What I never told you

by Dawn Goodwin

Described as an addictive page turning thriller, this is a story of deception and suspense spread across two different time periods. Focussing on Helen Whitmore as a teenager and as mum of a dysfunctional blended family, the story describes a painful event from Helen’s teenage past and her struggles to understand her own child and her step children.

Trying to maintain a good home/work life balance in her small community is proving difficult. Helen struggles with her blended family in the house she grew up in and which was left to her on her parents’ death. It is a strange foreboding house that seems to attract trouble.

When an old photograph mysteriously reappears, Helen is terrified that a long buried secret from her childhood is about to be revealed.  It is something that she has kept well hidden and only one person could have had that photo - but she is dead. And then there are the notes.

When her stepson brings a new girlfriend home one evening, things quickly head towards breaking point. Diana is very beautiful and she is smart – she is also out to cause trouble for Helen but why? Diana is devious and conniving and might not actually be that into Matt, her stepson, but she seems determined to ingratiate herself into the family home.

The flashbacks to Helen’s youth show her friendships with two particular girls – one a childhood friend who is a bully but the popular girl in school and the other a new girl who moves to the area. Helen is torn between the two which causes several conflicts that some readers will readily recognise.  Does Helen stay with the popular one though she really doesn’t like her or what she does or make friends with the new girl who seems genuine and caring and far more fun. Their lives are intertwined through various events that take place – some difficult times for teenagers to navigate.  Just as Helen is about to confront Diana about the phot and her actions, Diana is found dead and just about everyone in the house has a motive for killing her.

Helen is forced to confront the events and emotions that she experienced all those years ago, sentiments she thought had been long buried. But somebody knows her secrets and seems determined to make them aware to everyone else, threatening to destroy her in the process.

Some of the book does seem to flow quite slowly as it flits between childhood and adulthood, but by the end I was totally gripped. I was caught up in numerous twists and turns and the ending caught me by surprise as it wasn’t what I had thought at all. I switched between suspects several times as new information came to light.  I wouldn’t describe this book as fast paced or action packed, probably more of a slow burner, but it is interesting to see how the story evolves and how it affects the various characters.

Dual time line stories can be confusing but I felt ok with this one due to the gap between then and now which was easy to keep up with. The characters are all a little flawed and there is little love between them but will this change as the story progresses? Is Helen suffering from paranoia or is Diana really out to cause her trouble? And what really did happen all those years ago?

For something a little bit different, this story could fit the bill!