The Secret Keeper's Daughter by Samantha King Blog Tour

 New year, new books and with that comes new authors - well at least to me.

I have to admit that before this blog tour, I hadn't read any books by Samantha King. Spoiler alert, after reading The Secret Keeper's Daughter, I will definitely be reading more books written by her.

Her other works are described as psychological suspense novels and this story fits well within that category.

Holly Mayhew has the perfect family set-up. But when her seven-year-old daughter, Marley, begins to act strangely, refusing to speak and rushing off to hide in her room, she knows something isn’t right.

Desperate to understand why Marley has become so withdrawn, Holly creates a worry box, where Marley posts her thoughts each day.

At first, the messages seem innocent. But when Holly finds a note saying secrets make me sad, she begins to question everyone entrusted with her care…

Including her family.

Once the truth is out… there’s no going back.

This family drama follows Holly Mayhew (the mum) appears to have the perfect family. A loving husband and two children - a daughter who is seven and a new-born son Benjamin. However, if you take of the rose tinted glasses all is not as it seems. 

When Holly's seven year old daughter Marley begins to act out of character, becoming withdrawn, mother's instinct kicks in and she just knows something isn't right. As any parent would be, she is desperate to discover why her daughter has changed,  so Holly makes a worry box where Marley can posts her thoughts each day (good or bad). 

The messages begin with a drawing of a birthday cake, innocent enough. But when Holly finds a note saying secrets make me sad, she begins to question everything and everyone. 

Who can be trusted? Her husband, her closest friend Amy, even her dad, all appear to be holding something back. The question is what.

This is a novel filled with suspense.

The main story happens over seven days with seven notes from Marley forming one hell of a revelation.

Most books these days have the formula of a big build up and a shock twist at the end but Samantha really went all out because the reveals just kept coming and with each one came more mystery.

I, along with Holly, was second guessing everything. Combing back through previous chapters for clues that I might have missed.

Each character seemed guilty of something but it was never obvious as the truths and lies seemed to cross over so closely. 

What worked well was the dual time lines. This gave the main cast an extra depth and made it more clear as to why they acted in the way the did. I also found that as we were taken from present to past the tension was constantly and consistently building. I was on tenterhooks waiting for the next secret to be divulged. 

There was a great amount of information written without giving too much away. 

The Secret Keeper's Daughter is a book that builds slowly (with a terrifying atmosphere) but this steady way of forming the story didn't lessen my usual fast reading pace. 

I won't divulge any of the major points, spoilers would definitely lessen the novels impact. I'll just say that this story is a highly satisfying read that is at times dark but always maintaining a brilliant uncertainty throughout.

Highly recommended.

Make sure to join the rest of the blog tour for more insight into this exciting novel.