I love Hannah writing style , this was my third book by her! You don't want to put it down. Thanks for my copy.

I really enjoyed the book.
I felt that the main character was so realistic
This is a complete page turner. However it was a bit busy.

A great read, full of twists and it really picks up after around halfway through. A lot happens after that and I was taken aback by the twists towards the end.

This book kept me guessing. There was drama and mystery within the book and some of the characters. I was gripped throughout. My first book by this author and I'm looking forward to what she writes next.

Josh and Grace have a wonderful relationship but after a tragic accident leaves Josh alone to look after her son, Logan, he looks into adopting him as his own.

The process is not as straight forward as it seems and the search for the truth leads Josh into territory that he doesn’t want to have to face.

What a gripping domestic thriller! I really loved Josh’s character and his love for Logan really shone through. He had some tough decisions to make but he always came out on top.

I really enjoyed the sibling relationship between him and his sister Lisa and the references to their life in England before moving to the USA.

This did have some shock moments at the end which I didn’t suspect at all.

Is definitely read more books by this author.

Loved this read! Couldn't put it down and decided to read it all in one sitting, definatly did not disapoint! Thankyou author!

Thanks for letting me read this very interesting story.
The story revolves around Grace and her son Logan.
Josh and Grace were an item, and Logan was a Graces son from before they met.
They were a happy family though Josh never knew anything about Graces life before they met.
Grace had an awful aciident falling down the stairs outside their home in the snow and died.
Josh then wanted to find out more about Logan so he could actually call Logan his son, but could not find any birth certificates .any paper work relating to his birth, or where he was born.
Josh was determined to find out why, and that led him to find out many secrets about Grace.

Quite a sad story with the main character fighting for custody of a child that isn't his. He will stop at nothing but some of the things he uncovers along the way will make your hair curl!

#HerSecretSon #NetGalley An explosive start to this book drew me in from the very beginning. An easy to read book with lots of twists and turns, although at time I wanted Josh to 'leave well alone' but, well, then there wouldn't have been a story! Highly emotional at times and with an ending that I didn't see coming this was a really great read!

Wow. What an emotional roller coaster ride. One twisty suspenseful mystery.
I was really invested in this mystery and needing to know who exactly is Logan? Did Grace kidnap him? etc.
Really enjoyed the relationship between Josh and Logan as well as between Josh, his best friend and sister.
I understood Josh's need for answers but I just wished he would just leave things be. Sometimes it's better that way.

This book was full of suspense and mystery right from the start.

When Josh's partner grace passes away suddenly, she leaves him sole charge of her son Logan, and although Josh is distraught about the loss of Grace, he does right by her and embraces Logan as his own.
However when Josh looks in to making the arrangement official by going down the path to adoption, things are brought to the surface that just don't seem to add up and leaves him questioning everything.

This book was intriguing and kept my interest throughout. With various twists and turns, this was a well written thriller that I really enjoyed reading.

After scanning other reviews of this book I must admit I kept putting it lower down my TBR pile but finally picked up and I'm so glad I did.

Yes, its predictable in parts, yes it's quite corny in parts but on a whole I really enjoyed it.

The character and relationship dynamics are portrayed really well especially the relationship between Josh and Logan, how could you not fall a little bit in love with them both?

Personally I feel this is more of a Dramatic/Domestic Mystery no else with elements of suspense thrown in. It did keep me guessing throughout which is always a good sign.

Overall a really good read that's easy to pick up and put down when needed.

3.5*

Thanks to netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC.

When Logan's mum, Grace dies suddenly, Josh sets out to become his legal guardian, but as he begins the process, he can't find any paperwork detailing Logan's birth. Josh and Grace had anticipated that he would adopt Logan at some point but he is beset when he makes some discoveries about Grace, leading him to question how much he really knew her.

The many twists and turns in this book kept me guessing and I didn't want to put this novel down between chapters! Hannah Mary McKinnon's characters were beautifully fleshed out and all were totally credible in their portrayal. Tense in parts and highly emotional in others I didn’t necessarily agree with all of the decisions that Josh made, and there were one or two surprises that ambushed me. I couldn’t get enough of this tale of love, emotion, grief, and the bond between father and son. The finale was powerful and entertaining. Well worth a look.😁

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

Clever well written plot with a brilliant and unexpected ending, I highly recommend this book to any lovers of thrillers/family dramas. Look forward to reading more by this author.

Interesting storyline and well written. This was my first Hannah Mary McKinnon novel and I was very impressed. The characters were believable and I did not expect the ending.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book..
Thank you Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for giving me the chance to give my unbiased opinion

A gripping read from start to finish with some great twists along the way!

This story is told from the perspective of Josh, who is at work one day when he receives a panicked call from his neighbour, telling him he must come home immediately. Feeling worried, Josh heads straight to the house he shares with his partner Grace. Sadly, upon arrival, he discovers she has tragically died after slipping on some icy steps outside.

Unsure how he’ll be able to carry on without her, Josh has to quickly pull himself together for the sake of Grace’s 7-year-old son Logan. Josh isn’t Logan’s biological father, but he loves him like he was his own and has helped raise him since he was 2. Josh is annoyed that they never got round to making him Logan’s legal guardian but decides he will do what he can now to rectify that.

