I really enjoyed this book! I loved the family and the friendships that all came together. I felt that there was heartbreak but it was also very heartwarming as well.

I would highly recommend reading this book if you love a heartbreaking and heartwarming story. I look forward to the next Sarah Morgan book.

I would like to thank HQ and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book early.

As always with a book by Sarah Morgan, I was instantly gripped by the characters. Such a lovely story, especially the friendship aspect of Nicole and Milly. So lovely!

Gorgeous summer escapism from a modern master of story, friendships and love.
Milly has a thriving business of holiday lodges nestled in the Lake District, bringing up her teenage daughter and close to her recently retired mum and nan. Milly is still recovering from divorce and delicately dealing with the fallout by navigating her new normal. Nicole and Milly have been close friends since childhood but their friendship has lapsed when Milly needed a friend most. Now Nicole suddenly arrives late at night asking to stay.
Can they heal the rift between them?
The perfect summer read full of warmth wisdom and love, I found it hard to put down, and couldn’t wait to devour the pages. There were a few nuggets of wise words that stay with me.
As always full of quiet insight, perception and sensible outcomes!! Loved all the characters across the generational divides. Loved the Lake District as a setting and backdrop. This is a real treat!!
Thank you to NetGalley and HQ books for the early access, I totally loved it and can hugely recommend.

This new book by Sarah Morgan did not hit the spot for me. There is little in the way of romance. It's a book about friendship. I thought the characters to be a little bland, the men, Joel in particular, too perfect, and a lot of the introspection was boring. I had to skip some passages. Lovely setting. I liked the relationship between Milly, Connie, and Nana Peg. Very little happens in the story, it is a bit predictable. I felt there was a lot left to be sorted out, in terms of the relationships. With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Secret Escape is a warm, feel-good story about old friends, second chances, and healing in the beautiful Lake District. Although it has some romance it’s definitely centred around friendship and family relationships.

Sarah Morgan is one of my favourite authors and I can always rely on her books being great!

Another great book from Sarah,grabbed me from the start and couldn’t put it down. Great set of characters,just Richard annoyed me. Nicole is a Hollywood star who gets in touch with her friend Milly and asks her to pick her up at the train station late at night. Milly hasn’t been in touch with her for about 18 months when she split up with her husband Richard and Nicole ignored all her calls and emails when she needed her. Milly runs her families holiday lodges. She stays in the boatyard lodge with her daughter Zoe,her Mum and Gran live nearby. Nicole needs somewhere to hide as everyone is against her as she had a relationship with a married actor and everyone blames her. Milly’s husband had an affair and left her for Avery. Joel works for Milly and walks in on Nicole and she has a major panic. Milly has to clean the lodge of Brendan, who is spending a few months there writing his latest book,he bites the head of one of the staff so Milly takes the job on. You must read the book and see how all the interactions work and where people end up. You won’t be disappointed. I didn’t want it to end and there is scope for a follow up.

Milly and Nicole has been friends since childhood, where they were very close. But when Milly finds out that her husband has been cheating on her with a younger woman. Nicole is no where to be seen. Milly needed her friend in one of the biggest stages of her life, but Nicole didn’t answer Milly’s calls or text.
Milly decides to get on with her life as owner of a holiday home business in the Lake district, with her teenage daughter Zoe. Nicole is a famous actress and lives in America. So, when Milly gets a call from Nicole saying that she needs a place to stay. Milly hesitates but then Glady tells her she can stay. She hopes that maybe they can be friends again.
You can’t go wrong with a Sarah Morgan book. I hadn’t read the blurb, but I wasn’t disappointed with this heart felt read. This story is about friendships, divorce and new beginnings and it was a fantastic read from start to finish. 5 stars from me.

Milly and Nicole were childhood best friends.
Now adults, Milly runs an upmarket holiday location in the UK and Nicole is a famous Hollywood actress.
Their friendship had hit a bump in the road due to Nicole not replying when Milly was going through the worst time in her life. Out of the blue Milly receives a request for help from Nicole. Is she prepared to let bygones be bygones?
A lovely story of female friendships and family life, with a splash of romance thrown in.

