Incredible

Moving, intriguing and addictive in all the right ways. Would so recommend this book. So impressed.

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Loved it.

I loved this book, I picked it as its set in Norfolk although it could be anywhere. I just loved this dysfunctional family who so want to be loved by their mother/ grandmother (which sadly reminds me off my in-laws) and having the house proves it, also the suspense of it all.
Do read or listen to it I hope you love it as much as I did.

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Excellent

Kept me interested most of story though didn’t really like the predictable ending.A good read though

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More to the mystery than meets the eye ...

I loved "Truth Hurts" by Rebecca Reid, so I had this one nailed down in my pre-orders as soon as I saw it and eagerly awaited its release. However, almost immediately I felt rather disappointed as it failed to grip me. In fact I drifted through it, zoning in and out, contemplating returning it and listening to two other audiobooks and a podcast before being forced to return as nothing else left.
Finally through a poor night's sleep where I left it running, dipping in and out, I finally heard the twists revealed and it ended.
I had heard enough of the plot to understand the clever and tidy wrap up but felt underwhelmed. It felt like a classic country house murder mystery without the murder.
Then I was surprised and delighted to hear that an interview with the author and her editor ensued, which I have to say I enjoyed more than the audio book itself. As I had already heard the plot reveal, there were no spoilers for me but I was very intrigued and enamoured by the backstory of the writing and inspiration for the book and it all started to make a lot more sense. Hearing that Daphne Du Maurier was the authors favourite author as well as my own also spurred me on to give it another go, I was also delighted to hear there was a proof reader who checked the drafts as in many books - not this one - there are so many annoying inconsistencies and gaping plot holes. The only one they seemed to miss in this book is that a farrier would need to visit to shoe horses every 6 weeks on average ... not twice a year (ouch!).

Audible - if you are reading this - I would like to say that I would simply adore it if this after book author interview became standard practice for all audiobooks as it really does make the book come to life and it is fascinating to get that insight into the writer's creative process, plus writing tips also.

Anyway, starting listening again from the point after the first few chapters where I lost interest, it all came to life for me and unfolded in technicolour with so much richness and delicious details and it all started to make sense.

I still did not particularly care for the characters, apart from Cecily, who while not exactly nice, was glamorous and unique. I did not warm to Violet or their relationship dynamic. Edmund was a little shadowy and the rest of them, apart from Jonty were a bit of a wash out.

I also was a bit thrown by all the furore about cousins being romantically involved. Personally I do not have any cousins, so perhaps I do not understand - however on looking it up I read that cousins marrying each other used to be common in the past and continues today in some societies, with more than 10% of marriages worldwide between first or second cousins currently.

Leaving this aside on my second read, not wasting my time waiting for a murder, I discovered and enjoyed a very involving mystery and enjoyed the deeper threads and appreciated the relationships between the characters more as well as tuning into a much richer story.

If I had a stack of newly released promising thrillers and whodunnits by my favourite tried and trusted authors burning a hole in my library I do not think I would have bothered to re-read and appreciate this audio book and certainly without the interview with the author this would have been a return instead of a revisit.

However at the end of the day I'm glad I took the time as once I got into it I did enjoy it and the nuance and atmosphere came through and I became 100% engaged and really enjoyed it despite the majority and multitude of unappealing characters,

Will definitely be looking forward to Rebecca Reid's next book.

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4 people found this helpful

Interesting story

I enjoyed this book. It’s different and has a few twists and turns
I thought the characters were well developed and really enjoyed the narrator who brought them all to life

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I struggled through this one

Not as good as I expected, slow moving, rather boring characters, really struggled through it. Narrator was very good.

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Enjoyed it

I really enjoyed this book. I loved how we were brought back in time for each character to learn about their private lives. It’s a study of people. A very enjoyable book.

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fabulous ...

thank you Rebecca Reid for a wonderful story, I didn't want it to end. I'm very much looking forward to your next book. the characters were very vivid, the Storyline just smashing...

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