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    Public Secrets
    Public Secrets
    Public Secrets
    Audiobook20 hours

    Public Secrets

    Written by Nora Roberts

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts deftly blends romance and suspense in this compelling novel of a woman whose career, marriage, and very life are threatened by the truth about her own past.

    Emma McAvoy may have grown up in the limelight, but some secrets are hidden in a darkness no light can reach. Now on the verge of a successful career, and having fallen in love with the man of her dreams, Emma is looking to the future. Yet it’s the past that is about to catch up with her.

    For Emma, her childhood had been almost like a rags-to-riches fairy tale—until the tragic night that changed her family forever. But what Emma thinks she knows about that terrible night and the man she’s about to marry is only half the truth. The other half is locked away in the last place she’d ever think to look: her own memories. It’s a mystery a handsome and relentlessly driven homicide detective needs to solve in a case that’s haunted him for years—and a secret someone will kill to keep.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateAug 1, 2014
    ISBN9781480587229
    Public Secrets

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    Reviews for Public Secrets

    4/5

    517 ratings34 reviews

    What did you think?

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    • 3/5
      The 1st half was a bit slow & dragging. But the second half was suspenseful & fast-paced. So it actually evens out. Inspite of that, Nora is really a good storyteller. She never fails w/ good plots, exciting & witty characters, & rmphasis on family relationships & friendships.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      this story is quite dated, and lengthy - but it still is good - and interesting in that it gives a window into cultural times from the 60's, 70's and 80's. Stays suspenseful to the end. Several mini-books, each for the different characters or time periods. Unsure whether I actually recommend it - there is a slow beginning, so if unsure when reading or listening to the audio version, give it several chapters before giving up.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Definitely a wonderful listen. Great character development. I enjoyed it greatly
    • 5/5
      The original story: 4 stars.
      The audio performance: 5 stars.
    • 5/5
      The narration of this book was dreadful the English accent really grated, but I am glad I carried through it was another brilliant story by Nora Roberts
    • 5/5
      The plot and character development in this book is intricate and engaging. The way that she weaves history into it is wonderful. I thoroughly enjoyed this book
    • 4/5
      Story was okay, but not one of Nora’s best. It’s very long. Believe it could be shortened quite a bit for a more pleasant/interest-holding read. As is, one can sort of skip through segments that drag on. Overall, a good listen. Narrator also did a good job.
    • 3/5
      What a read rhanks so.
      Very much can’t strong get into the next Robert”s book.
    • 5/5
      Loved it from beginning to end. I wasn't going to listen because I thought it was too long, but I started listening and was quickly drawn to the characters and the story. Just when I think I read my favorite Nora Roberts book, I read another one and it becomes my favorite.
    • 5/5
      I liked it twist after twist. Although you had to be able to predict the end.
    • 5/5
      Loved it!! I got so involved in the story I stayed up all night to finish it.
    • 2/5
      Way too long and too many details. Not her best.
    • 5/5
      This was one of her best books. I would recommend 100%
    • 4/5
      I liked this book, I don’t thinks it’s one of my favourites but that’s because of my personal preference. Just based on the story this book is great.
      The male love interest Micheal is definitely one of my top 5 favourite out of all the Nora Roberts books I’ve read. I just wish I got to spend more time with the main couple thou.

