Want to Know a Secret?

 Intriguing, Evolving, Gripping,

Genres: Contemporary Fiction/Family Drama/Romance/with a theme of self-harm

Want to Know a Secret? By Sue Moorcroft Author

Diane had always been aware that she had married Gareth for the wrong reasons. Regardless, they had made a good go of it for a while, until she made the decision that he had harboured resentment towards her for, for all these years. Now he had finally got what he wanted all along, he had hidden it from her by way of revenge. What he hadn’t bargained for though, was his subterfuge and deceit were to flip their fortunes and become the key to serving him the ‘just desserts’ that he was long overdue, and her, her long awaited freedom and happiness.

I found this Author and novel online and having established that the main theme running through it is family drama, and then finding her wonderful array of many diverse characters, this book couldn’t have been more suited to my tastes when it comes to genres in literature. I loved the dialogue. I thought that the emotions of the characters were put across well in the writing. I really enjoy reading when the dialogue is so powerfully written that the narrative voices in my head come alive with expression, and my ability to form images of the created individuals is effortless.

It was a joy to experience how Diane the main character, evolves throughout the book from coming across mousey and timid, to discovering her confidence, her abilities and fully exploring her talent. Her mood changes from that first moment in the hospital, meeting the extended family that she never knew she had, I think realising that her husband will be hold up somewhere else for some time, and in the meantime she can be herself and form relationships with all these new people, shows her how brave she can be, as well as how she has missed doing so, which in turn elevates her new found faith in herself. Plus she is a very caring person and her instinct is to nurture, particularly, those who are opposite ends of the age spectrum, Tamzin being so young with her health issues and having to come to terms with her mum’s accident, and Harold, her grandfather with his angina and the shock of what has happened to his children. She performs this very much needed role twice, only the second time she is more attuned as to what is needed and how to help them. Her longing for James, but to also do the right thing was agonising, as she is a good person, and having had to put up with Gareth for so long, I wanted her to just give in and let herself be happy. I understood why she had concern for Bryony’s feelings but I was glad that Diane’s wilful and strong daughter soon realised the game that her father had been playing, even before he attempted to steal the bequeathed jewellery. Bryony was not a child and I thought that Diane gave her less credit than she deserved for being able to deal with the situation. I really enjoyed her run in with Rowan and her interaction with Gareth whilst he was in the private hospital, laying down the law as to how things were going to be after so many years of it being the other way around, and once again when he was home, being practical and courteous but letting him know in no uncertain terms that his actions had brought about a seismic a change within the marital home.

It made me smile when the author writes that Tamzin can see things in everyday objects, as that is something to which I can relate. I have also had issues with mental health, and although she is only a fictional character, was so pleased that James took his daughter’s health issues seriously. I have also lived with an alcoholic. The character of Tamzin resonated with me in so many ways. The big twist in the tale concerning James’s family came as a shock and was powerfully written. A very emotional scene.

The way that those characters who had been strangers prior to the event that changes everything, came together to unite, was extremely heart-warming and I was touched by the way they all integrated into their new found roles and supported each other.

The ending was very fitting but also had a twist that made me wonder whether I was going to get the ending I wanted, but again as I had felt all along, the young characters in this story of self-discovery, courage and the natural adaptedness of human beings, were resilient enough to deal with yet another discovery and perhaps a change for the better.

I will be reading more Sue Moorcroft books in the future.