This was a first for me from this author and I’m pretty impressed.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc for my honest review.

I laughed a lot in this book mainly when all the gossiping happens because gossip happens everywhere. The gossiping women are the same we have seen and hear about all the time.

Storyline is great. Imagine what keeping your dad’s secrets for years will do to you as an adult and how it can and will affect your future relationships.

How far are you willing to keep these secrets and how far will you allow them to go?

Suspenseful Setup, But Lacks the Emotional Punch

I was intrigued by the premise of The Secret Between Us—a layered family drama with suspenseful undertones and a haunting secret. The narration by Lisa Rost-Welling and Madeline Pell was solid and clear, and both voices helped differentiate the perspectives well throughout the story.

Unfortunately, the plot didn’t quite live up to its promise. While the tension between the characters simmered, it never reached a satisfying boiling point. Much of the story felt repetitive, with Harriet’s presence looming and the protagonist’s anxiety spiraling in a way that felt emotionally distant rather than gripping.

I wanted more depth from the characters and more clarity from the central mystery. When the “secret” was finally revealed, it lacked the impact I expected and felt underdeveloped given the amount of buildup. The pacing dragged in places, and the conclusion felt more like a slow fade than a final twist.

2/5 stars – Narration is well-done, but the plot and emotional payoff left me wanting more.

This is an enjoyable domestic drama centred around playground politics, relationship secrets, insecurities and physical and mental illness.
Elise and Michael are parents to twin boys who attend a private school in New York. On the surface their marriage appears perfect however, Elise has never trusted her husband. When Harriett and her daughter move to New York to be with her daughter's father, who has a life limiting illness, sparks fly in the school yard! Elise sees Michael speaking to Harriett and assumes the worst. What lengths will she go to to keep Harriet away from her husband and what actually is the nature of Harriet and Michael's relationship?
The book is billed as a suspenseful thriller with even the cover giving off this vibe, but I definitely think it sits more in the domestic drama category. Perhaps it would have gained an extra star if I hadn't been expecting something different.
The audiobook was well narrated and I welcomed the dual narrators reflecting the different tones / personalities of the two main characters.
I am grateful to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced listener copy of this audiobook.

Everyone has secrets. Some are little and some not so much. In this story we meet a group of wealthy, entitled people for whom secrets are currency. The setting is the elite private schools of NYC, the cast consists of judgmental, well dressed, well coiffed people each with their own issues and who seem to relish anyone else's weakness. Basically, a group of adult bullies who never dealt with their own childhood traumas or mental health issues. Everyone has flaws and yet rather than deal with them, share with their partners and or friends, they hold them so closely that they almost choke on them. It took until the very end for any of them to have any self reflection and deal with reality. Not an easy listen based on the people, but a good wrap up.

The Secret Between Us written by Kate Hewitt
Narrated by Lisa Rost-Welling and Madeline Pell

Publication date July 24, 2025

"I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

The Secret Between Us is about jealousy, mental health and the struggle of holding a marriage together when dealing with these things. I enjoyed this book and it showed the perspective from each characters point of view. The story made me angry at the characters for not empowering other women but instead being petty and gossipy. In the end it all came together and was a pretty good, easy read.

The narrators also did an amazing job! I like to listen to audiobooks at a faster speed and they were easy to listen to and I could hear the difference in their voices when changing characters.

I would recommend this book and gave it 4 stars.

the setup…
Elise Dunnett is a married mother of 8-year old twins Lewis and Luke and husband Michael is a highly successful neurosurgeon practicing in Manhattan. She’s devoted to her family and is head of the PTA at The Garden School, the children’s private school. Elise has a carefully crafted image and resists participating in the standard Mom gossip. Enter Harriet Tierney, the single mother of daughter Kyra. She’s an artist who recently moved to New York from Austin and has more of a bohemian style. Harriet and Michael are pretty chummy at the school’s social the day before the start of the semester and it puts Elise on edge. Her hyper vigilance is noticed by Harriet who wasn’t flirting…initially…and stokes the fire. But she’s moved there to be with her child’s father Allan who has a serious health crisis.

the heart of the story…
What starts as something rather innocuous morphs into some really bad behavior. It’s clear early on that Elise is tightly wound, fitting beautifully into a Stepford wife stereotype. Where she departs from that is her unwillingness to engage in the catty behavior and gossip of many of the other mothers…until she feels threatened. Harriet isn't part of that world and has Kyra in the school solely at Allan’s request. She takes some pleasure in rattling the perfect Elise. Under different circumstances, these women might have been friends. Making matters worse, their children become friends and get swept up into this nonsense.

the narration…
Lisa Rost-Welling and Madeline Pell captured the essences of their characters perfectly. I felt Elise’s neuroses and Harriet’s nonchalance throughout. It was a fine performance.

the bottom line…
To be clear, this is not a mystery or thriller as the synopsis insinuates. No matter, I was fascinated by the unnecessary trauma these women inflicted upon each other, fueled by the mean gossip by deeply insecure women who find it necessary to strike first before the spotlight comes their way. But it’s the tragedy of how it affected their family relationships and children because it got serious. I feel certain this sad state of affairs is not unique and is a cautionary tale.

