A Secret About a Secret

A Novel

By: Peter Spiegelman

Narrated by: Jack Bannon

A hypnotic literary mystery thriller about a murder at a secluded research facility and the secrets that it exposes. • "Cyber thievery, lust, corporate espionage, and a host of deleterious secrets comprise the chords of this sweeping, riveting symphony. A bold and original thriller by a masterful storyteller.”—Elizabeth Brundage, author of The Vanishing Point

Looming high above the cliffside along a remote coastline, Ondstrand House is the headquarters of the shadowy biotech firm Ondstrand Biologic. When the body of the organization’s most gifted young scientist, Allegra Stans, is discovered in a walk-in refrigerator—her neck has been broken—Agent Myles is called in to investigate. Myles works for Standard Division, the most feared element of a vast state security apparatus, and he’s been dispatched to the brooding manor, a massive stone campus that once housed a notorious boarding school, to do what Standard Division agents do best—complete the task at hand.

As his investigation proceeds, Myles discovers that “gifted scientist” is only one thread in the complicated fabric of Allegra’s life. There are darker strands as well—of ambition, manipulation, and bitter grievance—all woven into a pattern of secrets, each presenting a reasonable motive for murder. It appears everyone has something to hide, including Allegra’s colleagues, lovers, and former lovers—even the very halls of Ondstrand House itself.

Questions continue to pile up: What interest does Standard Division, an organization best known for intelligence gathering and clandestine international operations, have in this seemingly straightforward case? Could the killing have anything to do with the sprawling estate’s sordid past? And what, exactly, is this research facility researching? Before long, another murder is discovered, and Myles finds himself an increasingly unwelcome presence in an ever more hostile landscape with few allies and fewer answers.

©2022 Peter Spiegelman (P)2022 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Spiegelman is a top-notch storyteller, and his latest will appeal equally to those who enjoy mainstream procedurals and to genre-blending readers who relish crime novels set in the future."—Booklist

"In his astonishing new novel, set in an ambiguous future, Peter Spiegelman unpacks a murder at an elite research facility with an ominous history, navigating an elusive frontier of scientific innovation where intellectual property is its most coveted currency. Cyber thievery, lust, corporate espionage, and a host of deleterious secrets comprise the chords of this sweeping, riveting symphony. A bold and original thriller by a masterful storyteller."—Elizabeth Brundage, author of The Vanishing Point

"Peter Spiegelman has an extraordinary ability to conjure vivid characters and places with a few perfectly-chosen words. In A Secret About a Secret, he puts that skill to the service of creating a world that is not quite ours (not yet anyway). I couldn't put this book down and was rooting for Myles, its narrator, even while I was a tiny bit horrified at his role in a world that itself is more than a tiny bit horrifying."—SJ Rozan, bestselling author of Family Business

Muzzle on his Words

I couldn't get enough of "A Secret About a Secret". It's certainly a very slow burn, which I absolutely enjoyed the pace. Not everything has to go go go, where your mind is on Ritalin. When people first meet me, I am a very approachable person, very straightforward and engaging, but after the room dies down, I tend to shy away from the crowds and go to a corner of the room and just observe everyone from far.

When reading this book, I got the same feeling that this was my time being immersed in a mirror within a mirror and sinking into the plot. The story is something that you feel on an endless walk in the desert. You are not sure what is real because the sun is beating down on you and all you want is to quench that thirst. This is how I like to read.

The reason I like this novel so much is that Peter Spiegelman puts a muzzle on his words to let the reader expand their imagination. And that is the whole point of reading for me. When reading something fiction, I don't like having the dots connecting for me.

This title was recommended to me by a friend and I finished it within two days. I highly recommend it for someone like an abstract detective thriller. I still don't understand what Standard Division is, but it will come to me when I'm in a corner, just observing.

Great new author

This was a very good book. Here is hoping for a series with Agent Myles and the same narrator each time. Too bad I could not find other books on audible narrated by him.

A wonderful find!

I saw this book recommended in the Wall Street Journal book section. Husband and I decided to give it a try. Glad we did.

The secrets just continue to be revealed. What appears to be an open and shut case isn't. A murder happens and an investigator from a powerful but unnamed organization arrives. Another secret is the location and the name of the company where the story occurs. Of course, the murder victim is not what she seems. Neither are the other important head of company witout secrets.

Indications are that the investigator will be in a sequel and hopefully a series. Looking forward to it.

Snoozefest

The summary states this is a "hypnotic literary mystery"....translation, this is a snoozefest. The story is dull and plodding, and the narration fit perfectly... completely flat, mind numbing, and boring. The author is obsessed with describing the female characers' physical features and clothing. The murder victim slept with every adult male and female at her job, and was also working her way through the residents of the nearby town, including underage boys. She is supposed to be a brilliant scientist and world champion caliber runner, but honestly, I dont see how she found the time to work or run given the volume of liaisons she was constantly juggling.

This book is odd, but not in a good way. The murder is investigated by only one main character, who works for something called "Standard Division". I listened to the whole book and I still don't know what Standard Division is. I felt that a lot of things were not explained at all or not explained well. This is a very wordy book, but ultimately very little is said.