One Last Secret

Secret McQueen #12

by Sierra Dean

After years of bitter enemies, moving love stories, and enough broken bones to fund a hospital wing, Secret McQueen is taking her final stand.

While Secret and her new FBI unit are on the trail of a serial killer stalking the streets of St. Louis, they quickly realize this is no ordinary killer. A chance encounter with death itself will put Secret in peril unlike she has ever known. With the fate of every supernatural being hanging in the balance, it is an internal struggle that will decide who lives and who dies, as Secret must revisit the biggest decisions and mistakes of her life and decide if she had chosen the right path, or if she will change the past--and the future.

Will her decisions save her people, or will one wrong move change everything about her carefully constructed life?

And will she come out the same at the other end, or forfeit herself to save those whose lives were lost along the way?

The epic conclusion to the Secret McQueen series will decide our heroine's fate.

Genres: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Vampires

274 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 22, 2024

About the author

Sierra Dean is a reformed historian. She was born and raised in the Canadian prairies and is allowed annual exit visas in order to continue her quest of steadily conquering the world one city at a time. Making the best of the cold Canadian winters, Sierra indulges in her less global interests: drinking too much tea and writing urban fantasy.

Ever since she was a young girl she has loved the idea of the supernatural coexisting with the mundane. As an adult, however, the idea evolved from the notion of fairies in flower beds, to imagining that the rugged-looking guy at the garage might secretly be a werewolf. She has used her overactive imagination to create her own version of the world, where vampire, werewolves, fairies, gods and monsters all walk among us, and she’ll continue to travel as much as possible until she finds it for real.

She’s also a book lover (of course!), obsessive collector of OPI nailpolish and the owner of way too many pairs of shoes.

Reviews

[Sierra Dean]

Not rating because I wrote it, but I think it's fair to count it as a book I read.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good ending to a great series

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had been born a monster, with two halves of my soul each taught that violence and death were our only means of survival.

Twelve years ago, I read a very short prequel about a ½ werewolf, ½ vampire hybrid who kills rogue vampires for the vampire Council. When I read the warning in the book's blurb, I couldn't resist checking it out and I'm so glad I didn't try.

Warning: This book contains a sword-wielding assassin whose barbs are sharper than her blade, a vampire with serious brooding issues but a skilled tongue, and an A-lister with a bad habit of eating his fans. This novella takes place approximately one year prior to the events of "Something Secret This Way Comes".

I loved Secret's story, what little we learned in this brief start, and fell for Holden.

Over the next two years, I quickly read through books #1-8. Then, for whatever reason (likely new and shinies), I lost track of Secret even though I always bought the new books when they came out. Slowly, but surely, I reunited with Secret and her merry gang, each time remembering why I enjoyed this series so much.

“... you have always lived a life in between. Your entire existence has been a tightrope walk between worlds. [...] Are you a monster, or a monster hunter? A vampire or a werewolf. A leader or a follower. A lover or a wife.”

One Last Secret is different because it's the finale. One final trip and Sierra Dean sent us (and Secret) on a wild one. The way in which she did so was part Dark Matter and part 'It's a Wonderful Life'. Through this creatively constructed predicament Secret finds herself in, Sierra offers the readers and her main character a wonderful way of revisiting the impactful events, loved ones throughout Secret's life and the series. She's grown and changed (in more ways than one) over the course of the series. She's learned when some of her choices were selfish instead of self-caring and vise versa. She's taken the guidance from those in her life who have her best interests at heart and she's fought fiercely to protect them.

“Tick-tock. Tick-tock.”

Now, she must decide if the choices she's made, those that ended with her being where, who, what she is and who she's with right now. Were they the right ones, the ones that make her the happiest, is she living her best life? As with everything in Secret's life, there's risk to asking and finding the answers to these questions.

From the start, I knew this would be a series I'd stick with till the end. This is that end and I hope fans enjoy the finale as much as I did. I highly recommend this series to all who haven't started it

Favorite quotes and moments:

“Jesus Christ, McQueen. Can’t one thing be normal with you?”

“Normal? Well, my demon partner just rolled up to give me a ride, and the victim said she was murdered by death, so I think you can probably toss normal out the window on this one.”

I love Harry! I'm so glad he remained a big part of Secret's life. His calling the Devil “Basement Daddy” had me snort laughing.

I was so glad we (and Secret) were able to reconnect with characters who had either a small(er) or no part in the later installments. Thanks, Ms. Dean!

Holden & Secret:

“I love you,” I whispered, as if the words hurt my throat. “It’s not the same kind of love we had before, but I hope you can accept it. I hope you’ll forgive me for being such a shitty friend to you when you didn’t deserve it.”

“Secret, I killed you once because you asked me to. You don’t do that to someone unless you love them unbearably. I will take having you in my life in whatever version of that you’ll allow. From now until the end of time.”

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Last Secret
Sierra Dean

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🎧🎧🎧
🌶🌶

Narrated by Caroline Hewitt

This is a very lengthy 12-book audiobook series; however, it was very well done. My only complaint was that the first 11 books were narrated by Sierra Grace, and the last book was narrated by Caroline Hewitt. I wasn’t a huge fan of the change in narrator. Secret McQueen is a bad-ass FMC, but she gets into some crap throughout the series. The first few books are why choose; however, toward the end, she ends up with her husband and fated mate, and a beautiful baby girl. I stumbled upon this series accidentally, but I’m not sorry because it was entertaining with everything that happens. If you want to listen to or read something that will keep you on your toes, this series will.

[Amber Anderson Howell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! I wish there was more to come from this series!!! The urban fantasy genre is where I see this author's best writing.

The trials that Secret had to go through in One Last Secret were harsh, but she persevered as usual with her show up and kick a$$ style.