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Secret Smile

Nicci French

3.68 · Rating details · 4,550 ratings · 329 reviews

Miranda's sister, Kerri, has a new boyfriend. He's a raven-haired, handsome charmer who seems to dote on Kerri. But Brendan isn't the man he says he is. Miranda should know, because she broke off her own affair with him just a few weeks ago when she found him reading her diary.

Now Brendan claims that it was he who ended their short-lived relationship—and everyone believes ...more

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Paperback, 384 pages

Published January 1st 2006 by Grand Central Publishing (first published 2003)

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Jun 02, 2012 April rated it liked it

I enjoyed this book but after finishing it, I can't help but feel like there's something missing. The end is rather abrupt and rushed, like something else was originally supposed to happen, but at the last minute, it was changed. I don't know how I expected the story to end, but I just expected *more*.

The story itself (girl meets boy, girl dumps boy, boy turns out to be a psycho) is interesting, no doubt. Of course, it's been done so many times that it's hard to make the idea fresh or new, thoug I enjoyed this book but after finishing it, I can't help but feel like there's something missing. The end is rather abrupt and rushed, like something else was originally supposed to happen, but at the last minute, it was changed. I don't know how I expected the story to end, but I just expected *more*.

The story itself (girl meets boy, girl dumps boy, boy turns out to be a psycho) is interesting, no doubt. Of course, it's been done so many times that it's hard to make the idea fresh or new, though I certainly couldn't put this book down. Brendan Block has to be the most despicable antagonist I've ever seen in a story like this -- part of the reason I kept reading was because I just wanted to see how much worse he could get.

I might have given this book more stars if not for the fact that every single character was annoying. Brendan, of course, was supposed to be, so I don't really count him -- he was a well-written psycho whom we obviously all wanted to see get his in the end. But Miranda and her entire family are stone dumb idiots -- there's so much wrong with what Miranda does and doesn't do in this story that I just found myself getting so completely frustrated with her while I read. And her family members are worse, especially her parents. Despite the fact that they raised Miranda, and they're apparently such a close family, they choose to believe Brendan's words over Miranda's. This man whom they've only known for a little while, who went from dating one sister to the other, who obviously makes Miranda uncomfortable. Did the parents really see nothing weird about him? I could understand if Miranda had been painted as a pathological liar or something, but she wasn't -- she was a normal woman who had a normal relationship with her family, yet her family just says, "Oh hey, stop trying to ruin everyone's happiness, we know Brendan is a really good guy."

I've never wanted to punch fictional characters as much as I wanted to punch Miranda's sister and parents.

All in all, I *did* enjoy the story, truly. But the rushed ending and the fact that nobody ever apologizes to Miranda for not believing her just left me more frustrated than anything. ...more

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Mar 29, 2009 Liz rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Definitely not one of Nicci French's best books... most of the book you just feel outraged at how dumb the main character is and how badly she's handling situations. You almost don't want her to prevail in the end.

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May 22, 2012 Heidi rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2019, fav-thrillers, all-time-favourites

WOW – what an intense book! I don’t think that Nicci French books are good for my blood pressure! Anyone who chats with me on Instagram may have read my rant as I was halfway through this book and in the grip of some very strong emotion:

“I feel so outraged right now. Shocked. Sickened. Physically ill. I have such a bad feeling about this!”

This was around the 50% mark and I have to say that the feeling persisted until the very end, and I am still not totally vindicated.

Miranda may have believed WOW – what an intense book! I don’t think that Nicci French books are good for my blood pressure! Anyone who chats with me on Instagram may have read my rant as I was halfway through this book and in the grip of some very strong emotion:

“I feel so outraged right now. Shocked. Sickened. Physically ill. I have such a bad feeling about this!”

This was around the 50% mark and I have to say that the feeling persisted until the very end, and I am still not totally vindicated.

