Chapter summaries Want to Know a Secret? Freida McFadden

Want to Know a Secret? Chapter 38 – A Flashback to the Hidden Truth

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

One year before the main events of the novel, Julie remembers a day she spent with Kathy Tanner and later with April. Kathy shares gossip that April was kicked out of culinary school for having an affair with a professor. Julie advises Kathy not to spread the rumor, warning that it is dangerous to mess with April. Later, Julie accompanies April to Shady Oaks, the nursing home where April’s mother Janet lives with dementia. April films an episode of her YouTube show with her mother. While April is away, Janet has a moment of clarity and begs Julie to tell April to let her go home, promising she will not tell anyone about the night “that girl died” – evidently Courtney Burns. April and a nurse intervene, and April later insists on increasing Janet’s medication. Julie, a former prosecutor, recalls the rumors that Courtney Burns, Elliot Masterson’s secretary, committed suicide. She wonders if April was involved and feels that if April did something terrible, she must face justice.

Key Events

  1. Kathy Tanner tells Julie that April was expelled from culinary school for an affair with a professor.
  2. Julie warns Kathy not to spread the rumor, implying that April is dangerous.
  3. Julie and April drive to Shady Oaks nursing home to film an episode for April’s show.
  4. April’s mother Janet appears frail and suffers from advanced dementia.
  5. While alone with Julie, Janet grabs her arm and begs to be let out, promising not to tell anyone about the night “that girl died.”
  6. April and nurse Peggy intervene; April later demands that Peggy adjust Janet’s medications to suppress these episodes.
  7. Julie recalls the rumor that Courtney Burns, Elliot Masterson’s secretary, committed suicide, and begins to suspect April may have been responsible.

Character Development

  • Julie – The chapter reveals Julie’s past as a prosecutor and her moral conviction that even a friend should pay for a crime. Her warning to Kathy shows she understands April’s manipulative nature, yet she continues to play the loyal friend. The encounter with Janet sparks the first serious doubt in Julie’s mind about April’s innocence.
  • April – April’s controlling behavior is on full display: she fires back at rumors, insists on filming her mother despite Janet’s condition, and demands medication changes to silence her mother’s outbursts. Her willingness to drug her own mother suggests a ruthless side.
  • Janet Portland – Despite her dementia, Janet shows a flash of coherence, revealing that she knows something about a death and that April was involved. Her fear of April and her desperation to go home highlight a tragic reversal: the mother is now the prisoner of her daughter.
  • Kathy Tanner – Her gossip and jealousy serve as a catalyst, but Julie’s reaction foreshadows that Kathy may be in danger.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

  • Secrets and gossip – The chapter begins with gossip about April’s culinary school expulsion and ends with a buried secret about a death. Gossip is presented as both a weapon and a way to uncover truth.
  • Control and manipulation – April controls her mother’s medical care, her public image, and her social circle. The nursing home itself becomes a symbol of how April can imprison those who know the truth.
  • Dementia and reliability – Janet’s mental state raises questions about the trustworthiness of her confession, but her sudden clarity suggests that the truth is locked inside her.
  • The Courtney Burns case – Recurring motif: the suspicious death of Elliot Masterson’s secretary. The chapter reveals that April may have been involved, deepening the mystery.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 38 is a turning point in the novel’s backstory. It provides the first concrete evidence (Janet’s plea) that April may be responsible for Courtney Burns’s death, which has been a lingering rumor. The chapter also establishes Julie’s internal conflict: her friendship with April versus her sense of justice as a former prosecutor. The flashback structure makes the reader realize that the present-day events are connected to this hidden history.

Study Questions and Answers

1. What does Julie remember about her career, and how does it affect her reaction to Janet’s plea?
Julie was a prosecutor whose job was to put guilty people in prison. When Janet begs to be let out and talks about a girl’s death, Julie immediately connects that to the Courtney Burns case and thinks, “If April did something terrible, it doesn’t matter if she’s my best friend. She needs to pay the price.”

2. Why does April want to increase her mother’s medication?
April overhears Janet’s outburst and later tells nurse Peggy she will contact Dr. Williams to adjust the medications. Given that Janet is “already so out of it,” the only purpose is to sedate her further and prevent her from revealing the truth about Courtney Burns.

3. How does the gossip about April’s culinary school expulsion relate to the larger mystery?
Both the gossip and Janet’s outburst involve April’s past misdeeds. Kathy’s gossip exposes April’s pattern of lying about her past, while Janet’s plea hints at a more serious crime. Together, they show that April habitually conceals the truth using any means necessary.

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