Two Can Keep A Secret Book Review

Two Can Keep A Secret

By: Karen M. McManus

Two Can Keep A Secret’ by Karen M. McManus is a Young Adult Murder Mystery novel that takes place in the modern day. This book focuses mainly on two twins who move to this small town called Echo Park in Vermont. Their mother went into rehab and forced them to move in with their grandmother that they barely know. This town, though it may seem quaint and friendly, has a history of girls going missing. One of these missing girls happens to be the Aunt of the twins, who happened to be a twin to their mother. Around homecoming these mysterious threats start showing up around town, threatening to target the girls on the homecoming court. It’s up to Ellery, a crime-reading fanatic, to figure out who the kidnapper and murder is before another girl goes missing.

As with Karen M. McManus’s first book ‘One Of Us Is Lying’ there are very few things I did not enjoy about this book. The main conflict that I encountered while reading, is the fact that this book had a slower pace. It didn’t throw us in the thrill right away, it spent its time building up the world and the characters. For me, I felt as if the true thrill didn’t start until over halfway through this book. World and character building is always very important in books, yet for murder mystery novels such as this, I feel it should’ve focused more on the crimes being committed rather than the types of clothes Ellery is wearing and such. Then, when we finally reach the climax of the thrill, well near the end of this book, the story suddenly switches into a much faster pace. So, when we finally get into the juicy details by the end of the book, its over before it can all soak in. Another topic I was not fond of, was near the end of the book between the twins, their mother, and a police officer. This, I will not get into detail over as I keep my reviews spoiler-free. Yet, the secret that was revealed between these three characters didn’t exactly make sense. It was a scene in the book that could have been left out as it didn’t entirely relate to the story and happened to be a bit far-fetched.

However, as I said there were very few things I did not enjoy about this book, there were many topics I did really enjoy. First and foremost, the intrigue of this book was phenomenal. This book kept me constantly guessing who was behind the threats, the kidnappings, and the murders. As with most mystery novels, I will form a suspect list of my own apart from the book that I’m reading, such as this one. For some characters, I was certain I had figured out who was responsible for all the crimes. By the end of the book, I was beyond shocked as the actual criminal was someone I hadn’t even given much thought to. This is the kind of plot twists I love in these books, the kind of twist that has me wide-eyed with my mouth agape, unable to form any words on the matter. Along with this twist in the story, the thing that left me utterly mind-blown was the very last sentence in the book. When I read those last six words and closed the book, I had to sit down and try to wrap my head around the fact just given to me. Apart from the plot twists and genuine thrill this book gave out, there was also a bit of romance blossoming throughout the story. This was yet another topic I enjoyed about the book, as two characters could find love while trying to keep their heads and solve the mystery. The main detail of this romance that I loved, was that it didn’t overtake the story. It was subtly there through the book, but the main event of the story remained the murder mystery aspect.

Overall, I give ‘Two Can Keep A Secret’ a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, as the novel was beautifully crafted and edited. Karen M. McManus has a way of making her books charming, yet creepy in a way to keep you on your toes until the very end. With a even mix of plot twists, shock factors, secrets, and thrill, this book made for an exciting read that I can’t wait to experience again in the future. If you are looking for a modern teen murder mystery that is sure to give you chills, thrills, and satisfaction, then this is a book I definitely recommend for you.

You can buy this book from Amazon:

Page By Page (Kerrie Bevan)

July 17, 2019

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