Apparently, Jeff Abbott is somewhat prolific: a quick look on Amazon shows LOTS of titles, many with “A Thriller” prominently displayed on the cover, just in case the reader/shopped isn’t aware of the genre. I certainly wasn’t, when I received a copy of Never Ask Me from Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. BTW, this is a standalone novel, not featuring one of his series characters.

The story is set in an affluent suburb of Austin called Lakehaven. It’s the kind of place the upper-middle-class folk from Austin who are looking for “good schools” (read:White) buy homes. One of those is a woman named Danielle, an international adoption consultant whose murder shocks this community. Danielle’s teenage son and his close friend Julia are out early one morning, playing an online game (think Pokemon Go) when they discover the body.

Julia’s parents, Iris and Kyle, adopted their teenage son Grant from Russia, with Danielle as their consultant. Grant starts getting anonymous messages (both email and gifts left in his favorite outdoor hiding place) that suggest his parents have been lying to him. Both Iris and Kyle seem to have secrets — oh, wait! So does Julia!  And Grant! And Danielle’s son Ned!

Told from alternating points of view, including excerpts from Iris’s “adoption journal,” the book does a great job of pointing toward various suspects, both major and minor characters. In the end, a convoluted tale unfolds, involving Grant’s adoption, secrets both old and new, and revelations that threaten to break families apart. I didn’t guess the ending (not unusual for me) and I got a little cranky whenever my reading was interrupted as I raced through this one in a little over a day. Four solid stars. Great fun!