Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s press for allowing me this ARC copy. This is my second approach to Hawkins work, the first being The Villa last year which I truly enjoyed.

The Heiress is a book about the wealthiest woman in North Carolina, Ruby, her family and how everybody is fighting to get a piece of her estate. The book is told from 3 point of views: Ruby herself, Cam her son and Jules, Cam’’s wife

If you like multiple POV, family secrets and twists, this book is definitely for you.

A fun and mildly twisty thriller featuring an estranged (and very dysfunctional) family and a multimillion dollar inheritance. The pacing is great, and I tore through the story in a couple of days. The two main narrators are Camden and Jules, a married couple who are each hiding a few things from each other. We also hear from Camden's dead mother, Ruby, through letters she wrote confessing to some pretty serious crimes. As with all thrillers, the less you know, the better, so I'll leave it there. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital review copy.

I have only read The Villa by Rachel Hawkins and it was only an okay story for me. I was kind of skeptical going into this book, but it was so much better. I love some good family soap opera drama and this gave me everything I wanted. I follows the normal formula and hits all the beats, but is very well executed.

I always try Rachel Hawkins books and I always have the same reaction. They just are ok for me. I really think it is just me. I have heard rave reviews of this book and her others so maybe this is just not an author for me. I will say that the book was interesting and it was a page turner. I think people that like mysteries would really like this. It just didn't wow me.

Rachel Hawkins is a hit-or-miss author for me and this was a hit! I like that she went from YA fantasy and rom com to adult thrillers. The thrillers are better! I really enjoyed this, even if I called some of the twists early on (I think we all did). It was still an enjoyable ride. I liked that the appearances of the past were either in letter form or newspaper articles. The descriptions of Ashby House were breathtaking!

Title: The Heiress
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Pub Date: January 9, 2024

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio or the #gifted copies of The Heiress!

This book! The Heiress was such an addictive and twisty book that I could not put down! Told in multiple POV and formats, including letters and new stories, once the family drama starts, it does not stop! This book is so well written and engaging and I cannot recommend it enough!

Ruby McTavish, victim of a famous kidnapping as a child, is the richest woman in North Carolina, widowed four times, and the ruler of her family’s estate, Ashby House. When she dies, everything is passed down to her adopted son, Camden. The problem is, Camden wants nothing to do with the house or money, and lives a separate, simple life in Colorado. Ten years after the death of Ruby, Camden is summoned back to Ashby House in the wake of his uncle. Still wanting nothing to do with his family or Ashby House, Camden is encouraged to make the trip home by his wife, Jules. From there, the drama and secrets start to unfold.

If you are looking for an addictive book that you cannot put down, this is it! It’s seriously a must read if you love drama and a quick and entertaining plot!

The Heiress:
🖤Gothic Vibes
🖤Alternating POV
🖤Family Drama
🖤So Many Secrets

I alternated between the e-book and the audiobook. The audiobook cast was top notch! I love audiobooks that have multiple narrators, and this cast worked so well together and really complimented one another! The pacing was perfect and I found myself getting drawn in so easily to the story by the phenomenal group of narrators! I highly recommend either version of this book, but if you are looking for a singable audiobook, this is it!

This is going to put 2024 off to a great start!

This book has a little bit of everything that I love in a good book! Mystery. Intrigue. Family drama. Secrets. And the McTavish family has plenty of all of those things! This story follows the life of Ruby McTavish and her extraordinary life living in the Ashby House with her family. Four husbands and an adopted child later, and she’s got some pretty interesting things to talk about.

Except, she’s dead and now her child is the heir. The house and everyone in it has so many secrets to hide. I anticipated some of the little twists and turns, but the epilogue left me wanting even more! This is my first read by Rachel Hawkins, but it will not be my last!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, NetGalley, and the author for an eARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book was a pleasant surprise. Like an onion you peel away the layers of mystery and self-discovery. I would have appreciated a few less f-bombs, mostly because I don't think that they really added to the story. Thanks Netgalley and publishers for the free e-arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. I thought this book started strong although slightly predictable. It was a fun read and I imagine will be great on audio. I loved the characters and how they had their own voices.

I did enjoy this book and I always love Rachel Hawkins writing. The reason I'm giving this 3 stars is because I found it extremely predictable. But overall I liked the characters and their development. I liked the format of the letters and the reader not knowing who the letters are written for.

This book opens with the article that tells us that Baby Ruth has gone missing. Through the alternating narrative chapters and epistolary chapters we learn about multiple generations of the McTavish family. In the beginning I was so lost. I couldn’t keep anyone straight and their relations. This is one book I really could’ve used a family tree in.

This book went by so quickly I’m not even really sure what happened. The letters from Ruth were definitely my favourite part of the book and her character reminded me a bit of Evelyn Hugo! I was excited to learn all of the sinister motives had by almost everyone in the book. It was twisty and turny and things were revealed the entire way thru.

I was waiting for this book!!! I loved Rachel Hawkins other work so I was already wish listing this one. When I got the chance to receive the digital ARC, I was so thrilled.

I honestly loved this novel I think more than her others. Who doesn’t love a twisty, complicated family drama with people you love to hate!

Ruby, the wealthiest woman in town, who was kidnapped as a child and returned a year later….is she who we think she is?
Camden her adopted son who does everything he can to escape Ashby House and his adopted family.
Jules, a theater student who is married to Camden and is drawn into the family drama when they return to Ashby house.

Told from 3 viewpoints, Ruby, Camden, and Jules it flashes back to 2013 from the current time. Nothing is as it appears. A delightfully good read that I finished up in one night!!!

Thanks to net galley and Rachel Hawkins for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

**a huge thank you to NetGalley, the publisher & the author for the opportunity to review an ARC of this book**

this was iffy!!

