05 | April | 2019 | Berit Talks Books

Happy Friday!

I am ready for the weekend! Excited to share with you today my review for this engaging heartfelt story! Many thanks to Noelle for my invitation to the tour and two Anna Mansell for her beautiful words!💐

My Thoughts

Real, raw, and relatable, this book was packed with friendship, secrets, and truth!

What if a secret would destroy your best friend? Would you tell her? Is there anything sweeter or stronger than those friendships you formed in your youth? The girls you swore you would be BFFs with forever? The girls you confided in and cried too, The girls who stood by you and supported you through all your firsts. This book was steeped in sentiment it had me feeling nostalgic for my teenage years. I think what drew me so completely into this book was the fact that I have thought many times of what it would be like to reunite with all my closest High school friends. Just as in this book we have all gone our separate ways, but whenever we have an opportunity to see one another we just pick up where we left off. I think most readers will find this book very relatable, they will see a little of themselves and their friends in each of these characters.

Emily returns home to small town Cornwall after being away for 20 years. Soon there after she has a chance encounter with a high school friend Lolly. This eventually leads to a reunion of Emily, Lolly, Jess, and Amanda. The four girls were close as can be in their teens, but like most friendships of youth they went their separate ways. Now they are all living in the same town again and being together seems like old times, however they all have some secrets to hide. Some secrets are bigger than others… some secrets will hurt others, some secrets will hurt yourself, and some secrets will destroy life as you know it. All they know is that they are so happy to have one another back in their lives, and they don’t want to do anything that will jeopardize that. what do you do when the truth could harm something and someone you hold so dear?

This was an engaging read that I thoroughly enjoyed. These women were so authentic, and I truly felt for and related to each of them. Life is messy and it is complicated, but it is a little easier when you have a friend around to help you pick up the pieces. Ultimately this is a story of friendship and the bond between women, and what an important part that plays in our lives. It is about forgiveness and acceptance, not only others but yourself as well. Anna Mansell has written a compelling story that asks some tough questions. Full of heart and friendship, I absolutely recommend this book!

*** many thanks to Bookouture for my copy of this book ***

About the Book

Your best friend deserves the truth. But it will ruin her life. What would you do?

In summer, the small Cornish village of Gorran Haven fills with tourists, but in the colder months its pretty narrow streets are blissfully quiet, the bell on the village shop door rings only for locals, the beach is unspoilt, empty and safe.

It’s been over twenty years since four very different teenage girls sat on that beach, and swore to be best friends forever. Their lives went different ways after Emily left. But each remembered that promise. And none truly found friendship like it again.

Now, Emily’s back, with a secret she can’t face. She tries to hide away, take time to heal and make some difficult choices, but she runs into one of her old friends, and soon the four are reunited. Lolly, warm as ever, is a successful physiotherapist, married with kids. Yet smart, strong Amanda, who cherishes her teenage daughter, is alone and seemingly stuck in a dead-end job. And creative Jess is so much quieter than Emily remembers.

The bond is still there, and Emily realises their friendship might keep her together, but there are reasons why the women fell out of touch. Secrets that have lain dormant for decades start to surface, and then one of the women discovers a betrayal so big, it could turn each of their lives upside down.

It’s always those we’re closest to who have the power to tear us apart. Can friendship give Emily and her friends the strength to survive a devastating shock, or are some things unforgiveable?

Full of truths about friendship, marriage, and the relationships that define us, Her Best Friend’s Secret is a powerful, relatable and emotionally gripping novel for fans of Jojo Moyes, Diane Chamberlain, and The Silent Wife.

About the Author

Anna had a brush with ‘fame’ as a magician’s assistant back in 1977. She later decided that being sawn in half by her magical performing father, at barely 6 months old, was too submissive a role. She vowed to channel the trauma in to something much more pro-actively creative. Having failed at acting, singing and professional murder mystery parties (she was ALWAYs the one to die!), she fell to something much more solitary: writing. She has written three novels, published by Bookouture, her fourth – HER BEST FRIEND’S SECRET – comes out on April 1st, 2019. Anna lives on a dairy farm in Cornwall with her two children, her husband, and her ex-racing greyhound, Olive Dog.

Author Social Media Links:

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/AnnaMansellWriter/

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/AnnaMansell

WEBSITE: https://feelthefearandwriteitanyway.wordpress.com/