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Closest Kept: A Novel Kindle Edition
Breaking free from the past is one woman’s greatest challenge in an emotional novel about love, friendship, and the courage to overcome the worst of times by the author of Prickly Company.
Best friends Lily and Inga do everything together—they even meet their future loves at the same bar. After one serendipitous night, it seems like it’s going to be Lily and Alex and Inga and Matt forever.
But life gets more complicated. A job offer moves Inga and Matt from Norwich to London. Lily, who craves stability after a traumatic childhood, is already struggling with the change when Inga confides in her a secret that could tear the group apart for good. At the same time, Lily’s friendship with Matt deepens, and she wonders if she was always meant to be with him instead of Alex.
As the two couples try to hold on to their dreams and one another, Lily’s life is further upended by the reappearance of her long-lost sister—and all the terrible truths she brings home. Lily needs her chosen family more than ever, but in order to heal the rifts, she must find the courage to be honest with herself and reveal the secrets she’s kept hidden from her loved ones for too long.
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherLake Union Publishing
- Publication dateMay 6, 2025
- File size5.6 MB
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“I read this book with my heart in my throat! Filled with secrets that ripple like stones tossed in water, Closest Kept is a stunning novel about truth, trust, and the bravery it takes to love honestly and with your whole heart.” —Jennifer Gold, author of Halfway to You
About the Author
Kitty Johnson is the author of Prickly Company and Five Winters. She has an MA in creative writing from the University of East Anglia and teaches occasional creative writing classes. A nature lover and artist, Kitty enjoys walking in woodland and on the coast with her dog and makes collages and paintings from the landscape. She loves a challenge and once performed stand-up comedy as research for a book—an experience she found very scary but hugely empowering. Kitty lives in Norwich, Norfolk, in the UK with her partner and teenage son. For more information, visit www.kittyjohnsonbooks.com.
Product details
- ASIN : B0DCCBSK62
- Publisher : Lake Union Publishing
- Accessibility : Learn more
- Publication date : May 6, 2025
- Language : English
- File size : 5.6 MB
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 328 pages
- ISBN-13 : 978-1662518096
- Page Flip : Enabled
- Best Sellers Rank: #5,056 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #35 in Marriage & Divorce Fiction
- #74 in Friendship Fiction (Kindle Store)
- #88 in Sisters Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Kitty Johnson writes novels that make you laugh and cry. She lives in Norwich, Norfolk in the UK, with her partner and teenage son. Her novel Five Winters was recently awarded the Star Award 2024 by the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.
A nature lover, Kitty enjoys walking in the local woods and by the sea in Norfolk with her dog. Also an artist, she paints and makes collages in her studio when she has time. Kitty enjoys a challenge and once performed stand-up comedy as research for a book - an experience she found very scary but hugely empowering. Kitty has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia and has also published as Margaret K Johnson.
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An Emotional and Heartfelt Story
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2025Kitty Johnson, the Author of “Closet Kept” has written an emotional, heartfelt, and captivating novel. The genres for this book are Women’s Fiction, Friendship Fiction, Sibling Fiction, Family Fiction, and Fiction. There also is a dash or Romance and Suspense. The themes surrounding this story are keeping secrets, the importance of family, friends, honesty, courage, forgiveness, second chances, self-growth, love and hope. In this well developed and well written story, the author vividly captures the scenery and discusses the dramatic and dark characters. The characters are complex, and complicated. There are betrayals, manipulative characters, some toxic characters, and the quest for the truth.
Lily and Inga are the closest friends, and meet their boyfriends in the same bar. The four are as close as can be. Lily is the protector of secrets from her family, and her friends, and has had a tragic upbringing. Lily loves to paint, and as she deals with her pain, her paintings become more vivid. As life gets more complicated, Inga shares secrets with Lily. The relationships between Lily, Inga, and their boyfriends becomes strained.
Lily’s estranged sister Viola re-enters her life, and creates many problems. Lily and Viola share many secrets as well. There are twists and turns, and the authors creates an edgy feel to the story. I enjoyed this thought-provoking novel and I highly recommend it.
5.0 out of 5 starsKitty Johnson, the Author of “Closet Kept” has written an emotional, heartfelt, and captivating novel. The genres for this book are Women’s Fiction, Friendship Fiction, Sibling Fiction, Family Fiction, and Fiction. There also is a dash or Romance and Suspense. The themes surrounding this story are keeping secrets, the importance of family, friends, honesty, courage, forgiveness, second chances, self-growth, love and hope. In this well developed and well written story, the author vividly captures the scenery and discusses the dramatic and dark characters. The characters are complex, and complicated. There are betrayals, manipulative characters, some toxic characters, and the quest for the truth.An Emotional and Heartfelt Story
Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2025
Lily and Inga are the closest friends, and meet their boyfriends in the same bar. The four are as close as can be. Lily is the protector of secrets from her family, and her friends, and has had a tragic upbringing. Lily loves to paint, and as she deals with her pain, her paintings become more vivid. As life gets more complicated, Inga shares secrets with Lily. The relationships between Lily, Inga, and their boyfriends becomes strained.
