Living Secrets

Mirror Estate #2

by S.F. Baumgartner, Si Chen (Narrator)

Listening time: 10 hours and 6 minutes.

Can the secret love child of a U.S. Senator deliver the cure for a bioterror threat before time runs out?

Lily Tso is bored and unfulfilled. Orphaned at birth, the twenty-two-year-old Hotel Guest Service Officer is overwhelmed to discover her parents are alive. But the young woman fears she’s woefully unprepared for a treacherous operation to save America and to meet her parents.

Teaming up with an FBI Special Agent and a young tycoon, Lily sets out on a dangerous mission to prevent a heinous biological attack. But as unknown forces bent on thwarting her attempt, she fears time is running out for both her and the country she calls her new home.

Will Lily be able to survive the attacks and save America from certain doom?

Genres: Thriller, Suspense

11 pages, Audible Audio

First published September 29, 2023

About the author

S.F. Baumgartner crafts fast-paced Christian suspense thrillers, weaving tales of complex characters, secretive operatives, and relentless agents. Her gripping storytelling has earned acclaim, with Living Secrets—Book 1 of her Mirror Estate series—named a Top Pick in the thriller category at Killer Nashville, 2024. When she’s not plotting her next twist, she’s binge-watching crime TV shows, like NCIS or playing with her cats. Fans of James Patterson's style, especially those who appreciate short, punchy chapters, will find much to love in her work.

Reviews

[Ricardo Medina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the story is told in multiple POV, Lilly Tso is the main protagonist. She is a young chinese living in Hong Kong that will discover information about her family and their past, that will lead her to move to the States teaming up with the FBI and encounter herself in the middle of an bioterrorist attack.

The book is written in short episodes (never more than five pages long) that makes the story flow hecticly and so quickly that you must be prepared to not put the book down. Even though the multiple POV can make you feel dizzy, the author makes a great job to tell the story seamlessly.

The story has all the elements of a great thriller: Action, turns, characters that makes you love them and bad guys that makes yoy hate them. The bad thing about this book is that it is the first of the series so you will fall into the desire to know more!

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun political thriller. It was hard at first to get into because I was confused by some of the characters and perspectives but also did not realize there was a prequel! That would have been nice to know jumping in for context. Regardless, once the scenes built up suspense wise I could not put it down and had a fun time guessing the outcomes, surprised myself by always being wrong. It ends on a cliffhanger and makes you want to know more!

Edit to add: thank you Breysbooktours and the author for the ARC!

[Bonny Rambarran · Rating 5 out of 5]

She moves from Hong Kong to the U.S. because someone is trying to kill her and two men come to save her
And yet she is still in danger - they are determined to kill her. There is a virus that is threatening the world and she has the antidote hidden. She learns who her mother is — and her father!!! This is seriously a “on the edge of your seat”.. You will; not regret reading it!!!I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Barbara Dougherty Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher forbthis edge of your seat nail biting thriller!

I am excited for the next installment!

The book is one you will not want to put down, and if you read it at night, you will jump at every noise and check the locks on your doors and windows.

Highly recommend.

[M A · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was fast paced & engaging. I did find it challenging to keep jumping back & forth between each of the different characters, but I kept looking forward to seeing what would happen.

Some of the events were a bit unbelievable, not so realistic. But it is fiction & that is their perspective.

Thank you to the publisher & Netgalley forthis ARC. All opinions are my own.

[JoAnn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Living Secrets isa very well written romantic suspense. I enjoyed the plot and character dynamics. I definitely recommend this book.

