This book had me guessing and second-guessing until the very end!

Rowan stumbles across the perfect job! countryside Being a live-in nanny seemed like a dream come true - unbeatable salary, state of the art ‘smart’ living quarters and the beautiful Scottish. But that dream quickly became a nightmare, one that would end with a dead child and an impending murder trial. Rowan struggled with the constant surveillance by her employer and the horrendously behaved children all while dealing with an impossibly complicated ‘smart’ home system. To make things worse she hadn’t been able to sleep a wink!
 
I particularly enjoyed the use of first-person and the letter format; this gave Rowan’s character much more dimension and help humanize her, even though she was in prison awaiting trial for murder. Ruth has done it again! She always manages to keep the suspense rolling. There were so many possible suspects and possible outcomes that there was no way I could have possibly seen the end coming. That being said I did personally find the ending felt a little flat.

› Inspired by The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, The Turn of the Key is the second Ruth Ware book that I've read. It's a chilling story about twenty-seven-year-old Rowan Caine on trial for murdering a child while working as a nanny at Heatherbrae House in the Scottish Highlands. The story is told in letter-form to a lawyer, Mr. Wrexham.

› Heatherbrae House is part unique historic homestead - part modern, luxurious "smart" home. Doors, windows, heat, light, and sound can be all controlled via smartphone. Owners, Bill and Sandra, leave Rowan with their four daughters and two dogs, for a week while they are out of the country for work. It doesn't take long for strange things to start happening, making Rowan feel like she's losing her mind and wondering why the other nannies didn't stick around.

› Likes 😻
• Ruth Ware knows how to create an atmospheric setting.
• The Heatherbrae House, Rowan, unexplained happenings in the house, the sound of someone pacing in an empty room above you each night, a story told through letters, and a poison garden all make The Turn of the Key sound like a five-star book. I was turning pages, waiting for things to pick up, expecting a climactic ending, but was left feeling disappointed.

› Dislikes
• Disappointment: This is a fascinating story that lacked execution. The weird things happening in the house needed to be turned up a notch. I was waiting to feel scared or worried for their safety, but that feeling just didn't come.
• Disbelief: Why didn't Rowan call the parents to talk about the problems that were going on? Rowan did not act like a 27-year-old. What parent would leave their four children with a nanny they hardly know for over a week?
• Dull: The characters lacked personality, the ending was unsatisfying.

› Final Thoughts
• I liked Ruth Ware's previous book, The Death of Mrs. Westaway much more than this one. I'm giving this 3 stars (2.5 rounded up) however, 76% of Goodreads reviewers gave this 4 or 5 stars, so I recommend you give The Turn of the Key a read!

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for the complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.

I received a ARC of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley for an honest review in exchange. I’ve read a few books by her and I was excited to get approved for this advanced reader copy.

THE TURN OF THE KEY is creepy, twisted, and disturbing, and totally absorbing. It was really hard to put down as are Ruth Ware's other books.

This story is a compulsive tale of a nanny sitting in jail awaiting trial for the murder of one of her charges. The entire book is told through letters from said nanny to a potential solicitor, recalling the events leading up to her incarceration, along with a few surprise notes throughout and at the end. Rowan is an unlikeable lead character, but that changes as time goes on. The little surprises here and there make you want to root for her and shake her at the same time.

Great read, highly recommended for lover's of this genre.

When I think of Ruth Ware, I think atmosphere. Ruth can transport you to wherever the setting of her book is. I have read all of her books and this one is my favourite. Her writing, and her novels just get better and better. I love how her main characters are not altogether likable, yet you are still rooting for them. Rowan is no exception. Throughout the story you are trying to figure out what she is hiding and at the same time wondering who or what is the cause of the sinister occurrences in the house. I read this book in one day as I just could not put it down.

Ruth Ware has an incredible talent for the atmosphere in her books. While I'm reading on a hot sunny day in Canada, I feel every bit immersed in a cold, overcast Scotland. The setting is alive, and it's entirely the reason I keep coming back to her as an author.

I'm not sure that I enjoyed this one more than the others I've read by her. I think my enjoyment of it falters a little due to some of the other books I read shortly before this one. There were some similar themes across the books, and unfortunately, it felt a bit repetitive at this point. And I think I liked the outcomes of the other more. Our main girl was not someone who I could wholely get behind. She felt very contradictory, and once the reveal comes, you understand why but it did not negate my feelings of frustration while getting there.

But still really liked it, and am looking forward to the next!

Ruth Ware delivers another amazing and suspenseful novel!
Writing to a lawyer from prison, we meet Rowan, swearing that she did not kill a child.
Flipped back in time to when Rowen stumbles upon an ad for a live-in nanny with an incredible salary, and she feels compelled to apply. When she arrives at Heatherbrae House for the interview she has further swept away. The house is huge and full of modern technological advances. The children seem fine, except for the chilly warning to stay away.
Rowan accepts the job and we quickly see things start to fall apart, the mistakes being made, but .... murder?

