Well written, well thought out page turner with a gripping premise. Could anyone commit murder if the stakes were high enough?

When recently divorced Ruth, the school secretary, sees the face of a recent one-night-stand in the school playground her life is turned upside down. A cracking thriller.

A fantastic read and one that had me total gripped. Full of tension and a really good twist at the end. Looking forward to more from the author.

I really enjoyed this book! A great story line that kept me hooked and excellent main characters. I would highly recommend this book.

A really gripping and believable thriller, very tense with great characters and a fantastic twist at the end!

Wow, just when you thought school violence and bullying are left to the children alone.... this was a very scary read, imagine how far someone would go to get their revenge! Recommended!

WOW I just loved this book. Fast paced from the start and I raced through it. And what a twist at the end. I didn't see that coming. Highly recommended

Thank you for NetGalley and publishers for an advanced copy of this book.

I selected this book from my book club category “ career you wish you had chosen”. Having now temped briefly as a school PA, I found the description of school life fairly accurate. The story centres around a school secretary - Ruth - who will do anything to protect herself and her son, both of whom have become pariahs within the school community. The lengths Ruth goes to protect them both are drastic and extreme which made for a great read.

This book was very readable, especially at the beginning. The description of the school life was spot on and I really enjoyed reading about it. However, further on the story became a little repetitive and I could see the resolution quite early on, as the hints dropped made it obvious. Overall, an average thriller, quite entertaining but unremarkable.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

This ARC was courtesy of netgalley - all thoughts and opinions are mine and unbinased

WOW - I just loved this

I read this in 1 sitting - could not put down - an absolute stunner

I'd not read anything by Zoe Lea before but certainly will look out for her in the future

So many twists and turns, this kept me on the edge o f my seat - vividly written - absolutely riveting

I did not see the twist at the end - suffice to say - if you love your thrillers this is an absolute must read !!

This book was brilliant, I read it in two sittings trying to work out what was going on and who was really at fault here.
A perfect tale of the different groups (cliques) of school run Mums and suspenseful telling of the sordid saga

My thanks to Little Brown Book Group U.K. Piatkus for an eARC via NetGalley of Zoe Lea’s psychological thriller, ‘The Secretary’ in exchange for an honest review.

A chance encounter at the school gates plunges school secretary, Ruth’s life into chaos. She recognises a chap that she had a one night stand with. He had promised to call but didn’t. So given that he’d claimed to be single not the married dad of two that he clearly is, Ruth confronts him.

Unfortunately, he is married to Janine, an alpha mommy, who is the head of the PTA. Not only does she overhear the confrontation but is in complete denial about her husband’s infidelity. Ruth begins to receive threatening texts and rumours about her circulate. The staff room becomes very hostile. Ruth tries to explain herself but things just get more and more complicated.

This was amazing! One of its themes is bullying. Clearly Ruth is bullied by the allies of Janine but more seriously her eight-year old son, Sam, is being severely bullied in class. Even though Ruth is the school secretary she finds it hard to be heard.

This was a complete page turner and I was literally on the edge of my seat during the final chapters as the situation reaches critical mass.

Just excellent.

Wow just wow what a read !! I did not guess the twist at the end !
A one night stand ends up being Ruth’s biggest regret - trying to prove it was an innocent mistake and she is not totally to blame turns into a delicious tale of revenge - so many twists and turns a great read

The book was quite electrifying and I got goosebumps while reading it. Ruth was the secretary to the principal at the school her 8 year old son was studying in. She saw a man Rob dropping his family and realized he was her one night stand who had ghosted her. He had lied. He was not single, he had a family. Stunned by the betrayal and an apology to his wife for the deed done, Ruth thought the matter was sorted. But the games were just beginning...

Threatening letters and notes, slashed tires, son being bullied with night terrors and panic attacks, her cake business being run to the ground, the ex fighting for the custody of their son, Ruth had reached her limits, with no support from anyone. Then she pushed back with all her might, using any means, legal or illegal.