[Delphia Von Heeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Living Secrets is book 1 in the Mirror Estate Series by

S F Baumgartner. I believe that this author has elevated thriller to a new level. I read the Prequel and it was great and it gave me a solid foundation on the characters and the series. BUT, if you didn't read the Prequel, S F Baumgartner does a good job of bringing the reader up to date. Living Secrets is exciting from the first page to the last page. Dylan and his CPA best friend, Tommy, are in Hong Kong to discover secrets in the family history. The FBI are also getting help from Dylan to uncover the "Ghost" and get Lily out of Hong Kong. The author takes the reader on a wild ride of unexpected surprises and twist. Then, with the revealing of the "Ghost", I was shocked! This book is fabulous. I received an arc for free and am leaving my review voluntarily.

[Krysta · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great crime novel! Loved that it picked up right where the prequel left off. Loved all the chasing of Lily and who was after her. Loved the cliffhanger and can't wait to read the next one!!

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review:
A very fast-paced thriller. The plow is heavily reliant on the characters and their connections to each other. There was a certain twist that made my interest increase a bit. The crisis does take a back seat in the story. Or at least felt that way to me. It wraps up a little too quickly for my taste. But it's not a bad ending. I enjoyed this and felt like I flew through it. There's a lot of different POVs, which is challenging at first, but you get used to it.
Overall, it's a solid thriller.
I'd give this 3.75, but I'll round it up to 4 stars

I'd like to thank the author and Netgalley for allowing me this arc to read and review.

[Laura (kroosreadsandreviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was so engaging for me as a reader! I enjoyed how the chapters were small and changed quickly between the characters as the story unfolds. There are lots of characters so in the beginning it was hard to keep everyone straight but the story line was so interesting, that it kept me reading. I enjoyed how some of the characters made such great sacrifices to protect their loved ones. I look forward to reading the next book!

Thanks so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc. The opinions are my own.

[Rudrashree Makwana · Rating 5 out of 5]

•Fast Paced
•Short Chapters
•Multiple POV
•Mystery and Secrets
•Suspense Thriller

The book is suspenseful and mysterious. It’s full of secrets and mystery. There are multiple POVs. The chapters are short and the book grips from Chapter one till the end. There are some new characters, if you have read the prequel. This is book 1 in The Mirror Estate Series. The author did a great job. The characters were intriguing and mysterious.

Lily Tso is a young Chinese woman who has grown up as an orphan. She currently works at Marino Hotel in Hong Kong. Her world turns upside down when the secrets unveils about her biological parents. She gets tangled in a secret operation and hidden secrets. There is also an involvement of FBI. The book keeps on the edge of the seat. Lily must figure out the mystery to save herself and save America.

Thank you Netgalley, Author, and Publisher.

[Cath · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book one of the Mirror Estates series and the main characters are Lily Tso, a hotel guest service officer in the Business Centre of a hotel in Hong Kong, and FBI Special Agent Kyle Peters. Lily was born of a Chinese mother, Olivia, and an unknown foreign father, being lucky to be educated in the American School so her mixed race wasn’t quite so noticeable. She was orphaned at birth and her only living relative is her aunt Marie, who is a nun. She is suddenly chosen to take some highly important information to America, under the protection of Kyle. A very dangerous criminal called the Ghost has been captured and is awaiting trial in America, but has threatened an attack with a deadly bioweapon. Dylan Roche has come up against the Ghost, having nearly been killed by her and finding out he is her nephew! His grandmother is the head of the Marino clan and currently resides on the Mirror Estate and has sent him to one of her hotels in Hong Kong to get to know the business, but also to check out the staff, as there are suspicions someone is stealing money from the hotel. Dylan is accompanied by his friend and CPA Tommy, but is suddenly asked by the FBI to help Senator Simon Roth and to assist FBI Agent Kyle Peters to escort Lily to the US. She is tasked with carrying the antidote to this dangerous bioweapon, and was chosen as it was thought no one would suspect her or even know her and Kyle is a new agent as well. Unfortunately for Lily, there are various groups after her and the information she is holding. The information has been given to her by an agent known as Phoenix, who is someone closer to her than she could know.

