Author: Kate Morton
Publication Information: Atria Books, Simon & Schuster, Inc. 2012. 484 pages
Book Source: I read this book based on how much I have enjoyed the author's other books.
Favorite Quote: "Children don’t require of their parents a past and they find something faintly unbelievable, almost embarrassing, in parental claims to a prior existence."
The Secret Keeper is the story of Dorothy or Dolly, Vivien, and Jimmy. Laurel is Dorothy's daughter. As a teenager, she witnesses a tragic incident that influences her greatly as she grows up. As an adult and as her mother nears death, Laurel delves into that secret and her mother's past. What emerges is the mystery of Dorothy's life.
The book alternates between present day and the war and Blitz in London when Dolly, Vivien, and Jimmy are all young. Through the limited clues that Laurel discovers and the story of the past as it is told, we learn of the relationship between these three people and how that eventually leads to the tragedy that Laurel witnesses.
Kate Morton is a masterful storyteller. I have loved all the book the books I have read by her. This one is no different. The book completely draws you into the past and lives of Dolly, Vivien, and Jimmy. Even though the book goes back and forth between that past and Laurel's search, the story remains immersed in the past. The interludes to the present allow the reader to catch their breath before delving back in.
Interestingly, about half way through the book, I guessed where it was going and what the secret truly was. However, it did not matter and did not detract from the book. I kept reading because I wanted to see how the story was going to get there.
A beautifully told story even though the secret ends up not being that surprising. I can't wait to see what Kate Morton writes next.
The book alternates between present day and the war and Blitz in London when Dolly, Vivien, and Jimmy are all young. Through the limited clues that Laurel discovers and the story of the past as it is told, we learn of the relationship between these three people and how that eventually leads to the tragedy that Laurel witnesses.
Kate Morton is a masterful storyteller. I have loved all the book the books I have read by her. This one is no different. The book completely draws you into the past and lives of Dolly, Vivien, and Jimmy. Even though the book goes back and forth between that past and Laurel's search, the story remains immersed in the past. The interludes to the present allow the reader to catch their breath before delving back in.
Interestingly, about half way through the book, I guessed where it was going and what the secret truly was. However, it did not matter and did not detract from the book. I kept reading because I wanted to see how the story was going to get there.
A beautifully told story even though the secret ends up not being that surprising. I can't wait to see what Kate Morton writes next.
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