Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

The Secrets You Hide, by Kate Helm, is a chilling thriller set in the cut-throat world of the criminal justice system. Georgia Sage has an uncanny gift - she can sense evil in others. But when she delves into a case that has been closed for years - a twisted tale of family betrayal - she uncovers secrets more shocking than she could have ever imagined. As the evidence mounts against her, Georgia’s career, sanity, and very life is on the line. Kate Helm creates a tension-filled read full of psychological twists and turns that will have you second guessing what is really going on. An absorbing read for those looking for a suspenseful story that will keep them guessing to the very end.

Oooooo I loved it, so good this one and it seriously had me up half the night, loads of twists and a gripping storyline that holds on tight, defo would enjoy more from the author!!!!

The Secrets You Hide by Kate Helm is a true psychological thriller with unpredictable twists and turns you do not see coming.

Unusual story with the main character not only being a court room artist but she also has a very disturbing background, having suffered a major trauma as a child. Is Georgia loosing her mind as she becomes more involved with a previous case? Has her past clouded her judgement? I certainly couldn't have guessed the ending - a proper twist. There is such pace and suspense as the story comes to a conclusion - I could certainly see this story being adapted for TV. Highly recommended!

This was a great read from an established author, writing in a new genre. I loved the premise, such an interesting concept and the book was a tense, gripping read right up until its dramatic end. I would definitely read more from this author.

This book was phenomenal. The way the author fleshed out the characters and had them start out as one type of person and eventually become another type of person was just fantastic.

It was written in such a way that you could almost feel what the characters were going through. And the main character had a backstory that was slowly revealed as the book progressed, giving you layer by layer of her past (like peeling an onion).

I can honestly say that I did not see the end coming. It was like one of those things where you read and read and think that you have it all figured out and then get to the end and realize that you knew nothing.

I couldn’t put this one down. It was so captivating and thrilling. I wish I would have got to it sooner. It was fun too because it is a book based in the UK and I noticed that they were using some of the slang terms from the UK that I was actually hearing people say while exploring Ireland and Scotland. For example, when someone is asking you to come for tea, they will say “want to come in for a cuppa”. Things like this added to the book and gave it that authentic feel.

I would recommend this book to anyone that wants a very well written psychological thriller that will keep you on your toes!

I absolutely loved this book.

I work in law and i love reading court dramas.

as well as having a "court/crime story" there was a back story with the main character.

i felt and had so much compassion for the main protagonist and found myself really routing for her.

i will definitely look out for more by this author.

Thanks to netgalley for the opportunity to have read a very entertaining read!
If you would like to read something that has so many twists, you feel like you're watching a tennis match on steroids, this is the book for you!
Well done, and recommended.

This was a fascinating novel from start to finish. The main character was relatable and intriguing, with a fascinating premise driving the fast-paced and exciting plot. Interesting themes of secrets, families, art, and of course - murder and mystery! Highly recommended

Really enjoyed this book. Georgia's unusual problem added another dimension to what could otherwise have been a run of the mill thriller and I really liked her as a character. The characters develop as the plot progresses and there are some really good twists. It's a fast paced read and definitely a great debut. Will be looking out for more from Kate Helm in the future off the back of this one as I feel she has great potential.

What an amazing book
Inside this book is very colourful and filled with content from beginning to end
A great read

I loved this book, from the moment I picked it up, why did I not pick it up sooner.
Courtroom dramas, which is where this book starts, are something I have read for ages (Grisham etc) but this one starts a different point and that, in itself, adds a little twist. I have a quasi medical background and the unusual medical conditions brought out in the book (which of course I had to check on) added another fascinating quirk.
the basic story and the way the characters intertwine and develop as the book progresses add more twists, some much less obvious and more unexpected than others.One thing is for sure, there will be another twist, even when you think you have figured it out.
All in all a great read and a book I had to finish despite the fact that parts of it were less than comfortable. I wanted to know, what would happen next and could never be sure. That's got to be thee sign of a good book, surely?

The use of a court sketch artist was very original, however it lost me a little when it stated that she could feel and sense evil in people.

Georgia, a court artist, has secrets. Her own brutal past makes her adamant she's going to portray those in the stand correctly - guilty or innocent. But when she gets drawn back into a case from the early years of her career, she finds that maybe everything is not as black and white as it seems. She uses her art to dig deeper into the case, and uses it as a distraction technique from her own life, which is slowly unravelling in front of her.

This book is very quick to draw you in. It builds up a lot of questions from the beginning, particularly about Georgia's own life. But as you get into the storyline of Jim Fielding - the case from her past that she's revisiting in order to paint a portrait for a book commision - that raises questions too, about who was truly guilty, and did the right person go down for it.

