Family Secrets
A Novel
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
After their father's death, sisters Vanessa, Ellie, and Georgiana are stunned to learn a well-kept family secret. A yellowed letter tucked away in a family Bible reveals that the woman who gave birth to their late father had not died when he was born, as they had always believed. Their paternal grandmother gave up her son shortly after his birth, leaving this note with instructions to never reveal her name or background to him. The letter is signed, simply, Hattie.
The sisters are each at a turning point -- Vanessa is feeling stifled in a stale marriage and career; Ellie is perpetually single but desperately wants marriage and motherhood; and baby sister Georgiana is a successful model but longs to do something more serious with her life. Seizing upon the idea of finding their long-lost grandmother, the women set out on a trip to Montana, where they hope not only to find their father's birth mother but also to rekindle their bonds of sisterhood and possibly even find their true selves.
But they have no idea of the consequences of their quest. If the sisters find Hattie and live to tell their story, everything Hattie has worked and dreamed for will be destroyed. Will she allow the sisters to uncover the family secret and escape alive?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Revenge, murder and identity feature big in this 11th novel by the author of The Girlfriends Club. Two bombshells fall on Vanessa, Ellie and Georgiana the night of their mother's 60th birthday: widowed mom Penelope is moving to France with a man they've never met, and they learn their paternal grandmother did not die in childbirth as they'd been told all their lives. Vanessa, unhappy with her marriage and career, takes the news about their mother with the most difficulty, and the ensuing rift between siblings prompts Penelope to finance an early summer getaway for the three. Ellie and Georgiana persuade Vanessa to take a trip to Montana, where they might learn more about Hattie, the woman who gave up their father shortly after his birth. It turns out Hattie is alive and kicking, and with good reason to keep her history secret. The story takes a dangerous turn when Hattie now the wealthy mother of a gubernatorial candidate learns about the sisters' quest to find her. The transition from family saga to women-in-jeopardy thriller happens quickly and convincingly, but builds to an unsatisfying resolution. The sisterly bond of Vanessa, Ellie and Georgiana is sweet, but Hattie's sensational tale steals the show.
