Reputation

by Sara Shepard

Dutton

Publication Date : December 3, 2019

Pages : 384

Synopsis From Publisher :

Aldrich University is rocked to its core when a hacker dumps 40,000 people's e-mails—the entire faculty, staff, students, alums—onto an easily searchable database. Rumors and affairs immediately leak, but things turn explosive when Kit Manning's handsome husband, Dr. Greg Strasser, is found murdered. Kit's sister, Willa, returns for the funeral, setting foot in a hometown she fled fifteen years ago, after a night she wishes she could forget. As an investigative reporter, Willa knows something isn't right about the night Greg was killed, and she's determined to find the truth. What she doesn't expect is that everyone has something to hide. And with a killer on the loose, Willa and Kit must figure out who killed Greg before someone else is murdered.

Told from multiple points of view, Reputation is full of twists, turns, and shocking reveals. It's a story of intrigue, sabotage, and the secrets we keep—and how far we go to keep them hidden. Number one bestseller Sara Shepard is at the top of her game in this brand-new adult novel.

How much does your reputation mean to you? Would you lie to save your good name? Would you kill to maintain outward appearances? In Sara Shepard’s latest release Reputation, we meet a group of women forever linked by a man whose reputation did not coincide with his true self. A man who appeared to be the perfect husband and father but was actually rotten to the core. 

A cyber attack has struck the elite and prestigious Aldrich University. The emails of students, teachers, and administration staff has been published on a searchable data base. The entire school is thrown into turmoil as everyone’s private thoughts and secrets are made public knowledge. To make matters much worse Dr. Gregg Strasser has been found dead in his home. He is a doctor at Aldrich University Hospital, his wife Kit a fundraiser for the university. Strasser’s murder pushes the town of Aldrich over the edge. Everyone has something to hide and seems willing to do anything to keep their secrets hidden. 

Reputation is told from several points of views. One of the main perspectives is Willow, Kit’s younger sister. Willow is an investigative reporter who moved from Aldrich to California fifteen years ago. The reason for Willow’s move to California is easily figured out, however trying to figure how that connects to her brother-in-law’s murder or if there is a connection at all is the real question. In fact trying to figure out how all the narrators are linked is the central mystery. 

There are a lot of narrators in Reputation, a total of five. When starting Reputation it was a little difficult to follow the story due to the numerous narrators. With the exception of one narrator who was younger than the others, it was sometimes hard to differentiate the narrators. However there is a flow to the plot. When I got around 50-60 pages into the story, identifying the narrators became easier. 

Although a bit predictable, Reputation is still a page turner. Readers will find it hard to not become invested in at least one character. Once the link between all narrators is unveiled the pacing of the story picks up. Readers looking for an entertaining yet light suspense read should add Reputation to their list of must reads. 

Murder and Moore Rating : 

3.75 / 5 Stars