In total honesty, I didn't much care for the Jim Fielding storyline. I was far more interested in finding out about Georgia's past and the reasons behind her tragedy, than I was about anything else. Which is unfortunate as that is sort of tacked onto the end, an afterthought throughout most of the book, while you focus on Jim Fielding, the hero who rescued two kids from a fire in his house but was unable to save his pregnant wife. A fire his own son went to prison for starting.

There was far too much going on in this Jim Fielding storyline. Too many characters to follow, too many new additions of characters and plot twists that it all became a bit too much to follow - or maybe it was just too much because I wasn't fully invested in it and wanted to get back to Georgia's past.

I also wasn't sold on the - slight spoiler - idea of Georgia's visions. She starts seeing people who others can't see - and she soon finds out they cannot physically be real. But the reasoning and the logic behind her seeing them.... it comes across as a supernatural/paranormal element to the book - which it's not. But I still didn't like this aspect of the book.

So, overall, I did enjoy it. But I wanted more focus on Georgia and less on the other storylines. I sped through it but only because I was looking for the bits I wanted to read about. I would be interested in reading more from Kate Helm, because ultimately, although I got bored with the build up, I enjoyed the outcome from the Jim Fielding storyline, and think she's a good crime writer. I rated this 3 out of 5 stars.

This book is a real page turner with a very unique main character that will steer you through the book and your emotions.

Georgia is a courtroom artist that can feel and see the evil in people. She believes that through her drawings she can help put the guilty people behind bars, but does she always get it right ? And what secrets does Georgia have in her own past.

After receiving a commission for an entry into an upcoming book Georgia has to revisit one of her first trials, where she was the artist. By going back over the case will her opinions of the innocent and guilty parties remain the same or did she not see something in the original trial that will change everything !!

This really is a great book with a very unique storyline. An unexpected heroine who is battling her own past and future. This one will have you turning the pages to try and found out what the truth really is.

Thank you to Bonnier Zaffre and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

The Secrets you Hide is the debut crime thriller by Kate Helm and it us an excellent book with a number of twists and turns.

The main character is a Court Artist who has a long hidden secret in addition to a gift for painting for the guilty or innocent

The story is told at a cracking pace that keeps you hooked and entertained as you click to the next page.

Thoroughly recommended

Georgia Sage works as a court artist, bringing what goes on behind the courtroom doors to life. Given the opportunity to produce a portrait of a hero, Jim Fielding, who saved the lives of two children but lost his wife in the fire, Georgia comes to realise that everyone has their secrets, including her.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I've never really thought about the role of court artist, even though we still see their work on TV in the UK, and I found it really interesting. Georgia was a fairly sympathetic main character, and there were a couple of good twists in the story line. I would definitely recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Bonnier Zaffre, for the opportunity to review an ARC.

I’m not a regular reader of thrillers: if I’m honest, it’s because I find them exceptionally difficult to review without beginning to tell the story. But I was excited about the premise of this book - and the fact that it was so character-driven gave it a compelling edge that I couldn’t resist, reading it in a single sitting.

The book’s opening is just enough to draw you in, a child’s traumatic memory revisited and expanded as the story progresses, the action then moving to twenty years later as Georgia captures images as the court artist at the rape trial of a prominent footballer. The courtroom scenes are vividly created – and the creation of Georgia’s images is fascinatingly described, where her skill in capturing postures and expressions has the potential to influence opinions and outcomes. But has she sometimes got it wrong? Perhaps, in an early case, her interventions meant that justice wasn’t done… and that possible wrong is something that Georgia wants to put right, whatever the personal consequences.

But there’s a great deal more to this book though than the simple pursuit of delayed justice. Georgia is a satisfyingly complex character, damaged by her childhood experiences, survivor guilt mixed with an inability to trust – and, when the hallucinations begin, well-founded and understandable doubts about her own sanity. I’m not always a fan of the big twist, but the one in this book is both original and unusual: the direction the story then takes was both completely unexpected, and very well handled.

But with Georgia’s personal trauma and current issues always in the foreground, the narrative drive of the “cold case” is never allowed to flag, and this is clever and confident writing. There’s a substantial cast of characters – I particularly liked ex-partner Oli, and couldn’t help being fascinated by Jim – and as Georgia uncovers the truth they all play their part as the book approaches its explosive climax. But the book’s focus – and the eyes through which everything is seen and interpreted – is always Georgia, and it’s an approach that works quite superbly.

This was an accomplished psychological thriller with some highly original touches that I thought really distinguished it from the pack: I thoroughly enjoyed it, and look forward to more from the author.

Brilliant. I did see how one storyline would finish but was surprised how the other storyline finished. Never saw that coming. I'll be keeping an eye on this author. New author highly recommended.