One Little Secret: A Novel

Cate Holahan

Jul 2019 · Crooked Lane Books

About this eBook

USA Today Bestseller
One of Bustle’s “New Books Set At the Beach To Read When You Can’t Be There Yourself”
One of Bustle’s “12 Books Like Knives Out For Fans Of Family Sagas, Murder, & Knitwear”
One of CrimeReads’ “Most Anticipated Crime Books of Summer”

Part locked-room mystery, part domestic thriller, this gossipy, scandal-ridden whodunit “will keep you up all night” (Good Morning America) as a Hamptons getaway among friends turns tense—then deadly

Everyone has a secret. For some, it’s worth dying to protect. For others, it’s worth killing.

The glass beach house was supposed to be the getaway that Susan needed. Eager to help her transplanted family set down roots in their new town—and desperate for some kid-free conversation—she invites her new neighbors to join in on a week-long sublet with her and her workaholic husband.

Over the course of the first evening, liquor loosens inhibitions and lips. The three couples begin picking up on the others’ marital tensions and work frustrations, as well as revealing their own. But someone says too much. And the next morning one of the women is discovered dead on the private beach.

Town detective Gabby Watkins must figure out who permanently silenced the deceased. As she investigates, she learns that everyone in the glass house was hiding something that could tie them to the murder, and that the biggest secrets of all are often in plain sight for anyone willing to look.

A taut, locked room mystery with an unforgettable cast of characters, One Little Secret promises to keep readers' eyes glued to the pages and debating the blinders that we all put on in the service of politeness.

Ratings and reviews

One Little Secret is a bona fide whodunnit book that will have you the reader suspecting more than just one of the six characters of murder. Cate Holahan will lead you down one path only to add a twist, another secret, and more deception, that keeps the tension building throughout this book. I felt One Little Secret is well written and was easy to read; the plot was fast moving and kept me interested. The book is written from a third-person viewpoint, and the bulk of the timeline was told within three days, the day before, the day of and the day after. Three neighborly couples send their kids off to camp and then head off on a vacation of their own to a beautiful beach house in the Hamptons. What can go wrong? Well, when you combine a mildly alcoholic insecure homemaker, a househusband wannabe writer, an unscrupulous lawyer, an accident-prone ESPN host, a workaholic CEO of a tech startup and a self-centered doctor and then weave in lots of drinking, secrets, jealousy, and lies, it makes the perfect setting for disaster. Be prepared for lots and lots of drama, which for me was at times a bit over the top and outrageous. My favorite character in this book is the down to earth detective Gabby Watkins. Ms. Holahan writes this character perfectly, she is a tough cop in a male-dominated field, but she is also a wife and mother, and this brings out Gabby’s sensitive side. She is not infallible, making mistakes along the way in her investigation, but realizing them and then correcting her course of action. I felt this made Gabby was the most relatable character. Overall I enjoyed One Little Secret, and I would recommend this book for fans of mystery, thriller, suspense books. Please be warned that there is an element of domestic abuse. I am giving it 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 because I loved the Gabby character. ***I kindly received this galley by way of NetGalley/publisher/author. I was not contacted, asked, or required to leave a review. I received no compensation, financial or otherwise. I have voluntarily read this book, and this review is my honest opinion .***

WOW what a read! This was a fast paced thriller that I read in one sitting as I couldn’t get enough! What could be better than spending a week long getaway at the beach with friends while the kids are away at summer camp. Sounds perfect doesn’t it! This is what Susan thought when she and her husband Nadal invite their new neighbours Ben & Rachel and Jenny & Louis to share a rental in the Hamptons with them for some much needed rest and sun away from their busy lives back home. But on the very first night trouble looms as the alcohol flows and guards are let down as each couple’s hidden secrets rise to the surface. Then one of the women is found dead the next day on the beach! Was this an accident or is one of them responsible? For detective Gabby Watkins it doesn’t take long until she declares this a murder and each couple is taken in for questioning where their secrets are laid bare and issues of domestic violence, infidelity and issues with the law are all revealed and are all entwined in each of the couples lives and that of the deceased. But what was that one little secret that lead one of them to commit murder? Told in the perspective of each character we are taken back to the past and the present as we are given more details into each of the couples lives and of the events that lead to one of their murders. Thinking I was smart and figuring out who the culprit was early on Cate threw me off track! I thought I outsmarted her again with another guess of who it was but nope I was mistaken again! I love that in a book! The characters were relatable and very well written. A great story full of twists and turns and that ending was just fantastic!!!! This is the first book I have read of Cate’s and it definitely will not be my last! Thank-you to Netgalley, Crooked Lane Books and Cate Holahan for allowing me to read an advanced copy of One Little Secret in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and are not biased in anyway.

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About the author

Cate Holahan is the USA Today–bestselling author of The Widower’s Wife, Lies She Told, and Dark Turns, all published by Crooked Lane Books. An award-winning journalist and former television producer, her articles have appeared in BusinessWeek, The Boston Globe, The Record and on web sites for CBS, MSN Money, NorthJersey.com, BusinessWeek.com, and CNBC. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, two daughters, ages 7 and 6, and dog Westley.