This is a wonderful book and one that I truly enjoyed reading. As with all this author’s works there was a thrush and raw emotion in the writing and the characters seemed so real that they felt like friends I was cheering on.

Millie and Nicole have been friends since childhood but now lead very different lives. Nicole is a film star and Millie is a busy single mum, recently divorced from her husband with whom she can’t forgive for leaving her for a younger woman. Their friendship has suffered for reasons they have not shared with each other, but a huge event in Nicole’s life brings her home to the only person she can trust, Millie.

The story is one as old as time; love, loss, hurt and the power of family and friendship. The story is so well crafted that it ends far too soon and keeps the reader wanting to know more.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another author that is fast becoming one of my favourites. This book had laughter and sadness and everything in between.

Nichole and Milly are childhood friends. Nichole became a film star and lives in America and Milly runs a upmarket cabin resort in the lake district. Milly has a young teenage daughter and is now a single parent since her husband left her for a younger women.

Milly has been devastated since her husband left her mainly because at the same time Nichole ghosted her just as Milly needed her the most and she has no idea why.
Out of the blue Milly receives a text from Nicole asking if she could come and stay with her for a while as she has no one else to turn to but she has to keep it a secret,no one must know she's in England.

This was such a good story and I couldn't bear to put it down. I loved the characters.
I really felt sorry for Milly's mum Connie who couldn't get on with her own life for worrying about her mother,her daughter ,and her granddaughter. Her mother, Nana Peg is hilarious and I loved her thinking that as she was old she could say what she wanted and do what she wanted and people would just blame old age.

The book also portrayed that film stars ect don't always have an easy life,they may have money but not always the freedom to be private and do exactly what they like.
This is a story of friendship and kindness, just the kind of story I like to take me away from all the badness going on in the world.
I never read the blurb on a book by Sarah Morgan as I know it's always going to be a good read.

I really enjoyed this book. The friendship, new beginnings after divorce, family, romance and friendship. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

A Secret Escape by Sarah Morgan a NetGalley review. Milly and Nicole have been friends since they were children however over recent months Nicole hasn’t been in contact with Millie and Millie has no idea why. However the story begins when Milly receives a call from Nicole for help and Millie drops everything. I love a Sarah Morgan read, they are easy page turners great reads for summer and Christmas normally, but sadly this missed the spot. I expected a certain amount a predictability but this book was so much more than predicable and not in a good way either. The best words I can find to describe this book is ok and nice, it was incredibly bland right down to its storyline and characters. Milly and Nicole are both good characters who live very different lives but are both very strong and independent women and despite their different lives are experiencing their own struggles. However even though I didn’t expect any big surprises or huge twists or turns, this book for me personally gave nothing surprising away and sadly (I hate writing this about an author I’ve always enjoyed) one of the worst books I’ve read by this author. What happens was always going to happen from the very beginning , from the very first page you knew where this book would take you and even though there are secrets revealed along the way, they aren’t wow moments and that’s what was missing, the I don’t see that coming moments . I couldn’t wait for this book to come to an end, an easy read that was made into a difficult read because of its blandness and at times just sadly boring. I don’t write this review lightly but I do write it honestly, I hate not liking what an authors written as I can only imagine what goes into writing it however this is just my opinion, this book just wasn’t for me and it won’t stop reading books by this author in the future. This is published in the 22nd May 2025 and for me it’s sadly ⭐️⭐️.

Another fantastic read by Sarah Morgan.
Milly receives a phone call from her best friend Nicole. She needs somewhere to lie low for a while. Although Milly responds to Nicole's wishes, she is reluctant as Nicole has not been in touch for eighteen months.
Milly has had a tough time after her divorce from Richard. Bringing up her daughter Zoe and running her business, where was Nicole when she needed her?
This was a story of tested relationships, trust, and honesty. Can they get their relationship back to how it was before?
This is set in the Lake District, which is a beautiful part of the country, and I found myself wishing I could stay there.
There is romance in the air for a couple of the characters and a budding friendship for another.
I loved Nanna Peg, such an acerbic tongue.Very funny.
Thanks to Netgalley and HQ for the ARC in return for an honest review.