      This book deserves a TV show. The drama, tragedy, drugs and messy romantic relationships would be a Netflix hit. I wish I had more time with the main couple. I think an epilogue or a final chapter would have been nice given how long and complex the couple’s journey was. But I find Nora’s books do end abruptly so whatever I guess.
    • 5/5
      Wow this was a great story love it. Love Nora Roberts.
    • 5/5
      Loved everything about this book. The characters development and how it all comes together over the various decades!
    • 5/5
      Awesome! I love Nora Roberts books! The characters are a part of me . I always learned about myself each time I read her books! Emma took a lot and still standing . So happy Beth and dad got back together! Glad Pete died . I hope Blackburn stay in hospital. Sorry but I was totally involved with the entire book
    • 5/5
      Well well this is quite the ending that one could expect from all the painful memories.
    • 5/5
      Excellent book, good characters and story and an ending that ties it all up?
    • 5/5
      Great book... I loved it... narrator was really good... thank u Nora Roberts
    • 5/5
      Such a great story. Lots of mystery, love, betrayal and romance.
    • 5/5
      There were parts of this book that made me want to quit listening. It was because of the pain the main character was suffering. Then I decided that Nora Roberts was just that good. Stick with it.
    • 5/5
      An absorbing story that kept me entertained for hours. Thankyou Nora.
    • 1/5
      Even though there was a depth of emotions, I thought this book would never end
    • 4/5
      Public Secrets by Nora RobertsEmma Parker, as a child she was told from her mom of her father, the rockstar and they lived in London.Jane drinks, heavily and threatens to kill the child and herself after telling the TV reporters why they were abandoned by the rockstar. was taken by her father as a child and lives with her father Brian and his pregnant girlfriend Bev. Her mom always hit her but she's happy to have money now to do what she wants.The rockstar band travels to America and the females join them as they tour around making it big.Story also follows Jane, a new apartment, lots of clothes, drugs, men and she thinks she sold her daughter for too low a price.The unthinkable happens: they attempted to give the boy a shot and then kidnap him but something went wrong and Emma alerted others of the events, she fell down the stairs and broke her arm. She's never been able to talk about that night but is still holding all the secrets inside.Bev leaves her husband and Emma and takes up with other band members but realizes it was she who had failed them. I felt the book was way too long but it does cover a lifetime of some in the book.Story follows Emma as she's now an adult along with members of the band. Surprised they were able to track down all the information about her toddler brothers death.I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
    • 3/5
      This story is about Emma McAvoy, her father brian, rock god, her junkie mother Jane who literally SOLD her at 3 years of age, & the tragedies in that family, one of which, the death of Emma's baby brother Darren, which takes over 20 years & 2 generations to finally solve. I have to admit, I didn't see the one coming. Not bad, & a relatively quick, easy, page turning read!
    • 5/5
      Love thisss. I couldnt put it down.
    • 4/5
      I've been reading a lot of Nora Roberts lately and one thing I've noticed is that I like the full-length novels much better than the ones that are part of, say, trilogy collections (or maybe it's just the ones that were written for Harlequin or whichever series she started off writing for). There's much more character development, much more time for characters to actually do more than an immediate falling in love thing. Not that I mind that entirely, but perhaps I shouldn't read four 12-chapter books in a row in which the two characters see each other for the first time and are instantly smitten. I actually started off a bit uncomfortable with this as there was a clear interest between an older teenager and a 12-yr-old. (At least I think that was her age at the time. It's been about a month since I've read the book and I've read a lot of NR books since! I seem to remember that it was my daughter's age, though, which made it that much more unsettling.) However, I've since come to recognize one of the patterns NR uses, which is to have characters meet early on, but then skip ahead a few years at a time. In this case, it made the romance that much more believable; even though it was a little frustrating that (SPOILER ALERT) it took so long for the two leads to get together, I liked that Michael basically carried a torch for Emma his whole life, even if it did start when she was a little too young. In terms of the rest of the book, I have to admit that I skipped through a bunch of it as I simply can't deal with the particular event that created the whole suspense aspect of the book. And after spending the whole book thinking that there was a greater evil lurking in the background, the actual culprit was a bit of a letdown -- thus the 3.5. But I enjoyed all the rest of it enough to keep picking it up even when I didn't have any time to do so.
    • 4/5
      When I purchased the book last year, it looked vaguely familiar. Let me be clear; I have read a LOT of Nora Roberts. Between haunting the library shelves in Germany for her books and purchasing almost all of the rest, I do believe that I have read most of her books. There are only a few I have not gotten around to reading. When I bought Public Secrets, I thought this was one of those that remained unread. After reading the first page, I remembered the story. It turns out I did read it more than ten years ago and just forgot that I had. Big time #michellefail, but I figured this was a good one for the Flashback Challenge. There is nothing wrong with re-read!The best part about this story is that it is not, in my opinion, a typical Nora Roberts novel. She breaks away from her formula and gives us something a bit different. Yes, there is a romantic lead and a murder mystery, but the romance and the mystery itself play as the backstory to the overarching plot of Emma's development and growth as a strong female character. Rather than flashing back to Emma's past in the first few chapters, the book actually starts out when Emma is three years old, and we follow her progression as she ages. In addition, Emma is not the sole focus. At times, the reader is able to get more insight into her father, at times the narrator focuses on her mother and stepmother. The reader watches Emma grow, make poor decisions, and face the consequences. It is a break from the formula, but it definitely works.If my daughter were to come to me, in future years, and ask me which one Nora Roberts book should she read, I would almost have to say Public Secrets. As a mother and a female, there are some very strong moral messages delivered in such a way that it is palatable to the reader. Throughout the novel, Ms. Roberts shows us the damage that sex, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, and child abuse can wring on a person (no, not the same person). She shows us that to be popular, you can find ways to avoid drugs and alcohol when offered to you, that it is okay to wait, and more importantly, that you can and should stand up for yourself and your beliefs. The most important message of all that Ms. Roberts passes along is the idea that it is okay, and sometimes necessary, to admit mistakes and ask for help. These are ideas that some would argue need to be shared and discussed a bit more these days.I am and always will be a Nora Roberts fan. There may be books of hers which I would not call favorites, but I almost always enjoy her work. Public Secrets is no exception. Reading it again helped me understand just what a gem this book is, and reading it after having read so many of her other works made me realize how unique it is in the Roberts canon. Ms. Roberts is not one to shy away from interesting or controversial topics, but I believe she outdid herself with this one. Her tackling of domestic violence is spot on, from the emotional and mental abuse escalating to physical violence to the shame and guilt a person feels when in that situation. Emma McAvoy is a character every woman should come to respect and admire for battling her personal demons and winning. For those of you Nora Roberts fans who have not had the pleasure, I highly suggest picking up this selection as soon as possible so that you too can discover what a gem it is!
    • 3/5
      Though I have long-since cried off Nora Roberts' novels, I have a soft spot for this book, it being one of the first romance novels I ever read. I still consider it one of Roberts' most developed stories, right up there with 'Honest Illusions' and 'Sweet Revenge.' If you're new to this author, skip her recent and perpetual trilogies -- head straight for these older, richer stories.