't helped by an this and the most infuriating of mothers. Liz is the poorer of the 2 from 20years ago but she has 2 daughters now that are amazing and she doesn't want to lose them. So all in all this is another rough time in her life o and her job as the new Post lady is proving harder than expected. If it sounds like too much drama trust me this story is so well written it won't feel like that infact it flows effortlessly from one page to the next even if your nerves don't.

There are great characters and as already explained a great storyline suspense and twist the works. The story is told from the 2 ages now and 20 years ago obviously the past meets the present each chapter revealing more to savoir.

I enjoy this I really hope you do as well.

Liz is back living in the village she grew p him and which she left twenty years ago after a tragedy. only her and her friend Tamsin knew what happened that night.
Tamsin is returning home to but when Liz meets her she knows something is wrong. Is this Tamsin and why doesn't she remember the past when they were such good friends?

I really enjoyed this thriller by Tracy Buchanan. The great characters grabbed me at the very beginning and did not let go! I loved the tensio, twists and reveals. Highly recommend
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

I loved this book , it had a gradual built up and plenty of suspense along the way. The characters were interesting and had plenty of depth. I didn't expect the twist at the end either. I would definitely recommend this book to my audience. Looking forward to reading the next book from this author

Wow. What a ride that was! An interesting and well written story set in the same place 21 years apart. Losing a loved one sends some people mad and some wanting revenge. It can also may a person susceptible to a con artist.

Loved it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I read a free advance review copy of the book. This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

Can a twenty year old secret be kept safe when both Liz and Tamsin move back to the same coastal town in England? That is the question in Secrets Between Friends, by Tracy Buchanan. When mail carrier Liz, reunites with her best friend from twenty years ago, it seems like nothing has changed. Then the next day, her friend is very different. What's happened to the real Tamsin. It's hard to know ho is real and who is a fraud? Who can Liz trust as she tries to solve the mystery around her friend? Is she putting her two daughters in danger.

If you enjoy a good mystery with twists and turns, this would be a great book for you. I was able to read an ARC on #NetGalley.

This started off really good. Switching between now and 20 years ago. Her friend has been replaced by a fake person. Her husband wants sole custody of her children, her mother is a monster and the boy they fell in love with disappeared 20 years ago. I did find it hard to connect with any of the characters and the storyline went a bit unrealistic at times. I enjoyed the ending.

3.5 stars

A quick read, set between two time periods, twenty years ago and present time. Neatly wraps up what happened twenty years ago at the end with lots of twists, turns and secrets along the way.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.