This is a great book. Things which seem implausible become clear bit by bit, leading to a conclusion which is heartbreakingly real. The characters are drawn so clearly and convincingly that you could be forgiven for thinking this is a biography, loving and loathing them by turn. Highly, highly recommended.

Anna had a bad lot in life growing up within the care system and being placed with abusive foster parents. Anna wasn't alone her twin sister Birdie was with her, until she wasn't. Birdie disappeared after falling in with the wrong crowd forced into child sex work for respectable men in the community. Now as an adult Anna is searching not only for answers but vengeance.

I found this book interesting. I kind of guessed how it would play out in some parts but I also found myself doubting the reliability of Anna as a narrator. How much of her memory is fact or fantasy. She makes it known to the reader she has been known to make things up. I really enjoyed the fact that I knew I couldn't trust a word she said and therefore tried guessing the narrative as well.

Anna isn't a very good female lead and I wish there was one to her. If I was asked tell me something important to Anna other than Birdie? The one and only answer I could give is shopping. If you read this book you will understand why. Look I'm all for good shopping addiction but I felt it took away from the story. I could of gone with the constant trips to the mall. I also didn't feel anything around her relationship with guy I don't know it wasn't sold for me. I honestly thought she should get with the old man principle St the school she worked at he seemed nice.

Anna's job is something I wanted to heat more about. Working with under privileged kids at an alternative school who she could truly connect with and understand I espically loved Dean.

The book flips from past to presence constantly. She is always lost in thought. I enjoyed, well enjoyed is the wrong word, but I found those parts of the book gripped me in even more. I wanted to know what happened to Birdie, was she alive, was she real and how will it end. All of these questions got answered and that's what really sold me on this book. I wish there was more if I'm honest.

All of the characters seemed fickle and I didn't really love any of them.
The conclusion of this book was rushed and unsatisfactory if I'm honest. I want to know how it ended for everyone.

Would I recommend?
It's an easy read and easy to follow. Do in that respect yes I would. However its unlikely to be a book I say ooow have you read and espically to psychological thriller lovers its just not meaty enough. But I enjoyed parts and wish the ending was better and less predictable. 3 stars

Thank you to netgalley the and the author for the digital ARC in exchange for my fair and honest.

Anna and her twin sister, Birdie, grew up in poverty. Their mother OD’d when they were very young. Their father did all he could to care for them, but as a truck driver, he often left them at home alone. When child protective services found out, the girls were taken away and put into foster care. Most of these situations were not good for the girls. One day, Birdie just took off and Anna has no idea where she is. Anna worked hard and became a teacher. With little pay, she lives in a tiny apartment but has a passion for shopping having maxed out several credit cards.

One day, Anna attends a lecture during lunch given by Professor Guy Franzen. She is taken with how handsome he is and they strike up a conversation. After a couple of dates, he invites her to move in with him. The man is very wealthy with much of his money coming from his father. Guy spoils her giving her money and they finally marry.

The storyline goes back and forth from Anna’s difficult childhood to present day. Her experiences as a child are very gritty and sad. To think that some foster children are living in circumstances like this is appalling. I truly hope that is not the case, but I’m sure some children fall through the cracks. We often see it on the news. Anna just wants to find Birdie so she keeps visiting druggie hangouts and such. These visits show the reader how disgusting this life is. Kids get hooked on drugs and will do anything to get them. While Anna is a disturbed person, she is lucky to have Guy. What a wonderful man. The book was overly long and difficult to stay with but it does open reader’s eyes to the grittier part of life.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

How often have you seen a report on the news or in a newspaper or magazine about the tragic death of a child at the hands of one or more of their so called parents and thought to yourself, why wasn't something done to protect that child? Surely they would have been better off if they had been taken away and placed in care? The problem is,how much safer are children that are removed from their homes? Yes, they might still be alive but the shocking truth is that the care system isn't always the safe haven for vulnerable children that it's supposed to be. There are social workers and foster parents who genuinely care about the children who end up in their care. But,as our main character Anna and her twin sister Birdie learned in this hard hitting story, there is also people within and outside the care system who mistreat, manipulate and exploit misplaced children and many people who are prepared to turn a blind eye to the activities of the elite members of society.

