Small Secrets

By: Lucy Goacher

Narrated by: Kitty Kelly, Joe Pitts

They thought they knew what really happened—and each other. They were wrong.

Four years in, Stevie and Nate’s true-crime podcast, All the Gory Details, is forced onto hiatus when their conclusions in their first-ever episode, about the unsolved murder of teenager Lauren in their hometown seventeen years ago, are proven wrong. Their mistake ruined a life, and Stevie and Nate are still reeling from the consequences.

Still, when a fresh murder frighteningly similar to Lauren’s is brought to their attention, Nate is adamant that they should resurrect the podcast. He tells a hesitant Stevie that this is their chance to redeem themselves, and maybe even to solve the murder for real. But when Nate becomes fixated on the podcast above anything else, Stevie begins to wonder if she really knows Nate after all…

When a second murder changes everything, it suddenly seems as if Stevie is inside one of her own episodes. How well do either of them really know what happened back then—or each other?

©2023 Lucy Goacher (P)2023 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Well written psych-thriller!

Sometimes old secrets can come back to haunt you. 17yrs after a teen was killed, it appears that true crime podcasting duo, Nate & Steve, have resurrected the murderer. This story keeps you in its grip till the end…and the ending will stun you!!! Definitely a re-read!

wonderfully suspenseful!

narration was great! loved the twists and turns. thought I had the ending figured out but that was far from true.

The ending

I had the killer figured out - but not the ending. What a great book! You won’t be able to put it down.

The ending

I hated the ending. So wrong. I didn’t really like this story. I won’t be reading any Goucher stories again!

Incredible story

Really really exciting story very well done loved the podcast aspect of this story liked that social media was a main focus!

Plot twist!

Just when I thought I knew how the story was going to end, the author gives a huge plot twist. The characters are alive you like them you dislike them you hold out hope for them totally worth the time and money. I love this story I would like to read more of this authors work and listen to these performers  narrate other books.

Hilariously terrible

I’m one of those people who unironically enjoys really, really terrible movies. But this is the first audiobook that was so bad it actually made me laugh out loud.

Originally, I thought this would just be run-of-the-mill terrible. Stevie is one of those protagonists that is so idiotic you wish they’d get murdered already so the book could end, but you know she’ll survive by sheer virtue of being the final girl. She was already grating on my nerves pre-chapter 1 (not a prologue, it’s “Episode 1”), but I kept listening because I was interested in the premise. But by chapter 5, the book leans hard into full-blown, over-the-top ludicrousness.

And speaking of “episodes,” the book is interspersed with episodes from the characters’ podcast. This format could have been a clever way of storytelling, but the episodes, had they been a real podcast, would have been lambasted as “cringe.” If you were to strip away the rest of the novel and listen to just the podcast episodes, the “hosts” come across as inauthentic, callous, and completely self-absorbed. And yes, the main characters are in fact all those things, but the idea that enough people would listen to their vapid musings for them to have a 4-year run with sponsorships is, again, hilarious.

I’m giving this 3 stars because the voice acting is good, and the book inadvertently made me laugh at how bad it is. Please don’t mistake my rating as a reflection of quality; it’s really that bad. But if you enjoy a campy hot mess, you may have some fun with this.

Mixed on The Ending

I did enjoy the story. Filled with twists! I guessed early and thought for sure I had it but, boy was I wrong! Wished for a satisfying ending but, instead it was a more realistic ending. Since I was incorrect, I think it was fitting. The Narrator's brought the story to life! Thank You

Tone of book is a little too “depressing” or “somber”

I liked the story line OK….but it seemed “depressing “ too often. This might be the audiobook ONLY? Lastly, the audiobook seems to jump around too much from past to present to follow at all times