I had a very hard time following the story line and being sucked in until about half way through.
You get multiple POV's (Cam, the son, his wife Jules, and Ruby, his dead mother's thoughts/letters) so it makes it kind of hard to follow between past and present since his mother is now dead.

I have to say this feels like a thriller version of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, between the fortune and mysterious past and Ruby outliving 4 dead husbands and the mansion and just so many factors. I happened to love that book which is why I stuck this one out. In the end, it was a decent read, but not my favorite.

4.25 stars

Buckle up! The Heiress hooks you from the start. I love when books use letters, emails and articles to help tell a story. It reminded me a lot of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, but I loved that book too so I’m not mad about it. Fun read!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced release copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Heiress….what a ride. It did keep me guessing. Almost too long. I enjoyed the reveals in Ruby’s letters and guessing Jules and Camden’s secrets with the little hints their POVs revealed, but it did start to drag out towards the end. At about 70% in, I started to get a bit tired of the melodrama. Although I did keep reading because I was curious about how the end would tie up. The ending had a bit of a Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier feel about it and not in a bad way! I saw it as a nod to a classic gothic novel that I love so extra points to Hawkins for that! Overall, I did enjoy it!
Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the ARC I received in exchange for my honest review!

I loved this book! Lately, I've been reading some slow books and thought that maybe something had changed in my reading habits. Totally not the case! I just needed a page turner, and let me tell you, I could not put this book down!

This story revolves around Ruby McTavish, a wealthy woman who was kidnapped when she was 3, found, and returned back to her home 8 months later.

Many years later, in the aftermath of her death, her adopted son, Camden, is summoned to the estate he grew up in, The Ashby House, to handle the 9 figure estate that he wants nothing to do with. Narrated by Cam and Jules as well as Ruby, through her letters to an unknown recipient prior to her passing, you will be instantly hooked and carried through a series of twists and turns, lies, and secrets you didn't see coming.

Books like this usually fall flat in the end, but I thought the ending was written perfectly.

Thank you NG and St. Martin's Press for my ARC. Publication date: January 9, 2024.

I went into this one blind and after devouring it in less than 24 hours, I must say I'm glad I did. The writing, the pacing, the format, both story-lines absolutely worked for me. Thriller & mystery lovers you do not want to miss this one.

At the heart of the story is a mega wealth family McTavish and their ancestral home Ashby House. Greed, intrigue, dysfunctional families, secrets & quite a few dark moments. I loved that the story was unveiled through a combo of current timeline, letters & short articles about the family. To say I was fascinated by the character of Mrs "Kill-more" is an understatement. I found myself fully immersed into the story and quite unwilling to put this book down. If sleep did not get in the way, this would've easily been a one sitting kind of read.

This was such a smart, nuanced read and I was not only entertained but left wondering what is it that makes a "good" person. Especially when it comes to wealth and access to money and power! And I seriously doubt I'll forget Ruby any time soon! Highly recommend this one!

A huge thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

🌟🌟🌟✨ "The Heiress" by Rachel Hawkins takes readers on a captivating journey into the mysteries surrounding Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore's infamous legacy. Set against the backdrop of Ashby House in the Blue Ridge Mountains, the story revolves around Ruby, North Carolina’s richest and most notorious woman. The aftermath of her death pulls her adopted son, Camden, back into the family drama that he had long tried to escape.

The novel’s strength lies in its atmospheric setting and the gradual unveiling of Ruby’s enigmatic past. Hawkins crafts an intriguing plot with questions about Ruby’s kidnapping, the mysterious deaths of her four husbands, and the true motives behind adopting Camden. The gothic elements add a layer of suspense, creating an eerie ambiance that keeps the reader engaged. 📚🕵️‍♀️ #BookReview #TheHeiress #GothicSuspense #FamilySecrets

This is a must-read, can't-put-it-down, deliciously addictive book! An engaging thriller with so many unexpected twists. The characters come from a dysfunctional family with secrets, lies and murder. The only thing I didn't like was that it ended!
Ten years ago Ruby McTavish died and left her nine figure fortune and the Ashby House Estate set in the Blue Ridge Mountains to her adopted son Camden. He walked away not wanting anything to do with the money. He is teaching in Colorado with his lovely and supportive wife Jules. They are such a dynamic couple that I enjoyed their epic journey back to his home.
One of Camden's cousins and childhood bully, Ben, contacted Cam to return to the estate and settle some family disputes, but another agenda is in place with his cunning sister Libby. They are devious and full of a determination to win.
Told in 3 POVs with Camden, Jules and Ruby relating through letters to Camden about her childhood and her 4x as a widow. She was kidnapped when she was 3 and found 8 months later living with another family. The part I could not wait to find out and how it completed the story and what happened to her four husbands.
"I had gotten away with murder, and I was glad for it."
Thank you Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rachel Hawkins you little angel you. I read thrillers a lot as my own personal version of a chaser. It’s supposed to be an easy read, fast, and something you can lose yourself in. I use these in between books that require a lot of contemplation and effort in their readings and Hawkins has yet to disappoint in making a truly perfect thriller.

With a gripping plot that I liken a bit to Knives Out. We have family drama, heiress’ with attitude, secret estates and rich a-holes that you cant help but root for their downfall. And boy does she give it to you.

I’ll never compare a thriller to something like The Alchemist but that’s not why we are here. In every way, in its own right, this is near perfect. I basically ate through this book and devoured it in a couple days. I was curious and nervous, having fun and guessing the twists. There are a couple authours who will go down as best in their genres and Hawkins is definitely one of those people. Can’t wait for my friends to get to read it.