By: Alex Marwood
Narrator: Beverley A. Crick
ISBN: 0143110519
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 8/30/2016
Format: Tantor Audio
My Rating: 4 Stars From Edgar Award winner Alex Marwood comes another gripping psychological thriller. When a child goes missing at an opulent house party, it makes international news. But what really happened to Coco Jackson? Real estate mogul Sean Jackson is throwing himself a splashy fiftieth birthday party, but trouble starts almost immediately: His ex-wife has sent his teenage daughters to the party without telling him; his current wife has fired the nanny; and he’s finding it difficult to sneak away to his mistress. Then something truly terrible happens: one of his three-year-old twins goes missing. No trace of her is ever found. The attendees of the party, nicknamed the Jackson Associates by the press, become infamous overnight. Twelve years later, Sean is dead. The Jackson Associates assemble for the funeral, together for the first time since that fateful weekend. Soon the barbed comments and accusations are flying. By the end of the weekend, one will be dead. And one of Sean’s daughters will make a shocking discovery.
Review to follow!
Advance Praise
"With the psychological acuity of Kate Atkinson and a dark wit all her own, Alex Marwood draws us into The Darkest Secret with utter narrative cunning, then surprises with its emotional wallop, its deeper resonances. In so doing, she demonstrates, without a doubt, that she is one of crime fiction's brightest stars. Not to be missed." Megan Abbott
"Oh my god, it is SO good. A work of genius. I'm in awe." Mark Edwards
"Simply tremendous, so tense and packed with pathos. I loved every page of it." Sarah Hilary
“Those of us who admire Alex Marwood’s writing know her for devious plotting, skillful manipulation of suspense, and an ability to add the bleakly comic to what others would leave merely bleak. In The Darkest Secret she gives us even more, with some genuinely beautiful writing about grief and loss, adding a real poignancy to the twists of the story, creating a crime novel that is also heartbreakingly human." Stella Duffy
“The Darkest Secret is spine tingling and terrifying, a beautifully written tale of obsessive love” Lisa Jewell “Alex Marwood goes from strength to strength. The Darkest Secret is domestic noir at its finest. Even more twisty than Gone Girl, this novel is dynamite, exploding the heart of family secrets with shocking results.” Ruth Dugdall
"Alex Marwood's The Darkest Secret is a feast of a book, a modern Greek tragedy with believable characters, a heart stopping plot and a brilliant triple jump of an ending that left me clutching the book. I haven't read anything so satisfying in a long time. I loved The Wicked Girls, but this is even better.! Jenny Eclair
"A genuinely shocking thriller where nothing is what it seems. So good I wish I'd written it myself." Val McDermid
"A chilling thriller with a deftly woven plot: this is Marwood's best yet." Clare Mackintosh
"The Darkest Secret left me reeling. This book is an absolute TRIUMPH!" Rebecca Griffiths
"The looming dread, the ghastly consequences. The Darkest Secret is a masterpiece." Jenny Colgan
"I cancel all engagements and turn off my phone for a new Alex Marwood book. The Darkest Secret is her best yet." Erin Kelly
"The Darkest Secret by Alex Marwood is such a good book! It's involving and intelligent; a mystery revealed from multiple viewpoints. I'm sure it will be a huge hit." Helen Smith
"A taut, claustrophobic look into toxic relationships and family secrets. I couldn't put it down as more and more layers were revealed, with suspense and intrigue creating a tense and satisfying read." Mel Sherratt
"I made the mistake of thinking I could read a couple of pages and then spend the weekend writing. Well, that was not the case. A few pages was not enough, in fact, nothing was enough until I had finished it. I think it is taut storytelling at its best and by the end I was breathless. I actually didn't realise I was holding my breath until I turned that very last page." Angela Marsons, Number 1 Kindle bestseller
"I read the book in one weekend and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's ghoulishly page-turning and I loved Alex's ability to create characters that are addictively vile. As a reader you feel afterwards like washing your hands as though they're blood-stained!" Cath Weeks
About the Author
Raised by wolves, Alex Marwood passed her formative years in the lands beyond the Arctic circle, developing pack skills, excellent night vision and an ability to survive on raw protein. Ideally equipped for a life on Fleet Street, she then became a journalist.
Her first novel, The Wicked Girls, was published by Sphere (UK), in 2012 and Penguin (US) in 2013, and achieved widespread acclaim and word-of-mouth international bestsellerdom. It was shortlisted for ITW, Anthony and Macavity awards, was included in Stephen King's Ten Best Books of the Year list and won an Edgar Allen Poe award in 2013.
The Killer Next Door, described by The Sun as "nasty, compelling and original", was published in 2014. It won the Macavity Award for Best Mystery Novel in 2015.
Alex herself is a figment of the imagination of the novelist and sometime journalist Serena Mackesy. If you're interested in a more truthful biog, an FAQ and other books, visit her website, here.
