Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Read!
Review: "Public Secrets" is one of Nora Roberts' truly great novels, and is full of insight, romance and all the ups and downs of life. The writing is first-rate and Roberts deals with some delicate issues with great skill and sensitivity.
Emma McAvoy lived the first years of her life in poverty and fear, until the day her father Brian McAvoy, pop music's newest and brightest superstar, discovered that Emma existed and swept the frightened and abused toddler away into a world of glamour and comfort. With Brian, his bandmates, and his new wife Bev, Emma was finally safe. Young Emma loved her new life, and was overjoyed at the arrival of her baby brother, Darren. Everything seemed to be going right, until the night that a botched kidnapping destroyed their happiness and shattered their lives.
Now, all grown-up, Emma has rebuilt her life, though she is still haunted by memories of that fateful night so many years ago when she lost her brother. Emma's new life includes an exciting career and a fiancé who she is madly in love with. However, the man she is about to marry is not at all what he appears to be, and Emma soon finds herself caught in an abusive and unhappy marriage.
In the wake of her disastrous marriage, Emma awakens to the disturbing knowledge that there is a deep, dark secret buried in her mind. A secret that is the key to finding those responsible for Darren's death. And a secret so sinister that someone out there is willing to kill to keep it!
"Public Secrets" is an emotionally charged and wonderfully satisfying read. Emma's romance with the son of the detective who investigated Darren's case, Michael, is touching and beautifully written. Nora Roberts has created a cast of characters who readers will come to really care for. The character development is believable and perceptive, and the plot will keep readers captivated. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Life is rough when your father is a star.
Review:
Emma was three years old when her father, Brian McAvoy, found out she existed. He was at the top of the rock charts as the leader of the group Devastation. Finding Emma physically abused, he bought off the mother and got sole custody. Emma would never be abused by her mother again.
Brian married Bev and Emma became an older sister. Darren and Emma were very close. Remembering her own past, Emma vowed to always take care of Darren. He would always be safe. But one night when Darren was almost three and his parents were throwing a celebration party downstairs, the worst happened. Emma had saw the two men holding the baby. The kidnapped attempt was botched. Emma ran for help and fell down the stairs. Emma woke in the hospital to find Darren dead and the identity of the killers were blocked somewhere in her mind. The detective on the case never solved it.
Emma grew up and got married. After much abuse, she left her husband. He came after her to kill Emma, but he ended up dead instead. Emma again found herself struggling to survive disaster.
The detective from her brother's case had a son who followed his footsteps. Michael was his name. He had known and been in love with Emma over a decade. When Emma began having nightmares about the night Darren was killed, he was there for her. Emma was beginning to remember. The killers returned for her. She had to die to keep from revealing their names.
***Whew! A real page turner! There is no way to give thisbook the credit it deserves.***
Rating:
Summary: This book made me a Nora Roberts fan
Review: A friend loaned me "Public Secrets" a couple of years back, and it took me a few months to get around to reading it -- and only then because I'd run out of all my "usual" authors. Suffice it to say, since then I've been running out and getting my hands on as many NR novels as possible, and it all started because of this page-turning mystery.Emma McAvoy gets whisked out of poverty and into the glamour of rock-music at the age of 3, but those early years never quite fade away from her memory. She loves and idolizes her rock-star father and also quickly loves her step-mother and her new baby brother. When he is tragically kidnapped, Emma's new world changes again, and she must live with the guilt and the uneasy sense that she knows more than she remembers, and she must force herself to remember to save her own life. This is a wonderful, "un-put-downable" book, which I subsequently passed on to all MY friends because I liked it so much. Now that I have it back I'm looking forward to reading it again!
Rating:
Summary: This book made me a Nora Roberts fan
Review: A friend loaned me "Public Secrets" a couple of years back, and it took me a few months to get around to reading it -- and only then because I'd run out of all my "usual" authors. Suffice it to say, since then I've been running out and getting my hands on as many NR novels as possible, and it all started because of this page-turning mystery. Emma McAvoy gets whisked out of poverty and into the glamour of rock-music at the age of 3, but those early years never quite fade away from her memory. She loves and idolizes her rock-star father and also quickly loves her step-mother and her new baby brother. When he is tragically kidnapped, Emma's new world changes again, and she must live with the guilt and the uneasy sense that she knows more than she remembers, and she must force herself to remember to save her own life. This is a wonderful, "un-put-downable" book, which I subsequently passed on to all MY friends because I liked it so much. Now that I have it back I'm looking forward to reading it again!
Rating:
Summary: I just couldn't put it down!
Review: By far, this is one of the best books that I have read in a long time! The mystery is intriguing, but the best thing about this book is the emotional ranges that the reader is put through. A person can go from anger at how this little girl was treated by her mother, to horror at what the little girl whitnessed the night her little brother was killed and lives with the guilt of thinking that she could have done something, to anguish over how the family and friends react to the tragedy. The reader is able to be involved in this story as it follows the Emma's struggles as she tries to create a life for herself, as well as keep her family together. I loved this book, and just can't say enough about it. I was never a person who was interrested in reading romance/myseries, but this book sure got me hooked. After reading this book, I anxiously await her new books, and keep searching for her old ones. Thank you Nora, and keep up the good work!
Rating:
Summary: can't keep this good a book a secret
Review: Emma only three knowing only poverty and a drunk and druggie mom and a stuffed dog,charlie,who would love her no matter what,transformed by one meeting into a princess that found a prince in her dad and her new life,Big sister emma determined to make sure her brother darren did not know the other world that she had known and vowed to keep him safe...an oath that would haunt her forever when a tragedy happened and she witnessed...the detective hired was a dedicated sort who had a son whose life over the years always entertwined with emma...Love was meant for these two but instead she hooks up with a man who uses her fears against her and beats her..with no one to protect her she becomes a survivor and learns that the dirty nasty girl from under the sink is a worthwhile lovable person with a passion for photography.meanwhile setting her inner child free the part that lived in the moment far too long remembers and a happy ending for all....i loved the story even though the mystery thin...i guessed when it happened,but emma was engaging,johnno being gay and having a lover that emma was exposed to was also a rich a reality based story and her and her dad made me weep with how she put him on a pedestal and finally realizes he is not perfect....good book so much to say so little room...five stars explains it all...
Rating:
Summary: There's no-one like Nora!
Review: I am an avid reader and this is one of my favorite books. If I have no new books to read I reach for this one off of the bookself. I am a mother of four kids and am busy all day doing laundry and cleaning house, etc. The one thing I enjoy is reading. Nora Roberts takes me to England, Ireland, Madsgascar and all the places that I never visited except for in my imagination. This particular book touches me for I am a throwback from the sixties and enjoy thinking that Brian and Johnno really could exist among Lennon, Daltry, and Jagger. I haunt book stores searching for new books by Nora and go to used book stores looking for books that are no longer in print. Keep up the good work Nora. I anticipate your new ones and I enjoy reading your old ones. You give me joy! This book is one of your best. I thank you.
Rating:
Summary: A Real Page Turner
Review: I could not put this book down. It is great. Nora Roberts really knows how to weave a story and make the reader get to know the characters. I can't wait to read another one of her books.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I've read all year
Review: I could not put this book down. It was constantly moving and there was always a surprise on the next page. You get to know the characters so well. My praises go to Nora for a book well written.
Rating: 
Summary: This book surprised me......it's a great story
Review: I don't know what I thought it would be about, old rock stars...aging hippies maybe? I was wrong. It's a great
romantic story. Quite a few surprises too.
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