Secrets Never Sleep

by Dan Padavona

Welcome to a small town’s deadliest secret . . . When PI Nia Carter moves to the Finger Lakes of New York, shadows of old mysteries and recently discovered bodies await her investigation. Past disappearances appear connected to the present, and as the body count grows, it becomes evident that someone within town is guarding a chilling secret. Layers of deception veil love and betrayal. After Nia stumbles upon a journal detailing past tragedies, she finds herself digging into the dark world of the town's elites, led by the influential wine magnate Sebastian Lacroix. For Nia, this case isn't just professional. It's personal, reminding her of a haunting case that slipped through her fingers. As she collaborates with Eli, a police officer with ties to the town's history, the duo finds themselves navigating a maze of old feuds, buried alliances, and financial rivalries. And as the pressure mounts, they must also protect Nia's daughter, Maya, from emerging threats tied to the investigation. Some secrets are worth silencing. The closer Nia gets to the truth, the more dangerous the game becomes. Every revelation drags her deeper into the town’s web, forcing her to confront the grim someone is desperate to ensure the secrets remain hidden. Suspenseful and shocking, “Secrets Never Sleep” is the enthralling first installment in a gripping new mystery series from bestselling author Dan Padavona—where the line between the past and present blurs, and the search for truth could come at a deadly price. If you are a fan of Melinda Leigh’s Morgan Dane Series and Elle Gray's Blake Wilder Series, this book will keep you turning pages deep into the night!

266 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 29, 2024

About the author

Author of the Wolf Lake and Darkwater Cove series.

Want a free thriller and mystery book? Please join my VIP thriller readers club at
www.danpadavona.com.

I'm a father, husband, dog lover, and an advocate for animals and the homeless.

My kryptonite is ice cream, and my super power is cranking heavy metal.

More than anything, I love a good story. Let me tell you one.

Reviews

[kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

arc copy provided by the author, review
and thoughts are genuine

i really enjoyed this book! sometimes i have a hard time starting a new series, but anything written by dan padavona is bound to be good - and secrets never sleep is no different.

a town has several cold, unsolved missing persons cases, and a body was just discovered at a vineyard. PI nia carter, reporter rachel foster, and detective eli mitchell are determined to connect and solve these missing persons cases that have hung over the town. secrets never sleep explores the influence power, money, politics, and family name has on murder investigations.

i really enjoyed the character development in this book. i love how nia is forced to juggle the roles of being a parent as well as a PI, and how she is portrayed as human who makes the wrong decisions sometimes. she’s not 100% perfect, which makes her relatable - i like that.

my only criticism is that i felt like there was a slight “dry spell” in the middle of the book. i lost interest for a handful of pages, until the next plot twist/revelation in the case spiced up the plot line and reeled me back in.

i’m interested to see where the author takes this series next, and i’m looking forward to learning more about nia carter, and hopefully meet some new characters!

[Suzanne Lopes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good morning Goodreads Family, I gave the book 📕 3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️. Which I’m a little bit disappointed because the author Dan Padavona is one of my favorite authors. Any, it took me a little bit of time to get into the story. Honestly, it was toward the middle end of the book that it got good. This book series is about a Private Investigator Nia Carter. She works together with police officer 👮‍♀️ Eli Mitchell. They make a pretty good team. They worked together with Journalist Rachel Foster which I’m not sure if she is a part of the series or it was investigating together in this particular case. Which basically the person that was behind the murders never was expected not until almost the end which by the way that was the good part. Anyway, this was my 54th book 📖. My Goodreads challenge is 55 books!!! And guess what I’m nailing the Goodreads challenge!!!! 1 more book 📕 to win it!! Trust me, I will!!! Also, I want to shout out the only person that reads my review Chris Steally (I’m not sure if I’m spelling his last name right) THANK YOU SO SO MUCH!!! Thank you for reading my reviews . It encourages me to keep writing ✍️ them. That way when time goes by I can read the reviews of the books that I have read in the past. Thank you again Chris!! I really appreciate it!!! Starting my next book now. See you at my 55th book review….

[Amie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got about a third of the way through this and couldn't do it any more. The writing just ... I'm sorry, I hate to say it, I hate being negative. But it wasn't good. At first I thought it was just a writing style I'm not fond of, which I can overlook. But it just kept getting worse. It didn't make any sense. The timeline kept jumping around, it felt like entire scenes were missing, and there were major inconsistencies. Things from the present -- clues that had just been discovered -- appeared in flashbacks of things that happened years earlier. I don't think there was any time travel going on, so I really don't know what happened there.
I want to give the author the benefit of the doubt and say maybe there was something wrong with the ebook copy I was reading. That could account for some of the issues. Not all, but some. I don't know, though. What I do know is that I felt like I was wasting my time trying to read something that needed lots of work. Maybe an early draft was accidentally uploaded to Amazon? That's the best answer I can come up with, especially since the other reviews here are generally positive.
But, at least as far as the Amazon Kindle version goes ... I recommend skipping it.

[Dawn Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I personally loved this book. Dan Padavona kept me on edge of my seat. I found Nia Carter an interesting and complicated woman. I liked her and her won't backdown attitude whether dealing with the case or personal things. I liked her protective side dealing with her family and her daughter's problems. I gave her props on knowing when she needed help she asked. I found Nia smart, stubborn and protective. Dan Padavona gave me mystery, suspense and action. In my opinion he did a great job of hiding the culprit. I can't wait to see where he takes this series. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced reader's copy.

[Charles E. Kochan Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

a new series for me!

