In my opinion this was Ware’s best yet. I hesitated in getting it because i was so disappointed in Woman in Cain 10. But this was good. The ending felt a little rushed and unfinished but everything up until then was very satisfying.

Looking for an October read which will leave you holding your breath while turning the pages? Look no further. Ruth Ware has done it again with Turn of the Key. I also love a story which provides the house as a character. (Another example of this was The Girl Before) The nanny role has become a now classic invite to traditional suspense and with good reason. Never one to include a spoiler- this is worthy of a night in.

I love Ruth Ware's books. True to form you can never guess the ending. A simple nanny assignment plus a spooky, haunted house with the latest technology makes an unbelievable story but what is real and what is not?

This is my first Ruth Ware book and while I did enjoy the writing I found the book to be quite predictable. Which is a shame because it seemed like a book with a great idea behind it. What's not creepy about an nanny hired in an isolated house in the middle of nowhere with three children? Unfortunately I had to give this book three stars. I checked off all the things that make a book creepy. We had isolated house, all alone, nannies, ominous sounds, missing nannies, dead children, a big old mansion,oh and a suspicious handyman plus add a sprinkle of creepy attic that owners never redid despite house being remodeled and you have the perfect recipe for a scary story. Sadly outside of the creepiness factor of the writing the story fell short for me. It just felt predictable with the ending and the twist was so lackluster that when one of the reveals was announced I busted out laughing. One of the twist was revealed on 275 but the author put a little hint to it on one of the pages before that. I'm not sure if she was trying to give us a clue or she didn't think about it I don't know. After all three stars for me for this book I'll definitely read this author again I think I have another one of her books but I would be interested in reading her books again.

Ruth Ware is back and better than ever with Turn of the Key. Gripping from the first page, this book is truly unputdownable! Readers are immediately drawn into the narrator's story. Told via an epic letter from a prison inmate, it is full of dark and twisty moments and intrigues. What happens when a nanny in left alone with her three charges in a modernized old house full of secrets? Why is there a poison garden in the woods where children play? Is there a supernatural force at work, or might our lovable narrator be less reliable than she seems? A perfect fit for fans of Michelle Sacks' You Were Made for This!


I was fortunate to receive a free ARC of this book from Netgalley. The above thoughts, insights, or recommendations are my own meek musings.

1st by this author.. I really liked the book and will read more by this author.. A few twist and turns and an ending I did not expect.. I have to say although it moved a bit slow I wanted to continue to read to find out what was going on.. It was a good book. and I was not expecteding parts where it went and where it left..

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to read this ebook arc in return for an honest review. I really enjoyed this book, and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys thrillers/mysteries.

Rowan works at a daycare and is looking for a change. When she finds an opening as a nanny at someone's house for a large salary, she immediately applies. The job is for 3 girls in the middle of nowhere in a huge smart house where nannies keep mysteriously quitting. None of this stops or scares her, and she really wants this job. Luckily she gets the job but gets left alone almost immediately after starting. She does have Jack the groundskeeper to keep her company and help her out, but creepy things keep happening...

I guessed several things that happened, but there were still twists that I never saw coming. It was a little creepy and kept me guessing, my favorite things about a thriller!

This book kept me guessing the whole time. Ruth Ware is a great storyteller. She is becoming one of my favorites. This story reminds me of an old gothic novel mixed in with all the new technology. Something for everyone.

Rowan Caine stumbles across the perfect job in the classified ads. Nannying a rich family with three kids. The job is located in a luxury house in Scotland which offers all the modern conveniences, and the pay is too good to be true. Of course we know what they say about something being too good to be true....

Ruth Ware is an author I have come to count on for dark twisty books. I didn't even realize how many of her books I read until looking at Goodreads: In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game and the Death of Mrs. Westaway--all of which I have enjoyed. Turn of the Key brought more of the dark twistiness I have come to expect from her books, and it kept me guessing until the end.

This book has all the ingredients of a good twisty read. There may/may not be ghost and cameras spy on her all day long. The house also has a technology system full of bugs that seems bent on torturing her at weird hours. The cast is also suspect. Anyone could be the bad guy--the terrible Dad, the absent mom, the gardener, the odd fourteen year old who knows a little too much. I couldn't put this book down (except at night since I was afraid I wouldn't sleep!), and enjoyed the twistiness till the end.

fun and twisty! good, spooky novel to get you in the autumn mood. i liked the multiple twists and the fact that i didn't see any of them coming.

