What do you think the storyline says about the nature of secrets, and the need for truth?

Jamie Sullivan's secret needlessly hinders the investigation into the Hadlers' deaths, and yet his fears about what people in a small town might do if they found out about his—and Dr. Leigh's—homosexuality are understandable. Similarly, Ellie Deacon keeps the secret of her father's abuse, with tragic consequences. What do you think this says about the nature of secrets, and the need for truth?

Secrets are usually hard truths to tell. They can cause anxiety, depression, and even poor physical health. The most common secret that people keep is that they'd told a lie. What matters to most people is how often they thought about their secret. The need for truth is only present if it enables the secret holder to be a more authentic self.

Secrets are harmful. The truth will usually find a way to be told - sometimes the sooner the better.

So tricky. On one hand, some secrets should come out- Falk and his father were literally destroyed by secrets, by no one questioning and demanding the truth. Ellie was destroyed by her father’s secret abuse. Some secrets deserve to be uncovered, but maybe not all- we never do find out who Lachie ‘s father is, right? Gretchen says it’s not Luke, but she never really goes into it. And that’s fine- that’s her secret to keep, and maybe reveal to her son later in life.

Some things, it is true, are better left unsaid, but abuse is not one of them. Gretchen's secret, on the other hand, is not harming anyone really - that sort of secret is hers to keep. Ellie's youth may have been her reason for believing she could resolve her secret and her father's abusive behavior, but when life is in danger, someone must be told.

Secrets are complicated and keeping them will always have repurcussions. In the case of what happened to Aaron, the secret that he kept with Luke about Ellie completely changed his life and his father's life. It effectively ruined his relationship with his father and completely changed the course of their lives. If he hadn't lied to his father and come clean about where he actually was that day, things might have turned out differently. If Luke and Gretchen had told the truth, Ellie's father might have been revealed as the murderer a lot sooner. In the case of Gretchen keeping Lachie's father a secret, that is a lot less major, but could have repurcussions down the road for Lachie at least. In his case, if his Luke is the father, than he has grandparents who he could be having a relationship with and he's not. There are so many secrets in this book, I could go on all day. Some secrets are less harmful than others, but I think they are always harmful to someone.

It’s pretty hard to keep a secret when it is something that bothers you, I think secrets usually come out one way or the other.

I agree that secrets may come out. Remember we first meet Luke, Ellie and Aaron when they are teens. Luke and Gretchen were doing something they thought they shouldn't, Aaron wanted to keep his friendship with Luke, and later Karen was so honest with her boss that she didn't want to get him in trouble. Their secrets were more protective to them because they lived in a small town. However had someone helped Ellie with her secret the entire story might have been different,

It's not good to have secrets for short periods of time so when they last for decades, problems are going to pile up. Secrets in a small town are even worse. It's like playing the telephone game but worse. The truth gets bastardized along with the secrets. Most of the time the truth is the best way to handle things.

I read something very interesting last week. That people who tell lies are very bright compared to others, because of their ability to concoct a story sometimes very complex to cover the truth. My 38 year old daughter commented if that was the case why were they punished for lying. Secrets killed Ellie, had she told someone of her father's abuse maybe she would have lived. Luke's and Aaron's story made things more complicated and probably cost Aaron a normal life, same for Gretchen.