The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! đ
eliza_jeanxo's review against another edition
5.0
This book had so many twists and turns it was insane. Every single person in this book is a whack job and I loved it so much. Literally never knew what to expect next.
heather425's review against another edition
3.0
This is a slow moving story centered around a house in England, Raven Hall. Told through three character's POV at three different time periods. Beth is a teen orphan sent by her aunt to live with a strange family at Raven Hall in the late 1980s. Sadie is a young adult in 2019 who has been invited to play a part in a murder mystery weekend at Raven Hall. The third POV is a young woman who is obsessed with Raven Hall because it was her family's home and after the death of her parents she was forced to leave it.
Beth's story is the one with the most forward motion. She is told she's there to be the daughter of the house's play mate. They're fourteen so that phrase is just weird. As time passes it is clear she's there for other reasons. Eventually all three timelines converge and many secrets are revealed. Things are all wrapped up neatly in a little bow by the end.
This was a decent story, but the pacing was too slow. I think telling it in three parts would have worked better than the alternating chapters. A prologue with Leonora's part, Beth's part, then Sadie's weekend would have made for an easier flowing story for the reader. If you like a good mystery and dysfunctional characters you should check this book out when it is published in January.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Beth's story is the one with the most forward motion. She is told she's there to be the daughter of the house's play mate. They're fourteen so that phrase is just weird. As time passes it is clear she's there for other reasons. Eventually all three timelines converge and many secrets are revealed. Things are all wrapped up neatly in a little bow by the end.
This was a decent story, but the pacing was too slow. I think telling it in three parts would have worked better than the alternating chapters. A prologue with Leonora's part, Beth's part, then Sadie's weekend would have made for an easier flowing story for the reader. If you like a good mystery and dysfunctional characters you should check this book out when it is published in January.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!
bookapotamus's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fun one! I loved The Au Pair and The Perfect Guests was just as satisfying!
Sometimes you just need to get out of your head and read a fun thriller that may seem a bit implausible and too tidy, but it hits all the nerves the right way and is just a fun experience, so you can thrown all plausibility out the window.
Just sit back and enjoy the ride as past and present collide in this one.
Past - an orphaned girl is "adopted" by the family who lives at Raven Hall, a gothic manor that is hiding some truly chilling secrets. But is there an ulterior motive to this adoption? Me thinks so! And Present - 30 years later Raven Hall is transformed into a Murder Mystery party setting where a struggling actress takes a job at this grand mansion, but the mystery game is not the only one at play.
I scrambled through this one because it was such a unique story and I literally had NO idea what was happening and HAD to find out. It was a fun and enjoyable read and while the end tied up in some pretty neat and tidy bows - they were FUN bows and I'm not mad about it!
It's a fun and twisty puzzle and I enjoyed playing the game!
Sometimes you just need to get out of your head and read a fun thriller that may seem a bit implausible and too tidy, but it hits all the nerves the right way and is just a fun experience, so you can thrown all plausibility out the window.
Just sit back and enjoy the ride as past and present collide in this one.
Past - an orphaned girl is "adopted" by the family who lives at Raven Hall, a gothic manor that is hiding some truly chilling secrets. But is there an ulterior motive to this adoption? Me thinks so! And Present - 30 years later Raven Hall is transformed into a Murder Mystery party setting where a struggling actress takes a job at this grand mansion, but the mystery game is not the only one at play.
I scrambled through this one because it was such a unique story and I literally had NO idea what was happening and HAD to find out. It was a fun and enjoyable read and while the end tied up in some pretty neat and tidy bows - they were FUN bows and I'm not mad about it!
It's a fun and twisty puzzle and I enjoyed playing the game!
