The Dirty Secrets Club by Meg Gardiner is a book that came into my life via a sale at my local library last summer. At the time, I was in the midst of a new Karen McManus novel, and the name of this book with the red cover looked just like something she would put out.
So yes, I was expecting a teen whodunnit, but instead I got the first entry in a series of four, featuring forensic psychiatrist, Jo Beckett. Throughout the course of the novel, we learn that Jo was studying to be a doctor, but after a personal tragedy, she transitioned over to psychiatry. And more specifically, forensic psychiatry for the recently deceased. Evidently this is a real career that law enforcement will rely on as a last result when trying to determine how someone died. It sounds like it’s usually used to figure out if someone was suicidal or not.
Her skills were put through the wringer in this most recent case, as she was put on a 48-hour time crunch by a gruff local cop. The case was quite complex, involving many high profile people who all appeared to be a part of a Dirt Secrets Club. The club was touted for its anonymity, but a secret got out and suddenly dead bodies started piling up. When I’m talking high profile people, I mean a lawyer, a professional football player, a news anchor, and countless others. All of these people shared their sickest secret with a member here and there, both “absolving” their sins while simultaneously getting a thrill out of confessing. None of them ever thought they’d be the next headline.
All in all, Jo is a good person. It seems like she’s really tried to live by the hypocritic oath since school and the personal tragedy that befell her. Even the dangers she gets sucked into with this case don’t ever stop her from doing the right thing and saving people. I will say that when this story first started I thought it was going to be a pretty basic and standard crime story, not that I have anything against those. But Gardiner’s novel threw in more twists and reveals than I was anticipating! That kept me going, but I think what would really get me to check out the other novels in her series is if there was the promise of more with her very new love interest, Gabe.
Never say never, but I don’t know if I’ll continue on with this series at this point. It was compelling enough to get me through to the end, and as I said, her new relationship was quite intriguing, but I have a feeling I won’t remember much about this in a month’s time. If crime novels are your thing though, by all means give this one a chance!