The Dangers of Family Secrets

by Debby Holt

‘I look back at our married life and I wonder if there was anything real about it at all…’

Genealogist Freya Cameron has the perfect life. A devoted husband of nearly thirty years and career driven, successful twin daughters.

But what if it’s all a lie?

So skilled at excavating her clients’ family histories, Freya has no idea why her family are so cold towards her. They know something she doesn’t and are determined to make her pay for it.

But sometimes secrets are better not left untold.

The Dangers of Family Secrets is a gripping story about trust, love and the destructive effects secrets have on a family.

347 pages, Paperback

Published June 29, 2017

About the author

Debby Holt lives with her husband in Bath. She started writing short stories when her five children were small. She wrote her first novel, The Ex-Wife’s Survival Guide in 2006. Since then, she has written three more: Annie May’s Black Book, The Trouble with Marriage and Love Affairs for Grown-Ups. Having been a spectacularly useless teacher in the past, she is fully aware of how lucky she is to be doing something she loves.

Reviews

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cleverly put together and absorbing tale of a family undermined by secrets. Debby’s writing is full of wry humour and poignant observations that will keep you engrossed till the last page.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are books that you open and love, start to finish. Those are the best kind. Then there are the books that instantly pull you in, but leave you cursing the ending and the time wasted for the disappointment. Then there are the books that you don’t think you will like, the ones that sneak into your heart and slowly captivate you with plot, leaving you satisfyingly teary eyed at the end, grateful for going along on the characters’ journeys. This is what The Dangers of Family Secrets by Debby Holt was for me. The beautiful cover of blue flowers and golden moths give nothing away, but the title does. The Dangers of Family Secrets is full of them. Ms. Holt is a master at weaving together a whole cast of characters in an entangled web, and then just as skillfully setting it all right in the end. If you have difficulty keeping relationships straight have a notepad handy, but Ms. Holt develops her characters so well that they soon work themselves out while reading. You will find a character you love, ones you will hate, and ones you will love to hate. In the end,there wasn’t a single one that disappointed me.

[Annette · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Dangers of Family Secrets by Debbie Holt was a goodreads win

I was attracted by the cover of this book, moths and flowers held together by a key. The key symbolises the unlocking of secrets, I think, which is at the centre of the book.

It is about assumptions made, without evidence, which affect relationships. Freya is living in a marriage which has tensions, but she can’t understand why. It culminates with her husband, Felix, leaving her. Her daughter, Tess, finds it difficult to commit to relationships, especially when they involve physical contact. Tess and her sister, Anna, don’t really bond as siblings.

Gradually, the story evolves and the facts emerge, so that all is put right.

I found it an enjoyable book to read, but I’m not sure whether I agree with the simplistic idea that all must be revealed to ensure a happy ending. In the real world, people do have hidden depths, which they live with, as part of life - not to agonise over and dissect.

[Sandra Croteau · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book through Audible and it is a great listen. Joan Walker is so excellent as a narrator-I search for books read by her as opposed to looking for an author. And she has brought to life some really good stories that I never would have found on my own.
This story is really well developed with characters you can really feel for. Family dynamics and how unspoken feelings can cause a lifetime of misunderstandings and repression. It really is so well done. And had all the components for a great listening read: compelling/interesting story or characters that you want to keep reading, a bit of humor, the human condition, learn a little bit of something you didn’t know (Sir Walter Scott!), and evokes emotion in the reader. I would recommend this book completely. Especially if listening to Joan telling the story. I’m on to her next book! :)

[Patricanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read. Less about secrets than the characters not talking to each other and the misunderstandings that result . Rather glosses over the secret, and treats it rather light heartedly when it is revealed instead of with the seriousness that it deserves. My major criticism is with the abrupt changes in subject from one paragraph to the next without warning. Only twice was double spacing used to signal a change, the rest of the time I found my self sometimes 2 or 3 sentences in before I realised we were talking about something entirely other, and had to re-read it to make sense.

[Minerva · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poor execution of such a heavy topic.