The Secret Between Us

As Deborah Monroe and her teenage daughter, Grace, are driving home from a party that Grace attended; the unthinkable happens. Their car is in an accident; striking a man who is running in the dark. Although sixteen-year-old Grace was the one at the wheel, Deborah sends her daughter home before the police arrive, determined to shoulder the blame for the accident herself.

Deborah's rash decision, made in an attempt to protect Grace, quickly takes on a life of its own. Her decision soon morphs into a deception, one that ultimately threatens the special bond between mother and daughter. In The Secret Between Us, Barbara Delinsky explores the limits of personal responsibility - responsibility of a mother to a daughter, of a daughter to a show more father, and of a husband to a wife.

Once again, Ms. Delinsky has delivered a riveting, superbly crafted family story. This book was absolutely great. I find that Ms. Delinsky is wonderful at creating nuanced family relationships and dramatic plots. I do like reading books that deal with secrets and deceptions, and how such things can detrimentally affect the family dynamics. I give The Secret Between Us by Barbara Delinsky an A+! show less

This was my first book by Barbara Delinksy and it was an interesting read! Grace and her mother are involved in a car wreck on the way home one night in the rain. They hit someone. Grace was driving—but her mother Debra takes the blame. The consequences and twists and turns go from there. I liked the way this one not only examined the accident, but also the interpersonal relationships within Grace/Debra’s family, and also the victim’s family. An interesting read that went in some unexpected directions! 4/5 stars.

Trigger Warnings: suicide

Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.

One of her best books - Deborah Monroe and her daughter, Grace, are driving home from a party when their car hits a man running in the dark. Grace was at the wheel, but Deborah sends her home before the police arrive, determined to shoulder the blame for the accident. Her decision then turns into a deception that takes on a life of its own and threatens the special bond between mother and daughter. An unforgettable story about making bad choices for the right reasons and the terrible consequences of a lie gone wrong.

The Secret Between Us was unlike any other Barbara Delinsky book i've previously read, and I don't know if that was such a good thing. I did like this book, but feel like this book didn't blow me away as many of her other romance-type novels did.

The Secret Between Us is a story of a mother and daughter who get into an accident in the middle of a rainy evening where they hit a man with the car. The only problem is the police believe the mother was the one driving, when in fact it was the daughter. The mother covers for her daughter and the conseqences ensue, especially when the plot thickens that the man they hit with the car was the daughters' teacher.

There were a few twists and turns in the story that I wasn't quite anticipating, but show more overall the book felt very predictable and stale in many parts. It didn't draw me in and compell me to keep reading as many other Barbara Delinsky' books have in the past. I didn't think it was a bad story at all, but in comparision to other mystery/adult fiction writers such as Jodi Picoult, this book felt a bit stale to me. show less

THE SECRET BETWEEN US deals with the interactions of family. How far a mother will go to protect her child, how a child reacts to knowing they've done something that can never be taken back. It's not a bad story, but it wasn't as fully evolved as I would have liked it to be.

The main problem, for me, was the ending, which I saw as a total cop-out. In the end, the resolutions came too easily, and in ways that made everyone turn out to be a good guy. Things rarely work this way in real life.

This isn't Barbara Delinsky's best story, but it's still good for reading about a family who will do anything to keep itself whole.

Barbara Delinsky effectively and dramatically explores the delicate relationships between family members, espcially mothers and daughters in _The Secret Between Us_. I found the book refreshing despite it's heavy subject matter and read it cover to cover within forty-eight hours. I recommend _The Secret Between Us_ to lovers of modern-day mysteries and dramas, and those who are interested in the intricacies of family expectations and bonds.

A car accident changes the dynamics of an already-troubled family. Delinsky tries to make the story compelling but there is no real tension here and the resolution is somewhat unsatsifying. An easy read but also easily forgettable.