Emily Critchley is a very talented author, and I loved her debut novel, One Puzzling Afternoon, the story of a senior with dementia trying to solve the decades-old mystery of the disappearance of her closest childhood friend. (I highly recommend it.)

However, this book, a slow-burn gothic mystery, wasn't my cup of tea. It begins in 1999 when 75-year-old Gillian returns to a place she hasn't been in 60 years - the former home of her boarding school roommate, Violet, where Gillian spent the Christmas holidays with Violet and her aristocratic family. Gillian, neglected by her widowed father and his second wife, desperately tried to ingratiate herself with the Claybourne family, especially Violet's older, glamorous sisters. But she soon learned the family had many secrets.

I found the main characters to be unlikeable/unsympathetic. Something happens (that I won't spoil), and to keep themselves out of trouble, Gillian and the sisters gaslight Violet so she won't give them away.

Going into this book, and not having read the synopsis, I thought it would be either a thriller or have a paranormal element. Instead, this is a tragic story of a young teen girl, desperate to fit in, and sacrifices her friend's health and others, in the process.

Initially, I felt bad for Gillian Larking. She has no real parents to speak of (her mother passed and her father has ignored her, focusing on his new family). At school, she never really fit in, basically being an outcast. But one day, she got a new roommate, Violet Claybourne, and at last, a friend.

Violet has her peculiarities, her "undoings" as she calls them. Trying to make up for what she perceives as doing wrong - something that started after an accident at home. But she is kind and offers Gillian an escape over the holidays with her family at Thornleigh Hall. And that's when my opinion of Gillian began to sour.

Emmeline and Laura, Violet's sisters are not as kind. Sure, they are polite to Gillian, but there are moments when I just didn't trust them. Things only get worse after a tragedy, and accident caused by Laura. But the two older sisters find every way to cover it up, and for some wild reason, Gillian follows along. Ruining two lives in the process. I wanted to strangle her, that is after I strangled the two other sisters.

While this book doesn't have a happy ending per se, let's just say, there is some much deserved retribution. In the end, Violet has the ultimate undoing, good for her!

Wow! While heartbreaking, and downright uncomfortable at times, this was a story so well woven that you feel every emotion that Gilly (Gillian) and Violet feel. Gilly befriends Violet as teens away at school, and when she's invited to Violet's house for the holidays in the winter of 1938, events take place that will change their lives forever.

This is told from the POV of Gilly, but the way that Critchley is able to evoke emotions for each character is unmatched. You love some, you hate others, and it all comes together to create a story of loss, mental health, betrayal, lies, secrets, fitting in, and friendship that you won't soon forget. it's sinister and at times, infuriating, but there's a satisfying ending that I was rooting for.

Deeply character driven, historical fiction, with a tension that keeps you turning the page. Highly recommend!

I have some mixed feelings on this one - the start was a bit too much of a slow burn for me and I found it hard to get into, but once I pushed through I did ultimately enjoy the story! The setting was extremely dark and atmospheric which I also enjoyed.

Downton Abbey meets The White Lotus in this dark, twisty mystery. The story of English schoolgirl, Gillian, and her time with the upper crust Claybournes is creepy while also captivating, a peek into the lives of the English aristocracy at its worst. Critchley’s descriptive writing heightens the tension of the story as the dread of what’s to come hits you. My heart was racing, and just when I thought I knew what was happening, another door was opened that deepened the horror. It’s not scary but atmospheric, and it includes many historical details about the time period. I would have loved even more about WWII in the later chapters and could have kept reading. It’s a book I definitely won’t forget!

Hmm- this one has got me feeling a bit confused. Not due to the story per se, but my feelings towards it.

As someone with OCD, it def struck a chord. I wasn’t keen on any of the characters but that might be due to my own personality, not the authors fault.

It felt a bit too slow for me and I did find myself wanting to know ‘what happens next’ for quite a big chunk. However, I want to say that this eARC was good and still an enjoyable read, just a slow one that I kept coming back to. Overall 3.5 rounded to 4

I went into this one completely blind and was absolutely blown away. It was heartbreaking, shocking, and all around captivating. The amount of times I audibly gasped, hand flying to my mouth, was definitely a new record. The characters were so wonderfully written and kept me hanging on. From the first page to the last I didn’t want to put it down. Highly recommend!

Well, I always love gothic/dark moody novels. This one definitely fit that bill for me. I so enjoyed the author's writing style. It was so atmospheric and the descriptions were so detailed that everything played in my head like a movie. It does move a bit slowly during the first half, and at times, it was hard to hang on and keep going. Other than that, I so enjoyed this toxic friendship story. 4 stars!

I am so glad that I took a chance on reading this after stumbling upon it on NetGalley. What an incredible gothic story.

Recently I’ve felt a bit under wowed by many gothic books. They have felt very similar and dare I say mediocre. I’m happy to say that was not the case with this book.

The Undoing of Violet Claybourne is a slow burn gothic mystery filled with unlikable characters and dark secrets. These characters are nasty. They take Mean Girls to a whole new level. The true colours of the girls are shown pretty early on following a terrible accident that occurs on the estate. This accident sets up the entire story and the sequence of events that follows is nothing short of horrifying. It builds to the most satisfying climax.

Those looking for a gothic book that will keep them turning the pages until late at night will find this a satisfying read. Be warned though, it’s a lot darker than it initially seems.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for my eARC.