A Sarah Morgan book is a real treat to me and this one is no different! Milly is our main character and she lives with her young daughter, thinking often of her estranged friend Nicole. Out of the blue Nicole asks her for help - does she do it? Should she do it? This book is the story of their friendship and the story of their exciting summer together.

A masterful piece of writing! The author is a wonderful of tales that tug at the heart and this, her summer offering, is a perfect read for the coming summer, or any day come to that. Two friends who've drifted apart are brought back together and have to find new ways to love each other again. Sarah Morgan is easily one of my favourite authors and everything she does best, came together in this book. More please! My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the reading copy.

Another fantastic story from Sarah. Her books always deliver and I can never wait to dive into one immediately. This story had everything sadness, happiness and perfect escapism. I enjoyed every page. The relationship between the two women was intriguing and I wanted to find out what happens next. Highly recommend this book. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

From the very first page, A Secret Escape had me hooked. It’s an easy read, yet it delves into important themes of self-worth, family, friendship, and personal growth in a meaningful way. The characters felt real and relatable, and I found myself truly invested in their journeys.

This was my first book by Sarah Morgan, and it certainly won’t be my last. Her storytelling is engaging, heartfelt, and uplifting. If you’re looking for a feel-good read with depth, this one is definitely worth picking up.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

I was sucked in from the first few pages and the book hasn't left me alone until I got to the end. It was hard to be parted from this story and I was thoroughly enjoying every second of it.

At the heart of it its a story about female friendship, but it also features multiple generations of Milly's family with occasional chapters from their points of view, and there are even some new "friendships" to be discovered.

This is the story of Milly and Nicole - Milly who runs a gorgeous holiday retreat in the Lakes and Nicole who is a world famous actress, and until recently they had been the very closest of friends. But when Nicole reaches out to Milly for help, Milly isn't sure but agrees anyway.

And I loved getting to know their respective stories, as well as enjoying seeing interactions with Zoe, Milly's daughter, and Connie, her mum and Nanna Peg, who is Connie's mum and a real live wire in her 80s! Milly has such a close relationship with all the females of her family, whereas the more you hear about Nicole's mum and her childhood, the more you feel for Nicole.

There is just something about this author that always draws me in, and leaves me unable to put a book down. I was totally gripped and loved all the various storylines.

Sarah Morgan is a queen among authors, she is an auto read author for me, and this is another wonderful example of her work. I absolutely adored the setting, the characters, the hints of romance, Joel, and the lemon chicken sounded good too!

If you are looking for an all around gorgeous book to devour this summer, then this is for you. Oh and the cover is stunning too!

Thank you to HQ and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Escape for summer with Sarah Morgan's A Secret Escape, a heartwarming and uplifting novel about friendship, forgiveness, and love.

Childhood friends Milly and Nicole had always been inseparable, more like sisters than friends. So when Nicole suddenly dropped out of contact two years ago, Milly was left hurt and confused. She buried the pain and moved forward with her life, but the memory of her lost friend lingered.

Now, Nicole is back, desperately asking Milly for help. She needs somewhere private to hide, and the only place she can turn to is Milly's holiday home business in the Lake District. Despite her reservations, Milly can’t turn away her old friend and agrees to let her stay.

As the two women spend the summer together, old wounds begin to heal and their friendship starts to mend. Meanwhile, Milly finds herself caught up in the possibility of a new romance. But just as things seem to be falling into place, Nicole drops a bombshell that threatens to shatter everything.

Can Milly and Nicole’s bond survive this summer, or will their fragile friendship break under the strain of a long-buried secret?

This charming and breezy read is perfect for a summer holiday. Sarah Morgan crafts a simple yet delightful romance, making it the ideal book to enjoy by the pool or on the beach. With themes of loyalty, love, and second chances, A Secret Escape is a refreshing and feel-good novel that will leave you smiling.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.