This is the second book in the Gin Sullivan trilogy. This one was not as suspense filled as the first book, but it was still okay. I have high hopes for the final book in the series. The story kind of just dragged on with not much happening though. It seemed to take forever for anything to really get moving. With no real connection to the characters, I wasn't entirely interested in what was going on. The tension between Gin and Jake was not the best addition to the plot either. After everything they had been through and how the first book ended, I was disappointed that they were having so many issues in this book. And on top of that, Gin having chemistry and attraction with Tuck? Like, what?? Why was any of this necessary? Why couldn't Gin and Jake have worked together like they did in the first book? I mean, this book was okay but it was a far cry from the great first book. That's really all I have to say.

All in all, this isn't a bad addition to the series. It left a little to be desired in the suspense area but it wrapped up nicely. If you've read the first book, then I would recommend continuing the series with this book. ( )

3.5 stars.

All the Secret Places is an intriguing addition Anna Carlisle's Gin Sullivan Mystery series.

Still on leave from her job as a medical examiner in Chicago, Gin is uneasily settling into life in her small hometown in Trumbull, PA. Having rekindled her romance with her former high school boyfriend, Jake Crosby, the couple are living together but Gin is concerned about the future of the relationship. During a fire at Jake's construction site for an upscale home, firefighters unearth a badly decomposed body on the property. Gin is less than thrilled when abrasive Detective Bruce Stillman is assigned to the case and she is worried that his bias towards Jake will have a negative impact on the investigation. Will Gin, along with some help from the newly hired Trumbull Police Chief Tuck Baxter, find out the cause of the fire and the truth about the corpse before it is too late?

Gin and Jake's relationship is already a little troubled and in the aftermath of the fire, the tension between them continues to grow. Communication is not exactly their strong suit so Gin is mostly in the dark about how things are going with Jake's construction business. Although Jake knows she cannot discuss the case with him, he is very frustrated at not being kept in the loop. With so much dissent in her personal life, Gin is taken off guard by her unexpected attraction to Tuck who makes no secret of his interest in her.

Amidst all this uncertainty, Gin does everything she can to uncover the truth about what happened on Jake's construction site. An uneasy evening with Jake's construction foreman and his wife seemingly provides some much needed information about the fire. However, Gin is confused by contradictory details when she investigates the lead before taking the information to the police. The preliminary examination of the buried remains is somewhat discouraging but Gin notices some inconsistencies that she is hopeful will help Jake. However, she is disheartened by her inability to find the proof to back up her suspicions.

What should be a straight forward murder mystery becomes rather bogged done in Gin's personal dramas, Detective Stillman's lack of partiality and political posturing. Gin is also rather prone to jumping to conclusions and making impetuous, ill-thought out decisions that put her into dangerous situations. It is also somewhat frustrating (and a little unrealistic) that Jake is once again fighting to prove his innocence when he is at the center of another investigation.

Despite a few frustrations with the storyline and a somewhat slow start, All the Secret Places has plenty of unexpected twists and turns. Although the culprit for one of the mysteries is rather easy to figure out, the resolution of the other crime is quite unexpected. Old and new fans will enjoy this latest installment in Anna Carlisle's Gin Sullivan Mystery series.
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All the Secret Places by Anna Carlisle is the second tale in A Gin Sullivan Mystery series. Gin Sullivan is living back in Trumball, Pennsylvania with her boyfriend, Jake Crosby. In the early morning hours, Jake receives a phone call that the house is in building for Leon Archer is in on fire. While digging a fire break around the property, the fire fighters find a buried body. When Jake is suspected of torching the home, Gin sets out to prove his innocence once again. Gin gets hired to consult on the body which was found wearing an old military uniform. Who is this person and how long have they been deceased? Gin works with the abrasive Detective Bruce Stillman and the newly appointed Chief of Police Tuck Baxter to solve the crimes.

All the Secret Places can be a standalone novel. The author rehashes Gin’s background (growing up in Trumball, her parents, what happened to her sister, her career, love life) and what occurred in Dark Road Home (in detail). The two mysteries have different levels of complexity. Readers will find one mystery easier to solve than the other (one might even surprise some people). I kept hoping there would be a twist to astonish me. Gin’s personal issues dominated the storyline (relationship drama). I quickly tired of Jake’s attitude and kept hoping Gin would ditch him for Tuck Baxter (I liked him). For a smart woman, Gin makes poor choices especially regarding her safety. I am amazed at how often she puts herself in perilous situations. I am giving All the Secret Places 3 out of 5 stars. I found All the Secret Places to be slow going in the beginning and a little long. It could have used some editing to increase the pace and tighten up the story. I wish there had been less repetition of the details surrounding the crimes (they kept repeating the same things over and over). ( )