BOOK REVIEW: The Accused by Cara Putman

The Accused by Cara C. Putman
Series: Secrets to Keep #2
Published by Kregel Publications on April 15, 2025
Genres: Fiction / Christian / Suspense
Pages: 368
Format: eBook
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"A brilliant novel that fans of the genre won't want to miss!"

—Tosca Lee, New York Times best-selling author of The Line Between

When a popular college student is murdered, her international roommate, Anneliese, becomes a prime suspect. But law professor Margeaux Robbins doesn't believe that the quiet, lonely German girl in her class is the killer.

Chase Crandall is a burned-out defense attorney ready to extricate himself from the grind of criminal law. After he loses a client to tragedy, he's ready for an in-house corporate position.

When Chase is assigned to Anneliese's case, Margeaux is horrified. She doesn't want him to provide legal counsel—not after what happened to his past client. And not with the evidence incriminating Anneliese.

Despite their mutual misgivings, the lawyer and professor pair up to find the killer and prove Anneliese's innocence. Will they be able to untangle the mystery—and navigate their growing interest in one another—before the wrong person is charged with murder?

"Gripping and brimming with chemistry, this novel will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page."

—Lynette Eason, best-selling and award-winning author of the Lake City Heroes series

I really enjoyed this book. The Accused is something a bit different than what I’ve read here lately. A lot teacher vs. practitioner and a toss toward the Amanda Knox trial(s). Putman even talks about that in the acknowledgments and how it fueled this story to life. That aside, I think I’m in a place in my life where I am craving depth in my stories. And I’m starting to wonder if what I’m craving isn’t even possible. I say that as, no matter what a great story I read, I still feel like something is missing. Maybe it’s a me flaw and not a book flaw. Or maybe, just maybe it’s a season I’m in right now and the books are taking the hit.

Before I talk about the depth, I think I wanted, let’s touch on the romance. Those little threads were there throughout, attraction. But it wasn’t a focus or a distraction; it was just that attraction trying to find its simmer on the back burner. For a romance thread, it was pretty perfect for me 😀 OK, moving on. There were things here that were shared (but not enough for me) that were left dangling from The Vanished. But there was trauma for Margeaux, some hidden secrets that made her the prickly person she is, and while it was covered on the surface, I want . . . need . . . more. The same for Anneliese, Chase, and even Emma. There was so much to unpack for all of them that seemed like it was boxed up in the attic, almost forgotten, and those boxes had the potential to add some of that depth I was looking for. I’m not even talking about the mystery yet, just them as people and their hinted-at experiences and just life and motivation. Their why was hinted at but not really uncovered for me.

While the people felt superficial for me, and I hate that word and doesn’t feel like it fits, it’s what is in my head, so we’ll roll with it, but just know it’s not totally accurate. The mystery of it all did keep me engaged. While some of the people that I felt were nefarious were actually that the reasons behind it took me completely off guard. There were twists I never saw coming from people that I didn’t even think had a dog in the hunt. Overall, the mystery and the solving kept me completely on edge and surprised overall. Could those unpacked attic boxes of depth added to that, absolutely, but overall I was kept on the edge continuously, and that’s what makes this a great book for me. Not perfect but pretty absolutely amazing.

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Posted By: Fizzy Pop · In: book review, Cara Putman, Secrets to Keep, The Accused