The Babysitter's Secret by Casey Kelleher
Genre: Psychological thriller
Read: 18th May 2023
Published: 24th May 2023
★★★★ 4.5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
Everything I thought I knew about my life is a lie. My mother revealed a terrible, dangerous secret in her last letter to me. But, with her death, any chance of knowing the truth has disappeared. I’ll have to do whatever it takes to find out for myself.
Going back to the house where I was born, I find a family living the life I’d always dreamed of. And when Cecelia, the mother, mistakes me for the new nanny, I seize the chance to move in. Maybe, being in the house every day and night, I will remember more, uncover more, about the secret that haunts me…
But this family is not the happy one it appears from the outside. Cecelia is angry, unpredictable, unstable. She is not the mother these children deserve. They are scared of her, and rightly so.
As my memories start to crystalize, I am ever more determined to shelter them from harm. Because history has a horrible way of repeating itself, and I’ll do everything I can to protect these children. But how long can I stay here, undetected, pretending to be someone I’m not? And if the children end up in danger, what will I have to do to save them…?
With twists no reader will EVER see coming, this incredibly gripping psychological thriller is perfect for fans of The Housemaid, The Widow and The Housewarming.
MY THOUGHTS:
This family is hiding much more than the truth...
This is the second Casey Kelleher thriller I've read and I have to say I am impressed. THE BABYSITTER'S SECRET was as thrilling and as addictive as "Only Child" was and I devoured it in one sitting! A dark and twisted tale, it is a chilling one that will have you questioning who and what to believe as both narrators are unreliable and incredibly complex.
The story starts out with a chilling prologue before moving on to a seemingly random scene and narrative by one of our main characters - Emily. She is unquestionably unreliable from the start with her demeanour, her flashbacks and auditory hallucinations of a crying girl that just only seems to get louder and louder. At first, it appears the girl is left to cry unattended in the flat next door but as the story unfolds it becomes clear the girl is just a delusion that Emily torments herself with. Why? And why is her support worker trying to trick her? Stealing her journal and make her seem crazy? Emily knows she just wants to see her back in the secure unit again.
The next chapter we are introduced to Sasha who turns up to a house she has been given the address to and rings the bell hoping for a glimpse inside the property. The woman who opens the door does so in the midst of a mid-morning panicked rush and assumes that she is the replacement nanny, ushering her in without a second thought or checking her references. Sasha tries to correct her but Cecilia doesn't give her the opportunity and is out the door before the record is set straight. It's OK...she can do this. She can be a nanny. How hard can it be? She wanted the opportunity to glimpse inside this house which holds great significance to her and now she has the perfect opportunity.
Sasha has had a difficult past. Her mother has recently passed away and only then did she discover, via letter her mother left with her solicitor, that she was adopted. Meaning her whole life as she knew it was a lie. But it's hardly surprising as she never really fit in anyway. So now she has in her hand the address for the house in which she had spent her early years...before she was adopted...and she is granted to perfect opportunity to find some connection with the now renovated house. At first, she sees nothing but clean lines and new furnishings. But little by little, memories begin to resurface...and Sasha starts to wonder if these are just dreams or memories?
This is indeed a dark and even disturbing tale. Chilling even. But it is also tinged with sadness. It can also be said that there is a child abuse trigger as well as mental illness. Both narrators are unreliable and complex and the reader can be excused for thinking how the two storylines intersect. But be patient...all will be revealed in due course.
THE BABYSITTER'S SECRET is a twisted tale of secrets and revenge. I was hooked from the very first page and didn't stop until I flipped the very last at the end, devouring the book in just five hours. I was invested from the beginning wanting to know who was gaslighting who and why and how the stories were connected. And my little grey cells were firing all their synapses as I slowly pieced the puzzle together. I saw the twists coming before they were revealed but I didn't care...I'm here for the ride and the entertainment value! The final twist was a surprise but I thought it kind of spoilt it in the end and should have been left as it was. But it was still a thrilling read and that I enjoyed every minute of!
I would like to thank #CaseyKelleher, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheBabysittersSecret in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Whilst working as a beauty therapist and bringing up their three children together with my husband, she penned her debut novel Rotten to the Core. Its success meant that Casey could give up her day job and concentrate on writing full time.
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