Unnatural Ends is a cleverly constructed mystery, with a great many red herrings. When Sir Lawrence is murdered, the suspects are numerous. It seems that far more people either wanted him dead or wanted to be the one to murder him, but unfortunately, he can only be murdered once. There are a plethora of fascinating characters to consider, including his three adopted children, his wife, and friends from his past. The secrets are multilayered, numerous, and cleverly disguised. No one and nothing is what it seems.

Unnatural Ends was a fun book, and thus, I really hated for it to end. The characters were so well defined that I felt I was there, helping them solve so many different crimes. This is a book in which the reader becomes so involved that it is tough to put down. Peeling back the layers of Sir Lawrence's life is rather like peeling an onion, only more pungent. This cruel sadist man emerges in remembrances past, in which his children recount their childhoods. Sir Lawrence was such an evil man, that his murder appears impossible. Such evil cannot possibly cease to exist, but dead he is, and the crime needs to be solved.. The end of the novel and solving of the crime is a terrific and perfect ending. Now I want to go back and reread Unnatural Ends.

This is the first Christopher Huang book that I had read, I will certainly want to read more of his work. I want to thank both the author and the publisher, Inkshares Press, for providing this ARC. This was such a fun and entertaining book that writing a positive review is the only way I can possibly describe Unnatural Ends. Thank you also to NetGalley for introducing me to another wonderful author.

Overall this was a very clever plot with excellent character development. The twists and turns were realistic enough and the story runs along smoothly. I do not read this type of genre much and I am glad I did. I usually like more historical connections but the mystery kept me engaged and entertained. I absolutely recommend this book to all types of fiction readers. After finishing, I wanted to go grab an Agatha Christie novel for comparison....that alone seems to justify a 4-star plus rating.

I like the family plot twist, but I had figured it out before the reveal. The book held my attention adn I think it is a good read for an adult.

This really was not what I expected. I would categorize it as a gothic-murder mystery. I was initially taken aback by the brutal muder of Sir Lawrence Linwood, which I wasn't expecting-a bit graphic for my tastes.
The 3 siblings are charged with determining who killed Sir Lawrence Linwood, and whoever solves the mystery, inherits the mansion, Linwood Hall.
I found the writing at times to be quite verbose, complicated and could you please, get to the point?
At times, i felt like I was trudging through it.
I could not relate to the characters-et al. I did not find any of them, particularly engaging but, again, this really was not my cup of tea. I prefer a more straight forward mystery without the gothic, Yorkshire Moors 1920 premise.
I had to work to finish it.

Thank you NetGalley and Inkshares for the opportunity to read and review this book.

jb/https://seniorbooklounge.blogspot.com/

A truly promising debut novel, with a thrilling mystery element in a small town, and it deals with sensitive topics. This did seem to drag a little but it worth it when the story comes together.

Christopher Huang’s “Unnatural Ends” is excellently written. The characters personalities and lives suck you into this story. The plots twists and turns keep you riveted. Several times throughout the book I thought I had the mystery solved only to find out I was very wrong. I highly recommend this fast paced book!

*Many thanks to Christopher Huang, Inkshares, and NetGalley for arc in exchange for my honest review.*
If it is a debut, it is a truly promising one. Apart from the mystery which is rather complicated, the book offers gradual unravelling of the three main characters, the victim's adopted children which is always what I like. Their stories and what they learn about themselves and each other in the due course is like adding another piece of a big puzzle which, when completed, surprises the reader. The ambiance of the place and the feel of the period is perfect.

🧳🧳🧳 / 5

Thank you to NetGalley and Inkshares for providing me early access to the ARC!

I liked some elements of this book, but not enough, unfortunately. The writing was spot on for the time period in which the novel takes place, and the mystery and plot twists were intriguing; however, the story was so long and drawn out that it was difficult to stick with it. I wanted to like this one more because the premise was so captivating, but it just wasn’t it for me. I wouldn’t discourage anyone from reading this one though, especially if you enjoy classic mysteries.

This book will certainly keep you reading until the very end to know where it will all leads to after all the countless twists and turns it gave you!

Annoyed that it took me too long to read this book but ended up loving it. Read it and it's worth your time!

“𝑰𝒕 𝒕𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒂 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒅 […] 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒐𝒈𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈.”

What business do I have reviewing a book that doesn’t come out until January 2023 when I have others to prioritize?! I am super glad I did though - Unnatural Ends was EXCELLENT.