Lily’s estranged sister Viola re-enters her life, and creates many problems. Lily and Viola share many secrets as well. There are twists and turns, and the authors creates an edgy feel to the story. I enjoyed this thought-provoking novel and I highly recommend it.
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2025Lily and Inga are inseparable since they became friends, so when they meet two guys who quickly become part of their every day lives, it seems too good to be true. Two girlfriends, meeting two guy friends and neither set were really looking for love but it seemed to find them. Inga had her eye on Matt and they seemed to fit well together and Lily then got together with Alex and love did come the more time they spent together. Things seemed to be well, and everyone was anticipating wedding bells in the future for them all. But relationships often cannot last when there are secrets being kept. Lily isn't sure she is ready for marriage but Alex and his mother keep pushing the topic as well as having children. Matt has done anything and everything he could for Inga, but she just doesn't seem happy. She hates their house, she can't seem to hold down a job and doesn't want anything to do with Matt lately. As the relationships fall apart, Lily and Inga realize how different they've become and the shocking secrets that they were keeping from each other. Lily can hardly believe how fast Alex moved on from her, and the things Inga was keeping from Matt. As relationships continue to strain Lily realizes she is sick of keeping everyone's secret, sick of hiding her past and sick of other dictating her life. As the truth of her past unravels, it reveals why Lily is who she is and why she has made the choices she has. But she finally has found that one person who she can open up to, explain it all and isn't afraid to fall for. I could not wait to see how this all ended up. I was rooting for them the whole time! Thank you to the author for the complementary novel and to Suzy Approved Book Tours for the invite. This review is of my own opinion and accord.
4.0 out of 5 starsLily and Inga are inseparable since they became friends, so when they meet two guys who quickly become part of their every day lives, it seems too good to be true. Two girlfriends, meeting two guy friends and neither set were really looking for love but it seemed to find them. Inga had her eye on Matt and they seemed to fit well together and Lily then got together with Alex and love did come the more time they spent together. Things seemed to be well, and everyone was anticipating wedding bells in the future for them all. But relationships often cannot last when there are secrets being kept. Lily isn't sure she is ready for marriage but Alex and his mother keep pushing the topic as well as having children. Matt has done anything and everything he could for Inga, but she just doesn't seem happy. She hates their house, she can't seem to hold down a job and doesn't want anything to do with Matt lately. As the relationships fall apart, Lily and Inga realize how different they've become and the shocking secrets that they were keeping from each other. Lily can hardly believe how fast Alex moved on from her, and the things Inga was keeping from Matt. As relationships continue to strain Lily realizes she is sick of keeping everyone's secret, sick of hiding her past and sick of other dictating her life. As the truth of her past unravels, it reveals why Lily is who she is and why she has made the choices she has. But she finally has found that one person who she can open up to, explain it all and isn't afraid to fall for. I could not wait to see how this all ended up. I was rooting for them the whole time! Thank you to the author for the complementary novel and to Suzy Approved Book Tours for the invite. This review is of my own opinion and accord.Great read about friendships and relationships as we grow.
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2025
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2025This deeply touching novel tugged at my heartstrings in all the best ways! Kitty Johnson is a master of writing complex characters that leap right off the page. Protagonist Lily shoulders the burden of a painful past. Even as it haunt her, the loss she’s experienced also propels her to do right by those she loves. But keeping the truth of her upbringing hidden comes with a heavy cost, and if she wants to hold onto her people, she’ll have to let go of her secrets. A story of friendship and sisterhood, loyalty and forgiveness, Closet Kept will have you feeling all the feels, and rooting for Lily every step of the way.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2025Lily has always put others before herself: her sister, her best friend Inga and when she meets Alex, she quickly falls into the same pattern. In Closest Kept, we follow her journey to happiness, true friendship and success. I picked up this books thinking it was a lighthearted rom-rom but it’s not. It is a gripping story about living with and overcoming childhood trauma. The book deals with - trigger warning - serious topics such as alcoholism, drug use, abortion, pregnancy, child abandonment, cancer and death. Yet it is so beautifully and tastefully written that it isn’t pulling you down but makes it feel like ‘real life’.
The story is told from Lily’s POV and most of the time I had a love-hate relationship with her. Early on we learn how childhood trauma followed her all the way into adulthood and affects all facets of her life. She’s kept most of it a secret rather than dealing with it and has built a net of lies around her and her relationships. When she is finally forced to face reality, she realizes that she has to trust others to find herself and true relationships. I loved how the author developed the individual characters each of them growing into the persons they are meant to be. Matt was, of course, my absolute favorite. This was a great read with a lot of food for thought. I was rooting for Lily the whole time and wish her all the best. I can’t wait to read more from this author.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2025Closest Kept is a poignant and satisfying tale of secrets, betrayals, and finally breaking free from the past. It's the story of a friendship pushed to its limit and a sisterhood on the verge of splintering, ultimately asking the question: how far should you go to protect the people you love? Like in Kitty Johnson's previous two novels, I found myself swept up by the honest, relatable characters and kept thinking about them long after the final page.