I have read a few Rachel Hawkins books at the point and enjoyed them but this one is by far the best! I absolutely loved the mystery and the format and the narrators were so good. This one kept me on the edge of my seat.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Heiress
By: Rachel Hawkins
Publisher: Macmillan
Pub Date: 1/9/24
Narrated by: Dan Bittner, Eliza Foss, John Pirhalla and Patti Murin

Ruby McTavish is a very wealthy woman who comes from a long line of very wealthy people who live in a small town Tavistock, North Carolina. Ruby has grown up with the whole world knowing she was kidnapped at just two years old. She disappeared from a picnic when the nanny thought her mother had her and her mother thought the nanny had her. That has left her with big life questions. Is she really the little girl who was kidnapped? Is she really a McTavish?
She married four times but all her husbands died under suspicious circumstances. Was she killing these men or was she just unlucky in love?
After her 4th and final husband died she knew that her family would end up inheriting her fortune if she didn’t have an heir. Camden was foster child she adopted. The rest of the family hated Camden from the start. They all understood he was going to inherit his mother’s fortune and they would get nothing. By the time he was 18 years old he couldn’t wait to escape. He wanted nothing to do with his inheritance or the mansion that comes with it. Ruby believed it was his duty to stay in North Carolina. When he announced he was going to college in California she cut him off, made sure he lost every job he had. His last visit home before leaving she tragically died in her sleep or did she?
Camden ended up in California where he met Jules, his now wife. Cam teaches at an all boys school. They live a normal life. But Jules wants more. She reaches out to Cam’s cousin to get him to reach out. This time he’s more receptive to his cousin's request and they pack up and head for Travistock. What Cam doesn’t know is Jules has her own agenda, she wants it all. The mansion and then inheritance that came with it. But she has her own secrets too. Will Camden ever know who she really is?

So many twists and turns that will keep you thinking about this one for a long time. 2024 is turning into the year for stellar thrillers!

I was really excited to read The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins because I enjoyed her other books The Wife Upstairs, Reckless Girls and The Villa. I found this to be an entertaining quick read but not on par with her other thrillers. I liked the multiple POVs and the varied writing with emails, letters and news articles. The main couple Cam and Jules each have secrets from their past that are revealed when they return to Ashby House. The North Carolina setting was interesting and the full cast on the audiobook was great! I was hoping for more thrills from this book. It was mostly family drama. I’d still be interested to read her next book!

This was such a well thought out book. The first half of the book had me wanting more. I was intrigued by Ruby's letters and what they revealed. Rachel Hawkins had my attention from the very beginning and the book kept getting more interesting, more addictive, and more shocking as more was revealed. There is drama, secrets, and twists galore! Just when I thought this book could not get any better, it did! I enjoyed both Cam and Jules POV's in addition to reading about Ruby through her journal entries.

Gripping, shocking, well written and dramatic. I can't wait to read what Rachel Hawkins writes next!

Netgalley Review: "The Heiress" by Rachel Hawkins

At first, I found Camden's storyline a bit slow, but as the plot unfolded, I became increasingly invested. The narrative gradually builds momentum, and by the end, everything comes together brilliantly. I was thoroughly captivated by the book's intricacies and the uncertainty of what would happen next. The audiobook's narrator did a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life, keeping listeners engaged and adding an extra layer of enjoyment to the story. Overall, "The Heiress" is a well-crafted and engaging read that keeps you guessing until the very end. Highly recommended!

I wasn’t expecting that ending.

I’ve been thinking about it for awhile. Just the fact that I’ve thought about it for a month says something. There’s more of a mystery then murder here.

What a great character study. Looking back, hind sight, unraveling the mystery in reverse, it makes sense. That ending made me smile!

A young heiress disappears. Then reappears years later.

She lives a charmed life. She marries 4 times and all husbands die under mysterious questionable circumstances. She adopts a son.

She leaves her estate to her adopted son Cam. You want to know why he leaves his 9 figure inheritance to his relatives and moves across the country to be a teacher & marry Jules.

Jules is fascinated by the estate and has a past of her own.

Cam is called back after the death of his uncle and the mystery begins to unfold.

Recommended for those who enjoy a twisty gothic mystery.

I tried to listen to the audio version through the Net Galley App and it was so glitchy I never could finish. I ended up going to my trusted library and checked out the audio cd there. Too bad. It was rather frustrating.

Loved this book!! In fact, I can’t remember the last time I read a book so fast! I love a book that can keep me turning the pages, and not worry about anything else but the book! I highly recommend this book! As I’ve mentioned before I read for entertainment and enjoyment - and that’s what this book gave me! This is my first book by Hawkins and she made a great first impression.