Title: The Secrets Between Us
Author: Kate Hewitt
Format: 🎧
Narrators: Lisa Rost-Walling and Madeline Pell
Publisher: Bookouture Audio and Hachette UK
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Pub Date: July 24, 2025
My Rating: 4 Stars!
Pages: 348

This book is told from the POV of Elise and Harriett.

Elise and her husband, Michael Dunned a physician with twin sons Luke and Lewis– have what looks like a perfect marriage.
The boys attend “The Garden School” which is a private school in New York where Harriett Tierney’s daughter Kyra attends. TGS is not a highly selective private school but chosen for being second best!!!!
Harriett is an artist who recently moved to New York from Texas to be close to Kyra’s father, Allan, who has ALS which is a terminal illness.

Elise is a very insecure person and fears Michael is unfaithful with Harriett. She believe this because she sees them together but her fear comes from the fact that her father was unfaithful to her mother – it seems her mother wasn’t aware but Elise was thus making her suspicious of her own husband.
Story started out a slow burn ‘soap opera’~ I hung in there. Glad I did because as the story continued things got far more interesting.

I ended up enjoying it far more than I once expected!

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for granting me this audiobook.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for July 24, 2025.

Although I thoroughly enjoyed this book, Elise and Harriet truly irked my soul. It was incredibly frustrating to witness how Elise failed to address issues and her feelings with Michael. I couldnt stand how innocent and comfortable Harriet with her relationship with Michael, despite his marriage. Despite this, the book was still an enjoyable read. I would have preferred a more dramatic ending, as the entire book seemed to revolve around tit-for-tat exchanges. It was a bit disappointing that everything resolved so neatly.

HO.LY.COW. I was instantly hooked because who doesn't love reading about rich people. The first quarter of the book seemed to drag a little and I was getting a little frustrated. But boy oh boy am I happy I got through that because once that story flipped I could NOT PUT IT DOWN. I finished it in less than 24 hours and for good reason. The twists and turns worked so well in the story AND THEY DIDN'T STOP COMING. You love to love and hate all of these characters. Thank you to Netgalley, Kate Hewitt and Bookouture Audio for gifting me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So I’m gonna go there once again…
Last 3 books I read featured an: Eloise, Ellie and now… Elise! Strange, no??

OK…on to my review.

Elise and Michael are married… for a long time. As usual for married couples, there are secrets they share… But one of them that only Elise knows is that Michael is a cheater… not once or twice, but it seems… all the time. But what can she do? He supports her and their twin boys. He’s well respected in the community. And, he’s a well known neurosurgeon!

Elise is always the talk of the school where the boys go. Well put together. Beautiful. Well-toned. The best of clothes, etc. And, of course, wealthy…

So when she meets the new woman and her daughter at their school, and the woman is much younger and beautiful too, she knows she needs to watch her. Michael will be drawn to her…

And so it begins…
She decides that she will NOT make it easy for this woman, Harriett. Actually, she will do everything in her power to agitate her! 😮

As Elise starts preparing for one of the schools fundraising events, naturally she’s in charge, she decides to invite everyone to her home… including Harriett. And when she and Michael start talking ALONE in the kitchen, well, Elise just knows….

This was not AT ALL what I expected, so for that alone, kudos to the author!!
Instead, we learn about grown women who are bullies, very emotional, click-y, and who obviously each have their own problems in life to deal with.
Additionally, to name a few triggers, there are several life-threatening events… including: a mugging, someone choking (almost to death), and Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Again, it did not go where I expected it to go, and I enjoyed that!!

#TheSecretBetweenUs by @KateHewitt and narrated nicely by @LisaRostWelling and @MadelinePell.

4 big, bullying, sometimes scary and yet sometimes lovely 🌟🌟🌟🌟 for me!!

*** THIS ONE HAS NOT YET BEEN RELEASED!! PLEASE LOOK 👀 FOR IT ON JULY 24, 2025!!! ***

Thanks so much to #NetGalley and #BookoutureAudio for an ARC of the audiobook, in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the advanced pre publication audio book in return for an honest review.
I’m sorry but this novel just doesn’t live up to the description, which led me to expect a tense thriller, while instead it’s a mundane look into the lives of two Mums and their other halves. I just didn’t care enough about either of them to be interested in what was happening for them. The story is predictable so I didn’t need to wonder much anyway.
I don’t often give a 3* review but I found this boring and the narrators didn’t help with this, their voices were too similar to be able to discern the difference.

The Secret Between Us has enough twists to keep you guessing. The story is emotional but the characters felt a bit thin. Elise and Harriet stumble through their messes like they’ve never seen real trouble, and things wrap up far too tidy for my liking. It's pretty fast paced and not too heavy.

