I'm not a big fan of mob stories, but I have been reading Christina Dodd's novels for decades. It took me a while to warm up to Helen Lamb/ Rowan Winterbourne and the story, but she did become a heroine. Not so much Joe Grantham. I never really warmed up to him, but Rowan did.

Helen has a unique business, The Fixer, which helps clients find someone do a job that needs to be done: dog walker, home sitter, shopper, assassin... She lives in a lighthouse, which is designed like a fortress. She is all alone in the world because her mother and step-father were murdered and younger sister hidden away. Her peace is interrupted one stormy night by Joe Grantham, who needs her help and blackmails her to get it.

Intrigue, danger, deadly secrets, witty repartee, minute details, interesting characters and a strange romance are all found in this book. I read a gifted Advanced Reader's Copy from the publisher via NetGalley.com. This is my honest, voluntary, unbiased review.

What a ride! This was an incredible twisty romance with quite a mystery rolled into one. Christina Dodd is quickly becoming an auto buy author for my library and store. There were quite a few characters to keep track of but it was well worth the work. Highly recommend

It has been a while since I have read a Christina Dodd book. I use to love her romance books. This was a little different. In an isolated lighthouse on the California coast, Rowan Winterbourne lives alone. She lives to avenge herself against Gregory Torval, the drug and arms dealer who murdered her mother and vowed to eliminate everyone in her family.

Then Joe Grantham arrives at her door and, for the first time, Rowan lets her guard down—a mistake when he blackmails her to go with him to Torval's private island. Joe pursues his own agenda, and she’ll provide the perfect distraction.

On Raptor Island, Torval’s will is law and Joe, her ally, is someone she is not she can trust. Rowan recognizes her chance for the revenge has come. But will she make it out alive. There were some slow parts but overall it was good.

Every Single Secret is the sort of book that I would live to see made into a movie or Netflix miniseries. There was a lot of action in this book and it was so fast paced that I didn't have time to really appreciate the characters (which there seemed to be a lot of). That said, I did really like Rowan and enjoyed the fleeting moments we got to learn more about her. Overall, this was an entertaining and fast read!

Every Single Secret was a twisty thriller of a romantic ride. It kept me guessing and was a lot of fun! Love Christina Dodd books!!

A big thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Canary Street Press for the eARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This book was a surprise for me. I really like the author but was afraid I was not going to enjoy this one. It is interesting-Helen is an interesting lady and kept surprising me. The entire book was just interesting and kept me on the edge of the chair. The characters were all alot of fun and dynamic. I like the idea of living in a lighthouse. Intriguing. 4 stars Lots of plot twists.

Have read all authors other titles and enjoyed. This one did not disappoint. Great romance with just the right amount of mystery to keep you reading till the end

Rowan has tried to leave her past behind and live an isolated life. When a mysterious man shows up, she finds herself thrown back to her past life as she is blackmailed into going to the island of the man who ruined her life. Rowan does not know who to trust and must try to survive while also trying to get revenge.

I was drawn in by the first part of this book, but I found once Rowan went to the island, the suspense dropped off (at least for me). I'm not sure exactly why but maybe because so few of the characters were likeable. I also felt like it accelerated weirdly when they got to the island.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review,

This was an interesting book to read. Rowan has been fighting for her life for 14 years, and by the end of the book, she will either be dead or defeat her enemies. This is a fast-paced, wild ride of a book. You will be rooting for Rowen and wondering what she will come up with next. I enjoyed every minute of reading this book.

Rowan Winterbourne enjoys living in a lighthouse on the coast of California. She is a “fixer” for her clients, arranging everything from plumbers, housekeepers, nannies, and anything in between. She gets a shocking request from her first and favorite client, who has learned he has a terminal illness. He asks her to hire an assassin to kill him and prevent any more suffering, and he knows she has the resources to make this happen! This shocking request allows Joe Grantham to enter her life. He isn’t who Rowan thinks he is and blackmails her into taking down a common enemy – in exchange for a very important favor.

The beginning of this book is very intriguing as we meet Rowan and learn a little bit about her and her checkered past. However, as it continued, I didn’t stay engaged in the story. Part of the problem is that the book is described as being a mystery/thriller, but to me, it’s a romantic suspense novel. I enjoyed Dodd’s Cape Charade series but was disappointed in this one. I was expecting one thing, but it didn’t have the tension or complex plot that I expect in a thriller. There is suspense, wondering if Rowan’s mission will be successful and if Joe can be trusted. There is plenty of steamy romance, too, as early as chapter five! However, the characters lack substance, and I found the dialogue to be stilted at times. Some fans of Dodd will enjoy the action and the romance. I liked how the book started and enjoyed how things wrap up in the end, but overall this was not my favorite by Dodd.

~ Christine

Every Single Secret is a tense and dramatic standalone novel—but it will make readers feel like they’ve picked up the story in the middle of a series. The idea is interesting—but it all feels underdeveloped.

Full review published on NightsAndWeekends.com and aired on Shelf Discovery.

Kept seeing this book all over my bookstagram feed so of course had to read!

The book starts off with an interesting storyline of an old man asking his helper friend Helen to find him an assassin to give him a quick surprise death after finding out his has stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

We soon learn there’s more to Helen than meets the eye seen as her real name is actually Rowan and she somehow has access to the world of assassins.

From this point on there are 2 main characters, Rowan and Joe, who both have many hidden layers and secret pasts and it’s up to the reader to decide who to trust.