Lily finds out that in fact both of her parents are actually alive and her mother was forced to give her up at birth, for her own and Lily’s safety. The Ghost was uncovered as Marge Beaumont, the infamous crime boss of the Marino family, who had a deep seated hatred of her own biological family! Her mother is the one who has tried to make the family turn legal and placed Dylan in charge of parts of it. The story gets very convoluted, with lots of players from all over getting mixed into the story, often without knowing why until much later. Lily is in danger from the off and Lyle will do all he can to keep her safe, as does Phoenix, but thinking they had reached a safe house, Phoenix had left them just at the wrong moment. The Ghost had her people try to kill Olivia all those years ago and it was only those who got her away to the US that saved her and had her giving up Lily to save her from those after Olivia. Olivia Tso aka Phoenix was recruited and has worked for the US government for decades and now sees a way out of that life and to finally get to know her daughter, but only if she can keep her alive from all those that want what she is carrying. She hasn’t seen the man she fell in love with all those years ago, but that is soon about to change. Olivia had more than one side to her, also working undercover with the Ghost’s operation at one point, learning all she could about it. She has had to hide her true identity for so long and now with Lily being in danger, she will do all she can to stop those trying to hurt her baby! There are traitors in Senator Roth’s wheelhouse who bring added danger to one and all. Lily must survive all attempts on her life if this bioweapon is to be stopped before it can spread all over the country and beyond! Long held secrets will be revealed and different countries found to have their fingers in the pie. A complex tale of two families affected by circumstances and the secrets of the past. I received an ARC copy of this book form BookSprout and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.

[Vicki F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Living Secrets by. S. F. Baumgartner is action-packed and a page-turner. Mutiple government agencies, foreign agencies' involvements, secrets, and biological warfare all join to make this book a thriller.

A copy was provided for my review, but all opinions are my own.

[Bevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

{3.25/5}

A slow, somewhat confusing, start ultimately gave way to an entertaining political thriller.

A biochemical weapon is poised to be unleashed on the U.S., and the formula for the antidote is in the hands of the very ordinary Lily Tso. With more forces moving behind the scenes than anyone knows, Lily’s only got 3 days to get the cure to the right people.

Politically-oriented books often feel, to me, like someone’s tied a rope around my ankle and taken off at high speed in a bumper car driven by a rabid squirrel through a crowded airport— it’s confusing, I get jerked back and forth a lot, and at the end my head kind of hurts and I don’t really know who was responsible for what. This particular book was no exception, but the ride was fun enough to make up for it.

While this is technically book 1 in the Mirror Estates series, I think reading the prequel novella, “Buried Secrets,” would probably help clear up a lot of confusion. The first quarter of this book deals with the root cause of the whole crisis—an evil piece of work called The Ghost. Since I’ve never read the prequel, I didn’t have any of that information, and so a lot of the names and causations for this story were lost to me until I could piece it together later in the book. It’s not strictly necessary to read “Buried Secrets” first, but I would highly recommend it; I think that would have helped this story’s ‘grab and hold’ factor significantly.

Once we got past the confusion of not having all the information, the story was engaging. I wanted to know what happened next and had pretty much no clue where things would be going along the way. The dialogue was fairly basic, but that mostly helped keep things from getting even more confusing. There were some personal developments for the characters along the way, but they felt very secondary and, when coupled with some almost stilted conversation, mainly served to detract from the overarching plot. I do think a lot of this had to do with my personal hang ups with the genre, though, so this might not be as big of an issue for other readers.

