Secrets Never Die was such an atmospheric read. A hut in the woods where a group of teens visit each Halloween to tell their secrets to, a slaughterhouse, creepy doll heads....need I say more? The spooky vibes came off SO strong which was probably my favourite aspect about this book! The short chapters made this one to be a quick read, but I personally felt the middle was a little slower as I just wanted to know who was taunting Sam and his friends and what secrets they were hiding from each other. Once the secrets started unravelling, I needed to know how the story was going to end, which kept me turning the pages. That being said, I think I would have loved a little more of a shock factor in this one.

Overall, I liked this one and rated it 3 to 3.5 stars. If you are looking for a fast-paced YA thriller that brings the spooky and atmospheric vibes, check out Secrets Never Die!

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Sam and his friends were excited for their annual Halloween ritual, but things took a turn when it was Sams turn. After that night, they all started getting messages from an unknown instagram account and the tormenting began. As they try to figure out who is doing this to them, they begin to uncover that it’s bigger then what they thought.

I’m just getting more into thrillers and I loved this.
Was fast paced, the perfect read for the spooky season.

I felt like the secrets weren’t huge, but you also have to remember they’re teenagers and to them they were big and they felt guilty about them.

I was not expecting the plot twist about who was involved, that genuinely took me by surprise, and I love when I can’t tell who’s involved.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

will be posting on instagram Oct 23rd

Secrets Never Die was a decent young adult thriller that had ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’/Fear Street’ vibes. It was a quick and interesting read. I loved the shorter chapters.

The story revolves around a group of teens that go into this creepy hut by themselves once a year to tell their deepest and darkest secrets. When they visit the hut this year, strange things start to happen. They soon start receiving anonymous threatening messages.

I thought the whole thing with the hut was really weird and I can’t see actual teens doing this. The teens were also just aggravating and annoying.

I think younger teens would enjoy this book. It felt way too young for me, but I’m not the target audience.

3/5 stars

Secrets Never Die finds Sam and his friend visiting an abandoned shack in the woods every Halloween. One by one, they sit in the shed in the dark and offer up their secrets. This year, someone is listening and plans to use their secrets against them.

I though this was a solid and creepy YA msytery. I liked Sam and found his story as a child actor interesting and tragic at the same time. It was understandable that he had a need to protect his little sister from the same fate. There were a lot of twists that kept me guessing. I will admit that some of the "secrets" were a little bit of a let down. Despite that, I had a good time reading it and liked the ending, It was a surprise and came a little out of left field, but it was a good ending. I do recommend this one.

Secrets Never Die is the perfect book for teens who like a good scare. Reminiscent of the horror movies of the '80s and '90s VIncent Ralph's latest book is filled with a slow burning thriller vibe where four teens are being harassed anonymously online for secrets they have kept close to the chest for so long.

Sam Hall has lead a less than normal life, as a previous child actor he has had to deal with passionate fans, online haters and the delicate balance his young stardom had on his family and their interactions with each other. When secrets from his past, along with his friends secrets are threatened to come out, Sam and his friends must figure out who is behind all of it and what exactly their end game is.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read this horror novel.

YA horror novel written in short faced paced chapters that seemed to grab my attention but didn't really hold it to make it a book I read quickly. A decent story just not a favorite of mine personally. However others will absolutely love it. I prefer my murder mysteries to hold my undivided attention this one didn't quite do that.

3.5 stars!!!

This was a fun YA thriller and although I didn't absolutely love it, it's definitely because I'm not the intended audience. I found myself frustrated with all of the characters for just not calling the police when someone started threatening them, blackmailing them, then eventually trying to kill them. Otherwise, I had a fun time trying to figure out what was REALLY going on and was caught offguard when it was revealed. If this had come out when I was a teenager, I would have raved about this! But as an adult, it's becoming more and more difficult to get past the "stupid teenagers will be stupid teenagers" trope.

First I would like to thank Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this book before it released. I apologize for the delay in my feedback.

I have read two other books by Vincent Ralph and loved them both. This one was no different. I'm a huge fan of the short chapters! It makes it so easy to just read "one more chapter."

I loved that the book started out on Halloween as we are currently in the spooky season. 👻 Secrets Never Die will hold your attention and keep you wanting more/ wondering what's going to happen from the very beginning. I highly suggest this book to anyone and everyone who likes thrillers.

And of course I have to mention the cover•• I love it. Beautiful piece of art.

You can read this book free with your Kindle Unlimited subscription.

#netgalley #stmartinspress #arc #advancedreaderscopy #secretsneverdie #vincentralph #ku #kindleunlimited

Thank you to NetGalley, Vincent Ralph and St Martin’s Press for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This was perfect for the season with the creepy mask and taking place during Halloween. I enjoyed the pacing of this one, it really kept me on my toes and lots of action. The twists were stellar so overall, I would recommend!

Thanks for the advanced copy for review.

Bro, this was such a good story. I don't usually go for the creepy books, but this one was very good and very creepy. I really loved it.

Good story, definitely not a thriller. I would say young adult suspense…maybe.

