THE SECRET KEEPER by Kate Morton

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher.

I dearly love Kate Morton and she just keeps getting better and better.  She is a master of the "family secret" genre. (one of my favorites!)  Morton returns to this familiar territory with THE SECRET KEEPER.

16-yr-old Laurel Nicolson is hiding in her childhood treehouse when she witnesses her mother involved in a shocking crime. When Laurel returns home years later to see her mother, Dorothy, on her deathbed, she decides that the time has finally come to solve this family mystery.  We follow Dorothy's story from WWII to the present.  We meet Dorothy's fiance' Jimmy and her best friend Vivien and learn how the three of them met.  As their paths cross in wartorn London, a series of events will be set into motion that will change their lives forever.

I think one of the things that makes this story so effective is the setting in 1940's London.  WWII is the perfect backdrop for the intersection of the lives of Dorothy, Vivien and Jimmy.  All of the characters are interesting and compelling and the reader is driven to find out the truth behind their relationships and the secret that Dorothy has been hiding for over fifty years.  Although the secret became clear to me fairly early on, I still didn't know HOW the events came to be.  Morton kept me guessing until the end.  I was completely engrossed by this story and couldn't put it down.

BOTTOM LINE:  Highly recommended. Another winner from Morton. Save this one for a vacation because you won't want to put it down until the secret is revealed.