Overall, this was by no means an unenjoyable book. As mentioned previously, reading the prequel would probably have helped a lot, and readers who frequent the political-thriller category will probably have an easier time keeping track of all the moving parts. The book is written with definitive Christian influences, so if a lot of praying or religious associations are turnoffs for you, this book probably won’t be a good fit. This book does end on a semi-cliffhanger. Things are resolved, but there’s a definite lure for the next book.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading the previously published prologue, Buried Secrets, I was looking forward to learning more about Mirror Estates and Dylan and his family. But for a book promoted as a thriller, this one was less than thrilling. The first third of the novel seemed to drag on. I did not connect with the characters at all. Everything felt flat to me and I was ready to quit, but decided to hang on until half way through, at which point it finally picked up some speed and I understood what was going on. But by the 80% mark, I was ready to be done. I did finish it, but will not be reading anything else by this author in the future.
Two main things were the demise of this book for me. First, it had very little to do with Dylan or the estate. Yes, his aunt was heavily involved, but Dylan was a minor character and the visit to the estate was brief. I had expected the action to be centered on Dylan and his grandmother. Second, and maybe more importantly, there were over 100 mini chapters. Each chapter heading gave a name, day, time, and place. Having this abrupt break literally every minute or two and needing to switch gears to another place and another person’s point of view was very distracting. It kept me from losing myself in the story and prohibited a natural flow of events. Several times, by the time a character came back around I had forgotten what was happening there. I felt like I was told a lot of things, but never really got to know the characters, a few of which just seemed to show up without much explanation.
There is more I could say but I will leave it at this. Living Secrets had a lot of potential, and I really wanted to like it. If you enjoy the above mentioned format and do not mind it not being about Mirror Estate, you may enjoy this book.
*I received a complimentary copy of this e-book from NetGalley and the author. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Tammy Lunsford - Escape to Books By Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoy a good international spy thriller with shootouts and abductions, you will enjoy this book. Lily Tso works for hotel guest services at the Marino Hotel in Hong Kong. Little does she know that her life is about to change dramatically. She was raised by her grandparents as she was an orphan. Now she has learned that both of her parents are living, and her father never even knew she existed. She is being secretly escorted to the USA by an FBI agent posing as her boyfriend. She has been given information that could save thousands of lives, which means getting her safely to her destination is of utmost importance. This information is scary to even read about.

Once they arrive in United States, the pace picks up considerably. Someone wants what she is delivering, and they will stop at nothing to get it from her. There are a lot of moving parts and characters in this book. It took me a little while to put everyone and everything together, but once I understood the puzzle pieces, I embraced the rest of the book literally flying through the pages. The chapters are short and jump around from place to place, but once you figure out what parts are being played by each character, you will have no problem keeping on pace. I enjoy short chapters in books, so this was a plus for me. Characters from the prequel are present in this book, but S. F. Baumgartner helps you along so that you can understand their place even if you have not read the prequel. However, I would highly recommend reading it.

The action and intrigue were very interesting and high octane, so fasten your seatbelts before you begin. This wild thriller will take you for the ride of your life.

Thank you to BookSirens and the author for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Cate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting concept, but way too busy. Too many bad guys doing too many things. The writing is ok, but not great. The characters are interesting, but it’s hard to keep track of everyone. There’s a lot of repetition that made me throw my hands up in the air. “Again? Seriously?” It was a little exhausting.

While there are Christian elements, and it’s a clean read, I wouldn’t necessarily classify it as Christian fiction. It’s kind of on the line. There are a couple of strong Christian characters who give solid, Biblical advice, but it feels a little like the Christian elements were thrown in there to snag the classification, rather than the faith journey being the main theme and the adventure being the catalyst. Just a heads up.

I chose to buy the prequel, Buried Secrets, because the first chapter of Living Secrets didn’t seem to make a lot of sense without it. Buried Secrets is not as well-written, but it provides a lot of important information.

So, I give it a middle-of-the-road rating. Not awful, not great. If you’re interested in clean, international political thrillers, you will probably enjoy it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Ruben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having already read the prequel to Living Secrets (Buried Secrets), I can tell Ms. Baumgartner has really done a good job with this plot. It is my belief she knew how to balance all elements to make of this a really enthralling plot.

Lily Tso is the main character here, a young Chinese woman who grew up in her town country and who was upbrought by her uncle and aunt as she ended up parentless since birth. She now works at one of the Marino hotel chains in Hong Kong and is on the verge of seeing her boring life turned into a more exciting one. One that includes unveiling some hidden facts from her biological parents.