Miranda may have believed that after a short and foolish fling, she is finally rid of creepy Brendan for good, but now he has firmly inserted himself like a big fat cuckoo’s egg right into the heart of her family. Brendan is out for revenge, but no one believes her. They have all fallen for his charm. Nothing good can possibly come from this ...

Take it from me when I say that this book is not to be entered into lightly. Brendan may be one of the most sinister everyday characters I have ever encountered. I am so glad that I am no longer in the dating game, or I may feel tempted to take up a hermit’s life in a mountain cave with ten cats because who would like to tempt fate? I felt intense anger through most of this book and at one stage I vividly remember yelling out loud and having to put the book aside for fear that my head may explode.

So why did this man get under my skin like this? Burrowed his way into my psyche like a parasite? It’s no accident that I am a huge Nicci French fan, because this writer duo sure know how to tap into our worst fears and nightmares. With a keen eye for detail and an eerie insight into the dark places of the human psyche, the story rolled out slowly but with such a sinister undertone that I was feeling truly frightened for poor Miranda the whole time. Miranda, who is the only one who can see where this is all headed. Miranda, who everyone thinks is paranoid and a bit crazy. How terrible would it be to see an imminent train wreck but everyone laughs off your fears? I shudder at the thought. I found it interesting how Miranda blamed herself for unleashing this evil on her friends and family – and saw it as her moral duty to fix it. I think I would have run for the hills!

If you are a fan of slow burning mysteries that look deeply into the dark places of the human heart, and enjoy an evil, psychopathic main character, then enter this one at your own risk. I am still feeling a little bit of simmering anger like a fire that has not been fully extinguished when I think about this book. Such is the genius of Nicci French. Bye bye Brendan, I may see you in my nightmares ...

Very highly recommended, but make sure to take your blood pressure meds!

*blog* *facebook* *instagram* ...more

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Apr 29, 2018 Alex Cantone rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller, read-2018

They stopped outside a door between a bicycle shop and an all-night grocery and broke apart while the girl fumbled in her pocket for the key. Her flat then, I thought. That made sense. Brendan was the cuckoo in other people’s nests...

Miranda works as an interior decorator in her uncle’s London business, and meets Brendan through friends at the ice rink. They date a few times, but when she returns home to find that he has let himself in to her flat and is reading her diaries, she throws him out, They stopped outside a door between a bicycle shop and an all-night grocery and broke apart while the girl fumbled in her pocket for the key. Her flat then, I thought. That made sense. Brendan was the cuckoo in other people’s nests...

Miranda works as an interior decorator in her uncle’s London business, and meets Brendan through friends at the ice rink. They date a few times, but when she returns home to find that he has let himself in to her flat and is reading her diaries, she throws him out, except Brendan is not one to accept rejection. Soon she finds herself in a difficult position when he dates her sister, Kerry, and in a whirlwind romance the pair plan to marry.

The parents are charmed by him, even though he doesn’t seem to have a job, though Troy, her special-needs younger brother has difficulty with him. The parent’s house is being renovated, and when the flat Brendan and Kerry are to move into falls through, they end up staying in Miranda’s flat only for a few days.

Miranda is unsettled by his behaviour towards her, and moves out to stay with her best friend Laura and partner Tony. When tragedy strikes the family it is her behaviour that is drawn into question and threatens the friendship. But that’s only the start of her troubles, as Brendan closes in on his next target...using her as an alibi.

Two-thirds of the way through I felt a bit let down as Miranda – who handles a sanding machine, brings down walls and paints cornices, and who gets up in the early hours to go for a run – struggles with her emotions, not helped by her family in denial about the charmer who wormed his way into their lives. At rock bottom she seeks professional help, but it is only when working for a client she finds someone who believes her, and warns her to stay well away from Brendan.

But Miranda believes that by putting it behind her, she is allowing the same to happen to another unsuspecting victim. The game-changer is when she bumps into a familiar face; giving her the impetus to find out who Brendan really is and to stop him before he harms someone else.