I just finished an ARC copy of this book and enjoyed it. It’s a very different pace than the author’s usual modus operandi. A small upstate NY town is plagued by a series of murder that started 7 years earlier with 3 teens who went missing. Sadly they are found buried in a vineyard and a murderer is on the loose covering his tracks. All signs post to the wealthy land baron…but do they really? Nia and her police office friend Eli go out on a limb to find out—before they too are victims.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fell a bit short

This book had some timeline issues- a flashback incorporating present day items for one. The sheriff's office calls off a missing person investigation, which felt unrealistic. The two main characters makes plans to "work" an event undercover, but admit everyone will recognize them anyway. I found a lot of the plot lines hard to believe. I'm usually a big fan of Padavona's books, so hopefully this is a one-off.

[Linda Gray · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book shallow, yet hard to follow. Things just happened too easily and conclusions were made for no apparent reason. The underlying story was intriguing, but the telling of it lacked clarity and authenticity. Also, flashbacks and present were mixed up. I've enjoyed other books by this author, but for me, this one seemed as though it were written in a day, with little thought being put into it.

[Charles Kochan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished an ARC copy of this book and enjoyed it. It’s a very different pace than the author’s usual modus operandi. A small upstate NY town is plagued by a series of murders that started 7 years earlier with 3 teens who went missing. Sadly they are found buried in a vineyard and a murderer is on the loose covering his tracks. All signs point to the wealthy land baron…but do they really? Nia and her police office friend Eli go out on a limb to find out—before they too are victims.

[L Peterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wanted to like it but couldn't

Wanted to like this. Dan P doesn't write bad books so can only call this one "not particularly good." The editing was pretty awful. The story looped around repeating so much that the edit errors became entertaining. Nothing much to like about the main characters and their personal issues which all seemed extraneous to the storyline.

[Jean Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secrets Never Sleep, nor do I.

I've read all of Dan Padavona's books and love them. This new one I'm not so sure of. Had a hard time liking Nia. Hopefully I'll get to like her a little more in the next book. I wish there had been a description of Eli, other than some gray in his hair. I like to picture them in my mind as I read.

[Constance Norgaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secrets Never Sleep: A chilling mystery suspense thriller ( P.I. Nia Carter Thriller series Book 1)

Dan Paragons has done it again. The start of a great book. Mystery, terror, police and a reporter look for a killer. It leads to a powerful man but did he do it? Find out this is an amazing read!

[Joseph E. Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Little Far Fetched

A P.I. working with a Police Officer to solve a missing person case. A little hard to believe that this Officer has enough power to investigate a crime with a P.I. while going completely unchecked by detectives or supervisors. The jury is still out on this new series by Dan. I'm hoping that the next one is better.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected.

I had looked forward to this book because I really enjoyed the Scarlett and Logan books as well as the Thomas Shepard series. Compared to those series, it was hard to believe this book was written by the same man. Perhaps if I never read those books, I may have given this one a better rating.

[Mary Rowe · Rating 3 out of 5]

perplexing mystery of discovered remains

Somehow I haven’t warmed to Nia Carter yet, but the next book is cued up.

The discovery of human bones in a vineyard renews efforts to uncover the fate of three teenagers who disappeared years earlier.

The answers about the teens reveal other facets of the town’s rivalries - and why four deaths occurred.

[Brian K. Rhoads · Rating 5 out of 5]

OUTSTANDING!!!

One of the best starts to a series a person can read. Twists, turns, ups and downs. Absolute thrill ride. Will have you guessing and no the edge of your seat until the end. A MUST read for anyone that loves thrilling suspense.

[Barbara Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

Readable

This book was readable but was it one of the best I've read this year. Not by a long shot. The characters seemed cardboard, flat if you will. There was really no feeling of....well anything. Hopefully book 2 will find some redemption.

[Beverly McFall Killough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secrets never sleep

I enjoyed reading this book.It had many twist and turns with an unknown, unexpected ending. The characters were interesting and believable. Will read the next book soon.

[Vicki Gilbertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nia is a force that nobody's gonna mess with, especially per daughter. Enjoyed the book, all of the characters, never saw all the twists and turns coming. Ready for more.

[Sharon Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting read

Very good read. Great strong characters. Storyline is good and well written. Easy to follow. Ending is a bit of a surprise.

[jean buck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secrets to die for

This was a different story from the type this author usually writes. Usually he has me from page one not so much from this story.

[Kathie Quinn]

Another great book

I have read so many. They are all well written and full of suspense.
I will continue reading this authors books

[Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good beginning to a new series. I plan on reading the next in the series.

[Rachon Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secrets NEVER Sleep

I enjoyed all the lively characters who kept me turning page after page. Dan's smooth writing keeps you coming back for more.

[Jeanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nia Carter series #1

It was a good read with a twist to the plot at the end. Mostly a predictable ‘who done it’ read.

[Sandy Semprit · Rating 5 out of 5]

worth Reading!

Dan Padavona doesn’t disappoint with these new characters! The suspense has me reading to the end. Let’s go Nia Carter!

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secrets Never Sleep - a review by Rosemary Kenny.

PI Nia Carter must cope with issues in her work and at home, during a cold case that reopens after a gruesome discovery at a local vineyard. She's also dealing with her adopted daughter Maya being bullied at school and online, by working with local journalist Rachel Foster and Officer Eli Mitchell, with whom she's had an on/off relationship.
As the net around the killer tightens, they're all targeted and death comes ever-closer, as the unexpected truth is just one final twist away.

Guaranteed to grip you firmly by the imagination throughout, get your copy of Secrets Never Sleep by Dan Padavona today!