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The Secret Place

A devastating suspense novel from the one-of-a-kind, international bestselling author

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The Secret Place

By: Tana French
Narrated by: Lara Hutchinson, Stephen Hogan
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'To say Tana French is one of the great thriller writers is really too limiting. Rather she's simply this: a truly great writer' GILLIAN FLYNN

'[Crime fiction's] biggest contemporary star' GUARDIAN

'One of the finest writers of contemporary crime fiction' DAILY MAIL

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The photo shows a boy who was murdered a year ago.

The caption says, 'I KNOW WHO KILLED HIM'.

Detective Stephen Moran hasn't seen Holly Mackey since she was a nine-year-old witness to the events of Faithful Place. Now she's sixteen and she's shown up outside his squad room, with a photograph and a story.

Even in her exclusive boarding school, terrible things can happen. The previous year, a boy from the neighbouring school, was found murdered on the grounds. And today, in the Secret Place - the school noticeboard where girls can pin up their secrets anonymously - Holly found the card.

Solving this case could take Stephen onto the Murder squad. But to get it solved, he will have to work with prickly Detective Antoinette Conway. And he will have to find a way into the strange, charged, mysterious world that Holly inhabits, disentangling a twisted web of lies in the process.

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Praise for the talismanic Tana French and her novels

'French pegs each [character] with cold, cruel precision, one by one, like a knife thrower popping balloons...it makes the world of The Secret Place pop into prickly-sharp focus and full colour' TIME

'Terrific--terrifying, amazing, and the prose is incandescent' STEPHEN KING

'I can do you no greater favour in life than recommending that you read her books' GUARDIAN

'The most interesting, the most important crime novelist to emerge in the last ten years' WASHINGTON POST

'The most breathtakingly brilliant and close-to-perfect thriller I've read for a long time' SOPHIE HANNAH

'I'm a big fan of Tana French' IAN RANKIN

'This is a tour de force of suspense and storytelling. Comes closer to perfection than anything I've read in the last decade' SARAH HILARY

'French offers a masterclass in unreliability' SUNDAY TIMES

'An audacious departure for this immensely talented author . . . not to be missed' NEW YORK TIMES

'A wonderfully assured and beautifully written debut novel' IRISH INDEPENDENT©2014 Tana French Crime Thrillers Historical Suspense Thriller & Suspense Crime Fiction Mystery
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Critic Reviews

An absolutely mesmerizing read (Gillian Flynn, author of GONE GIRL)
I've been enthusiastically telling everyone who will listen to read Tana French (Harlan Coben)
The thing Tana French does better than almost any living crime writer is create suspense. She makes you feel as if you're the detective, and your whole future career, not to mention your mental equilibrium, depends upon working out the solution to the puzzle. The Secret Place is another nail-biting ordeal of mysteriousness that will have readers frantically turning pages in their eagerness to discover the truth (Sophie Hannah, bestselling author of The Carrier)
A gripping read for those still pining for Gone Girl
A wonderfully tender and savage thriller about loyalty, teenage friendship and first loves. Gripping and ingenious (Kate Mosse, bestselling author of Labyrinth)
She's a seriously talented writer and I love her Dublin Murder Squad series. I've been eagerly awaiting this one for ages. (Stephanie Merritt)
It's terrific - terrifying, amazing, and the prose is incandescent (Stephen King, No. 1 bestselling author)
All stars
Most relevant
Love the series. Struggled with the vocal performance of the characters that were teenaged women. all sounded same-same it was really hard to get an understanding of who was who and which group and their individual characteristics.
Story was enjoyable and added more depth to characters like Moran and Mackie.
IMy tip is to read it rather than listen to it

Not at good as the rest

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Fantastic narration. Gripping to the end. Will definitely listen to this author again.
Highly recommended.

Great characters beautifully resolved whodunit.

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As always Tana French writes complex and believable characters and intricate plots. That's why I enjoy her stories, not because they are specifically about crime. I think anyone who enjoys a well constructed plot with engaging characters would enjoy French's books irrespective of genre.

As an audio book I found the change of narrators disconcerting. I found Lara Hutchinson's voice and vocal style difficult to listen to, it is too angelic. I feel that one narrator who can give a gentle lean to the different characters is enough.

Good story, not as good at the previous ones

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I really enjoyed this intriguing, detailed book. The characterisation is fabulous. I thought both narrators did a great job.

A great listen

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Such an incredible story. The nuanced detail of the relationships was so well crafted, it was a joy to read. My favourite so far.

Incredible detail

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