This is the first novel I have read by couple Nicci Gerrard and Sean French, and at first it was an amusing take on family relationships and social mores, which takes on a sinister turn. All the characters are believable, ordinary people charmed into believing what they want to, with the main character placing herself at risk to bring justice. The ending is a cracker.

Verdict: cat and mouse. ...more

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May 25, 2011 Miss Hartigan rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: anyone who's been or knows someone in an emotionally abusive relationship.

Recommended to Miss Hartigan by: I loved the BBC misineries so much, I just had to read it.

I read it in one sitting. I just couldn't put it down. It was like reading a manual on emotional/psychological abuse. The authors depicted it so clearly you could just go back and underline every instance yet see clearly why only the reader and Miranda are the only ones to notice. The characters are FRUSTRATINGLY realistic, I wanted them, specially Miranda, to do more, but it's always easy to blame the victim for their circumstances instead of concentrating on the psychopath who wormed his way i ...more

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Apr 13, 2011 Kim rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobooks-read, suspense-mystery-thriller

I REALLY want to give this five stars because I so loved it! I was immersed from beginning to end. Very suspenseful, very great writing! I enjoyed it thoroughly! I adore suspense and this is one of the very best I've read in a long time.
However, a few things really got to me. One, Miranda was an idiot during a large portion of the book. I was so angry with her so many times for being such a doormat! Since I want to think this book is perfect, I attributed her behavior to differences in culture. I REALLY want to give this five stars because I so loved it! I was immersed from beginning to end. Very suspenseful, very great writing! I enjoyed it thoroughly! I adore suspense and this is one of the very best I've read in a long time.
However, a few things really got to me. One, Miranda was an idiot during a large portion of the book. I was so angry with her so many times for being such a doormat! Since I want to think this book is perfect, I attributed her behavior to differences in culture. The story takes place in London; I am in the US. I thought that maybe women in London are just too polite & proper to make noise against their family members? Most American women would be throwing a FIT in her situation! It was just hard for me to believe that she would go through what she did strictly out of 'politeness'.
Also, I am left with a million questions. I don't think that all the loose ends were tied up well enough by the end. This could have been done much better.
But what bothered me most of all - WHY WOULD SOMEONE DO THE INSANE THINGS HE DID just because she broke up with him after only just a few dates? A mental condition was suggested lightly then forgotten. I just think it would have been more believable if there were a better motive for all of this behavior. I was craving some kind of explanation & was feeling let down that I never did get it.
Still, I was able to get past the few prickles I had and really, really enjoyed the book! Never having travelled abroad, I'm fairly limited on my cultural knowledge due to lack of experience. I loved the difference in language - it was so much fun! Our pants are their trousers, our pharmacy is their chemist, and on and on. It was really fun to 'visit' London in my mind & that was done very well via verbality.
I would LOVE to read another Nicci French novel! I will most definitely be on the look for more from this pair of authors. I had heard brief mention of the authors name here and there lately which is why I picked this one up in the first place...along with that the story sounded really great too!
This comes very highly recommended by me - as long as you have the ability to see past a few pretty major boo-boos. ...more

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Sep 29, 2017 Valerie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is one of the books I had not read by the husband-wife team of 'Nicci French", but I thought it was a very good story. Miranda Cotton is out at a pub with friends when she meets a handsome man, Brendan Block. On a whim, she decides to hook up with him. Their romance lasted exactly nine days when she came home to find him reading her personal diaries. Feeling violated, she threw him out and thought that was the end of it. A few weeks later, imagine Miranda's surprise when her older sister, K ...more

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Feb 11, 2012 Ella rated it it was ok

I'm thoroughly irritated with Miranda. Instead of investigating her creepy 2 week week ex, she seems to spend her time drinking and sleeping with men that she just met, while the creepy 2 week ex is whispering creepy vulgar things to her. It seems Miranda didn't think to google creepy 2 week ex or to hire a private investigator. Miranda's entire family seems stupid and naive. Apparently, her family members would rather take the words of a man they just met a month ago over their own daughter.

