Reviews

Secret Smile by Nicci French

limonik's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

This was a very good thriller that kept me hooked from the start. I liked reading this book but there were two points that kept me from giving a higher rating. So the story follows Miranda who dates a creep and breaks up with him after a few dates. That creep comes back to haunt her, firstly by starting to date her sister. He tells everyone another version of their past relationship and the way they broke up. So far so good. However, the fact that Miranda was so passive and reluctant about telling her sister about what a creep Brendan was, was definitely not convincing enough for me. Why would your sister or your family believe a total stranger rather than choosing to listen to you and your recollections of what a creep he was or how you broke up. I tried to ignore this unconvincing starting point and continued reading, then came a point where a police officer Rob was so unconvincingly supportive of Brendan and insisted on never listening to Miranda, ignoring her complaints and suspicions. That was, again, not realistic enough for me.

camel's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

4.0

cinderelfa's review against another edition

2.0

I found myself so frustrated with this book, it literally took me 2 months to complete because of how frustrating the characters, although I was happy to finish it.
I couldn't forget how annoyed I was feeling whilst reading it, this has been reflected in my low rating of 2.5

aliceandthegiantbookshelf's review against another edition

tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

niharikashetty's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

elilhrairah's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

lisapauwels's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

hannekedethmers's review against another edition

mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Frustrating subject at times, but easy to read, I wanted to keep reading. Repetitive. Character did not stand up for herself at all.

alexjarvis's review

1.0

I got this book from the library, so I didn't read any reviews first. I was intrigued in the beginning, the premise had so much potential! But no, it just ended up getting more and more frustrating.

The main character, Miranda, was just so stupid. Her behaviour made no sense. She just let everyone walk all over her instead of telling them the actually really awful things that Brendan did. She let him and her sister move into her flat despite obviously knowing that would be a bad idea. She let her sister date this man that she knew was creepy and potentially dangerous. And why? Just to not upset anyone?!

All the other characters were just as annoying, though. They believed this virtual stranger over their own daughter/sister... because he was charming. Maybe if the family had been really distant and they didn't have a lot of contact for a while or something, but no, they were supposedly close. And yet they still didn't believe anything Miranda said - though she also didn't ever really say the worst things he did, just that he was being weird.

Everyone just sucked. Except Troy and maybe Don (though he also didn't really believe Miranda). The entire book felt bleak and hopeless, and the ending felt rushed and unfinished.

caterinaanna's review

challenging dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25