3 stars
I listened to the audiobook, and enjoyed the Australian accent.
Overall I did enjoy this reading experience, but was annoyed that you don't (officially) learn the "secret" until ~30% of the book. There were some sections that started to drag, I didn't think this was a good mystery nor very thrilling. Much more a domestic drama over a suspenseful storyline for me. There are three points of view, and we rotate amongst the three main characters to tell the story--sometimes at a dramatic moment there would be a chapter and perspective change, but this is artificially creating the tension.
I also didn't think that Tess's POV fit very well with the other two? I understood how Rachel and Cecilia were connected, but Tess didn't feel like the third part of that triangle, she just felt sort of extra to the pair...

I thought that there may be another 'twist' near the end, and I was predicting that either Collin really would be the murderer, or that it was a natural death. I couldn't figure out why they'd not figured out that it was a natural death during an autopsy, until one throwaway sentence in the epilogue explained that they just didn't do a full autopsy. This felt like it negated the entire book, and was extremely annoying--lost a full star just for that.
I appreciated Rachel being given some control over Jean-Paul's fate at the end. I don't know if her actions really made a ton of sense/if she would have really decided to not go straight to the police, but I think some of the reviews that insist that it was completely unrealistic for Cecilia to not immediately leave JP, or unrealistic that Tess would forgive her husband or unrealistic for Rachel to not go to the police-- I think they're forgetting how much of a life and time has been invested into these men. Cecilia had known and loved her husband for years, she's seen him be an amazing father, someone who loves and cares for her and the girls, who does community service, is a good man. I understood completely how turned upside down her world was after learning the secret, and her warring thoughts on how to respond. Tess has a lifetime of friendship and love for her cousin, and has been married to her husband for years too--the betrayal cut very deeply, but I think it's understandable for Tess to want to have some resolution and work on her marriage. I did get the impression that her relationship with her cousin was irreparably damaged, that they'd never have that level of trust or care between them again. Also, Tess at the end didn't just forgive her husband and move back in and forget all about it, I think she started the process of adjusting to this knowledge and the life choices to try and make the marriage work, not just dust her hands and be okay with things.

As for 'themes', I'd say many people were unhappy about the 'unlikability' of our main characters, but I saw them as pretty realistic overall, with flaws and annoying habits and weird reactions to dramatic events. It was interesting to me to read about how they each 'handled' big dramatic secrets and reacted to huge life changes.
Another topic was forgiveness--who deserves it, who can give it, how to accept events and choose to forgive or not...

Also, what was with the whole Berlin wall topic??