Th ...more

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Dec 28, 2012 Joan rated it liked it

This was basically a read-it-in-one-gulp book for me; so I can't give it less that 3 stars. Can't give it more than 3 stars, however, because it's a very formulaic first-period Nicci French, and it's not the best of that subgenre. I think that French's new series about Frieda Klein (which I guess we can call second-period NIcci French) is significantly better.

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Feb 19, 2016 Calliss rated it really liked it

I've read this book some years ago and I really liked it.

Just read it again and I still like it.

The settings for Brendon's obsession with Miranda is creepy, bad and wonderfully written.

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May 11, 2018 SWZIE rated it it was amazing

Secret Smile by Nicci French is a compulsive read. So engrossed was I in the book that the pages seemed to turn by themselves.

It began when Miranda had a chance meeting with Brandon Block at a skating rink. It led to a few dates. But when Miranda caught Brandon reading her personal diary, she was incensed and finished their very brief relationship. She thought that was the end of him. But she was wrong!

One day, her sister phoned. She said she had some exciting news and wanted to tell Miranda in ...more

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Jul 24, 2011 Monique rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: anticipation-suspense-novels

Hmm..really wanted to rate this book higher and love it more as I think the sexy husband and wife writing duo of Nicci French do an amazing job of building suspense, creating the tension and making you want to know what is going to happen next..however I felt the tension didnt meet the ending and ultimately when there should have been a brilliant novel I was kinda let down..Okay so the story follows hardenend smartass Miranda as she does what she wants, is a female painter that loves to be dirty ...more

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Sep 12, 2017 Kim BookJunkie ~ Editor & Proofreader rated it liked it

Shelves: mystry-susp-thrillr-action-advent, _audiobook, psychotic-obsession, men-or-women-in-uniform, ill-disabled-physically-mentally, psychological-thriller

STORY: 2.5-3 stars
SECRET SMILE is just the tip of the iceberg on what could've been a much more intriguing, in-depth, story had Ms. French put more into it. What is supposed to be a gripping, sinister story is more of a suspenseful tease. It was entertaining yet because of the way it is written, everything feels rushed and unnecessarily abbreviated.

PERFORMANCE: 5 stars
I listened to the audiobook narrated by A. Ando. Ms. Ando did an excellent job narrating this book from start to finish to fini ...more

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Mar 31, 2018 Clare rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-audio-2000, 2018-reading-challenge-read

Listened to in audio format.

I am a little conflicted by this book.

Secret Smile started so well. interior designer Miranda had dated Brendan 8 times.
However Miranda split with Brendan when she left work early and caught him reading her diary. Brendan was upset and said he had read Miranda's diary as a teenager and knew she had betrayed her older sister Kerri.

Brendan started dating Miranda's older sister Kerri and started charming her parents. Brendan lied and said he broke up with Miranda and s Listened to in audio format.

I am a little conflicted by this book.

Secret Smile started so well. interior designer Miranda had dated Brendan 8 times.
However Miranda split with Brendan when she left work early and caught him reading her diary. Brendan was upset and said he had read Miranda's diary as a teenager and knew she had betrayed her older sister Kerri.

Brendan started dating Miranda's older sister Kerri and started charming her parents. Brendan lied and said he broke up with Miranda and she was having trouble accepting it. When Miranda tried to warn her parents they accused her of being jealous and of ruining Kerri's happiness.

Weeks later Brendan proposed to Kerri and she accepted. Kerri sold her flat and bought a house together. Whilst waiting to move into the property they stayed with Miranda. Miranda did not want this but Kerri and her parents guilt tripped her into doing it.

You cut feel the tension building when they moved in. Brendan walked in on her in the bath and pretended he didn't know she was there. Later Brendan made a vulgar sexual comment towards Miranda but she felt like she could not tell her sister and destroy her.
Brendan took Miranda's brother who had learning difficulties under his wing. He seemed withdrawn but shocked his family when he committed suicide.

I don't want to ruin the story but when Brendan jilted Keri her on the day of the wedding Miranda should of been pleased.

