Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph review: A twist that saves it

If you’re looking for a quick read similar to One of Us Is Lying, you’ll want to check out Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph.

Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this novel from NetGalley in return for a free review.

Mystery and thrillers aren’t just for adult readers. There are some great options for YA readers, and Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph is one of them. To be honest, I could see this being turned into a movie or a TV series—and I’d watch it.

It took me a while to really get into the story. I think it was about 30% of the way in when I really cared about any of the characters. Some of them, I didn’t care about at all, even at the end. The downside of a book being written in the first person POV is that there’s a lot missing in terms of other characters.

The twist at the end did bring my star rating up a little. It is a little cliche, though.

What is Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph about?

The story follows Sam and his friends. It starts on Halloween night, when the group of friends go to a place called “The Dark Place.” They share their darkest secret one at a time. None of them share their secret with each other after that.

However, that year, they all start receiving texts from someone calling herself Sasha Craven. It turns out this Sasha is a made up person by one of the group members, and it’s clear that this person knows everyone’s secrets. This person is going to reveal their secrets, and the group needs to figure out who it is and why they’re doing it.

When the families start to get attacked, the group has to figure out whether to go to the cops or not. What will they do? Well, what do teenagers always do in these types of mysteries? Just think of Pretty Little Liars and One of Us Is Lying to get an idea.

Secrets Never Die book review

I am going to start with the negatives. There is nothing fresh or new about this book. The stories like this have already been told.

This is the case with a lot of books now, though, isn’t it? It doesn’t really matter what you read. You’ve read the format before. You’ve seen teenagers decide they can handle situations themselves, or you’ve seen some masked person revealing secrets before. It doesn’t take away from the overall enjoyment, but if you’re looking for something super fresh, it’s not going to be this.

As I said, a major downside of the book is the first-person POV. We’re left not really knowing who the other characters are. It’s hard to determine if we can even trust them or not, or to really get a sense of who they are as people. I find this a problem with any book written in the first person, though. I don’t mind the first-person narrative when it jumps from character to character, but not when it just sticks to one person.

The twist at the end wasn’t something I really saw coming. There was so much focus on Sam’s past, that I didn’t even think to look anywhere else. I’m not going into details about this as I don’t want to spoil the book for you. The twist at the end is well worth waiting for. While it’s still not fresh, it does add another layer to the story. And I like being surprised in a book that seems pretty straightforward and easy to guess at first.

It is a quick read. Despite it not being fresh, I found myself finishing it in a weekend and not because I felt like I had to just get through it. I did want to find out how it would all play out in the end, and I enjoyed the pace of the story. Nothing felt like it was dragging on too long.

Stars: 3.5 out of 5.

Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph is now available on Amazon.