As much a murder mystery as a 1920's historical fiction, Unnatural Ends is an interesting look at family, identity, and betrayal.

The novel has a lot of great things going for it.

The first is the point of view. It’s third person limited but follows three characters - the siblings - primarily, but with a few chapters following a few others. This really broadened the mystery aspect because you were able to see the threads of the story from different angles. It was fun to watch the revelations one person discovers line up with another deciphered by a different sibling.

A great deal of this novel also focuses on identity - the siblings, as you find out from the first page, are all adopted and have no idea who their parents are or their ancestry. As such, part of the mystery turns into not just who murdered their father but who their parents were. I really loved how diverse the cast was. Normally books written in this period have everyone being white, which just wasn’t true. But while race and culture are a small aspect of the mystery in relation to the parentage of the siblings, it’s not a book about race. It’s normalized and quite refreshing for a book set in the 20s. Normally when I read books written in the 20s, I have to suffer through stereotypes if there are any people of colour, so it was great to read a book that felt like it was written back then but without the problematic elements.

The writing is lovely. It’s drawn out yet purposeful, full of strong descriptions and good dialogue. There isn’t any humour, romance, or action, but it’s easy to read while retaining an old-world feel.

Unfortunately, the characters were where the novel fell a little flat for me. They were likeable enough, but I didn’t love any of them. They are consistent, but I never latched on to any of them as a favourite character, and none were overly memorable. This could be because their father, despite being dead, was such an overbearing presence (due to flashbacks and their conversations about him). I think I also felt they were a little flat because while they suffer quite horribly in their lives, none of them seemed worse for wear psychologically. They all have memories, but none of them really wrestle with them.

In truth, it was the setting that kept me reading. I love old manor houses in the countryside, as well as the Interim war period in general, so I loved the attention to detail in these facets. It’s evident this is a well-researched book, and the author was very thorough. The focus on the aftermath of WWI, the gradual ousting of the rich landed gentry from their manors (check out Ishiguro’s The Remains of the Day for a great one on that), the technological boom that always follows war, and the social changes. It felt authentic, and I very much enjoyed that aspect.

Now, I will say the result of the mystery isn’t very surprising. While it’s not like I “figured it out” right away, there are hints pretty much on the first page as to the mystery’s solution, so what did end up being the twist was always in the back of my mind as the most plausible option. I couldn’t figure out how to get there given the information I knew, so it was still an enjoyable mystery to see come together, but my reaction was more like “nailed it” than “ah ha!”

But figuring out plot twists too early is my mutant power.

Overall, if you love the 1920's and mystery, you will likely enjoy this book.

2/5 stars
It's 1921 and Sir Lawrence Linwood has been murdered. The murder brings together his three adopted children: Alan, Roger and Carolyn, who soon find themselves playing detectives when it's revealed that sir Linwood had a will with a particular clause: the state will go to the heir who solves his murder.

I picked this book after reading the summary thinking it would be a detective story of the likes of Poirot but it's more of a family drama than a murder mystery. Whatever intrigue the plot had gets quickly derailed by the siblings confronting their complicated relationship with their father and their families of origin. At times it seemed like the book wasn't certain of what it wanted to be and that confusion really affected the pacing. This book moved quite slow until the very end where everything happened too fast.

I did solve the crime before the end of the book but I do think the idea and plot twist wasn't bad, just not executed correctly. This book also had too many points of view. It made sense for all the three siblings to have povs but then it seemed like everyone got a pov. By the end of the book there were maybe 10 points of view that only lasted one chapter and weren't particularly interesting or brought anything to the main plot. I did not care much for the characters in this because I never truly got to know them.

I would also like to let future readers that the book deals with the concept of eugenics and race. There's also child abuse, verbal abuse and implied sexual coercion.

🌟🌟½

<b> Thank you to NetGalley and Inkshares for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review </b>

Alan, Roger, and Caroline are called home to pay respects to their dead father Sir Lawrance Linwood. Once they arrive they learn that their father didn't simply die - he was murdered - and in his will, he made the child who solves his murder the sole heir to his estate and money.

When I read that synopsis I was excited! A historical mystery? Siblings pitted against each other in a fight for an inheritance? A creepy mansion (it wasn't creepy)? That sounded like something I would enjoy...it was, and it wasn't.

This book is more of a character study of our three main characters rather than a mystery, in my opinion. Yes, the question of who killed Sir Lawrance is there, and it gets eventually revealed, but I think at the core it's about these three individuals and their tumultuous (and abusive) relationship with their father.

The characters are definitely very well defined and muli-layered but are they likable? No. Well, Alan is, I liked him the most but Caroline and Roger in their best moments bored me and in their worst straight-up annoyed me.

The answer to the mystery was all right. I guessed what happened to Sir Lawrance quite early on (once you catch on what the book is actually about i.e. the siblings and their relationship with their father, I think it's pretty easy to guess what the twist is going to be).

Overall, it was okay. I was bored for the most part and the mystery wasn't working for me, but the character studies are well done, and the writing is nice.

