Katharine Johnson

The Suspects is exactly what the title suggests, 5 people, friends living together and working together, they all end up suspects of a crime. All covering for each other, all have their own secrets.

Set in the late 80’s but moves forward over the years to the present day too. It is very relatable of the era especially if you lived in the UK at the time.

This book is a refreshing thriller with lots of twists and turns and will keep you guessing right to the end.

It was well written, fast paced and I can honestly say it was a breath of fresh air as it was different from other psychological thrillers I have read.… (más)

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4.5 Stars

The people of the picturesque village of Santa Zita in the Tuscan mountains are harboring secrets. A deadly secret, one that led to the discovery of bones, was revealed. Now, it is a year later, and there is another dark secret. Sonia did something a quarter of a century ago, and it is about to come to light. She is desperately guarding her secret. However, this is not the deepest of secrets in this book. Childhood best friends, Martina and Irena, as their story is told in the World War II timeline, have an incredible story that is slowly revealed.

From the captivating scenery to characters that kept my interest from the very beginning, and to the incredible writing style, The Secret takes what could be a simple story of two girls in 1940s wartime Italy to being so much more. It flawlessly weaves the story between two timelines, including the present. Although some references are made to The Silence, Katharine Johnson's previous book, which I feel that I must read, this book works remarkably well as a stand-alone. I enjoyed this book very much and read it in two sittings. I will definitely be reading more of this author's books as she has just found a new fan. As a matter of fact, I have already purchased The Silence.

Many thanks to Crooked Cat Books for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.… (más)

I'm always drawn to books set in Italy as it's a place I love. The Secret is set in 2018, briefly in 1992, and during WW2.

Carlo and Cass have just returned to the small Tuscan village of Carlo's youth. He left to make his way in America many years ago but it's time to come home. His mother, Irena, is still there but is losing her memory and Carlo wants to rescue those memories while he still can and so gives Irena a voice recorder. It enables Irena to somehow become free enough to tell the story of her youth with her best friend, Martina, a story that has been kept quiet for a long time. But that story is more tangled than Carlo could have guessed as we journey back with Irena to the early 1940s, to Mussolini's Italy and to the secret of the title.

The Secret is the follow up to The Silence. I haven't read The Silence and whilst The Secret works perfectly well as a standalone story, I did feel like I had missed a little bit of something from that first story. It didn't matter too much though as there was more than enough going on in The Secret to keep me occupied.

I tore through this book. Italy then was a difficult place to live and the village suffers terribly. I really wanted to know what the secret was and I was shocked by it, although I was even more shocked by something that wasn't actually the secret. Katharine Johnson has written quite an enthralling story here and I was very impressed by the way she managed to convey the sights, smells and sounds of Italy so well.

One thing that I would say is that I thought the current day story with Carlo and Cass, and their restaurant, felt a bit like it was there to facilitate the wartime story, rather than being a story in its own right. Overall though, it's an excellent story of friendship and betrayal during a time of conflict.… (más)