4.5⭐️

The way this book had me in a chokehold, caused me to lose several hours of sleep, and made me fall in love with Rose McCabe (even as her behavior and decisions got annoying towards the end) all in 7hrs and 35 minutes. WOW!!!

Elizabeth McKenna?!?! Please tell me that while you were writing this book you purposefully wanted your readers to dislike EVERY single one your characters??? That you constantly yelled at William SR., and you slapped your forehead over and over as you slowly tore apart Liam and Sawyer’s friendship?!?! And do not get me started on Ms. Taylor. She was disgusting from the start and her justification for her behavior was wack and a complete eye roll.🤭🤭🤭. (I know you won’t answer this but…I am going to choose to be delusional here and claim that you did all of the above). BECAUSE I DID!!!

The tarnished son was published last year, July 23, 2024 (and yes…I am aware that my ARC Review is overdue), but I am glad to have waited until this year to give this my undivided attention. When I first came across this book, I was both nervous and excited to request the ARC. Nervous because I typically shy away from books that feature The Rich causing harm and getting away with it. Excited because I was trying to be adventurous and step out of my comfort zone via ARCs and was proud of myself for requesting this book to help with that. And to my utter shock, I received this ARC but got way too nervous to read it right away (hints why I am reading it now). The tarnished son will MOST DEFINITELY go down as a favorite of 2025 for three reasons:

(1) It has freed me from my reading slump.
(2) I can see myself possibly picking up another book by Elizabeth McKenna (please write a YA Dark Academia Novel).
(3) Rose McCabe will be a FMC that I will remember for a lifetime (again, even though I found myself disliking her towards the final 23 chapters). 🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽.

To talk about this book would cause me to spoil its entirety (Lord knows I have been talking my mommy’s ears off for the last 4 days). So, I will say this:

If you think that by reading the synopsis that you will have this book figured out then you are dead wrong. This book is more than just about a small town containing the Founding Family, how rich they are, or a murder. It is more than a series of events that occur over a three month time period or how quickly one bad decision can cause a person to lose their grip on life. It is more than the definition of what money can buy or how awful people treat others when one doesn’t get their way in life. And…It is more than about right, wrong, or how secrets and lies can ruin more than just one person. This book is a hot mess of drama, relationship issues, people thinking and acting all holier than thou, and a laundry list of other horrible things. But…This book is also thought provoking. It will have you laughing, gasping, eyes watering, and just wanting to stay up all night to figure out how it will end. This book will even have you asking yourself: WHO IS THE TARNISHED SON??? I know I will be up in the days to come constantly thinking about this book and wondering if the ending justified all of the means.

I honestly don’t know if this book will take off the way other books do (with SEVERAL unlikeable characters and drama the length of two arms and two legs). I do have hope, however, that between me posting this review and some time in the next few years, many people (especially YA readers/lovers) will see this book and become motivated to read it. The Tarnished Son its own kind of read. A fast-paced, short chapter, (and again) full of drama from every angle kind of book that will have you saying OOHMGEE within every chapter.

Thank you NetGalley and Elizabeth McKenna for granting my request for an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for my honest and personal opinion!!!

I looove a small town with a powerful family and The Tarnished Son has exactly that. The Clark family rules Williams Bay, Wisconsin and has for generations. This story is fully of family drama and palpable tension. The Clark family is incredibly unlikeable and that fact made me like this book even more. Sometimes I just love to hate, ya know?

A very twist, fast-paced page turner you have to pick up if you're a fan of domestic thrillers!

The Tarnished Son is an unpredictable family drama about the fall of a respected family that has ruled their town for generations. When the shining son causes a tragic accident, long-hidden secrets and cracks in the family's facade are exposed. While I loved the concept, as a first-time reader of Elizabeth McKenna I struggled to fully immerse myself in the story and connect with the writing style. However, there were still plenty of surprising twists I didn't see coming. A quick read for those who enjoy watching a family's destruction unfold.

I loved the concept of the book but i wasn't able to really immerse myself in it, It's my first book by Elizabeth so I'm not sure if it's the writing style or something else.

I did still finish it and there were a lot of things I didn't see coming so the 'wow' factor was still there, I'd still recommend it as a nice quick read!

The first-person narration in a book with multiple POVs didn't work for me. Additionally, 'The Tarnished Son' often tells the audience how characters feel and how events unfold, rather than showing it through actions and descriptions. It seemed as though the book didn't trust the reader's intelligence to piece things together, spelling out every single emotion the character felt.

'Oh, XYZ happened, and I am so very sad,' This hindered my enjoyment of the story. I truly detest when authors underestimate their readers' intelligence and spoon-feed them information. Regarding the story itself, while I can’t say I enjoyed it, I might have appreciated it more if it had been crafted by a more skilled writer.