Two Can Keep a Secret

📘 About This Book

Karen M. McManus, the internationally bestselling YA thriller author of One of Us Is Lying, is back with Two Can Keep a Secret - you won't be able to put it down! Now in turquoise with a matching sprayed edge! Stock may vary. A perfect town is hiding secrets. Secrets that somebody would kill to keep hidden. Ellery's never been to Echo Ridge, but she's heard all about it. It's where her aunt went missing at age sixteen, never to return. Where a Homecoming Queen's murder five years ago made national news. And now she has to live there with her estranged grandmother, after her mom lands in rehab. Malcolm grew up in the shadow of the Homecoming Queen's death. His older brother was the prime suspect and left Echo Ridge in disgrace. But now he's back - just as mysterious threats appear around town, hinting that a killer will strike again. Then another girl disappears. As Ellery and Malcolm race to unravel what happened, they realize every secret has layers in Echo Ridge. 'When it comes to YA suspense, Karen McManus is in a league of her own.' Entertainment Weekly

📖 Summary

Echo Ridge is not the picturesque small town it appears to be on the surface, instead functioning as a place hiding dark, violent histories that reverberate through generations. For Ellery, the town is more than just a destination; it is a family legacy marked by tragedy. Having never visited Echo Ridge before, she has heard all about it from family lore, specifically regarding her aunt who went missing at age sixteen and was never seen again. When her mother lands in rehab, Ellery and her twin brother are forced to pack up their lives and move to this ominous town to live with their estranged grandmother. Dropped into a new high school and a foreign community, Ellery quickly realizes that Echo Ridge is obsessed with its past, particularly the murder of a Homecoming Queen that made national news five years prior. This historical trauma hangs over every hallway and classroom, shaping the social dynamics and casting long shadows over the current students. Among them is Malcolm, a boy who grew up directly in the shadow of that very same Homecoming Queen's death. Malcolm's older brother was named the prime suspect in the high-profile murder and subsequently left Echo Ridge in absolute disgrace, leaving Malcolm to bear the social fallout of a crime he did not commit. Just as Ellery arrives and attempts to navigate her strange new reality, mysterious and menacing threats begin to appear around the town, signaling that the dark forces of the past are stirring once again. History threatens to repeat itself as anonymous warnings surface, putting the town on edge and placing Ellery and Malcolm right in the center of the mounting danger. As the threats escalate, the two teenagers find their lives intersecting, bonding over their shared connection to the town's infamous reputation. They soon realize that someone in Echo Ridge is hiding secrets—secrets so dangerous that someone would be willing to kill to keep them hidden from the world. Blending atmospheric small-town tension with high-stakes teenage drama, the narrative plunges readers into a labyrinth of suspicion, family dysfunction, and amateur sleuthing. Ellery and Malcolm must navigate a web of lies to uncover the truth, racing against the clock as the threats draw closer and the body count threatens to rise. Every resident seems to have a motive, and no one is entirely who they claim to be, making trust a luxury neither character can afford. As layers of deceit are peeled back, the book explores the heavy burden of legacy, the consequences of unresolved grief, and the lengths to which people will go to protect their darkest reputations. Karen M. McManus crafts a propulsive young adult thriller where past and present collide, keeping readers guessing until the final pages are turned.

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Karen M. McManusView all books →

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