Author: Kate Morton
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Atria (October 9, 2012)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (In exchange for an honest review)
Genre: Historical Contemporary/Mystery
My Rating: 4 Stars!
Book Description:
1961 England. Laurel Nicolson is sixteen years old, dreaming alone in her childhood tree house during a family celebration at their home, Green Acres Farm. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and then observes her mother, Dorothy, speaking to him. And then she witnesses a crime.
Fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress, living in London. She returns to Green Acres for Dorothy’s ninetieth birthday and finds herself overwhelmed by memories and questions she has not thought about for decades. She decides to find out the truth about the events of that summer day and lay to rest her own feelings of guilt. One photograph, of her mother and a woman Laurel has never met, called Vivian, is her first clue.
The Secret Keeper explores longings and dreams, the lengths some people go to fulfill them, and the strange consequences they sometimes have. It is a story of lovers, friends, dreamers and schemers, play-acting and deception told against a backdrop of events that changed the world.
This is a little different from past
books I have read by Morton and while it was slightly different it
still can be said that Morton is the master at creating a world full
of rich detail. She is the master at crafting a story and place that
feels so real you feel like you are there experiencing it for
yourself. You can smell the air and see the colors of the lush world
she has created and you feel like you have been transported back in
time along with the characters as their story unfolds before you in a
complex mystery that will keep you guessing and at the edge of your
seat.
Dorothy was a complex character full of
secrets, betrayal and heartache. A woman bent on revenge and also a
woman with hidden depths that Laurel never knew existed. A loving
mother and a woman with a secret past.
I don't want to go into detail because
really this is one story you must reveal for yourself. A story that
you will get immersed into and be caught up in the storyline and
lives of the characters.
Morton can weave a tale like no other
and truly should hold the title of a master story teller. Her stories
are just as beautiful as they are heartbreaking.
This is one book that you really need
to savor and let all the details soak in as you are reading. It can't
be rushed. So much is revealed that doesn't always make sense at
first until it all starts to come together like only a master can do.
As always with all of Morton's stories
this was very well written and very well done. A story that will keep
you curious and turning the pages.
I have this book in my tbr pile, and I do not think I've ever read a bad review. So glad you enjoyed this one!
ReplyDeleteThis is a new book for me, I haven't heard of it before. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI love vivid, skillful writing and worldbuilding, and this story sounds so beautiful. Thanks for sharing your lovely review! This is definitely on my GR list now. :-)
ReplyDeleteKate Morton is fast moving to my must read list! This book , set in two eras, offers two time frames, both interesting. The characters are well developed and interesting. I definitely appreciate her setting excellent backgrounds for her characters.
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