Can you keep a secret? It will cost you? What is it worth? My life!Laura has been living in the convent for six years. Her hopes and dreams of the outside world relies on the contents of the letters she receives from her sister Beatrice. She had not receive a letter from her for a while, when she is told that she is to return home. Fear and excitement overwhelms her, she starts to relive her days playing with her sister. All those happy memories were shattered when she reached home, and found out her sister drowned. Laura is shocked and angry because she can't believe that her sister drowned, because her sister is the best swimmer in Venice. She then finds out that she has to marry Beatrice's fiance Vincenzo. After meeting Vincenzo at a party, Laura is desperate for help to get out of the arrange marriage. Vincenzo isn't at all of what she thought. Laura seeks the help of the Segreta, but she has to give up a secret in exchange for their services. Laura chooses to betray a powerful man for her freedom. Now a member of the Segreta, Laura will realize the true magnitude of Venice's deadly secrets.Laura's character from the beginning is very likable, even though she is very naive and immediately trusts everyone. She steadily becomes stronger and confident as the story line develops. Her relationship with her father is hostile, being that he only sees her as a way to make him look good. She tries her best to please him many times. Cross my heart was well paced and exciting novel. I enjoyed getting to the world that Sasha Gould created. I don't really read a lot of historical fiction but I definitely liked this one. Some of the revelations were predictable while others were shocking. There was little romance, which I didn't like. It was overwhelmed with the mystery and suspense of the plot. Towards the end is when we really see Laura interact with her love interest. Overall, a fun read. I definitely want to check out the next installments.