I love a good mystery, and this has all the makings of one; it especially felt like an homage to an Agatha Christie novel, one that she could’ve easily written herself. There was the imposing father figure, the country house mansion, the post-WWI timeline, and the amateur detectives in the three siblings. Iris and Roger reminded me a bit of Tommy and Tuppence investigating and the adopted siblings reminded me of the family from Ordeal by Innocence. There was even a revolving bookcase to the servants’ passage that felt like a nod to the secret passageways in Clue! This story kicked off with a murder and a mysterious will and kept up the pace as each sibling tried to piece together what may have happened, especially as they dove into the connections surrounding their birth parents. Christopher Huang’s writing is sharp, with some really good twists and reveals, alongside making connections later in the book to things that seemed irrelevant at the beginning. The story also explores prejudice and racism, which gives it a different angle than just a regular whodunnit. There were a few spots that dragged, and if you are familiar with Christie, you may see the ending coming, but overall the story was incredibly engaging and I loved seeing how Huang connected all the puzzle pieces.

Unnatural Ends is a story about family, chosen and bloodline, the strength in siblings, and the trauma we face. It is perfect for readers who love the Golden Age of detective fiction and makes a worthy addition to a mystery lover’s bookshelf. A big thank you to Inkshares and NetGalley for the ARC!

This book felt overly convoluted and drawn out. I felt there were too many jumps followed by intricate descriptions they had just happened to work out or notice off page.

This one was too slow paced for me. I tried to pick it up a few times in between other books hoping it would pick up. Unfortunately, it did not Unnatural Ends became a DNF for me.

3.8 stars
1903 – A tower named Camelot, a play place for three adopted siblings. ‘I knew a man who began by worshipping with others before the altar, but who grew fond of high and lonely places to pray from…’ GK Chesteron; this quote alone sets the stage for the death of Sir Lawrence Linwood (1921) and the return of his three children to solve what turns out to be a murder and resolve their upbringing.

Filled with plot twists and surprises it is a who-done-it that kept me engaged till the final pages. The descriptions of Alan, Roger and Caroline were detailed and vivid enough that you felt that you knew them, but each as well had their hidden sides. They were of course raised by Linwood and their mother, Rebecca.

A telling of a less than ideal family, about manipulation, deceipt, mores of the times, and uncensored ego.

I recommend this book as a quick read, filled with interesting characters, but do pay attention to the quotes that front the chapters, they are gold.

Favourite lines: “Alan had an idea that Father’s atheism had more to do with pride, an unwillingness to place any being higher than himself, than with any real theological conviction.”

My thanks to #NetGalley and #Inkshares for this early copy and my unbiased review.

Unnatural Ends is set in the 1920s where Alan (an archeologist), Roger (an engineer), and Caroline (a journalist) – the three Linwood Hall siblings, return to their family estate in Yorkshire for their adoptive father’s funeral. After they are all summoned to the reading of Sir Lawrence Lindwood's will, they are surprised to find out that their father has been murdered. And that his estate shall go to the heir who solves his murder.

This story is being told in multi POV's and narrative shifts between past and present. There were parts that I wish were cut shorter, but I guess the author wanted to cover all ''what if's''. Pacing was moderate and plot was interesting. You will get to experience some shocking twists and get to uncover many hidden truths. Everything in typical murder mystery. But not quite typical, am I right?

What I liked, is how in depth author told us about the Linwood children life's, how well scenic atmosphere was described and how clever, the events around the murder plot, was done.

Thank you to Christopher Huang, Inkshares and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts are my own and left voluntarily.

Thank you so much to Inkshares & Netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 Stars!

This was my first proper venture into mystery as a genre and I did enjoy it! I'm not sure if I loved it though. It was extraordinarily slow at some points, especially the first 25% of the book. This isn't something that usually turns me off if the writing is done well but in this case, I just don't think I was in the right mindset to appreciate the writing while dealing with the slow pace.
My favourite part of this book is definitely the characters as they were the standout aspect of this book. I enjoyed the dynamic between the siblings and what they all brought into the murder mystery.
I also did enjoy the plot and there are twists and turns that left me shocked and excited to figure out more of what was going on, regardless of the slow pace.
I can definitely see myself picking a physical copy of this book up in the future to give it a proper re-read and I believe that if you are someone who enjoys historical murder mysteries, this is a book worth checking out!