By letting herself transition into such appealing life, she'll cross paths with Dylan Roche (Carol Marino's grandson), Kyle Peters (Agent Peters's son), and Tommy (Dylan's best friend).

How and why do Lily and Dylan's lives get linked? Why is it important for Lily to welcome her new life? There are many untold secrets that need to be disclosed as the lives of thousands might be at stake. It seems that the only way to find out is by getting immersed in her world.

All in all, I enjoyed being part of that world and look forward to what's coming next.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Carol Keen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Layers, this book has layers. It has suspense and twists, spies and deep secrets, and in short is my kind of interesting story. There's the fight to stop a bio-warfare weapon and a grown child who just wants her parents, Lilly. Everyone has a secret in here, do they connect? Do the secrets all intertwine, or not? This actually is a thriller that will keep you awake reading. There's politics involved, but there usually is in real life, more so for fiction. A prequel is before this book, and I do wish I could have read that first. That would have fixed my lost feeling or that I was playing catch-up sometimes. I love books or shows with many, many characters and this has that as well. If you are seeking a romance, no need to worry, that's included as well. It's a clean read, with light faith aspects that are a little harder to define.

Celebrate Lit gets a thank you for my digital copy of this book. This review is all mine and contains what I thought about this book. A positive review is never required.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really am surprised but I really liked this book. This book really kept me reading till the end. I kept thinking I had read the first book “Buried Secrets” but I couldn’t find any record that I had but I remember that the character “ The Ghost” had been discovered at the ending and it was a cliff hanger and that character is mentioned in this book as well. And this book ends with a cliff hanger and leaves me wanting to read it as soon as possible but it isn’t out yet. This is a clean book but there are a few uses of the word hell and once badass is used. I know most people aren’t bothered by these words but I don’t like them in my books that I read. Even with saying that I recommend this book if you like suspense without a lot of violence. There are few instances of violence but not real graphic. I actually wanted to keep reading when the book ended. The ending besides the cliff hanger was really great.
I received a complimentary copy from the author and Celebrate Lit and these opinions are my own.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found S F Baumgartner’s Living Secrets: A Thriller to be a great read. I enjoyed this start of the Mirror Estate series to be a thrilling roller coaster of a tale. There were so many twists and turns, I never knew what could happen next. It was full of action, mystery, and suspense. I thought it was great.

I am giving Living Secrets: A Thriller five stars. I highly recommend it for readers who enjoy reading clean thrillers. I am eagerly awaiting for the next installment from the Mirror Estate series, Forgotten Secret, to see what S F Baumgartner has in store for the characters. This one is worth reading and not to be missed.

I received a copy of S F Baumgartner’s Living Secrets: A Thriller from the publisher, but was not required to rewrite a positive review. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel begins after the events of the prequel. While it can be read and enjoyed on its own, I would suggest reading the prequel first to fully enjoy this story. While some of the needed backstory is revealed about a quarter of the way into the novel, we do not get the rest until well over half way through.

There is lots of action in this political thriller and it is well paced. The characters are engaging and Lily makes a capable heroine. The plot centers on an international threat and is something that could be out of today's headlines. The plot is a bit complex but it does come together in the end.

This series has good potential and I'll be looking for the next one.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

[Mary Hake · Rating 4 out of 5]

I avoid reading book descriptions so as not to rob myself of the joy of discovery as I experience the actual drama contained within its pages. This is certainly one novel I’m glad I didn’t know all the details since it’s much more exciting for events and facts to be uncovered while you follow the exciting journey of a young Chinese woman into her new reality. Not only does she learn of her unknown past and parents, she is sent on a dangerous journey to help save the world. Both the physical and relational drama combine to make this wild tale a thrilling read you won’t want to put aside until it all plays out. There is a lot to track but it all comes together and, of course, makes it difficult to determine who is the guilty party behind the nefarious plot. Now I want to read the prequel to learn more. I received a copy from Celebrate Lit for the book tour. All opinions are my own.