This was a bit of a kooky slow burn to me. Although the characters had depth and were intriguing, other parts of the book where a bit of a miss for me, I’d give this a fair rating in the middle 3/3.5⭐️

Thank you to Christina Dodd, Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the EARC

Publish date: available now

Thank you Netgalley and Canary Street Press for the chance to read Every single secret by Christina Dodd. This book hooked me right away. Great suspense, action, and romance. However, the last portion of the book took a turn towards a soup opera melodrama, and I thought some of the plot was absurd. Don't get me wrong, I loved the book and I still think Every single secret is a good read, and recommend it and the author.

I loved this romantic suspense novel filled with action and psychological thrills. I think this has been one of my favorite stories of the year. I loved Rowan and felt so sorry that she had to grow up the way she did. I loved that Joe has so many layers. I loved all the secrets that are revealed. I did not want to put this book down. I received a copy of the book from the publisher for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

This book was very good but different from other books Christine Does has written. Although her last few books were also a little different from her usual suspense books. The main characters Rowen and Joe were very well thought out. In the beginning I didn't like Joe very much I thought h e was just using Rowen. I loved both their back stories. The island was described and was amazing no spoilers!! Christine Dodd has a wonderful imagination. I think she writes the best books I can't wait for her next one already.

Thanks to NetGalley for access to this great book!

Big plus for Christina Dodd! I like all of her books so far, and she outdid herself this time.

This one keeps you on the edge with its twists and turns and its unexpectedly likeable characters. It holds the suspense line right to the end. Read it!

Christina Dodd is a master of the plot twist and Every Single Secret is littered with them, beginning with a doozy in Chapter One. It sets the tone for this suspense thriller that had me on the edge of my seat for the entire book. Who to trust? Who not to trust? What's the truth? What's not? And when the truths begin to surface? Yikes! How could things get any crazier than this? Well, this is Christina Dodd and her creative imagination is off the charts. There's still more to come, right up until the very end which, for me, came around 3:15 AM. I challenge you to put this book down before you finish because, for me, that was just not going to happen.

Rowan and Joe are multi-faceted characters who drew me in with their secrets and their hidden layers. Both are well developed, intriguing, and practically begged me to be in their corner. But can they be trusted? They're the primary focus of this book but by no means the only characters with significant roles. Dodd surrounds them with a secondary cast that is anything but wallpaper, giving depth and texture to several secondary characters who generate doubt, conflict, danger, poignant emotion, unlikely support, and offbeat humor. Even in the most dire of circumstances, Dodd has the ability to sneak in her quirky humor...which I love.

Every Single Secret is going to my Dodd keeper shelf (yes, she has enough keepers to warrant her own shelf) where I'll no doubt revisit it when I'm in the mood for twisty suspense, wry wit, and characters who pull me in and refuse to let go. If that's your jam, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Every Single Secret.

*ARC received from publisher via NetGalley
Fair and unbiased review

In the beginning this is a mystery wrapped within a mystery all inside an enigma with noir vibes. It set up all kinds of suspenseful settings and keeps the reader off balance from the first page. With the noir you get melodrama worthy of a tele-novella and soap opera at its' worst. I wasn't sure from page to page just where this was all going, but it was a most intriguing ride. Christina Dodd has written two of my favorite series, but the last few books have missed the mark for me. This one was a miss too for the most part. The action from the middle to the end was fantastic, if a bit disjointed.

Since the murder of her mother and the scattering of the rest of her family Rowan Winterbourne has lived a life on the run. Her life purpose is to destroy the man who destroyed her family, Gregory Torval, a real nasty piece of work. But to do that she will have to get up close and personal with this monster or she could continue to run and hide.

When Joe Grantham shows up at her secluded lighthouse, she mistakes his purpose and is really ticked when she finally figures out he is there to blackmail her into attending Torval's birthday celebration on his private island as his consort, aka sex partner. Joe has his own agenda and is willing to assist Rowan in hers if she assists him with his. Win-Win. Well, it would be if there wasn't an such a strong sexual attraction and a lot of danger. Now all they have to do is survive and that isn't going to be easy. 3 1/2-Stars

My thanks to the Publisher and Author for providing a complimentary digital Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this novel via NetGalley. This is my fair, honest and personal review. All opinions are mine alone and were not biased in any way.

This is a romantic suspense worthy of the name. Action right from the start, twists and turns throughout, evil faced and mostly conquered. Rowan and Joe meet under unusual circumstances and then join forces to get revenge on someone they both have good reason to hate. Some of the things they encountered had my eyes bugging out and my breath catching. The romance between them took more of a back seat to the suspense of the story than I prefer, but that didn't diminish my enjoyment of the story. It's amazing they made it through alive and very satisfying that they did it together.

Rowan has secrets that she's kept since her mother and baby sister were murdered. She lives in an isolated lighthouse that she's remodeled for her safety that's within sight of the murderer's private island just waiting for her chance at revenge. She gets a surprise visitor one night that isn't who she thought he was and after she let's her guard down she realizes what a big mistake she made. Joe Grantham, if that's even his real name, has a vendetta of his own against this evil man and he blackmails Rowan to go with him as a distraction. Will either of them make it out alive?
This story started right out with a bang and the action never stopped. I loved reading about her lighthouse remodel and it's many secrets and traps. The backstory of her history with the Torvals was exciting and explained a lot about her thirst for revenge. She was such a strong female heroine. I had trouble connecting her and Joe romantically though. The romance angle was thin and barely discussed so by the end of the novel your just smacked with this instalove proposal out of nowhere. No wonder Rowan was confused about him! Overall it was a good exciting story though.
Thanks to Harlequin Trade through Netgalley for the advance copy of this book. The opinions in this review are my own and given voluntarily.