Book Review

 Last night I started a new book:  The Patient's Secret by Loreth Anne White.  I'm not 100% certain how I came to have this ebook but, given the email trail I have, I think in December after I "purchased" one of Amazon's First book picks, I was offered another book from a selection of books.  This book has 30k+ reviews on amazon and 4.5 stars.  On goodreads (as noted on amazon) it has over 53k reviews and 4.3 stars.  To me, when you have that many reviews and that high a rating, it's worth taking a look at.  And I think that's how I came to have it, but I'm not certain.

Anyway, last night, around midnight or so, I had a distraction occur that took some time or I would've finished the book last night.  I only had 30 minutes or so left in the book when I finally decided I had to go to sleep around 2:00 in the morning.  First thing when I got up, I finished the book.  It was one I didn't want to put down.  And here's the thing, I was already reading another book (which I think was the December book I'd picked that effectively got me this one).  That book I had no problem putting down - at all.  I was reading it yesterday and realized I didn't care about any of the characters and I didn't care if they reached their goals or if anyone fell in love.  I also didn't care if I never finished it.  So I set it aside for The Patient's Secret.

The story is about a woman who falls off a cliff at a beach and dies after a struggle on the cliff.  That happens in a prologue (I started a book this morning and it's the third book in a row that I've read that has a prologue - is that a requirement now?  ;) ).  From that point, the story is told in alternating points of view (third person, although I felt there was some head hopping), going back and forth in time to before the event that left the woman dead and how it's being processed in real time.  During the telling of the story, you learn that a lot of people had a reason to want the woman dead or at least out of their lives.

And everyone had secrets.  I felt like the story was showing how as much as you might think you know someone - even if you're married to them for years and years - you don't know everything about them.

The story was based on a nugget of truth.  In Canada (where the book is also based), if a minor commits a crime - no matter how awful of a crime - they cannot be sentenced to more than ten years incarceration.  They can also have their records expunged after a few years after they are released from prison.  

This book fictionalizes a real event that occurred in Canada.  The Preface of the book says that the inspiration for the fictional book is a real crime but that what is spun around it is purely fictional.

It was a really good book.  As I said, I didn't want to put it down.  However, that all said, I did have a bit of an issue with the behavior of an eight year old in the book.  I'll just say, the author had him behaving like someone who was much older.  It was hard to suspend disbelief to believe he was doing - and thinking - the things he was doing - and thinking.  But other than that - very good book.  I highly recommend it and thank whatever it was that pointed me into getting (and ultimately reading, because I do have a LOT to choose from!) this book!