Book Review for Our Mother's Secret by Alison Ragsdale

 

Our Mother's Secret by Alison Ragsdale

Published:  September 15, 2026 by Bookouture

Taken from Goodreads:  When my sister tells me time is running out for her life-saving transplant, tears roll down my cheeks. But she isn’t crying, she’s staring at our mother, who says words that will change my life forever. ‘It’s time for me to tell you the truth…’

I can barely breathe as my mother tells us there is a possibility that the father we adored might not be our birth father. Before I can process the secret she has kept from us, she takes my hand firmly in hers. ‘You have to find him Mairi, the other man. He is our last chance to save your sister.’

When I tell my husband Tom what my mother has asked me to do, I can see the pain on his face. All he wants is for me to rest and protect the precious life inside of me, the baby we hoped for all these years. How can I put my own happiness ahead of saving my sister’s life?

But finding the man my mother loved all those years ago is only the beginning. Because my sister is also hiding something, and it will change everything I thought I knew about our family. Am I truly prepared for what I will discover when I unravel the secrets of those I love the most? And will I be ready to make the most impossible choice of all?

My Thoughts:  Oh wow!  This book…it tore me up, put me back together, and kept me enthralled with the story from the very first page.

A chance to save your sister’s life or have the baby you have always dreamed of?  How can you make that choice?   Mairi is struggling with making that choice while her sister Fiona is just trying to stay alive.  I felt for Mairi and her husband, Tom.  They deserved to live their married life without all the extra drama.   Their dreams were coming true with the pregnancy, and they were not able to enjoy it with all that was happening around them.  

Our Mother’s Secret is a story of love, secrets, and hard choices.   The story will pull at your heartstrings. 

Thank you to Bookouture for a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Add to your MUST-READ list on Goodreads

Purchase your own copy on Amazon

 

Meet the Author (taken from her website):  A proud Scots lass, I was born in Edinburgh and the connection to my homeland has never left me. Consequently, my novels are set in the stunning Highlands and islands of Scotland.

I’ve had what could be termed a varied career. I trained as a professional ballet dancer and worked in the field of dance for many years. When an injury called a halt to that, I eventually became a marketing executive. After two decades in that world, I started my own health-services business but it took too great a toll on me so my husband encouraged me to focus on writing, as I’d always dreamed of doing.

I took the leap of faith in 2014 and dived into my first full-length novel TUESDAY’S SOCKS. It was a scary feeling, putting my ‘baby’ out there, but I was delighted when readers fell for my sweet protagonist, Jeffrey Mere. TUESDAY’S SOCKS soon became an Amazon bestseller. My second novel, THE FATHER-DAUGHTER CLUB, came out at the end of 2014. I was thrilled when it too made it to an Amazon best seller list, receiving a wonderful review from Kirkus Reviews, and going on to win the 2016, IPPY Bronze medal for Best Regional Fiction – Europe.