Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Family secrets by Stacy Claflin Narrator: Tina Wolstencroft
Series: Brannon House #2
Published by Tantor Audio on January 19, 2021
Genres: Mystery
Length: 6 hours, 4 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible, Libro.fm
Some questions are better left unasked. Like whose blood is on the knife upstairs.
Kenzi Brannon’s life was turned upside down when she moved into her family’s abandoned home to raise her niece. Problems compound when her aging mother starts to remember things.
And clues the police find regarding the knife don’t match anything Kenzi knows about her family.
Things go from bad to worse when she and her niece discover something horrifying in their house. But not even that compares to the strange ways her mom is acting.
Can they get to the bottom of it all, or will their house—a local legend that goes bump in the night—and the family secrets destroy them all?
Kenzi and Ember continue to deal with Claire’s death, starting with her funeral. I am still impressed with Kenzi’s poise in the face of everything which happens and the way she really cares for her niece. She lets Ember have a lot of input into decisions.
Kenzi has two sort of romantic interests but she’s just getting to know them. She’s not ready to add that to her already full plate right now. She seems to have easily continued her job though.
The family mystery I thought would be the focus was the identity of Ember’s biological father. While that does come up, there are SO many family secrets. I won’t spoil but it’s more than one. There may also be an old murder. Kenzi learns much more about her mother and their often poor relationship. There’s also Bella, her imaginary friend when she was little, which may be part of why Kenzi was sent to a mental institution.
There’s also a nosy neighbor who keeps showing up and asking questions about the house. I don’t like him. Nothing else happened with him but I can’t believe he isn’t up to no good. I suspect he will turn up in future books.
Family Secrets is a fairly short, chock full of revelations addition to the Brannon House series. There is still so much I want to learn about this family and there are some big changes which I want to know how they are handled. Not to mention, there is the still the question of Ember’s father. It looks like The Darkest Garden and Shattered Pieces are already available in ebook format in Kindle Unlimited currently. But I have The Darkest Garden coming up on audio for review next month.
Narration:
This narrator was new to me. I only had one voice which felt odd to me, and that was Ember’s voice. It was deeper than Kenzi’s voice which felt odd because she is younger. But overall, it was a good performance where the voices were comfortable and I could stay in the story. I listened at my usual 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip: HERE
About Stacy Claflin
.Stacy Claflin is a USA Today bestselling thriller author who has published more than 75 novels, including Girl in Trouble and The Perfect Death. She has always been curious about the human mind, and in her quest to learn more, she earned a degree in Psychology. Her favorite course was Abnormal Behavior, which has been useful in writing fiction.
Her love for thrillers goes back to her early childhood when she fell in love with Unsolved Mysteries and America’s Most Wanted. When Stacy was five, she got mad at a babysitter who wouldn’t let her watch the evening news. These days, she spends her free time listening to true crime podcasts or watching documentaries on the subject.
She has been telling stories for as long as she can remember, and as child would often get into trouble for trying to convince friends her wild tales were true. Now she puts her creativity to better use by writing page-turning stories that leave readers begging for more.
Stacy occasionally dabbles in other genres, so as you peruse her library of works, you’ll find some romance and paranormal tales, all with strong suspense elements.
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I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- C21-Winter
Love Family secrets in novels. My own family has its own secrets that could be a novel worth reading so I will check this book out for sure.
This is the 2nd in the series. They are relatively short and all in Kindle Unlimited currently.
love books that expose secrets. i have enjoyed reading some of stacys work. great choice
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This one was a wild ride and not the secrets I expected. That’s a good thing in not being predictable.
I’m really curious! Sounds like my kind of read and I like that it’s short and on Kindle Unlimited.
I hope you enjoy it if you try them. They are a little wacky and not quite believable but a fun and interesting read anyway.
Oh it looks good and the cover is really intriguing too so I confess that I’m curious
I’m enjoying the series. This is the second book and I would read them in order especially as they are short.