The Secrets We Hide | Book Review

North Falls #2

By Karin Slaughter

AN INTENSE AND FAST-PACED MURDER INVESTIGATION

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SUMMARY

Sheriff Emmy Clifton and her siblings are driving home from their mother’s funeral when she hears four shots ring out from a nearby house. It happens to be the home of her good friend, Allison Vickery.  Allison has been a repeated victim of domestic abuse and was planning on leaving her current partner any day.  When they pull into the driveway, they see Allison’s suitcases next to her car.   When Emmy and her estranged sister, Jude, a former FBI agent, enter the house, they find Allison’s dead body in the kitchen and her daughter, Mandy, suffering from a severe gunshot wound to the head upstairs.  The attacker was nowhere to be found.

REVIEW

THE SECRETS WE HIDE is an intense, fast-paced, and complicated murder investigation. Sheriff Emmy Clifton is bereft but knows she needs to set that aside to get justice for Allison and her daughter.  Emmy is running for re-election, and her opponent, who is also a member of the Sheriff's department, is using the news and social media to criticize and pressure Emmy into a quick arrest. Despite the intense pressure, Emmy focuses on the case and uncovers layers of family secrets, abuse, corruption, and long-buried grudges that reach deep into the community.

This is the second book in the North Falls series by Karin Slaughter.  The story started with the book We Are All Guilty Here.  While I had not read the first book I still enjoyed the story immensely.  Karin Slaughter’s writing is a gripping tale of a small town. In North Falls, everyone knows everyone's business, and yet no one really knows what is happening behind the closed doors on Iris Drive. It’s a crackerjack investigative thriller that will have you rushing back for more, while Emmy Clifton’s complicated and courageous character propels the narrative

Thank you to William Morrow and Netgalley for an advance copy of The Secrets We Hide. All opinions expressed in this book review are my own.

Publisher    William Morrow

Published   August 11, 2026

Review       www.bluestockingreviews.com