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Present day, TV showman and true crime aficionado Milo Conti is Italy's darling, uncovering and solving historic crimes for his legion of fans. When he turns his attention to the story of the missing Irene Borgata, accusing her husband of murder, Enzo's daughter Maddi asks her childhood friend, retired Detective April Cobain, for help to prove her father's innocence. But the tale April discovers is murky: mafia meetings, infidelity, mistaken identity, grief and unshakable love. On the whole, it is a simple story with well-written characters and an interesting plotline. I would recommend this more to people who are new to the genre and would appreciate the work more than I did. I will continue to recommend and read the author's works. Though I like paranormal elements, I want them to be more than just ‘feelings’. We have quite a few references to ghosts and stuff, which go nowhere in the plot. This seems more like an attempt to create an atmosphere. It’s not necessary and only causes a distraction (I kept wondering if something will come out of it). TV showman and true crime aficionado Milo Conti is Italy’s darling, uncovering and solving historic crimes for his legion of fans. When he turns his attention to the story of the missing Irene Borgata, accusing her husband of her murder, Enzo’s daughter Maddi asks her childhood friend, retired detective April Cobain, for help to prove her father’s innocence. But the tale April discovers is murky: mafia meetings, infidelity, mistaken identity, grief and unshakable love. As the world slowly closes in on the claustrophobic Villa Alba, and the house begins to reveal its secrets, will the Borgata family wish they’d never asked April to investigate? And what did happen to Enzo’s missing wife Irene? In the present time, Milo Conti is digging into the family dynamics and promises a full revelation in a few days. Maddalena Borgata writes to April Cobain, who she was acquainted with during her stay in England. April has been an investigator, but is still trying to get over the sorrow of her husband’s demise. Also, the last meeting between Maddalena and April in Bangkok ended badly and they have not been on speaking terms since. After some initial hesitation, April agrees and travel to Italy to investigate what happened to Irene, with help from local law enforcement.
Twists are plentiful, especially in the latter half of the story. One particular twist left me gawping. I actually read the sentence thrice to make sure I read it right. I was like WOW! Mind blown! The tension and suspense just build from the start. The fact that Irene has never been found as yet does raise the question, has a crime been committed? If not, where is Irene? As well as the mystery, Louise Douglas drew me in to the Sicilian way of life and the landscape. The setting is stunning. Villa Alba in its decline felt authentic with whispers of its past echoing around the rooms. The setting comes alive without slowing down the narrative. The summer heat in Sicily, the architecture, food, people, and especially Villa Alba (a symbol of wealth and power but, in reality, a house barely holding together) are easy to visualize.
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TV showman and true crime aficionado Milo Conti is Italy’s darling, uncovering and solving historic crimes for his legion of fans. When he turns his attention to the story of the missing Irene Borgata, accusing her husband of her murder, Enzo’s daughter Maddi asks her childhood friend, retired detective April Cobain, for help to prove her father’s innocence. But the tale April discovers is murky: mafia meetings, infidelity, mistaken identity, grief and unshakable love.As the world slowly closes in on the claustrophobic Villa Alba, and the house begins to reveal its secrets, will the Borgata family wish they’d never asked April to investigate? And what did happen to Enzo’s missing wife Irene? You get a sense of so many things not being said. I struggled to pinpoint what exactly happened and who was responsible. Of course, I made guesses based on what I knew but in all honesty? I had no idea what happened to Irene in that bleak landscape at the side of the road. The Secret Of Villa Alba was an intriguing, gripping dual timeline mystery which I thoroughly enjoyed. Will the mystery of Villa Alba ever be solved? Will the world ever find out what really happened to Irene Borgata? Or should some things have stayed dead and buried? My favourite aspect is the enchanting Sicily setting with its glorious scenery, fascinating culture, wondrous food and hospitable people. Author Louise Douglas beautifully captured the very soul of Sicily in her descriptions which made my heart happy. I know Sicily and was easily able to envision multitudinous nuances. To me, Sicily is a star character. The mystery itself is interesting but so are the characters, some of whom are likeable, others not, creating a fabulous sometimes angsty atmosphere.