However Miranda become convinced Brendan was involved in her brother's suicide. She could not let go and started questioning Brendon's friends about him. When she found out he was dating a student doctor she tried to warn the girl but Brendan called the police and accused Miranda of stalking him. I just found it irritating because Brendan was out if Miranda's life and her family's. It did not make sense to me, it was like picking a scab.

I think this book would have been better if the author switched to move to the POV of his new girlfriend.

On the whole I enjoyed Secret Smile but there are better books out there by Nicci French. ...more

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May 30, 2019 Rebecca Hock rated it liked it

This book was just okay. It was a pretty quick read. I enjoyed the basic idea of the story but I found that I did not really like the main character, Miranda. She did not stand up for herself enough throughout the book. |I found her and her actions frustrating. But I did enjoy the ending of the book.

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Feb 29, 2020 Kirsty rated it liked it

Although I enjoyed this book, I found the main character quite annoying, I wanted to shake her for some of the decisions she was making. The ending was a bit rushed and left me feeling like some unanswered questions were left.

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May 13, 2016 L.E. Truscott rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This book was so engrossing that I started reading it late one evening and then couldn’t stop. I finished it in one sitting as I kept thinking, “Just one more chapter,” and then not being able to stand not knowing what was going to happen next. By the time I was finished, six hours and 310 pages had gone by and so had most of the night, as well as any opportunity for sleep.

Secret Smile is the story of Miranda. She’s been dating Brendan for just over a week when she comes home from work to find h This book was so engrossing that I started reading it late one evening and then couldn’t stop. I finished it in one sitting as I kept thinking, “Just one more chapter,” and then not being able to stand not knowing what was going to happen next. By the time I was finished, six hours and 310 pages had gone by and so had most of the night, as well as any opportunity for sleep.

Secret Smile is the story of Miranda. She’s been dating Brendan for just over a week when she comes home from work to find him on her lounge reading one of her old diaries. He’s let himself in with the key underneath the flowerpot. “That’s all right, isn’t it?” he asks. She throws him out and breaks off the relationship. And she’s not really sorry to see him go.

Two weeks later, her sister Kerry calls to tell her that she has something exciting to share: a new boyfriend. And his name is Brendan. (Unfortunately for Kerry, she doesn’t realise how literal that sharing will be.) Almost immediately, Miranda is suspicious. And those suspicions are confirmed when the story of how the happy new couple met is told. Brendan approached Kerry telling her he recognised her from a photograph in Miranda’s flat. Except there are no photographs of Kerry in Miranda’s flat.

Brendan has also already ingratiated himself amongst the rest of Miranda’s family and told everyone that he broke up with Miranda and that she didn’t take it well. So every time Miranda tries to point out the fact that he’s a liar and a psychopath, they all think she’s just jealous. A few weeks after when Brendan and Kerry announce their whirlwind engagement, he finds Miranda and confesses to her that the whole time he and her sister were making the announcement, all he was thinking about was her mouth and how he had once ejaculated in it. Yuck!

And so begins Miranda’s new hellish life. No matter who she tells about Brendan and his dangerous infatuation, they just won’t believe her. Not her family, not her friends, not her new boyfriend, not her therapist, not even a police detective she asks to investigate Brendan.

The character of Brendan is insanely creepy and everyone will have known someone like him, someone who is just not quite right even though you can’t quite put your finger on why. The character of Miranda stays quiet on occasions when she should speak up and I think we all know people like that, too. Sometimes we are that person. So even though I kept thinking, “Why doesn’t she just say something?”, Nicci French wrote it in a way that made me think such a scenario was not just entirely possible but frequently reality. Towards the end, I even started wondering if perhaps Miranda was veering towards being a little bit psychopathic herself in her treatment of Brendan. I almost became one of those people who wouldn’t believe her, even though I was witnessing everything firsthand.