This story is interesting. I like how there are characters from all around the world and in places that writers usually overlook or don't bother using as representation. I also like the writing, which is descriptive in a balanced level. I just feel like it's incredibly slow paced, so it's hard to connect with the story and feel entertained when after 150 pages (about 1/4 of the book) it still feels like nothing big and important happened. I like slow burn but it has to have engaging elements sometimes so it doesn't feel like the story is dragging too much to the interesting part.

This book did not capture my interest at all. It felt really slow moving and I had a hard time getting invested with the characters.

I was honestly unsure what to expect, but this was fantastic. It definitely reminded me of Umbrella Academy mixed with The Inheritance Games mixed with Sherlock.

The whodunnit led us through so many different lives and really I had no idea who it was until the very end, and it all clicked. A really great read!

I received an ARC from nergalley.

The first thing I noticed and loved about this book was how much it reminded me of reading an Agatha Christie novel.

Set in 1921, when Sir Lawrence Linwood is found murdered in his study, nothing is as it seems.
His three children return home for his funeral and learn about an odd clause in their father's will: IF his death is a murder, the child that finds his killer will inherit the entire family estate.

My only criticism is the pacing. It did take a little time to get into the story due to the in-depth, descriptive POVs. Once the plot came together, the pace picked up with surprising twists and turns.

Anyone who is a fan of Agatha Christie or historical murder mysteries will enjoy this read.

Content warning: The book does not describe the abuse in graphic detail, but it may be triggering for victims of domestic violence.

Beautifully written. The twists of the story were introduced delicately, enough that still shocked you but didn't seem entirely impossible. The writing was also very well done. A nice story to take with you to the beach, though it might be hard to place it down.

I had such high hopes for this book. It seemed to be right up my alley. The perfect historical fiction, murder mystery story. However, this just fell a little flat. I felt that the book was very slow moving to keep my interest. There weren't enough clues for me to keep interested and guessing as to who the murderer was. Then, once the plot to catch the murderer was determined, it seemed to be just thrown together. I also felt that even though this book was set in the early 1900s, the words and derogatory terms used just weren't necessary to keep the setting in the historical sense.

I really enjoyed Unnatural Ends. It reminded me of a golden age classic mystery. A locked door mystery with strong central characters and equally strong secondary ones. Partly based on true historical events I feel this book will appeal to lovers of both mysteries and historical fiction.

In 1921, the three Linwood children (Caroline, Roger and Alan) are summoned to their childhood home, the grand Linwood Hall following news of their father’s murder. However, as we learn more about each of the children, it is revealed that their father’s fortune will be given to whoever finds out who caused his death.

Told through alternating perspectives of each of the children, and through both flashbacks and present day portions, author Christopher Huang builds out his characters as three dimensional. Huang also really establishes a distinct sense of place and time; I think even if the chapters were not dated, we would know the general time period based on the language, architecture and customs present. The language does take some getting used to (I had to reread some passages at first), but really has an effect of transporting you to the time the story is set in.

Without giving anything away, the truth is slowly revealed just like the puzzle pieces on the cover allude to. Just like in life, the truth is complicated and surprising and sometimes hard to digest.

My main criticism here is the pacing. While Huang’s prose is beautiful and absorbing, I found that portions of the book did drag. Because of the big focus on character development, exposition and back story, sometimes a little bit of the edge-of-your-seat feeling wasn’t always present and I sometimes found myself struggling to pick this one back up. I prefer my mysteries a little more brisk than this, but can also appreciate character development; I just think the balance could be a little better.

Overall, I’d describe this as a slow-burn, historical murder mystery; if this is something that sounds interesting to you, definitely give this one a shot!

This is a murder mystery and historical fiction set in 1921. It has wonderful character development. It has a lot of flashbacks, but they are important to both the plot and understanding the depths of the characters. I did not find this to be predictable at all. And I loved the history and various academic references. The writing is beautiful, but not full of fluff. The perspective switches between the main characters, and the reader slowly gets more insight as each one works toward solving the murder of their father. It reminded me of the game clue or an Agatha Christie novel, to an extent, but better written. The setting, with hidden passage ways and towers, reminded me of novels I read in my youth, like R. L. Stein. In this regard, there's something nostalgic about the novel. But it is written in a much more sophisticated way, but still an easy read. Highly recommend. It surpassed my expectations.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! Unnatural Ends sounded like something right up my alley, and I loved that it was a murder mystery set in the 1920’s, but the writing wasn’t really for me. I found the story to move so slow that I got bored many times. It seemed to just drag on and on and I ended up skipping a lot of the long descriptions to just get to the dialogue. The book as a whole just came off really pretentious and wordy, and overall was not for me.

