Author: Rachel Hawkins
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers
Format: Kindle ARC
No. of Pages: 304
Date of Publication: January 9, 2024
My Rating: 5 Stars
But to everyone’s surprise, Cam wants little to do with the house or the money—and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into a normal life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules, a woman just as eager to escape her own messy past.
Ten years later, Camden is a McTavish in name only, but a summons in the wake of his uncle’s death brings him and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but coming home reminds Cam why he was so quick to leave in the first place.
Jules, however, has other ideas, and the more she learns about Cam’s estranged family—and the twisted secrets they keep—the more determined she is for her husband to claim everything Ruby once intended for him to have.
But Ruby’s plans were always more complicated than they appeared. As Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Was there any truth to the persistent rumors following her disappearance as a girl? What really happened to those four husbands, who all died under mysterious circumstances? And why did she adopt Cam in the first place? Soon, Jules and Cam realize that an inheritance can entail far more than what’s written in a will––and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave.
MY THOUGHTS:
Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore has died, and a huge fortune is about to be left to her adopted son, Camden. Shockingly, Cam wants nothing to do with the estate left to him, not even the millions that Ruby left.
Years previously, Cam left the glory of a rich life behind. He became a teacher, married Jules and started anew. What Cam was not aware of is that Jules is hiding a dark past, a past that just might come to light when Cam returns home.
As this latest book by Rachel Hawkins unfolds, the story is told from three points of view. This style made this book truly mesmerizing. Motives and secrets abound. But what made this book really work for me was the series of letters written by Ruby before her death and these letters being read aloud as part of the narrative of the book. Quite brilliant, actually. With a bevy of characters, this book proved to be a very compelling read.
Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.
Since then, Rachel has written over a dozen books for children and adults (sadly all unicorn-free thus far), and been published in more than twenty countries. As Rachel Hawkins, she wrote the New York Times bestselling THE WIFE UPSTAIRS, a Southern Gothic twist on JANE EYRE that the Southern Review of Books called, “a thrill ride,” and Entertainment Weekly dubbed, “a gothic thriller laced with arsenic.” Her latest thriller, RECKLESS GIRLS, also debuted on the New York Times list with Kirkus calling it, “a soapy, claustrophobic page-turner.”
When not writing modern Gothic thrillers as Rachel Hawkins, she also pens paranormal romantic comedies under the name Erin Sterling. Her debut romance, THE EX HEX, was a Book of the Month pick as well as a New York Times and USA Today Bestseller.
Rachel currently lives in Auburn, Alabama with her husband, son, and five cats. (Yes, five. She knows.). In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, and picking up an assortment of creative hobbies she will give up on after a week or two. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram.
No comments:
Post a Comment