Two Can Keep a Secret

Two Can Keep a Secret

By Karen M. McManus
Published: Delacorte Press, 2019
Pages: 327
Genre: Young Adult, Mystery
Amazon, Goodreads

There's something deeply, fundamentally satisfying about confronting a monster and escaping unscathed.

Real monsters aren't like that. They don't let go.

About the book

Echo Ridge is small-town America. Ellery's never been there, but she's heard all about it. Her aunt went missing there at age seventeen. And only five years ago, a homecoming queen put the town on the map when she was killed. Now Ellery has to move there to live with a grandmother she barely knows.

The town is picture-perfect, but it's hiding secrets. And before school even begins for Ellery, someone declares open season on homecoming, promising to make it as dangerous as it was five years ago. Then, almost as if to prove it, another girl goes missing.

Ellery knows all about secrets. Her mother has them; her grandmother does too. And the longer she's in Echo Ridge, the clearer it becomes that everyone there is hiding something. The thing is, secrets are dangerous - and most people aren't good at keeping them. Which is why in Echo Ridge, it's safest to keep your secrets to yourself.

Review

I have to admit, I was sooo disappointed in Two Can Keep a Secret. The author's first book, One of Us is Lying, was one of my favorite reads of 2018. I had high expectations for her second novel, and I was definitely let down.

The main issue I had with the novel was the writing; it was dull, uninspired and felt forced at times. I kept getting bored while reading the story and only finished because I had liked the author's first book so much.

The plot is interesting and is unique like the storyline of One of Us is Lying; both are super mysterious and creepy. I enjoyed the atmosphere of Echo Ridge, it has that small-town feel that is also sinister. I'm wondering what the purpose of the hit-and-run accident at the beginning is for in regards to the storyline. I believed it to be distracting from the main plot.

As for the characters, I enjoyed Ellery's and Ezra's characterizations. They seemed like REAL people to me; however, I felt like they were poorly developed, along with the rest of the characters in the story.

Unfortunately, Two Can Keep a Secret is not a novel I'd recommend to anyone.

RATING (out of five puppies):