Highly recommended! Great novel, great plot, great character development!

*Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with an advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Ive been a fan of Ruth Ware's for awhile so when I saw she had a new release I knew I had to get my hands on a copy. True to her work The Turn Of The Key did not dissappoint and dare I say is her best novel so far!
I loved how the majority of the book is Rowan writing to Mr.Wrexham, a solicitor, that she is trying to get to prove her innocence in court. Rowan has claimed her innocence since the first police involvement and doesn't understand why no one believes her. I wasn't sure at first how the book was going to go being letters to Mr. Wrexham but it was very well executed. The story was able to unravel at a steady pace so you understood what had occurred leading up to the death. The ending is a few letters from others to Rowan while she's in prison. The story is a hauntingly chilling one that had me on the edge of my seat wondering what exactly was happening that ultimately led to the death of the child. It had a shocking ending that I didn't really see coming!
This is another book that I highly suggest you add to your summer reading list! A fast paced summer read that I devoured in day!

I would like to thank Simon and Schuster Canada and netgalley for my #gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

My review can be found on goodreads ands Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/B0qqXzPAjld/

While web browsing, a young woman catches a glimpse of an ad for a live-in nanny and in short order discovers how good an opportunity it is. Too good probably. Too good to be true as it would turn out.

This novel leaves us a trail of breadcrumbs to follow without giving away the story’s secrets. A gift of this particular writer.

Embodying not just one but multiple mystery tropes, the author colours outside the lines with gleeful abandon! Locked-room mystery? Check. Haunted House mystery? Check. Creepy children mystery? Check. And that’s not all. But don’t take my word for it, see for yourself.

My thanks to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

The Turn of the Key is my first read by Ruth Ware. I expected creepy, and I got it. Here's a great idea: accept a position as a nanny in a horror house. In Scotland,
the main character, Rowan, does just that. Unfortunately, the story begins with her imprisonment, so the house probably ate somebody. Just saying. The story is told in a somewhat epistolary style through letters Rowan writes to a lawyer explaining what happened. It's slow at first, but eventually, it picks up a bit. So, Rowan is a nanny to some weird kids in a creepy technologically advanced house. The atmospheric presence of the house is its own character full of menacing darkness and bad mojo. This middle of nowhere Scottish mansion pretty well controls itself. What?? Wouldn't a person have to be a bit screwy in the head to voluntarily work here in the first place? I questioned Rowan's reliability from the start. Something about her seemed odd. It's a continuous freak show right to the end. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. It's okay, but I didn't love it. The overall story is a creepy trip down a bizarre road, so read if you dare. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ruth Ware and Simon & Schuster for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

Rowan was cruising the Internet one day when she found a job posting that sounded perfect for her. It’s a nannying position with a really generous salary; when she goes for her interview, she falls in love with Heatherbrae House with all its technologies and luxuries. What she doesn’t know is that this will end with a dead child and her going to prison awaiting the trial for murder.

I love how dark and creepy Ware’s novels are and this one is no different! I loved the dark and dreary atmosphere that goes along with the house and the creepy history of the land! I really enjoyed that this one was written by Rowan to her attorney and how we get the whole story from start to finish only knowing what Rowan knows about the family, house and what is going on. I love the idea of a haunted house way out in the middle of nowhere in Scotland and I loved the new idea of a “smart” home and how they really screwed with Rowan. I enjoyed Jack and the part he plays in this novel. I was just totally smitten with this novel and the ending was so shocking. I really didn’t see it coming and I loved how it all made so much more sense once we find out what was really going on!

Out August 27th!

The Turn of the Key is my fourth book by this author. I would classify this book as mystery/suspense. Apparently this is sort of an updated version of Turn of the Screw.

The main character is Rowan (27 years old). She is a nanny. The book begins with her in a Scottish jail awaiting her trial. She writes to a lawyer asking him to take her case. The entire book is made up of her telling her story to him in letters.

I really did not like this method of storytelling. I would have much preferred to live through the story vs this retelling. Even if the author had done one chapter at the beginning with Rowan in jail. And then continued with the story in the present I think that would have worked better for me.

As mentioned the story is told through Rowan telling her story to the new lawyer. However only the first few letters are addressed "Dear Mr. Wrexham." After that we are just to assume that she is writing to him, but it's just page after page of her explaining what happened.

This book features a house in the middle of nowhere in Scotland. The house has all kinds of crazy advanced technology, which was sort of cool. But very crazy.

Rowan is responsible for three small children, as the parents are away. And the kids don't like her. We learn that lots of past nannies have quit. There might be ghosts. There are rumors that the house is haunted and people have died there.