The story of two women, Elise and Harriet, The Secret Between Us demonstrates the power of misconceptions. .

Elise is a socialite who suffers from OCD. She is married to Michael, a prominent neurosurgeon, and has twin boys. Harriet is the hippie-dippie single mom of Kira, who has recently returned to New York City to allow her daughter to get to know her dad before his illness takes his life. While she comes off as independent, she is, in fact, quite needy. The two women meet each other through their children's private school. Harriet meets Michael and gloms onto him for emotional support, given that his specialty corresponds to her child's father's illness. She is an interesting woman and the polar opposite of his wife, Elise, so Michael makes himself a little too available, The two women become enemies, and when Harriet attempts to save her life by giving her the Heimlich maneuver at a school event, all hell breaks lose.

While this is an entertaining book, I found the events to be too close to a Lifetime TV drama - not all that plausible and overly dramatic. This is a light audiobook that is great for a road trip or cleaning your house. Not too many details to remember and easy to follow.

Thanks to #Netgalleyaudio for the ARC.

*ARC review*

The Secret Between Us is a poignant, emotionally charged novel that delves into the complexities of motherhood, guilt, and family secrets.
The emotional tension builds steadily, drawing the reader into the characters’ inner worlds. Quick and interesting read.

Thanks to NetGalley I had the pleasure of listening to his book. It was completely different to what I expected, and yet, I swallowed it in a short time. The narrators were excellent and I enjoyed the way they read the two narratives. It is the kind of story most can relate, the feelings inside us, the narratives we build and hold on to; narratives which are based on our thoughts, our past, our childhood, our fears sometimes. It was an easy read - mostly for women, I guess :)

The cover and title of this book imply that the story has some element of mystery. It does not. The ‘secret’ is not much of a secret. Hopefully knowing this upfront will help this book reach the right audience. There is not much in the way of plot and no big reveal. It’s really more of a slice of life story and that’s okay if that is your expectation. Madeline Pell did a good job with the narration.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So for me this was like a Sunday afternoon movie.
Nothing really happens it just follows the story of two moms and a point in time when their two paths cross. Each has three own troubles going on and the story touches on both and how their meeting sets in motion a sequence of events which eventually benefits both.

For me it was too long and drawn out without any great reveal.
The audiobook narrative was great and probably the o my reason I finished the book.

Kate Hewitt’s latest emotional thriller, The Secret Between Us, is a gripping exploration of motherhood, trust, and the fragile boundaries between truth and perception. Told through the dual perspectives of Elise and Harriett—two mothers whose lives collide at a private New York school—the story unravels a web of suspicion, jealousy, and deeply buried secrets.
Elise suspects her husband is having an affair with Harriett, the new mom at school. But as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that the truth is far more complicated than infidelity.
Themes of bullying, insecurity, and the pressure to maintain a perfect life are woven throughout, making this more than just a domestic drama—it’s a psychological deep dive into the cost of silence and the power of vulnerability.
Lisa Rost-Welling and Madeline Pell deliver emotionally resonant performances, capturing the tension and heartbreak of each character’s journey. Their narration adds depth to the already layered storytelling, making the audiobook a compelling experience.
If you enjoy emotionally charged fiction with suspenseful twists—think Jodi Picoult or Liane Moriarty—this audiobook is worth adding to your queue. Just be warned: you might want tissues nearby.

Thank you to the author, narrators, publisher and Net Galley for providing an E-audio ALC of this title.

Publication July 23, 2025

first time I’ve read from her.

Before I began to review, I had to go back and check the genre for this title, the synopsis definitely makes it sound like a thriller, in which case it would’ve been a massive disappointment, but it rightfully sits in the women’s fiction bracket. Therefore on me a little bit that I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I’d hoped. The synopsis also makes it hard not to spoiler.

Essentially, a domestic drama with a message, that pulls on the heart strings.

The narration on this vas really nice, although again I had to check the details I didn’t realise that there were 2 separate narrators.

I think all round, I did enjoy this title, it’s really well written and the storyline is good, and my own expectations let me down.


Huge thanks to Bookouture Audio via NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC 🎧

As someone who went to private school, the rumor mill and the perfect mom facade couldn't have been more spot on. I had friends who had moms just like Elise. I didn't really care for her character, but with much character development over the course of the book ( albeit very slowly), I was able to begin to sympathize with her.

I honestly can't say that I loved Harriet either. She was honestly a bit petty. It doesn't take a genius to know what her interactions with Micheal looked like to outsiders.

I loved this story overall but my God the characters were frustrating! So many of the issues could have been resolved if the adults in this book simply acted like adults. Has no one ever heard of open communication in a relationship?! But I suppose that would have made for a quick and boring story and I'm not afraid to admit, I do like a bit of drama.


I read and listened to this book. I do have to say that the narration for the audiobook was absolutely fantastic. She did a phenomenal job bringing all the characters to life.

I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.