My first book by Zoe Lea saw me reading this book with a horrified, fearful expression wondering what would be the end result. The book not only told me Ruth's story, but there were letters from the prison which befuddled me completely. Who was in the prison?

The writing kept me so twisted that I couldn't believe some of the things that were happening. The moms in the PTA were a scary lot, and they seemed to be baying for her blood. Absolutely shocking!! To the point, Ruth slept with a knife under the pillow. The way Zoe had written this story, I could feel myself standing next to Ruth watching it all happen.

Each chapter and each event including the drastic actions taken by Ruth chilled my soul. I could feel fear rising in me trying to stifle me. Who went too far in the story is something I would leave you to decide when you read the book.

I had no time to think about my niggles because each incident kept shocking me further. I was left speechless by the time I reached the end. How far would a mother go to protect her child? Far... Believe me, very, very far. After reading this book, I am of the opinion that she would go scarily far, using any means necessary. Whew!!

I was unsure how to rate this one as it gave mixed emotions. So I've given a 3.5

The overall storyline was fast paced, intriguing and had me gripped from the start BUT there is one simple line in the middle of it all (regarding footwear) that let it all down as it pretty much gave it all away!

There are a few chapters at the end of the book that will leave you on the edge of your seat and you wont be able to put it down. Fantastically written and full of suspense which is exactly what you want from a physiological thriller.

A big thank you to Netgalley, The Little Brown Book Group & Zoe Lea for the ARC, definitely one I'll be recommending on.

I usually assume that the only fraught relationships going on within the school vicinity are those of the pupils, but Ms Lea proves that is far from the case with this, her latest gripping thriller. It's a taut, twisty and compulsively readable novel, and although we would like to believe that this is far-fetched or beyond the realm of possibility quite a bit of what happens could realistically happen. I guess it's true what I heard whilst attending school — that often the adults are the ones bitching, moaning and getting jealous of one another — regardless, it is certainly true of the school setting in this book.

I really felt sorry for Ruth and her son's situation, but the rest of the characters are definitely out in there to rub you up the wrong way. These are characters you'll love to hate. This is likely one of those thrillers you will see on the beaches this summer as it is a fast, easy read, however, the second half did become a little predictable. That said, it doesn't detract too much from the overall story as the first half was explosive and very entertaining. This is really a crossover of thriller and women fiction, and whilst I did find it engaging and enjoyable it wasn't worthy of the full five stars. Many thanks to Piatkus for an ARC.

A secret that you want to keep until you get caught out that can have many consequences!

I cringed, not at the writing, but for Ruth, the main protagonist,at times,also feeling angry, upset and frustrated for her, that to me is a sign of a good book.

Having worked in schools I could see a lot of these things happen, the gossip, the closing.of ranks, the cliques.

An excellent book which I really enjoyed.

Thanks to NetGalley, Zoe Lea and The Little Brown Book Group for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a brilliantly different psychological thriller.
Ruth is shocked to see the man she had a fling with in the school playground where she works.
His attitude is awful and basically tells her it was a huge mistake.
The conversation is overheard and his wife soon comes over to find out what’s going on. What happens next changes Ruth’s life and soon she’s struggling to believe what is happening to her.
Ruth is the school secretary but the incident has got back to the staff room as the wife of the man she slept with is head of the PTA.
Her life is made a misery and it’s a new teacher at the school that helps her see how she can change the situation. However, how far is too far when you’re trying to get revenge?
Whilst some of the story was a bit far fetched I could imagine that some people may go this far.
The book has a breathtaking final few chapters that will have you on the edge of your seat.
Thanks to Little Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

A compulsive read is the best way to describe this book. One where you are tired but have to keep reading to find out what happens next. Well written and believable characters although I did notice I shifted between rooting for them and then wanting to scream at them!

Absolutely loved this. Had me hooked right from the beginning. I think it helped as I work in a school so could quite easily visualise a lot of what was going on. A first class page turner that is going to be a huge hit
Well done to the author for writing a corker of a book