Not being able to find Logan’s birth certificate is the first stumbling point and Josh soon starts to uncover secrets that Grace had clearly wanted to take to the grave! Imagine discovering the person you loved was not who you thought they were, this is exactly what happened to Josh! We follow him through the chapters, as he makes it his mission to find out what Grace was hiding from him and why!

This is the second book I’ve read by Hannah Mary McKinnon and just like the first I thoroughly enjoyed it and will certainly be adding her to my list of ‘go-to’ authors. This book draws you in immediately with plenty of drama in the first chapter. The rest of the story is perfectly paced and has plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader hooked.

I liked all the characters, even the ones I found myself feeling suspicious of. My heart went out to some of them too, especially Josh. Whilst this book is a thriller, it also has an emotional side to it. I found the storyline unique; I don’t think I’ve read one like it before.

Cleverly plotted, with a brilliant and unexpected ending, I highly recommend this book to any lovers of thrillers/family dramas.

Thank you to Hannah Mary McKinnon, Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for my copy of this book.

Josh and Grace have been partners for 5 years and Grace has a 7 year old son Logan, who she says is a result of a one night stand. One winter day Grace dies in an accident and Josh is heart broken.
While trying to put their lives back on track, Josh realises that he has to legally adopt Logan. Thus begins the unraveling of Grace's past.
Josh realises that Logan's birth certificate is untraceable and so much of what Grace told him doesn't add up.

A tale of how a child and grown up man deal with their grief and how much love a man has for a child thats not his own, but he is willing to go all out to make sure that the boy will be his to care and love.

My first Book by the author and I must say was slow paced for me, the story had a few unnecessary elements which didn't add much to the plot.
Thank you Netgalley and Mira books for the ARC

3+ stars

I just finished this book two minutes back, and honestly, I’m not sure whether this should be a 3-star rating or a 4-star rating. I guess it all comes down to the ending this book had, which felt a bit flat compared to all the tension that is built up over the first 85% of this book.

I had fairly high expectations of this book, seeing as I really really enjoyed McKinnon’s <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3561569783">Sister Dear</a> which I read earlier this year. Much like that book, this too was a quick read, and it was easy to get into the narration. The premise was intriguing, and it was fairly simple to sink my teeth into it.

Meet Josh. 30-something year old ex-alcoholic whose partner (Grace) has just died, who is now responsible for her seven year old son. To make things easier, Josh decides to formally adopt the boy, so that guardianship issues won’t crop up. The problem: He can’t find any documentation about the boy (birth records, adoption records, anything). He also can’t find proof that Grace is <I>actually</I> the mother. Josh sets off to investigate.

I would dub this novel of being more of an investigation based book than a thriller, though as I noted in my reading update, this book caused me a lot of anxiety (which technically makes it a thriller?) The character of Josh was well sketched out and easy to empathise with and root for, and I couldn’t help but worry that something terrible was to happen to him.

In fact, this book focused a lot on relationships; the investigation as to who Logan (the kid) really is sometimes felt like it was taking a backseat to the relationships that Josh has with different people — his son (who is always his priority), his dead partner (flashbacks), his sister, his best friend, his neighbour, etc:

While all this made made the pacing of the book a lot slower than what it could have been, it was still a quick read. Sometimes, when you know a lot about someone, you assume you know everything about them, which is a terrible assumption to make since you never know when that can surprise you. This book, narrated only through Josh’s POV in the first person gives that illusion, so at different points in the story, I found myself questioning the various characters.

The only drawback I had with the book is that the ending “twist”, which felt highly anticlimactic, was forced into the last 15% or so. This didn’t match the pace set up by the book initially, and it clashed with the tone of the previous parts of the book. Maybe if the ending had been spread over a few more pages, the pace would have been maintained, and the ending wouldn’t have happened in the blink of an eye.

That said, while I didn’t see the ending coming, I also wasn’t overly impressed or mind blown by the twist.

So maybe 3.25/5 is a fair rating for this book.

I’d like to thank Hodder and Stoughton for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley. Hannah Mary McKinnon is definitely an author whose works I will be returning to, thanks to how Sister Dear (her other novel) blew my mind.

When Josh's longtime partner, Grace dies in a tragic accident, he's left with a mess of grief and unlikeable custody of her seven yewr old son, Logan. Josh has been dad to Logan in every way that counts. Josh wants to become Logan#z legal guardian, but he can't seem to find the paperwork he needs. As he digs deeper into the past of the woman he loved, Josh soon finds that there are many dark secrets and the truth about where Logan came from is ore sinister than he could have imagined.

I don't want to say too much about the storyline as I don't want to spoil it for potential readers. The pace is steady and that was just perfect for this story. It's also well written. This is another book I could not put down as I needed to know what had happened. Thisn is a gripping read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I would like to thank #NetGalley,#HodderAndStoughton and the author #HannahMaryMckinnon for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Interesting book, with very believable characters, especially the main one with all his faults and ways of handling situations, the story was intriguing. I found the pace of the book to be on the slow side but I am a very impatient reader, and patience is a virtue. Not one I have unfortunately ,other more patient readers will probably be fine with the book. Good story, and one to enjoy.