I continue to be amazed by Emily Critchley's ability to handle sensitive topics with poise and ease. She has become and auto read author for me.

In this story a young girl visits a wealthy friend from her boarding school. The chaos that ensues makes for a dark gothic mystery. The representation of Violet's OCD tendencies and anxiety was unsettling as she was gaslight by those around her. It made for an uncomfortable but compelling read just as her depiction of dementia did in One Puzzling Afternoon.

The gothic features of the house and a family with such dark secrets made for a gripping story. I highly recommend this read for fans of gothic stories, family secrets and darker, historical fiction.

Trigger warnings for death of a child, OCD, anxiety, gaslighting and probably more I missed.

Thank you to Sourcebooks and Netgalley for the review copy.

Wow. The Undoing of Violet Claybourne is a wild ride. I loved the writing and my gosh, I had no idea where this story was going to end. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves books about giant manors and the secrets within them.

Thank you NetGalley and to the publishers for this wonderful ARC!

The Undoing of Violet Claybourne is a slow burn, gothic, suspense novel that left me both intrigued and frustrated. Violet is a compelling character, showing clear signs of OCD (though undiagnosed in the 1930s) but nearly everyone else was infuriating and unlikeable. The book isn’t a mystery—it’s a tense, psychological exploration of trauma and isolation. I went into this book completely blind and was absolutely loving it until it became mean girl.

Thank you Sourecebooks for an advance readers copy in exchange for my honest review!
Release date: 03/04/2025!

This books cover is what instantly drew me in because it is gorgeous so kudos!

Also, I love Gothic fiction so I knew this would be a book I'd love it read.

It had a fantastic ending and it moved along pretty quickly for a Gothic story. There were some parts that felt like a dragged a little but over all great pacing.

This book is crazy, there is a huge mystery when it comes to Violet who Gilly meets in school. Violet is different and so is Gilly but Violet is something special, and her family does not fall short from that lol. Gilly comes to visit her family when she invites her and Gilly gets into trouble with Violets sisters who also have so much going on. There is this family mystery going on and Gilly is intrigued, there are literal things going on here and its crazy. It was hard to connect to the characters, I didn't feel that I finished the book, I was left hanging throughout the book and even the end.

Thank you Netgalley the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

I really enjoyed this moody story about two girls who meet in a boarding school in 1938. The story unfolds with the backdrop of WWII looming and in the present-day, and follows Gillian (Gilly) as she meets and befriends Violet and is invited to stay with Violet's family on their posh estate over the holidays, to tragic consequences. Violet is anxious and prone to "rituals" (she would probably be diagnosed with OCD and/or an anxiety disorder today), her family is all about keeping up appearances and marrying off their eldest daughter to a good family so as to not lose the family estate, which is quickly becoming too expensive for them to manage.

When a tragic accident happens over the visit, Gillian, Violet, and the two sisters all get caught up in a web of lies and cowardly decisions. Some of the twists were predictable, some were surprising, but it was well-written and the fact that the author managed to write (most) of the characters with at least some sympathy, despite the fact that they really weren't the best people says something. The real tragedy is that there were probably so many stories like this happening in real life.

Without going into spoilers, I was a little surprised at how magnanimous the most wronged person in the story was in the end, but clearly they are a better person than I am. Overall recommended especially for anyone who loves a good gothic background, even though there is nothing supernatural or uncanny in this story, just a lot of flawed human beings.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of the book drew me in but once I started reading it, I just couldn’t get into it at all.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

As always, thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read this ARC!
This story was just OK for me. It was an interesting story that kept me engaged because for the most part it was was decently paced, but all of the characters except for Violet were boring and one dimensional. I was disappointed at how blatantly obvious and predictable every single plot twist was. The best part of the book happened in the very last chapter where I was laughing and saying "lets goooooo". But then at the same time, one of the people that deserved some kind of karma coming back to them the most, got to ride off into the sunset. This book had some great potential but fell flat for me overall.

I adored Critchley's novel One Puzzling Afternoon, but this book was a big miss for me. I would have DNF'd it had it not been an ARC copy. Most of the story is a flashback to some horrible events in 1938 when dishrag Gillian goes home with her quirky (read: a girl with OCD before that was really a thing) roommate Violet and meets Violet's awful older sisters. I was miserable the whole way through, hated almost all of the characters, and didn't really get the point of the story at all. Gillian never showed any spine or courage, multiple lives were just ruined without any real redemption, and I was left depressed and sad. I'm really bummed this didn't work for me, but that's how it goes sometimes. Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a digital review copy.

Set in the 1930s this one felt like reading a mystery set in the great age of mysteries. It feel like reading a mix between a Sayers and a Christie.

I was excited to receive this as an ARC! I went in blind, and my expectations were exceeded.

Violet appears to have OCD. Her undoings are OCD compulsions that she believes will make her acceptable to her upper crust family. We are told Violet’s story through her roommate Gilly’s eyes.

Gilly is unsatisfied with her life and believes fitting in with Violet’s posh older sisters and currying their favor will make her life better. In reality, Emmeline and Laura are spoiled snotty selfish rich girls.

Without giving too much away, my jaw was on the floor from the events that take place. Things quickly go from bad to worse. These children make dumb decisions that have life long consequences.

The final chapters drop bomb shell after bomb shell that I didn’t see coming.

Review will be posted on my bookstagram, toomanyfivestarreads, closer to publication date.