Ruth Ware is one of those authors who delivers clever, imaginative stories again and again. Turn of the Key joins her earlier work and more than lives up to the hype and anticipation surrounding its publication. With nods to classics like Turn of the Screw and Rebecca, Ware tells an imaginative tale of an emotionally damaged young woman dropped into the middle of one of the strangest family situations I’ve read in a very long time. Ware takes the remote-old-house trope and drags it into the 21st century by adding smart-house technology, thereby creating a truly all-seeing, electronic “Mrs. Danvers,” which is enough to make anyone shiver in their boots.

As she does, Ware drops bombs of information gradually throughout the story, which serve to keep the reader saying “just one more page,” and which had me reading well into the night. The final bombshell was one that I had thought about but dismissed as too awful, but there it was...making me put the book down, close my eyes, and sigh deeply.

One of the things I appreciate about Ware’s writing is her subtle but well-crafted attention to characters and their relationships. In Death of Mrs. Westaway, the relationship between siblings was key; here it’s the relationship between fathers and daughters that sparks and drives the action.

I look forward to more from Ms. Ware’s imagination! Recommended.

Rowan Caine finds the job posting of a lifetime as a live in nanny for an affluent family in the picturesque town in the Scottish Highlands. She doesn’t know that this decision will lead her to writing to a lawyer from her prison cell…and this is how the story begins.

In true Ruth Ware fashion, this story takes place in an isolated location with a limited cast of characters. This one, a modern victorian “smart home” with a family of three daughters and two absent parents. There are lots of red herrings and characters who are hiding things; main character included.

Overall I liked this. Super creepy with a lot of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. There were a few loose ends, but the end was one that I didn’t see coming.

Ruth is and will always be one of my favorites! I actually loved this way more than her latest book! The spook factor is real and I was left feeling so satisfied. Loved it!

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware is dark, creepy and suspenseful. If you haven’t read this one yet then I highly suggest you add it to the top of your October TBR list!

The main character Rowan, is the live in nanny that will intrigue the mysterious aspect of your intellect with her not so perfect background and eerie storyline. If you’re a lover of slow burns then you’ll definitely enjoy this one, as Ware did an excellent job to build the suspense all the way to the very end of this book. The creaky floorboards, the disappearances and the ridiculous smart house tech mishaps in this book will play with your psyche as Ware intended. Did I mention I was reading this book at 3am while both of my roommates were sleeping?!

The ending seemed to end rather abruptly and I had a few unanswered questions afterwards but other than that this book would’ve been 5 stars for me! (I give it 4.5 stars)

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware is about Rowan Caine, who takes a post as a nanny with a staggering salary. When she arrives at Heatherbrae House she falls in love with the luxurious smart home fitted with all modern conveniences. She steps into a nightmare, one child dies and she is in prison writing to her lawyer. She tries to explain what happened but most of all that she is not guilty of murder. Although a strange premise, this was an excellent book. The book keeps you guessing who is responsible for the weird incidents happening in the home. The plot built slowly and gave the characters time to be developed. Suspenseful thriller right to the end. Thank you to Net Galley for providing an advanced reader’s copy.

I've heard great things about Ruth Ware and was excited to read this title, but for me, I feel like Ware took a major wrong turn. The Turn of the Key is slow for a thriller with too much time spent on the humdrum of everyday life as a nanny. The protagonist spends most of her time interacting with two children, so there's not a lot of opportunity for interesting conversations or deep character development, and Ware fails at creating a truly spooky, atmosphere at Heatherbrae House. The Turn of the Key doesn't get truly thrilling until the last 25%, but then finishes with a horribly dissatisfying ending.

I received an e-ARC of The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware from NetGalley and Gallery Books and I’m so grateful to have gotten the opportunity to read this anticipated release from Ruth Ware. I really enjoyed reading another book by this author, her writing is very captivating and atmospheric. Her previous novel, The Death of Mrs. Westaway, was very gothic in its setting and I got a similar feeling from the setting of The Turn of the Key.

A brief synopsis:

Living in London and working as a nanny, Rowan Caine stumbles across an advertisement for a live-in nannying job for the well known Elincourt family in Scotland at the Heatherbrae House. With an overwhelmingly high salary to persuade her, Rowan chooses to apply for the position and she’s determined to get it — even if it means exaggerating her work experience.

When she arrives at the house, she’s greeted by a Victorian home decorated with technology and video cameras in every room; a “smart home” as most of the electronics are run by an app. When Rowan meets with the mother of the three children she’d be nannying, she cautions Rowan that the previous nanny’s left their post because they claimed the home to be haunted. Rowan brushes aside the warnings and claims she isn’t the superstitious type.

Rowan’s days nannying full-time at the Heatherbrae House don’t end up going quite as she planned. With the Elincourts away on a business trip, and three daughters being extremely difficult to handle, as well as strange things beginning to happen in the attic, Rowan begins to rethink how she dismissed the previous nanny’s claims.

