February 2014

When reading THE DEEPEST SECRET by Carla Buckley, I felt the same way that I did reading DEFENDING JACOB by William Landay; it’s that good! This book is destined to be BIG. When I was three chapters in, I said to my husband, “I am in trouble…this one is an all-nighter.” There is a really exciting feeling that comes when you find a book like this.

Here’s the setup. Eve Lattimore is the very vigilant mother of Tyler, a young boy who must be watched like a hawk --- a boy who literally cannot see the light of day as it will kill him due to a rare skin condition. Eve has devoted her life to Tyler. She works to bring him joy from things like jumping on a trampoline at night and excursions to places like zoos under the cover of darkness. She chides neighbors to not use halogen lights and fears the beams of headlights as they too carry scary UV rays. She works each day to make Tyler’s world as “normal” as it can be while she still is hyper-vigilant.

One night, something happens on their quiet cul-de-sac that will threaten the “safe” world that she has constructed. And from there, everything that once seemed safe is now at risk. The book works on all levels --- characters, plotting, twists and turns. I was completely wrapped up in it…and loved the way it unfolded. Reading it outside, I was ready to huddle under a blanket as the sun was shining; I was that into the story.

The book opens with a chapter header of “Thursday, August 28th,” with the times of sunrise and sunset noted. Each chapter of the book takes place during a day when the sunlight is carefully measured. Most of the story is done by “Saturday, September 13th.” I read the entire book between August 31st/September 1st, and thus it all felt even more real. I was a fan of Carla’s debut, THE THINGS THAT KEEP US HERE, another book that felt very real to me when the power went out at the vacation house we were renting the morning I read it, just as it had in the novel.

I knew then that Carla had great talent. THE DEEPEST SECRET sealed it for me!