Public Secrets
A Novel
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4.5 • 561 Ratings
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts deftly blends romance and suspense in this compelling novel of a woman whose career, marriage, and very life are threatened by the truth about her own past.
Emma McAvoy may have grown up in the limelight, but some secrets are hidden in a darkness no light can reach. Now on the verge of a successful career, and having fallen in love with the man of her dreams, Emma is looking to the future. Yet it’s the past that is about to catch up with her.
For Emma, her childhood had been almost like a rags-to-riches fairy tale—until the tragic night that changed her family forever. But what Emma thinks she knows about that terrible night and the man she’s about to marry is only half the truth. The other half is locked away in the last place she’d ever think to look: her own memories. It’s a mystery a handsome and relentlessly driven homicide detective needs to solve in a case that’s haunted him for years—and a secret someone will kill to keep.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Complex relationships among a believable ensemble of characters give Roberts's ( Sweet Revenge ) new romantic thriller much of its appeal. Emma McAvoy, daughter of a British rock star, is only six years old when her infant half-brother Darren is murdered in a bungled kidnapping attempt. Emma, the only witness, remembers little of that night, and while investigators determine that someone close to the family was involved, the case is never solved. Nagged by fears for her safety, Emma's father has her trailed by a bodyguard whenever she is not closed away in a private school. But as she grows up, neither guards nor a loving father can protect her from the nightmares and feelings of guilt that torment her. Nor can they shield her from Darren's murderers. Although it concludes with a satisfyingly gripping finale, the mystery is more a recurring element than a driving force, as the story explores the members of McAvoy's rock group, Emma's devotion to her father (who bought custody of Emma from her abusive, alcoholic mother), her destructive marriage and the father-son detective team whose dedication to the McAvoys and this case lasts more than 20 years.
Customer Reviews
Public Secrets
An Excellent Read!
A Good Start
The book’s beginning proves quite intriguing, but the suspense peters out in the second half.
A rock ‘n’ roll family
The storyline was good, and offered sex, violence, intrigue, murder, and love. The beginning, and end were very good and kept my interest, but the middle dragged on a bit.
The story takes you from Emma at age 3 to her mid 20s, and how the music industry changed over the years. There were some twists, and turns that made the book more interesting. One part was very hard to read.
Emma had riches, a career she loved, and was able to travel the world, but someone was after her because she had witnessed a murder. Fear took her to her very worst, but like a Phoenix, she rose above it, and became the strong and capable woman she was always meant to be, with her rock ‘n’ roll family there to support her and offer unconditional love along the way.
This is a very long book that deals with many real life issues. I figured out who the elusive bad guy was before it told me in the book, but if you don’t mind sticking with it, it’s a good read.