*I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review*
Nowhere is safe. Not even home…Nick Merrick is stretched to the breaking point.Keep his grades sky-high or he’ll never escape his hometown.Keep his brother’s business going or the Merricks will be out on the street.Keep the secret of where he’s going in the evenings from his own twin—-or he’ll lose his family.Keep his mind off the hot, self-assured dancer who’s supposed to be his “girlfriend’s” partner.Of course there’s also the homicidal freak Quinn has taken to hanging around, and the Elemental Guide counting the hours until he can try again to kill the Merrick brothers.There’s a storm coming. From all sides. And then some.Nick Merrick, can you keep it together?
Other reviews in the series
(Must read Breathless before reading Secret!)
The last Guide who tried to kill him and his brothers is now in jail. Unfortunately that won't stop other from coming after them. Still it is not on the forefront of Nick's mind right now, he's got other things to worry about. Keeping his grades up so he can go to college, helping his brother Michael with the business so they won't go broke, being there for his 'girlfriend' and keeping her safe... Let's just say he has been pretty busy lately.
Secret doesn't very much focus on the struggle the Merricks have been having with the Guides, but more on Nick himself. Don't worry there is plenty of action and fights to keep you satisfied, certainly that ending makes a promise of epic battles to come.
This book is about Nick and his secret, which if you have read the previous books you already know about. If you don't know what I am talking about, then you shouldn't be reading this review, but Breathless instead.
Quinn finally convinces Nick to come with her to her dance rehearsals, noticing he needs to relax and maybe he can do that with Adam. It's obvious they want each other, still for Nick it is very difficult to come to terms with who he is. Actually it is more about him being afraid of what his family and friends will think, mostly his brother Gabriel.
All of Nick's life has been about pleasing other people, do what has been expected of him, be perfect, be the good one... Now that he starts wanting things for himself like college and maybe Adam, he doesn't know how to deal with it.
This book is just filled with one secret after another, it sometimes gets difficult to keep everything straight. It's not just Nick who has been keeping secrets, Quinn definitely has plenty of her own. Meanwhile Nick slowly starts to reveal his, mostly to Quinn, she keeps them locked further and further away until they nearly destroy her. You can take that literally.
In the previous books, she comes over as being kind of flimsy but with an attitude and mostly insecurity, which she hides behind her big mouth. It's not until now when you realise how bad it is for her. Since Nick has been to busy with Adam, Quinn runs into the arms of someone I did not expect to ever see again. I can't tell you who it is, let's just say I am not his number one fan and he also has some secrets that will surprise you.
If it wasn't obvious by now, everyone has some serious secrets. The longer they keep them locked inside them, the more they will eat them up. Sharing is caring and all that, but when you have been keeping those secrets locked up for so long, it's scary to share.
There were some very difficult topics in this book and it does try to portray that it gets better. Which I truly believe in. It's not going to be easy, certainly not, but in this case Nick and Quinn have more support than they first realise.
I really liked this book. Nick is such a sweetheart, always thinking of other, nearly forgetting about himself. Quinn is quite the little firecracker and keeps you on your toes. They are two very different people, except they both have secrets they don't want anyone to know about. You can really feel the struggle they have to go through. I was able to connect with the characters very well and once again Michael is such a great guy (can't wait for his book!). Secret goes deeper into what it exactly means to have secrets and what the consequences might be. Overall a great story.
There is one thing I would like to add. I understand that every character gets their own book, but when that book has finished it doesn't mean their story is. In the last couple of books we barely get to see anything about Chris and Becca (they are now a couple, that's it), Gabriel and Layne (same here) or Hunter. Especially with that last one I would still like to see more. The first person Hunter was ever able to trust after his father's dead, was murdered in front of his eyes. Honestly I keep waiting for him to get a breakdown or lash out at the least.
So that's the one thing I feel a bit missing from the novels, some characters get pushed too much into the background, when I feel they are very essential to the main story line (with the Guides).
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