I enjoyed the fall/Halloween theming and thought this was a highly atmospheric read. The concept of unburdening yourself of your secrets once a year sounds like a great way to move from one season to the next.

I thought the twist was out of left field, and left me not knowing who the real main characters actually were—the kids? Or their parents? Everyone had secrets, but none of them were particularly bad? There was so much drama and lead up…and the suspense fizzled for me.

My first YA thriller, and I enjoyed it.

Sam Hall and his friends visit the Dark Place to tell all of their deepest secrets and now years later the “Dark Place” is spilling it all. While the group tries to figure out who could be behind this, their secrets are getting in the way.

Loved the short chapters, easy to read and fun to keep up with.

Will definitely be reading more from Vincent Ralph.

Thank you for approving me!

I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are my own opinions.

This is a YA thriller that grabs your attention right away and keeps you asking questions. Sam family could have had their own novel with all the secrets and mystery happening. The dark place almost seems like a side story. It's a very good side story, but a side story nonetheless.

I highly recommend this book, especially for kids, with sort attention spans as there is always something happening to grab their attention. Once you start, you are not going to want to move until you are finished on the last page.

3.5⭐️Pretty good over all. I would definitely suggest to a friend That likes thrillers. I didn’t see the big plot reveal. Thought I had my suspicions about the VERY end.

I love YA books but this one just wasn’t my favorite. It personally felt slow to me. I had to keep taking breaks and coming back to it. There was some twists and turns but this just wanted for me.

Thank you NetGalley, Vincent, and bookouture for the ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books for the ARC! “Some secrets should have never been buried…” This was a fun read - definitely a YA thriller.

Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph
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Five teens leave their annual Halloween Party behind to go into the woods to unload their worst secrets. This year their secrets won’t stay buried.
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What I liked:
-This book was a lot of fun to read. The pages flew by and I was suspicious of loads of people!
-The reveal was not what I expected! I was most suspicious of the wrong character entirely! 😅
-I loved Sam’s little sister. 💜
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I don’t want to say much else and spoil things but I would recommend this for any YA thriller fans for sure.
4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

How nice would it be to get your secrets out somewhere in the woods, far away, and your secrets stay just that. Secrets. No one has to know. Well, we all know that doesn't happen. Whatever secrets you have unless you keep them to yourself and do not speak them or write them down, they will come out.
This is what happens to our characters. Now I will say the secrets being told in this hut is not earth-shattering, but for the teens they are major to them. We all know teens are dramatic.
So when the threats and blackmail start happening, they start wondering who is behind it, and what can they do so their secrets don't get out. I will say I didn't get who was behind it until the end and it all goes to show that what happens in the past doesn't always stay there. I think the teenagers will like this as it has that right amount of mystery, it does have a queer character in the story, but nothing that should turn you away. One of my favorite reads? No, but it was enjoyable.

Thank you Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the eARC of this book.

Tropes: Secrets, Found Family, Past Coming Back to Haunt You, Betrayal

This book follows a group of friends that have a ritual that they do every Halloween. They go to the Dark Place and confess their secrets. What is said in the Dark Place is never repeated and the friends don't share what they say- because some secrets need to be buried. This year Sam, Dom, Elisha, Lauren, and Haran go to the woods, but when Sam goes in to tell their secret they hear screaming... then the smell of rancid blood as something is thrown at the Dark Place.

The next day the group starts getting Instagram DMs from a Sasha Craven and somehow she knows their secrets.

Quote: "There are four people in this photograph, but only three of them are smiling real smiles. The other is staring out of the image with eyes as black as coal and a grin like a knife slash, because they are wearing a mask. The same mask that has been haunting us for weeks."

Thoughts:

It took me about 45% of the book to decide that I enjoyed it. The first part of the story was hard for me to get into and honestly it creeped me out a little bit. I didn't really care about the characters and Sam was very "woe is me". Thankfully the story was very fast paced so it was easy to keep reading... in the hope that it would suck me in. Thankfully it did.

This book creeped me out multiple times, and I was concerned about the safety of the kids in this book. I have lots of questions for the parents and why they didn't take action sooner... like I don't fully understand. If I had a kid and they were being stalked I wouldn't be as relaxed about it. Also the dad in this book- not a fan.

I appreciate that the conflict between Sam and his friends that "stabbed him in the back" somewhat got resolved at the end of the story. I don't know how realistic that is for high school kids but I liked that he didn't block them out forever. Also I liked the resolution between Lauren and her significant other.

I did not see the bad guy plot point until they revealed it. I like that she was introduced earlier in the story, but I never would have guessed her as the person - along with her minions- stalking the kids.

Overall a decent read but not my favorite YA thriller that I have read.

Everyone has secrets. This group of friends has decided that every year on Halloween, they will go off to the Dark Place in the woods and let their secrets free. But what happens when someone hears you free your secrets and then uses them against you?

This book is fast paced and will keep you reading until the very end. I was able to read it in one sitting and enjoyed the twists and turns within the storyline.