‘No One Needs to Know’: Satire explores privilege and privacy

Three women living in the Upper East Side each raising one child attending The Crofton School become entangled in the apparent disappearance of one’s husband in “No One Needs to Know.”

Adding to the intrigue is that the anonymous online discussion board Urban Myth is hacked by a hacktivist group known as Eat the Rich bearing the sordid secrets of the trio and their neighbors. 

Although they’re often in competition with each other for the perceived benefit of their respective child, the UES mothers find themselves forced to work together to ensure that none jeopardizes her financial or social standing in the community.

Character Analysis

Characters

Heather Quinn
Norah Ryan
Poppy Ridley
Violet Quinn
Caroline Ryan
Bennett Stillman
Maya 

Heather Quinn is a sympathetic social climber who takes her desire for daughter Violet to have access to the best schools too far. Heater grew up in an abusive household with an alcoholic father and Catholic mothers before escaping to Rutgers University and moving to New York and marrying Oliver.

Heather gave up her career working on Wall Street to become a stay at home mother and volunteer overzealously at Crofton to build up good will for Violet’s application to Andover private school and a chance at the Ivy League schools.

Poppy Ridley grew up in an affluent home in New York where her mother enforced high beauty standards and saw men more as stock options than people. She taught Poppy to seek out wealthy men at the Harvard Club and was delighted to see Poppy snag “a big fish.”

Poppy’s husband, Harris, runs a successful company that employs Norah Ryan as a VP. Poppy’s only child Henry isn’t smart but, like his mother, enjoys the privilege of his surname. 

Norah Ryan started life in a two-bedroom rent controlled apartment in the Lower East Side with three siblings and supportive parents. Norah, who appreciates the value of money but prefers hard work and meritocracy is a Crofton alumna before attending Yale University and the Wharton School of Business on scholarship. 

Despite her professional success, Norah found herself pregnant, alone and working long hours before meeting her blue-blooded husband Bennett Stillman. She, her daughter Caroline, and Bennett reside in the Upper East Side but all feel like outsiders.

The other characters are given some color but left deliberately underdeveloped save their part in the narrative arc. 

Final Thoughts

“No One Needs to Know” blends character study with a quick moving plot that leads to a disappointing and pat conclusion. The build up with the incident at The Doubles Club dance, the hacking of Urban Myth, and the disappearance of Bennett Stillman keep readers’ attention. But, the resolution felt too quick and tidy to be truly satisfying.

Recommended for readers of mystery and contemporary women’s stories looking for a fast read to get over a reading slump. 

Rating

My rating is 3.5 stars out of five.

Book Details

Title: “No One Needs to Know”
Author: Lindsay Cameron
Year of Publication: 2023
Number of Pages: 292