This story is told entirely from the perspective of Anna, a teacher at a school for underprivileged children, a school that gives them a last change opportunity to get a education and make something of their lives. Anna is a complex, mixed bag of issues,the reasons for which become apparent as the story,which slips back and forth in time unfolds. At the beginning of the story, Anna is living in a grotty flat and struggling to pay her rent,a situation that changes when she meets and after a whirlwind romance, moves in with and marries rich, handsome Guy. Suddenly, Anna has the means to indulge in the one thing that keeps her sane, shopping at the mall, and oh boy, did Anna love spending money. There was quite a few moments when I wandered if Anna actually loved Guy or had she married him for his money and the elite lifestyle that came with it. Was that truth or can I been cleverly manipulated by the author into passing unfair judgment on Anna's character? The mall had also played a integral part in the story of Anna's past, it was one of the places that where she spent time with her twin sister Birdie before their relationship went wrong and Birdie mysteriously disappeared. As with many sibling relationships,the interactions between the twins very often had toxic undertones but despite what had happened in the past,Anna felt that she couldn't move on with her life until she discovered what happened to her sister. Despite admiring Anna's dedication to her quest for answers and feeling a lot of sympathy towards her due to her shocking past, she also had some character traits that made it difficult to like her at times. Guy came across as a lovely,caring individual who genuinely loved Anna but deception wears many faces.As with many characters in this book,was Guy hiding his true character and twisted nature behind a mask of perfection.

This is a very well written,character driven story that has a plot which covers a wide range of realistic issues. The story is very topical when you take into consideration some of the horrific trials that have taken place in the past and are unfortunately highly likely to take place again some time in the future. It's a hard hitting,dark, realistic story that causes the reader to experience a wide range of emotions. Due to some of the subject matter,there was parts of this story that I enjoyed more than others but I would happily read more of this author's books in the future.

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy of The Secret Sister. I
From the description ‘The Secret Sister’ sounded like the type of book I enjoy but despite trying to get involved I found it impossible to like the characters and I’m sorry but this novel just wasn’t for me and I was unable to finish it.

Unfortunately this wasn’t for me. It was hard to get into and whilst is well written it was just a bit of a trudge through even though it was quite a quick read.

I love to discover new authors and M. M. De Luca is certainly a new author for me. I read the synopsis for ‘The Secret Sister’ and it certainly sounded as though I was going to be in for a treat. Without further ado, I grabbed my Kindle, grabbed a cup of tea and settled down for an afternoon full of reading.
I have to say that it took me rather a while to get into this book. Part of the problem was the fact that I was tired when I started to read the book. Another part of the problem was the fact that I didn’t take to any of the main characters. I got the impression that each of them was hiding something. I have probably been reading too much crime fiction as I suspect everybody and believe nobody. I did get into the story eventually and from then on, I found it hard to put the book down for any length of time. I had my own suspicions as to what was going to happen and I had to keep turning those pages to find out if I was on the right track or if I had the completely wrong end of the stick. I soon got to the end of the story.
‘The Secret Sister’ is well written. The author certainly knows how to grab your attention and draw you into what proves to be a compelling read. Reading this book was much like being on an unpredictable rollercoaster ride with several twists and turns along the way. I thought that I had worked out what was going to happen only for the author to throw me a curve ball and send me down another route entirely. I found ‘The Secret Sister’ to be an intriguing and gripping read, which certainly kept me guessing.
In short and overall I did enjoy reading ‘The Secret Sister’ and I would recommend it to other readers. I will certainly be reading more from M. M. De Luca in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 4* out of 5*.

Loved this one! So easy to read and lots of twists and turns along the way. Definitely a quick read and one I recommend.

The Secret Sister was a complicated book to get into - there was too much jumping backwards and forwards for my liking. I finished it and I thought it was ok but it didn't grip me how it expected it to.

Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo for my ARC.

Anna and Birdie are fraternal twins who have spent their childhoods bouncing around the foster system. But they lose touch with each other as each embarks on very different paths during their teenage years.
Anna is a teacher of disengaged youth and tries to save as many of them as she can. She knows intimately their damage and self-destructive behaviours. One day she meets Guy at her school when he comes to give a professional development presentation. While Anna has been struggling to get by on a low teacher's wage, Guy is from a wealthy family and is instantly attracted to her showering her with love, attention and an endless supply of money. But we know right from the beginning that Anna can't let go of her obsession about her missing sister Birdie.
Anna's backstory is told in segments throughout the narrative and I don't think this structure served the plot well. There is a lack of empathy for these characters despite the most horrible circumstances they have endured. Every time I returned to it, I had to consciously remind myself of the story so far. I felt there was something missing from the characterisation that prevented me from really connecting to them. This novel covers a lot of disturbing themes including child abuse and the politics of power which should have provoked an emotional response in the reader but didn't for me.