I really struggled with how this story was told. But the last part of the book was the strongest. We find out what happened to put Rowan in jail. And at the very end we actually find out what really happened.

Ruth Ware has done it again!

She is a go-to author for me and The Turn of the Key does not disappoint. The epistolary structure works really well at building suspense and drama and we learn more about Rowan, the mega creepy Heatherbrae house and the increasingly disturbing Elincourt family. Ware manages to make a "smart house: run by an app seem at home in a Gothic story about ghosts, poisoned and creepy children and mysterious noises that go bump in the night.

Ware is great at crafting characters that keep you guessing- I went back and forth on the innocence and guilt of all of the major characters at one point in the novel. She makes unlikable characters like Rowan that you can still root for. And boy is she good at creating creepy children that add to the story and are not just filler.

The ending took me by surprise- I had to read it a few times to make sure I understood things properly, but that didn't take away from this being a 5 star mystery read for me.

Highly recommend for all the fans of her previous books and anyone looking for a great mystery that blends the past and the present to create a thrilling, creepy read.

Thank you S&S for the advanced reading copy!
I still honestly don’t know how I feel about this book. It seems impossible to rate on a five star scale. I loved every second (until the last 5 pages). It was creepy, thrilling, shocked and left the reader confused right along with the protagonist. However, the last five or so pages left me saying: “that’s it”? That’s never something you want to say at the end of a mystery book. I think it was just disappointing in the grand scheme of things. This will definitely be a polarizing book, some will adore it, some will despise it. I am left bewildered. This rating will probably change with the more time I have to think about it. I honestly can’t say if I hated this book or if I enjoyed it.... i don’t know.

Oh Ruth Ware, you never cease to amaze me! Your storylines forever grabbing my attention and writing style pulling me in. Can't get enough! When Simon & Schuster Canada gifted me this review copy I was in book heaven. One of my most anticipated reads of the summer, yes please! Annnnd, it did not disappoint.

The Turn Of The Key is another brilliant novel with a unique storyline, interesting characters and mega creepy atmosphere. Que Heatherbrae House - eek! Seriously, this house gave me the chills. The homes freaky history, the sounds ...

I enjoyed the way this was written, in the form of a letter that the main character, Rowan is writing to a solicitor in hopes he will take on her case.

A nannying position gone wrong, one child is dead and Rowan is being accused of murder. But is she guilty?

Huge thank you to S&S Canada and Netgalley for my review copy!!

The Turn of the Key uses an interesting literary device: It is in the form of a long letter that the protagonist plans to send to her lawyer, therefore, we get a first person point of view of the story unfolding. When Rowan is hired to be a nanny at an isolated house in Scotland, she discovers that the house is “run” by an app called Happy. The children’s mother is so harried that she barely explains things to Rowan before leaving, and Rowan struggles with door locks, telephones, surveillance cameras, the shower and, to top it all off, difficult children, one of whom is always trying to get her in trouble.

The book is deftly written, and we feel Rowan’s frustration, fatigue and suspicion. There is a sense of building tension and impending doom, and we know, right from the start, that things will turn out badly. Rowan is portrayed as an imperfect person, and at times, we wonder if she really did kill the child! The tension builds, and the conclusion provides a satisfying and interesting twist. All in all, a very satisfactory “thriller” novel.

**Disclaimer: I received an advance reader’s copy of The Turn of the Key through NetGalley from Simon & Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review.

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware is a mystery-thriller set in Scotland. It is written in a semi epistolary way, which was rather unique. The book releases on August 6th, 2019. I gave it 5 stars on GoodReads.

Here’s the summary from GoodReads:

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game, and The Death of Mrs. Westaway comes Ruth Ware’s highly anticipated fifth novel.
When Rowan stumbles across an ad for a live-in nanny, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—with a staggeringly generous salary. And when she arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart” house fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.
What Rowan doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and Rowan in prison awaiting trial for murder.
Writing to her lawyer from prison, Rowan struggles to explain the unravelling events that have led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the cameras installed around the house, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the children, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman, Jack Grant.
It was everything.
Rowan knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder. Which means someone else is.
Full of spellbinding menace and told in Ruth Ware’s signature suspenseful style, this is an unputdownable thriller from the Agatha Christie of our time.

Ruth Ware is one of my all time favourite thriller authors, so I was beyond excited when I got the chance to read her newest book, The Turn of the Key. It was one of my most anticipated reads of 2019, and I was fully not disappointed!

I will admit that at the start of the book I wasn’t sure about it. It seemed like not a lot was happening and the atmosphere was really creeping me out and I kept picking it up when I was in bed and it was dark out, which meant I wasn’t reading a lot because I would get too freaked out to continue on in the story. However, once I got past the start of the book, I found myself having a hard time putting the book down.