When Rowan begins to start digging into the past of the house, she ends up discovering secrets that may make her have to reveal her own. When a terrible tragedy happens that points her to being a murderer, she writes an honest letter to a lawyer, relaying the entire experience to him and pleading for him to see her as innocent and represent her at the trial.

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The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware begins with the opening of a letter. Rowan is writing to a lawyer, and chooses to write the entirety of what happened with the Elincourts, from the very beginning, relaying every detail to him in hopes that he will represent her in a murder trial.

The letter becomes less direct and the writing style flows into the story itself. It occasionally shifts back to Rowan addressing the lawyer here and there, but then goes back into the novel form. While I liked this style, I felt that it did not resemble a letter throughout its entirety. The addressing of the lawyer in the middle of the book felt a little out of place to me. However, I thought this style was unique and while it wasn’t crafted completely seamlessly, it was very well-written.

Throughout the book, I felt the day-by-day explanations became a bit too slow — the pacing was very much a slow burn. While I loved being able to visualize all of the small details, I kept wondering when something was going to happen. Even the moments something did happen, I expected more.

What did captivate me about this story was the children. I found myself feeing frustrated for Rowan when they kept dismissing her and saying that they hated her. While I did not like Rowan’s attitude towards them, I did feel like the way the daughters were developed through the story was really well done.

I wished that there had been more about the parents, however. Sandra is prominent in the beginning of the book, but then there’s sparse emails and brief phone calls throughout the rest of the story and no conclusion of their thoughts at the ending. I was really wanting to see more of them and to get a look into their lives more. I felt like the ending left me hanging too much in regards to them.

I also wanted to see more of a conclusion with the handyman, Jack Grant. I have so many questions about his involvement and felt like it was left completely open ended with his character. I would have loved a more thorough ending in general and felt as though it was rushed and I ended the book feeling slightly disappointed with the twist at the ending.

While I did absolutely love the setting, the writing style, the gothic feel to the atmosphere, and the character building in the children, there were some aspects to this story that would have made it better for me as a reader. Overall, I think this story is a setting-driven slow burn that I would recommend to those looking for a great autumn read.

So, so good! I have enjoyed all of Ruth Ware’s books, and her latest is just as riveting as her others. When a young woman takes a post as a nanny in the remote Scottish Highlands, it’s clear early on that something is amiss. I couldn’t get to the end fast enough, and it was a shock! I highly recommend this great story.

Rowan Caine wasn't really looking for a new job when she stumbled across the ad, but the offer seemed too good to be true. A great gig as a nanny for a wealthy family in the Scottish Highlands. She was even a little surprised that she got the job. When she arrives at Heatherbrae she finds three young girls, a high energy mother, an absent father, and a home where technology controls everything. What she didn't expect was for Sandra and Bill to take off the day after she gets there, leaving her alone with the three girls, the creepy house, and the handsome Jack Grant. It doesn't take long for Rowan to start to question her decision. The housekeeper is rude and treats Rowan like dirt. Maddie is a difficult child and makes her life miserable. And then there are the noises coming from the attic above her room. Scary, creepy noises that keep Rowan from getting the sleep needed in order to deal with three young girls. And then the oldest daughter, Rhiannon, comes home from boarding school ready to reveal all of Rowan's secrets. Will Rowan survive her time at Heatherbrae?

From the very first page of The Turn of the Key the reader knows that Rowan is writing a letter from jail. You know that she has been arrested for murder and she is pleading for a lawyer to take her case. In her letter, she explains what happened. And it takes the entire book. I was really intrigued by the "smart" technology of Heatherbrae. We are an "Alexa" family and have a lot of reliance on smart technology. Not as much as Heatherbrae, but enough for me to recognize similarities. I also loved that it was set in the area of Scotland where I have been. However, as an adult, there were a few red flags that started flying with Rowan's behavior. It seemed like she had a bit of a temper. And even came close to striking one of the girls. I couldn't figure out why someone with such a short fuse was in a profession that works with children. CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS. I was really shocked by the first big reveal. The ending was less shocking than that first reveal. But the way it ended really tied up the loose ends.

Bottom Line - I really did enjoy The Turn of the Key. Ruth Ware's mix of Gothic and technology really gave the book a unique feel and created an engaging read.

Details:
The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware
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Pages: 352
Publisher: Galley/Scout Press
Publication Date: 8/6/2019
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Thank you, NetGalley for the book in exchange for a review.

I have always been a fan of Ruth Ware's books and she does not disappoint with this one. Thanks netgalley for the galley. If you like slow burn mystery, this one is for you. It was so engaging and keeps building the intrigue level.