I just couldn’t get into the plot of this book. It went back and forth and the subject matter was distressing.

Thank you #Netgalley for the opportunity to read "The Secret Sister" by M. M. DeLuca. As others have said it took a while to really get into it.
Anna is a teacher that works hard for at-risk kids. As you read more, you realize that Anna has lived through a very rough childhood. Anna's sister Birdie is missing, seemingly a victim of the rough life they both went through. The story goes back and forth between the present and past of Anna's life. The story follows Anna as she tries to piece together what might have happened to her sister. The books got more exciting as you got into it and you get a peek into what some children may experience when going through the foster care system. Very eye-opening and sad.

I’d like to thank Canelo and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Secret Sister’ by M M DeLuca in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Anna has only known her husband Guy for a week before she moves in with him. She wants to tell him about her past but can’t risk it before she’s found her missing sister Birdy. Guy spoils Anna by moving her into his luxurious apartment and giving her expensive clothes. But sooner or later the truth of Anna’s past will be revealed and her world will come crashing down on them.

From the description of ‘The Secret Sister’ it sounded like the type of book I enjoy but despite trying to get involved I found it impossible to like the characters who had no redeeming features whatsoever and the story was so disturbing it made me feel uncomfortable. I’m sorry but this novel just isn’t for me and I’m unable to finish it.

This one got me hooked fairly quickly! I enjoyed the back and forth views and really didn't know where it was going right till the end. I'm typically good and predicting the endings, but not this one. The author did a good job of keeping little details a secret until the right time. I would definitely recommend this one to be added to your TBR!

This was a difficult book to read as it jumped back and forth from the present to the past. I found the characters difficult to like. I honestly couldn't tell if Anna liked, loved or was just using Guy, her husband. I have to say I did not see the twist coming at the end which made the story more likeable.

It took me a while to get into this book . It tells the story of Anna and her twin sister Birdy . Set in the US, they are taken into care at a young age because their mother was absent and their father could not cope. Anna has done well and is now teaching in a high school. She meets a man and gets married quite quickly, neither of them know each other. Although her husband , Guy, is sensitive enough to realise that she has a difficult past, she does not talk about this.
The narrative jumps from the present time to the past, following the childhood and teenage years of Anna and her sister . I do not think I am giving too much away if I say that they (along with others) were failed by the care system and the social workers. As the book moves on, you coe to understand that there is more to this than meets the eye at first.
I have a book hangover from staying up late to finish this book, the last hundred pages were gripping and I could not put the book down. I am still thinking about Anna's situation (always the sign of a good book)
Thank you to Net Galley,, the author and Cannelo for a great and thoughtful read in exchange for an honest review

A slow start that I found frustrating to begin with but I was determined to finish the book and I am glad that I did. The descriptions of the Care System were often harrowing but had a ring of truth. The book was well written and although I guessed the ending it took me a long time to do so. It made me feel angry and sad.
I would recommend The Secret Sister and am grateful to Netgalley and Canelo for giving me the opportunity to give my unbiased opinion.

Anna is a teacher who works in a school for vulnerable young people. She struggles to make ends meet, living hand to mouth as she feeds her shopping addiction. When Guy walks into the school lecture hall one day to deliver to the staff a professional development session, Anna’s life changes.

She wants to tell Guy the truth about her past, but she can’t but she has also made a promise to her sister Birdie, who has gone missing, that she will reveal the truth about what happened to her.

Wow! This book was gripping. In one description it quotes “A completely addictive thriller that will keep you guessing into the early hours of the morning” and it did I couldn’t go to sleep as I wanted to know how certain characters would respond to certain situations! I guessed the twist about two pages before it was revealed and I was a) chuffed that I managed to solve the mystery and b) thrilled that it wasn’t so obvious that I was just waiting for the author to reveal what I already knew.

I would have liked to have known what happened to certain characters after the news was revealed, but in this case, less is more!

This is a disturbing, heart-breaking story which tackles head-on the story line of child exploitation in the care system and it certainly doesn’t hold any punches.

A wonderful, enthralling, chilling read.

This book really gripped me at first. That open character was fantastic and made me wanting more, but then I got sick of hearing so much about Birdie in between Anna's 'now' life

I’m so sad to say I was not a fan of this book not enough action or suspense, I just wasn’t interested in at all.