Unnatural Ends is set in the 1920s in a stately home called Linwood House home to, unsurprisingly, the Linwood Family. The head of the family is Sir Lawrence Linwood joined by his wife Rebecca and 3 children Alan, Roger and Caroline.

Upon Sir Lawrence’s death the children are all summoned to the reading of his will and are shocked to find that instead of leaving the estate to the eldest child Alan he left it to be divided equally between the 3 of them. Unless of course one of them solved his murder and then it would pass solely to them!!

From there on the narrative is shifted backwards and forwards in time and between the 3 siblings. You get a taste of their childhood and it does not reflect well on their father. He turns out to be a domineering husband who had affairs with other women to produce the children, and more than one of their mothers was murdered!

His behaviour towards his children is bullying at best, probably better described as abusive. Each child reveals parts of their childhood and I must confess that I struggled to keep up with which child I was reading about and the many different avenues that was explored in this novel. The writing was good and descriptive but I found myself losing where I was in the book and at which point in time I was reading about. Although there were many twists and turns along the way it was fairly easy to guess which way this book was going to end! No more spoilers will be given!!

A wonderfully constructed story of privilege and unhappiness.
Sir Lawrence Linwood is dead, battered to death with a mediaeval mace. His three adopted children return to the Linwood estate for the funeral, they do not yet know that Sir Lawrence was murdered. Each child is looking forward to meeting their siblings, but the real draw, is the near- feudal village that belongs to the estate, and the Hall itself, they all have fond memories of a Camelot style grand building, complete with hidden doors, secret passages, and a large Tower room that used to be their playroom away from the eyes of adults.
Alan, the eldest, is now an Archeological expert, recently been working in Peru. Roger is an engineer, Caroline is a journalist working in Paris.
The Will states that if the death is due to unnatural causes, the children must find the killer. The one who is successful in this will inherit the whole estate.
Each chapter is devoted to a particular child, their job, their relationship with an emotionally distant father, and emotionally distressed mother, and their past interactions with their siblings. This book is full of twists and turns, nothing and nobody is who they seem to be. A classic Golden Age detection story, with plenty of disturbing family secrets to discover.
A compelling and unforgettable read. A grand family estate is no guarantee of happiness ever after.
A five star read. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers Inkshares for my advance digital copy, given in exchange for my honest review.
I will leave reviews to Goodreads and Amazon when pages are opened.

Admittedly, this time period is not my favorite, BUT I loved this story. The tension and characters were well done and the clues embedded well. An absolute ride that will leave you thinking and cheering for the ending.

What a delicious who dunnit murder mystery! Loved it!!! Sir Lawrence must be the absolute worst parent/spouse/human that I may have come across in all the fiction I have read - which is quite significant. His controlling arrogance and feeling of superiority at all cost is abhorrent, so when we learn of his murder, it could have been almost anyone who did it. His beautifully diverse children learn via his will that the one that solves the crime becomes sole heir to his massive, precious estate that has been in his lineage for centuries. We see that these siblings truly love one another and really don't wish to compete to win the ultimate prize; they just want to discover who killed their father. As we read on we discover how cruel Sir Lawrence lived his life with those around him, and how he hypothesized certain treatment and controlled environment would bring about the results he wanted. No cost was too high for him to set the stage for the design of his trials. Absolutely great, well-written and researched murder mystery!

1921.
Three siblings return to the estate they were raised in for the funeral of their adopted father.
Only to learn he didn't meet a natural end (eheh) and wrote in his will that it was up to them to find the murderer if they wanted that good good inheritance money.
So they put on their Scooby-Doo hats and start investigating.

I really enjoyed this.
Honestly, the characters kept me going more than the mystery itself. They were all so distinct that even though we jump from one POV to the next, it wasn't hard to keep track of who it was.
And I know it's historical fiction, but I could've done without Alan's history lessons. But I guess it just adds to his character trait of being annoying. Roger is like a puppy with ADHD bless his heart. Carol is my favourite and also the only one of the three with a functioning braincell.

Overall, there are enough plot twists to keep it interesting, and the atmosphere is really cool and vivid.
I did wish we got to the conclusion faster. At a certain point, there was so much build-up that I could pretty much guess where the story was going, and once we got there the explanation felt a little rushed.

Oh and have google ready to go while you read this, or all the 1920s slang and architectural references are gonna go right over your head.