Seven for a Secret

By Mary C. Sheppard

Book Overview

Fifteen-year-old Melinda is looking forward to spending another summer with her cousins Rebecca and Kate in the small outport village of Cook's Cove on Newfoundland's west coast. Rebecca is a goody-goody who is under the thumb of her stern mother. Kate, the city dweller, is determined not to let a swoonworthy boyfriend block her future. Melinda tends to talk a mile a minute and is a bit bossy and a bit saucy. The first inkling of real trouble comes when a stranger arrives in the village and invites Rebecca to Boston to develop her artistic talent. The three girls are suddenly exposed to the possibilities of the outside world. Melinda finds herself not only responsible for keeping the family secrets, but is also faced with deciding just how far family loyalty should go. Join the girls as they flirt, party, endanger their lives with their own foolishness, and meet their first loves.

"If there are dark themes and undertones to this brilliant debut novel, there is also a liveliness -- an astonishing amount of "life" -- that radiates from its pages. Its language, its characters, its story are indelible." Susan Perren, Globe and Mail

Seven for a Secret is an award winning novel and the first in the Tales from Cook's Cove series of three books.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 106880551X
• ISBN13: 9781068805516
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Mary C. Sheppard
• Length: 174 Pages
• Weight: 0.53 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A highly recommended, "reader friendly" novel

Set in a small village on the coast of Newfoundland, Seven For A Secret by Mary C. Sheppard is a highly recommended, "reader friendly" novel of Rebecca and Kate, two fifteen-year-old girls and their confrontation with opposing directional pulls. Invited to develop their artistic talent and explore the world beyond their village borders, Rebecca and Kate are forbidden to go by an uncompromising family member. Also available in paperback..., Seven For A Secret is strong tale of personal will in the making one's own destiny.

I liked the ending of Seven For A Secret

Actually, unlike the reader from Nova Scotia, I really liked the whole book - including the ending. I didn't live in rural Newfoundland in -when was it, the sixties or seventies?-, but it sure rings true to me that lots of girls in that time and place would get pregnant before finishing high school.To me, that was part of the point. That the choices people make are in large part dictated by their environment........... that when you're young your social circle is accidental, but as you get older you increasingly spend time with people who share your goals and values.......... and that the only people who don't end up following the crowd are those who are both single-minded and lucky. That said, this isn't a message novel. The author seemed to really like and sympathize with all her characters. And so when I read it, I cared about them all too. And the book was subtle enough that you knew everybody in it would have to make some tough decisions. There are no easy answers, the book said, and I agree.I thought the book was insightful about girls' lives. It was a great read too - I read it straight through in about 3 hours and enjoyed every page.

Seven For A Secret

I really enjoyed most of this book. Melinda, Kate and Rebecca are perfect examples of what good friends and good characters should be.The part I didn't enjoy was the ending in this book. In the end Melinda gets married and is pregnant (before finishing school), basically ruining any chance she had of becoming something she wanted to do, like become a nurse. The ending was upsetting for me.