I Know Your Secret by JM O'Rourke

 Dr Amanda Jackson is a well-respected physician and has two wonderful children. She loves her husband deeply, but is constantly having to sacrifice what she wants and needs to make him happy. And she is willing to do this as she has a secret she cannot let him know about.

 

So when she finds a note on her windscreen one day saying I Know Your Secret, she realises she is in big trouble. The question is whether to find out who sent it or let the secret be known. And since there is only one other person out there who does know about it, she needs their help to make sure the secret stays a secret.

 

With traumatic events in her past coming back to her in flashbacks, she starts doubting their authenticity. And with her husband questioning her sanity, she starts doubting herself, too. As friends and family turn against her, Amanda doesn’t know who to go to. Is keeping the secret worth it?

 

The book centres on bad decisions and their repercussions. It also highlights toxic relationships between spouses, between friends, between parents and children, and between work colleagues.

 

For a woman like Amanda who has overcome so much, it seems odd that she would put up with Edward’s behaviour and indeed enable it. Considering even her son tells her to leave him as he doesn’t treat her well, the secret is not worth keeping. What I did like about her character was the growth she went through to eventually find the courage to say “no” and stand up for herself.

 

Edward’s character was absolutely awful. He is the epitome of an abuser and gaslighter. I did think it was a tad implausible that he would go to the lengths he did to protect himself, though.

 

Pri was a very irritating character, especially considering her story arc. And the way she kept calling Fiona “that loola woman” was annoying. Looking at it from an outside perspective, though, one could argue that her decisions were not her own and she was guided by an “inner demon”. However, when found out, she came across as being more than willing and not necessarily coerced.

 

As you move through the clues, you can guess where it’s headed but there are still another curveball or two on their way. While some scenes were set up well and integrated with the story believingly, others (cue logs and an overall) were a lot more difficult to swallow. Even scenes where characters pretend to be someone else in a medical facility don’t sound feasible. And then, of course, the obligatory evil nurse in the mental institute – was it really necessary? And it seems like most victims in psychological thrillers nowadays end the story by writing a book about it!

 

So I Know Your Secret has its pros and cons and does get dragged out in places, but is overall a satisfying read.

 

Thanks to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for the opportunity to review the book.