The Secret Keeper

By: Kate Morton

Narrated by: Caroline Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

England, 1959: Laurel Nicolson is 16 years old, dreaming alone in her childhood tree house during a family celebration at their home, Green Acres Farm. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and then observes her mother, Dorothy, speaking to him. And then she witnesses a crime.

Fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress, living in London. She returns to Green Acres for Dorothy’s 90th birthday and finds herself overwhelmed by memories and questions she has not thought about for decades. She decides to find out the truth about the events of that summer day and lay to rest her own feelings of guilt. One photograph, of her mother and a woman Laurel has never met, called Vivian, is her first clue.

The Secret Keeper explores longings and dreams, the lengths some people go to fulfill them, and the strange consequences they sometimes have. It is a story of lovers, friends, dreamers and schemers, play-acting, and deception told against a backdrop of events that changed the world.

©2012 Kate Morton (P)2012 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

The secret keeper

I have listened and relistened to four of Kate Martin's books . Each is better than the last . Excellent !!!

Twisted Tale<br />

The way the lives of these characters twist and intertwine is no small feat. K. Morton has won me over. I'm her newest fan.

Worth listening over again

I'd recommend it to my sister and my boyfriend because the plot is as mysterious as it is romantic. It's worth listening and reading and listening again.

The character was well designed. They leaped to life through every stutter and every sigh, dramatically narrated by the fabulous reader. The plot is unpredictable to the last page and it had me hanging through all four parts, every three characters.

Excellent!

This was my second Kate Morton book. I didn't enjoy it quite as much as The Forgotten Garden, but it was still an excellent story. Set in WW2 London - this book had just enough history in it to make you feel like this REALLY HAPPENED - as if the characters were all real people with real problems. The main characters, Dolly and Vivian, were not your typical 'leading ladies'. Both suffered from mental issues... and that's probably the thing that made this book different from anything else I've ever read. You knew you couldn't necessarily trust the narrator. I loved it.

Caroline Lee did a fantastic job. She has such a lovely voice.

This won't be my last Kate Morton novel.

AMAZING!

This is my first Kate Morton book and I gave it a 5 star rating. Had I been required to rate it in the first 5-6 chapters, my rating would have been totally different. I had an extremely hard time getting into the story but once I did, it was a constant listen for me. I think part of my problem was getting the "Jack Reacher/Mitch Rapp/Scott Harvath" listens out of my head. This was so different in such a good way. I also enjoyed Caroline Lee's narration talents. I will certainly be looking for others by this author!

Amazingly different from any book I've listened to

If you could sum up The Secret Keeper in three words, what would they be?

I was there!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Vivian...she turned out to be so caring and loving. Not what I had thought at first and then I loved her. I wanted to sit at her bedside with Laurel at the end.

What about Caroline Lee’s performance did you like?

The very, very best! I kept thinking how different this story would be to read it rather than hear it. That was one of the best things. Now I'm going to seek out the other books that she and Ms Morton have collaborated on.

If you could take any character from The Secret Keeper out to dinner, who would it be and why?

It would be Jimmy. Such a caring man, gentle and willing to talk about most anything. I don't think he had a mean bone in his body.

Any additional comments?

I love hearing about the things in that time period, the 1940's, the war, the way people had to cope, etc. And ofcourse this was England, things there are different from America anyway. When I finished the story, I kept going back over the last 2-3 chapters because I couldn't belive it ended that way! It wasn't a bad way, I was surprised so that was good!

Excellent read!

Would you listen to The Secret Keeper again? Why?

I will listen to this book again, lots of hidden clues to the surprise ending.

What does Caroline Lee bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narrator made the book come alive. I'm not sure I would have enjoyed the book near as well reading it rather than have this narrator tell the story.

Historical fiction WW II London

I actually read this twice, 6 years apart. First time for the plot, second time for the period accuracy. Enjoyable both times for different reasons. Will have no trouble recommending this to friends .

Absolutely Marvelous!!

I stumbled across Kate Morton on Audible about 8 months ago and have sought out every book of hers since. This plot is particularly captivating. Multiple times I thought I had it figured out, but Morton surprised me to the very last chapter! The narration is wonderful, too, and enhances Morton’s work beyond what I could read in black and white (although I intend to purchase this in hard copy because I love it so much)! I’ve already sent it to family and friends to be their next reads.

Engrossed from beginning to end!

What a wonderful story with a surprise ending. The narrator was absolutely perfect for this lovely story.