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins, was filled with intrigue. The twists and turns kept surprising me and taking unexpected paths. As a child, Ruby disappeared from her wealthy family at age three. 8 months after her disappearance, Ruby is found and returns home. The story follows Ruby's life for more than 70 years. She was married four times and each husband met an untimely death. She adopted a child, a boy, when she is in her 40s and left her full estate to this adopted child. Cam, the adopted boy, returns to the family home after leaving it ten years prior when his mother died. He doesn't want to go, but he must settle things with other members of his family and the house. When Cam and his wife, Jules, arrive at the North Carolina estate, old problems surface and threaten to destroy Cam.
I enjoyed The Heiress and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys suspense and thrillers.
I was given an ARC of The Heiress by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Every suspense thriller I listen to by Rachel Hawkins just gets better and better. In this story of a deceased North Carolina heiress, Ruby, her family's estate is willed to her only child, her adoplted son, Camden. Camden and his wife, who live in Colorado, make the road trip to the Blue Ridge mountain compound he owns some ten years later, to settle some unfinished business after his uncle dies. As you can imagine, Ruby's sister Nelle and her family, who currently reside there, are not pleased by Camden's reappearance. As letters, written by Ruby, are revealed one by one, other secrets also become known. As more and more is revealed, it's tough to put this one down. I liked the narrators with the exception of Camden, whose voice just didn't seem to fit the character.

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins was a captivating mystery thriller. Lots of twists and turn to keep you wondering!!
It is told in three varying perspectives: 1) husband Camden, 2) wife Jules, 3) a collection of letters by Camden's adopted mother, Ruby.
This story is about Ruby McTavish, a wealthy little girl who was lost in the woods near her home in North Carolina at only three years old. Ruby was found eight months later in another state and returned home. As Ruby grows up in her mansion known as the Ashby House, she often feels that some things about her aren't quite right.
Years later when Ruby McTavish dies, she leaves everything to her adopted son, Camden. But he cares little about the inheritance and fled this vile family many years ago. He's a decent man despite his family, and now lives a quiet life with his wife, Jules.
Thanks to NetGalley, author Rachel Hawkins and Macmillan Audio for the ALC digital review copy to honestly review.

This is a Mystery Suspense. I had trouble getting into the story because this story was so slow moving and I figured out what was going on really early into the story. I had to make myself finish this book. The story overall was ok, but it just could not hold my attention. I really wanted to love this book. I listen to the audiobook of this book, and I think the narrator did a great job. I received an ARC of this book. This review is my own honest opinion about the book like all my reviews are.

Loved this story and fully approved of ALL the twists. What a great tale - I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next. Just when you thought the "other" shoe had dropped, you were wrong! Love live the McTavish clan!

Ok. Wow. This was such an engrossing thriller! But I was not expecting that twist at the very end. As the words played out, my mouth dropped open. I reread it to make sure I got it right. #RachelHawkins, I love your writing & you struck gold with #TheHeiress like Ruth with her McTavish wealth! And I just LOVED RUTH! Her letters were the best part!

I felt like the characters were all speaking to me and that’s thanks to the gorgeous narration of Dan Bittner; Eliza Foss; John Pirhalla and of course, the very talented Patti Murin.

Thank you, Rachel Hawkins, Macmillan Audio, & @netgalley for my audiobook! All opinions are my own.

OOOO boy this one was hard to put down. Lots of characters but easy to differentiate. I loved the old money scandal, while I thought I had some things figured out, there was definitely some I didn't and that was fun! Rachel's books are always so easy to devour, I have to slow myself down to savor them.

I think this is her best book yet! I really enjoyed the last twist because I didn't see that coming. I feel like this would be the perfect beach read since it moves quickly and it's very entertaining.

This was hard to get through as a novel but much better as an audiobook.
I really enjoyed this and listening to this.
The twists were excellent, I would love to know more about the ending - like did they ever admit to each other that they know each other's secrets? How did they react to them? I like to think that they start laughing and admit that they always knew and it didn't matter that they would and have always love each other. Like some funny joke and then it made their marriage even stronger. Just a couple of my questions...

4 out of 5 stars

I was given this arc in exchange for an honest review.



I am not sure I have ever read a Rachel Hawkins book but I do know that there have been a few I have wanted to read. This really interested me. I love the idea of a family matriarch being a mystery where the secrets are slowly revealed. The story was good and the narration by Dan Bittner, Eliza Foss, Patti Murin and John Pirhalla was excellent. I did knock off one star just because it felt so much like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo with murder. This was still a really fun rad and I would suggest this for a Summer beach read.

I enjoyed this book and wanted to keep reading! I enjoyed the perspective of getting to know Ruby McTavish through 3 different lenses. I was able to listen to this book and really enjoyed the narrator especially Ruby McTavish. I love that Hawkins used letters as part of her story telling. The family dynamic was so interesting and disturbing all in the same minute. The title is such a great one as it refers to more than one person in the book and leave wondering who the book was really titled for. Overall, this was a great read that kept me coming back for more!

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's press for this early audio copy.

As expected, I binged this one (when I could sit down and read it 🥲) I don’t know how Rachel Hawkins is able to maintain the same level of tension and intrigue the entire time without it seeming to be too much, but she does and I’m so grateful for it.

Ruby, unsurprisingly, was my favorite character. Her tone of voice, quips, and though process was a wild ride to take. Coupled with Jules’s habit of talking directly to the reader, the characters really felt alive.

There’s always so much going on in a Hawkins book that I feel as if I never have time to sleuth it out 🤣 but honestly that’s okay with me because it’s still just as satisfying to be surprised by most of the twists thrown my way. The plot twists were fun and the ending had me wishing I could spend more time in this world to see what happens next.

Would 100% recommend when you need something bingeable, dramatic, and fun to read.