"delightful character driven thriller"

In the Triangle area of North Carolina Corinne Elliot and her lover reporter Ken Carmichael discuss her pregnancy when he learns he has been yanked from the Gleason murder trial coverage. Angrily he puts on the TV news only to have Corrine, once she sees the victim's face, tell Ken that the accused is not guilty of killing pregnant Professor Genevieve Russell, wife of the then governor, because she was there in 1977 Chapel Hill, twenty-eight years ago.

Corrine's mom therapist Eve Elliot also knows that Gleason never killed Genevieve. However, if she admits the truth she will spend time in jail, shatter her marriage to dear Jack, and destroy her loving daughters Dru and Corrine and that of Genevieve's surviving family. For the truth is she guiltily abetted in the abduction of Genevieve that still haunts her husband, now the University of Virginia President Irving Russell, and their daughter Vivien. If she fails to speak up an innocent man will die. As she ponders what to do, Corrine is coming home seeking the truth from the woman who lovingly raised her.

Though similar suspense laden family dramas have been told before, readers will appreciate Diane Chamberlain's deep take due to a strong cast and the smooth transitions between today and what happened in 1977. The exciting story line grips the audience once Corrine recognizes the dead woman, never slows down while Eve thinks back to the mountains of lies that make up the foundation of her life and relationships, and the final confrontation between the members of two families tied together in tragedy. The emotional realism of reactions by the various cast members makes THE SECRET LIFE OF CEECEE WILKES a delightful character driven thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted May 24, 2006