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Book Review of The Secret Hour

The Secret Hour
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Beneath his calm and controlled demeanor, attorney John O'Rourke is a man whose life is in turmoil. Since his wife's death, he has been juggling the rigors of a controversial capital murder case and the demands of raising two children. Eleven-year-old Maggie's crooked bangs and rumpled clothes eloquently reproach John's earnest but haphazard attempts at mothering. Teddy, John's stalwart fourteen-year-old, has quietly assumed responsibilities that are far too weighty for his young shoulders, as he longs for the way things used to be and studiously tries to ignore the hostility that swirls around his family since his father took on the defense of a killer whose crimes have rocked Connecticut.

A brick thrown through the window one autumn morning signals a dangerous new level of hatred. But a quieter event also takes place that day. A woman arrives on the O'Rourke doorstep to find a household on the brink of chaos but brimming with love - and, she hopes, answers.

Kate Harris is searching for the key to her own mystery. Six months ago her younger sister fled far from their beloved home following a devastating confrontation. After mailing a single postcard from the New England shore, Willa Harris vanished. With only a postmark to go on, Kate takes a leave of absence from her job as a marine biologist to come to the seaside Willa adored - and discovers the one man who may be able to help her.

I found that this book was just alright with me - not my favorite book, but quite well-written in my opinion. There were the usual dramatic plot twists throughout the story, with a few eyebrow-raising coincidences along the way. It was still a very nice reading experience for me. The mystery was not all that believable to me, but that may just mean that I have become an extremely hard-bitten reader of mysteries. I think that I definitely want to continue reading Luanne Rice, however, I give The Secret Hour an A!