Book Review: The Secret Place By Tana French - a psychological thriller set in a Catholic Girls boarding School in The USA

The Secret Place by Tana French – If you want a book that get’s right into the teenage psyche then this is it!

I absolutely loved it.  It’s well written with great characters, a novel story line and keeps you guessing throughout.  It’s one of those must reads of 2014!





The book centers around a group of four teenage girls at a Catholic boarding school where, a year previously, a young boy  was found murdered in the grounds after hours.   A year later Holly (whose father is a detective and who previously was a witness in another crime), discovers a reference to the boy’s murder on the ‘Secret Place’ notice board at the school and brings it to the attention of the detective who looked after her previously.  This leads to the reopening of the case.

The story is told through the eyes of many of the characters involved and brilliantly illustrates the unreliability of witness perception.   I particularly liked the countdown effect of each chapter being written in reference to how long before the murder the recounted incident occurred.  I think French really got into the mindset of vulnerable teenage girls, peer pressure and hormonal disruption.  Loved the closeness of the group of four girls – Holly, Selena , Becca and Julia and how their closeness and solidarity was both a blessing and a curse for them. 

I loved the dynamics between the two detectives and the relationship between the girls.  I found myself at times wanting to shake them and at other times wanting to hug and reassure them.

The Secret Place was one of those books I  devoured and found myself rereading bits for the sheer pleasure of experiencing that teen angst frothe safety of adulthood.

The only slightly strange thing was the girls psychic ability to create light – probably sourced from their ‘Secret Place’ in the garden.- I didn’t mind the psychic element – just not sure how necessary it was.  But then again maybe it was one of the many distortions given through the individual interviews.

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