It took me a while to get into this one, but once it gets going it’s great. I struggled in the beginning because the writing felt a bit dry and impersonal. Several characters are introduced right off the bat and felt rushed. I was also thrown off by the time jumps since I was already pretty vague on the premise. Once the investigation fully starts after the funeral (40% in?), the story sends off fun chills that reminded me of the movie Knives Out. It’s exciting and intense and I liked the ending. No question that this is a great story, but parts did drag on a bit in addition to the slow start.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was entertaining and easy to read. The setup of suspicion against a backdrop of familial tensions was well done. The pacing of the plot was also engaging--nothing moved too slowly, and the big reveals were timed for maximum impact. Each of the 3 main characters are distinct and compelling. This is less of a "mystery" book (it isn't like Agatha Christie mysteries); it is more of a thriller with a murder at the center of a mystery. This book was enjoyable from start to finish. I would recommend it to anyone interested in historical fiction and a good story with lots of twists and turns.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book.

I just finished it and I'm still reeling from what just happened. The twists! I should have seen the last one coming but I was totally caught by surprise. A testament to Christopher Huang's writing.

The ending feels kind of rushed, the resolution of the final twist was rather blink and you'll miss it. I wish more time was devoted to the ending.

Twists and turns and early 1920s writing and characters straight out of a time over 100 years in the past, it was a well written book with characters that where not always interesting but all had a backstory that was devilish in its cruelty. I found it hard to connect with them as a whole, the children of the patriarch of this rather odd family. I am a lover of older literature and books set in the late 1800s and early 1900s but i found myself bored more then i thought i would be and also at times i felt the language was dull as dishwater. The premise was interesting enough but i felt it dragged around the half way part and i found it frustrating at times the idiocy of the characters and the cop in particular. The plot was interesting but once we figured out what was happening the very plan was not well thought out and laughable on its stupidly. The ending also felt very rushed all this build up to a climax that only lasted 2 pages. A good book but one i am likely to forget soon after finishing.

The Linwood's are a rich and powerful family and none is more feared the the Patriarch the dashing and intelligent Laurence Linwood himself. His smarts is only matched by his cruelty not only towards his wife but his 3 now grown children.. That's why it is a shock to learn this powerful man has died..

His 3 children receive a letter to come home to deal with the aftermath. They are however surprised when they come home to find out there father hasn't just died but was murdered..
Soon after the will is read it is deemed in his final wishes that if he died of unnatural causes he charges his 3 children with finding out who did it and with the answer comes the whole of the estate.

During the following days and weeks the children will find the horror's of there father was not only inflicted only on them and learn of murders and cover ups and also the key to there father's death might be in the story of each of there births...

Mystery horror with a 1920s flair questions will be answered and things will be revealed that will shock and disgust.

Christopher Huang has written a thoroughly enjoyable, slightly gothic, Golden-Age style mystery, set in an appropriately spooky Norman-era manor on the edge of the North Yorkshire moors. Readers are introduced to the three main characters (Sir Lawrence Linwood’s children) while they are young, in a prologue set a decade or so before World War I, and then follow them some years later, after the war, as they deal with their father’s murder and his rather unusual will. That will, which promises Linwood Hall and all the rest of Sir Lawrence’s estate to whichever of his children figures out who killed him, forms the basis for the mystery to come.

Although at first Alan, Roger, and Caroline seem ambivalent about investigating Sir Lawrence’s death, eventually they each try to figure it out. Along the way, the now grown-up children, who start off seeming vaguely self-centered and even a little bit annoying, develop into more multi-dimensional and more likeable people as they begin to interact with each other again, and slowly start to question both the moral character of their father and the manner of their upbringing. Although Huang provides hints of the resolution throughout Unnatural Ends, readers will still be surprised by the many plot twists, and eventually will be both gratified and saddened by the final ending.

Huang also creates a suitably creepy atmosphere that adds to the overall tension in the book: the nearby village of Linwood Hollow with its residents who are oddly worshipful of Sir Lawrence, the church with its priest hole and odd tunnels, and finally, and perhaps most importantly, Sir Lawrence’s wife, who was apparently bright and motivated enough to be a female doctor in a time when that was unusual and difficult, but now is an off-kilter and sinister shadow. And without going “full gothic”, there are still enough sharp little moments of horror (the episode of Caroline’s kitten comes to mind) to keep readers on their toes.

On a personal note, I had only two minor issues with Unnatural Ends. The first was that, although I wasn’t ever bored, and can’t really even pinpoint any scenes or sections I would cut, the book simply felt a little bit too long. And at 450 (print) pages overall, it actually is on the long side for a mystery. And the second is that I’m usually not a fan of books which bounce back and forth both in time, or between multiple viewpoints. And this book does both. However Huang marks the shifts clearly in the chapter headings, and in Unnatural Ends, it somehow works. Such minor kvetches aside, though, I found that I simply kept reading…and kept reading…and got cranky when I had to put it down. So that earns it four stars from me, and since I tend to give very few five-star ratings, four stars is a very solid recommendation to read this book. And finally, my thanks to Inkshares and NetGalley for the advanced review copy.

Great writing. Love the mystery and the plot twists. The characters were great, liked how the secondary characters weren't just there but also part of the mystery.

I throughly enjoyed this book and think Christopher Huang's style of writing is brilliant. His language felt very appropriate for the 1920's time period. I was hooked from the start, and while I enjoyed this book the ultimate twists I did find a slight bit predictable. I enjoyed this book and will be on the lookout for more from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.