April Cobain is recovering from the loss of her love and soulmate when a letter comes from a friend who’d pushed her away decades ago. She’d left to go her own way after a dreadful, jealous scene. The story is told from the point of view of Irene, newly married into the Borgata family and April a retired Inspector who is trying to solve the mystery of Irene’s disappearance. I really loved both the main characters and enjoyed following them throughout the book. They were both strong women, nursing heartache which made me immediately on their side. I felt especially sorry for Irene who was trying to get used to a new country and deal with other family members expectations about what she should be doing. Many thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. Beautifully written, chillingly atmospheric and utterly compelling, The Secret by the Lake is Louise Douglas at her brilliant best’ Tammy Cohen, author of The Broken Louise Douglas has made some great, intriguing characters, and when the story starts, poor Enzo is still being accused of murder thirty five years after the event, even though there was no supporting evidence to prove it. This is where April comes in. A former policelady, she is asked by her old estranged childhood friend to help them to clear his name. They had fallen out years ago over a man and never spoken till now. This shows how desperate Maddalena is to clear her father's name and give him some peace in his later years. A crime investigation show is also highlighting this case, and it seems the host, Milo Conti, has already decided Enzo is guilty!.I absolutely loved every bit of this story. Louise Douglas is a master storyteller. Excellent character portrayal and development. Mind-blowing and totally unexpected ending - I LOVED IT! There is a lot of tension within the family, and you can tell how important April is to them. They answer all the questions that she asks knowing they must be as much help.as they can possibly be, but is someone lying to April?. Will she find out who and why?. The ending is class!!!. As time counts down to Milo Conti’s exposé, he whips up the locals by dropping hints of his evidence on TV. This has a huge impact as they take action. Such a tense and alienating time for the family!
In the case of cozy crime mysteries, I have been ok to not critically evaluate the procedures and even the plot tie-up. However, this is a stale story repeated over hundreds of novels & movies. There is some reasonable character development for Irene, Maddalena and April, but most of the other characters are flat. I could guess how the mystery would be tied up early on, and yet the last sections were far more poorly written than I expected. The prospective future outlook offered for the central characters (especially April) was very silly and abrupt. The secrets at the heart of Villa Alba entwine and tell a tale of a love so strong, nothing can stand in its way. I loved it!I must admit to enjoying the author's writing style. I have had more success with her earlier works, but I continue to give the new ones a try just because of the way she introduces the people and the surroundings. Thank you, NetGalley and Boldwood Books, for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. Enzo’s daughter, Maddalena, enlists the help of an estranged best friend, April Cobain, to help find out what happened to Irene all those years ago and to clear her father’s name. He is being ‘accused’ publicly of Irene’s murder by a true crime TV presenter and the stress is making him ill. April is a retired DI and although she fell out with Maddalena, she was always fond of Enzo. With mention of Mafia connections to the family, April has many avenues to follow.
I loved& ; The Lost Notebook & ;so much! From the opening lines, I was drawn in to a gripping story, beautifully written and so cleverly orchestrated. & ;I rooted for the main character, I held my breath at the denouement and as for the climax of the book - just wow. Highly recommended.' Judy Leigh There is a slow and steady progression into the facts that can be found in 2003 while we get sneak peeks of possible twists in the older timeline. All the characters in the plot have shades to them, all acting in different ways when the situations change. April finds a challenging situation. She pursues various leads and fights to save a man who’d been kind to her when she was so much younger and Maddie’s best friend. There are HUGE surprises in 2003 that we later find out more about in Irene’s narration. Halfway through, my jaw was hanging open and I’m thinking wow, this changes EVERYTHING! I really enjoy Louise Douglas’ novels as they always ooze atmosphere and this one is no exception. There are some excellent descriptions of beautiful Sicily, the climate, the landscape, the Villa and the impact of the devastating earthquake of 1968, which the author weaves very effectively into the storytelling. The premise is really intriguing and the dual narrative and timescale adds to the building mystery.I enjoyed the story though very few of the characters were likable. The ending to me was quite sad, when you realize all the hatred and ostracism the family endured over the years, it was really quite heartrending. I can honestly say as someone who reads a lot of Louise Douglas's books, you won't be disappointed with this one!. It's a fantastic read!. What a fabulous, mind-blowing, and absolutely gripping mystery! I was hooked on to the story from start to finish. I have nothing but praises and more of it for this masterpiece by Louise Douglas. A brilliantly written, gripping, clever, compelling story, that I struggled to put down. The vivid descriptions, the evocative plot and the intrigue that Louise created, which had me constantly asking questions, made it a highly enjoyable, absolute treasure of a read.' Kim Nash on The Scarlet Dress
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