The dialogue was a little bland at times and I’m still not sure how I feel about the ending – because even though Miranda outsmarts Brendan it wasn’t quite in a smart enough way for me to feel she had won the war – but overall this is a terrific and terrifying read. And it’s certainly enough to make me want to read more of Nicci French’s books. ...more

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Feb 16, 2015 Penny rated it did not like it · review of another edition

I have never been so glad to finish a books as I am to finish this one, I hated this book. I have had Nicci French books recommended to me not only by goodreads but friends and other books sites. So when I was at the local library and saw this book and read the back I thought it sound good so of course I added it to my pile. As soon as I started this book there was already two things that started to annoy me, the first once was the chapters are so short that they made the story choppy and dysfun ...more

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Apr 09, 2014 Jill Hutchinson rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction

I like Nicci French's (a husband and wife writing team) books as they always are just a little off-kilter in plot and character development. In this rather unnerving story, I wanted to kick the main protagonist, Miranda, right in the mouth for being so stupid. She has a short but unsatisfying relationship with Brendan but breaks it off when she catches him reading her diary. So he takes up with her sister, Kerry, and convinces her and the parents that he broke off with Miranda and that she is sh ...more

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Aug 19, 2012 Manda rated it it was ok

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mar 25, 2013 Kathryn Bain rated it liked it

The whole premise of this book was great. Girl meets guy, breaks it off, he then inflitrates her family and life. I couldn't wait for the suspense to start. Too bad it never did.

That being said, I did keep reading to see how she would get him out of their lives. Too bad I found her family to be naive. It wouldn't take much to know this guy was a user. He never had a job the whole time they knew him. Come on people.

I did like how the ending worked out, though I would have liked it to have been ...more

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Feb 12, 2014 Patricia Vocat rated it liked it

Not a very deep, but really entertaining psycological thiller. A book that kept me on the edge of my seat, even though the whole premise is not credible and the ending was very obvious .

(Why not credible? MILD SPOILER: Since the main character has family and close friends, you'd think that at least one of them would believe her instead of somebody they just met.END)

I loathed and felt for Miranda the main character at the same time: She is like the typical herione in a horror movie where you are ...more

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Mar 10, 2020 Baba rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: thrills-spills-kills-oh-my

2014 view Miranda has a brief fling with a man, Brendan and then dumps him. The problem is, he takes it personally, real personally and sets about exacting revenge, starting with dating her sister, and that's just the start. 6 out of 12.

2009 view: Another Nicci French almost stress inducing suspense thriller… with a smart charming amiable yet psychotic protagonist that smashes people's lives, and mean utterly messes up people's live completely... and gets away with it. The writing pair that is N ...more

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Dec 27, 2012 Sabrina Grounds rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime-thriller

This was my second Nicci French book which I enjoyed almost as much as the first. It made for a really good "holiday read" as it grabbed my attention pretty much from the outset. I did find it a little annoying that no-one was prepared to believe Miranda's side of the story, not one person from her family, still I guess this is what a stalker can really be like. It did seem a little unlikely that even Detective Rob Pryor was taken in by him. Anyway, I particularly liked the twist in the final fe ...more

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Jan 16, 2014 Lisa rated it did not like it

Why why why did I read this book?! The whole point of reading reviews is to ascertain whether books appeal to me or not and LOADS of people said the main character is annoying and stupid.
Well, the main character is REALLY ANNOYING!
Sorry Nicci, I feel bad giving a rubbish review but I hated this book - thank goodness it is short else I would never have made it.

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May 05, 2010 Eman AbuKhadra rated it it was amazing

One of the BEST books I’ve ever read. A beautiful story with easy-to-relate-to characters.
Smoothly written, this book will hook you in easily. You’ll taste suspense, and will feel the teasing the story offers.This book would make one hell of a movie!

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Aug 29, 2017 Claire (Book Blog Bird) rated it liked it

This was an okay audiobook, but the narrators actions confused me. I had no idea why she didn't just tell people that she had been the one to dump Brendon and why anyone would believe him over her. And why on earth would she let him come and live with her??