[Connie Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Living Secrets: A Thriller is written by S.F. Baumgartner. This is a Christian Thriller that will draw you in within the first few pages - and you will not want to put it down. This is the first book in the Mirror Estates Series. This is the first book that I have read by this author - and it will not be my last.

Lily Tso believed through her whole life that she was orphaned at birth. She is shocked to know that her parents are alive. Then she is thrust into a situation where she has to work with an FBI special agent and keep both eyes open at all times. Lily finds herself hoping to prevent a biological attack.

The author has written an action packed, suspense filled story that has so many twists and turns. The story is well written. Thank you to the author, publisher and Celebrate Lit for allowing me to read a copy of this book - all thoughts are my own.

[Betti · Rating 5 out of 5]

An experimental biological weapon - something that could potentially kill millions of people. Someone has the antidote but will it get to the right people in time? And who is the mole that is obstructing this goal?

Imagine being told that you are an orphan only to find out that your parents are most certainly alive. For Lily this news comes as a complete shock. But will she survive long enough to meet them? This edge of your seat suspense will leave you with a few nails and a whole lot of questions about how safe we are from something that is engineered to kill.

An ebook was received through FB Publishing, BookFunnel and CelebrateLit. These thoughts are my own and were in no way solicited.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the initial story that I have read from this author. The way that the story was laid out was done quite well. It gave me an opportunity to understand each of the characters as they were presented. Each person had a story that as you read along understood how they would interact when needed.

The importance of Lily and what she had to go through in order to provide the assistance that was needed along with the story of what happened to her parents was a winner. It was definitely touch and go for the entire task force as protecting Liliy got harder and harder.
To learn why Lily was so important, how the FBI got involved and how Dylan and Tommy played a role, then you need to read this book. The ending is well worth it!

[Michaela | Reading in the Heartland · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first book by this author. I did not realize there was a prequel until I had already gotten the book. From what little I looked up online, this book features the same protagonist and occurs only a couple weeks after the prequel ends. While I obviously went into this book lacking some information, I was still drawn into this story in a major way. We obtained bits and pieces of the backstory throughout this book. It was fascinating and fast paced. We were constantly guessing at who was behind things and what would happen next. This book does end on a cliffhanger.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a gripping, engaging political thriller with a strong international flavor. Espionage, double-crossing, lots and lots of action, and a smattering of science.

The storyline itself was a 5-star read, however I felt the way the story was presented could have been better. There was quite a bit of telling, not showing, especially in the beginning. The way the past interconnected with the present could have been told in a manner that packed more emotional punch, thereby giving the characters even more depth and development.

However, it was still an overall a fast-paced read that had me wanting to know what happened next. It was reminiscent of an action-packed Hong Kong film. Loved it!

[Bette Reith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Living Secrets is the first book in the series Mirror Estates. It wasn’t until I finished the book did I realize the author had written a short prequel. This might have helped with my overall understanding of the characters. He tried to fill us in, but the amount of information made me think that this needed to be split in to two books. This is also a POV book which added to my confusion.

This book had lots of action and twists and turns. It was a hard book to put down. The plot could have used more attention, but overall, a good read. I am looking forward to reading more of this series and also the prequel. Thanks to BookSirens for the copy of this book

[Rina Baumgartner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow!! Stayed up until 4:30am reading this because I could not put it down! Mystery/thriller is not my usual genre but there is something in this book for everyone - I found the characters to be relatable and even joined the relationship dynamics. The only reason I am not giving 5 stars is because there is a lot of crime/legal jargon and acronyms that I had to look up to find what out what they meant. However, if you are an avid crime genre enthusiast, this probably will not be an issue for you! Highly recommend checking it out!