I’m not sure what it is about Ruth Ware’s writing that really gets me, but she always seems to come through and get me hooked and devouring the story. This is definitely one of my favourite things she has written, though I haven’t read The Death of Mrs. Westaway yet.

When it came to The Turn of the Key, one of the things that made it really unique was the format. Having the protagonist write letters to a lawyer hoping he would help her, made for an interesting way of revealing the details of the story. The clues were there and it was so fascinating to watch the pieces all come together as the narrator revealed details to the lawyer she was hoping would help her. I was sceptical but so engaged in the story because I just needed to see what actually happened and how it all played out.

Ware has such a talent at making her protagonists not the most reliable characters while still making them interesting and almost empathetic? It’s weird to say that when the protagonist of this book has been accused of murdering a child, but it’s definitely true. The main character of this book was definitively not a good person, but you can relate to the way that she acted as she was put into various situations. Maybe it wouldn’t be the same thing you might have done, but you can somewhat understand what might have pushed her to that point.

The atmosphere is one of the best parts of this story. The bulk of the setting of the book (when it comes to the content of the letters that is) is a remote mansion in Scotland. The house is weirdly technologically advanced and the juxtaposition of the technology and the remote locale is fascinating. The clash of those two things brought about the question of the supernatural, and whether the book was based in reality or was there something else at play.

My one criticism would be that it’s slow to start and it builds up gradually, but ultimately I think that this story needs that slow build, so I’m not even sure if I can fully criticize that aspect of the book. Besides, once you get over the initial hump, it’s hard to put down because you desperately need to know what happened. At least that’s how I felt.

In the end, I highly recommend this book, and when August 6th rolls around, I will definitely be picking up my own copy!

I absolutely loved the his book! Kept me guessing right till the end! I couldn’t put it down. Ruth Ware has another home run. I highly recommend this book

This is my third book by the author so by this point I know she's great at creating a creepy ambiance!

New nanny working for a family living in a remote house in Scotland. Past nannies leaving after the house seems haunted with its dark history and secrets... you get it.

It was interesting, even unique since the main character wasn't very likeable and that the format is through letters she's writing to a lawyer from prison since she's accused of murdering one of the child in her care...
Very intriguing!

The ending was a bit lukewarm in my opinion but I can't wait to see how others feel about it all!

If you're looking for a quick read for the fall and have liked her other books, I would recommend.

The Turn of the Key is a thriller that grabbed me from the beginning and kept me guessing until the end!

Rowan isn’t really looking for a change when she replies to an ad to become a nanny to three children, in a remote home in Scotland. She applies anyway and what happens after she arrives lands her in prison. Told solely from the Rowan’s perspective, it’s an intersesting and quick read that I couldn’t put down.
There are several twists that I didn’t see coming- and I was looking!

The ending felt a little rushed compared to the build up, but overall it’s an excellent book!

Thank you Simon and Schuster for the ARC.

A special thank you to NetGalley, Gallery/Scout Press, and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rowan Caine is writing her lawyer from prison. She has been charged with the murder of a child in her care.

After answering an ad for a nanny with an extremely generous salary, Rowan arrives at Heatherbrae House set in the beautiful Scottish Highlands. She is instantly captivated by the "smart" house—that mixes the old charm with new modern conveniences—and by the Instagram-worthy family.

What Rowan doesn't know is that everything on the surface is a complete facade and that she's actually stepping into a nightmare. There's constant surveillance from cameras that appear to be in every room, noises coming from the attic, a poisonous garden, and the children are certainly not the well-behaved girls that were at her interview. Rowan has also been mislead in that she's been left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the mysterious handyman, Jack Grant.

While maintaining her innocence for the crime of murder, she is forthcoming about the other mistakes she's made. She's admitted to lying to get the job and that she's not a good nanny, but she is most definitely not a murderer. So this begs the question, who is?

Ware's The Death of Mrs. Westaway was a Gothic gem and I was expecting more of that from this book. In this novel there is also a creepy Gothic Victorian. In fact, the house is not only the setting, but ends up being more of a character in the book. Other effective ominous elements were the poisonous garden, footstep noises, and the locked closet—these types of macabre nuances are where Ware excels in her execution.

The characters were intriguing, even the secondary and tertiary. From the opening, you can tell there is something not quite right where Rowan is concerned. Given that she's supposed to be a nanny, Rowan appears to be out of her element. I do however feel that Ware could have fleshed out the husband and wife more. I mean what kind of parents leave their three little girls—soon to be four when Rhiannon arrives home from boarding school—with a virtual stranger?

I loved that this was an epistolary novel. The letters were the perfect vehicle to deliver the story. Where the plot stalled was with the ending, especially given the extensive build up. This was a bit of a disappointment given that the narrative was a slow burn—with the pages and pages of the day-to-day childcare and feeding which got a bit mundane after a while—and the reader was not fully rewarded for their patience.