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Aug 14, 2007 Rose☮️ rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: Absolutely!

Shelves: thriller

My idea of a horror story are on the psychological level. This is an edge of your seat, smartly written novel of one being tormented by a past lover. Good summer reading!

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Mar 12, 2020 Helen Warner rated it really liked it

Secret Smile is the first book I have read by this duet of authors who write under this pseudonym. It is also a book I have recommended to more people than any other. It cannot be described as anything else other than a 'page tuner', all be it an excellent one.

The book tells the story of Miranda Cotton who ends a short relationship with her creepy boyfriend Brendan. Miranda believes this will be the last time she sees Brendan, until two weeks later he appears back in her life as her sister’s new ...more

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Jan 02, 2019 Susanne Mills rated it liked it

I’ve read books by Nicci French before and loved them. This one didn’t blow me away!! I think it definitely got better towards the end but there wasn’t the suspense in this one that I normally find in French’s books. Nice way to start the year though :)

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About Nicci French

Nicci French

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Note: (Nicci Gerrard and Sean French also write separately.)

Nicci Gerrard was born in June 1958 in Worcestershire. After graduating with a first class honours degree in English Literature from Oxford University, she began her first job, working with emotionally disturbed children in Sheffield. In that same year she married journalist Colin Hughes.

In the early eighties she taught English Literature Note: (Nicci Gerrard and Sean French also write separately.)

Nicci Gerrard was born in June 1958 in Worcestershire. After graduating with a first class honours degree in English Literature from Oxford University, she began her first job, working with emotionally disturbed children in Sheffield. In that same year she married journalist Colin Hughes.

In the early eighties she taught English Literature in Sheffield, London and Los Angeles, but moved into publishing in 1985 with the launch of Women's Review, a magazine for women on art, literature and female issues.

In 1987 Nicci had a son, Edgar, followed by a daughter, Anna, in 1988, but a year later her marriage to Colin Hughes broke down.

In 1989 she became acting literary editor at the New Statesman, before moving to the Observer, where she was deputy literary editor for five years, and then a feature writer and executive editor.

It was while she was at the New Statesman that she met Sean French.

Sean French was born in May 1959 in Bristol, to a British father and Swedish mother. He too studied English Literature at Oxford University at the same time as Nicci, also graduating with a first class degree, but their paths didn't cross until 1990. In 1981 he won Vogue magazine's Writing Talent Contest, and from 1981 to 1986 he was their theatre critic. During that time he also worked at the Sunday Times as deputy literary editor and television critic, and was the film critic for Marie Claire and deputy editor of New Society.

Sean and Nicci were married in Hackney in October 1990. Their daughters, Hadley and Molly, were born in 1991 and 1993.

By the mid-nineties Sean had had two novels published, The Imaginary Monkey and The Dreamer of Dreams, as well as numerous non-fiction books, including biographies of Jane Fonda and Brigitte Bardot.

In 1995 Nicci and Sean began work on their first joint novel and adopted the pseudonym of Nicci French. The Memory Game was published to great acclaim in 1997 followed by The Safe House (1998), Killing Me Softly (1999), Beneath the Skin (2000), The Red Room (2001), Land of the Living (2002), Secret Smile (2003), Catch Me When I Fall (2005), Losing You (2006) and Until It's Over (2008). Their latest novel together is What To Do When Someone Dies (2009).

Nicci and Sean also continue to write separately. Nicci still works as a journalist for the Observer, covering high-profile trials including those of Fred and Rose West, and Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr. Novels include Things We Knew Were True (2003), Solace (2005) and The Moment You Were Gone (2007). Sean's last novel is Start From Here (2004).
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“And how do you undo damage that’s been built into the foundations? With houses, it’s easier to pull the whole thing down and start again. You can’t do that with people.” — 8 likes

“Within families, you’re stuck with the character they think you are, whatever you do. You become a war hero and all that your parents ever talk about is something supposedly funny you used to do when you were in nursery school.” — 4 likes

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