sandrareilly513's review against another edition
4.0
This twisted story follows three narrators - Sadie, Beth, and an unnamed character - as they experience life at Raven Hall, a sprawling countryside estate set atop a hill above town. Beth, recently orphaned after a tragic car accident, is taken in by Leonora and Marcus in an effort to provide their daughter, Nina, with a companion. Nina and Beth take to each other right away and become as close as sisters, traversing the large estate and nearby lake with their townie friend, Jonas. But Leonora has strict rules for Nina, keeping her sequestered at Raven Hall. As much as Beth enjoys her life with her new âfamilyâ, she canât help but feel like somethingâs off. Decades later, Sadie has been invited to Raven Hall as an actress in a companyâs trial run at a murder mystery weekend experience. But as it becomes clear this ecclectic group of guests were each specifically chosen to attend, albeit for seemingly unknown reasons, the night turns dark and threatening. And a third narratorâs point-of-view will become the key to all of Raven Hallâs mysteriesâŚ
Perfect for fans of drama, intrigue, and suspense! Looking for an alternative to daytime soap opera shows??? This is it! And I mean that as a compliment. This story had me captivated and the suspense never let up. I was constantly looking for clues to solve the numerous mysteries playing out in each narratorâs settings. Even though I began to put the pieces together around the last third of the book, author Emma Rous weaves unforeseeable twists into the last few chapters that will make readersâ eyes pop. This book gave me total Days of Their Lives feels, and I will most definitely pick up future books by this author!
**Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for an eARC in exchange for this honest review.**
Perfect for fans of drama, intrigue, and suspense! Looking for an alternative to daytime soap opera shows??? This is it! And I mean that as a compliment. This story had me captivated and the suspense never let up. I was constantly looking for clues to solve the numerous mysteries playing out in each narratorâs settings. Even though I began to put the pieces together around the last third of the book, author Emma Rous weaves unforeseeable twists into the last few chapters that will make readersâ eyes pop. This book gave me total Days of Their Lives feels, and I will most definitely pick up future books by this author!
**Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for an eARC in exchange for this honest review.**
garbgini's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kristen_eden's review against another edition
2.0
A quick easy read sure, but a letdown. Full of TWISTS that are unnecessary and weird and sloppy.
rrickman33's review against another edition
5.0
4.5/5 stars rounded up on goodreads
This was so good how is it not more popular? The first half is so eerie it was a 5 star book for me. Lost me a bit in the second half but I had such a fun time reading this book still.
We follow Beth in 1988 as she moves to a country house, Raven Hall, as a foster child. Her aunt drops her off with a lovely couple and a girl Nina, both girls are 14, who she is to be a companion for. Her chapters about wanting a home, a family, a simple life were enjoyable but then Beth gets asked to play a game...
2019 Sadie gets an acting gig at a place called Raven Hall to pretend to be a guest on a murder mystery weekend trip. She shows up along with 6 other people and they play the murder mystery game while a photographer takes their photos for promotion of the company. This sounds fun right? Well the night takes a turn, a guest goes missing, and they all start to feel a little weird...
These two story lines merging were so much fun to read. Yes, if you were trying to best the author you could have guessed where things were going but why are you making reading a competition? Just enjoy the story even if you perfectly guessed what's going to happen. Some of these reviews.. sheesh!
Emma Rous has a gorgeous way of writing that made it so hard to put the book down. She has such full characters and they each are a little unpredictable. I wouldn't call this book a thriller, more of a fun mystery about family secrets, lies, and revenge. Overall, I definitely recommend giving this book a try if the premise sounds fun to you!
This was so good how is it not more popular? The first half is so eerie it was a 5 star book for me. Lost me a bit in the second half but I had such a fun time reading this book still.
We follow Beth in 1988 as she moves to a country house, Raven Hall, as a foster child. Her aunt drops her off with a lovely couple and a girl Nina, both girls are 14, who she is to be a companion for. Her chapters about wanting a home, a family, a simple life were enjoyable but then Beth gets asked to play a game...
2019 Sadie gets an acting gig at a place called Raven Hall to pretend to be a guest on a murder mystery weekend trip. She shows up along with 6 other people and they play the murder mystery game while a photographer takes their photos for promotion of the company. This sounds fun right? Well the night takes a turn, a guest goes missing, and they all start to feel a little weird...
These two story lines merging were so much fun to read. Yes, if you were trying to best the author you could have guessed where things were going but why are you making reading a competition? Just enjoy the story even if you perfectly guessed what's going to happen. Some of these reviews.. sheesh!
Emma Rous has a gorgeous way of writing that made it so hard to put the book down. She has such full characters and they each are a little unpredictable. I wouldn't call this book a thriller, more of a fun mystery about family secrets, lies, and revenge. Overall, I definitely recommend giving this book a try if the premise sounds fun to you!
rovingreader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
celenac's review against another edition
3.0
The first half of the book was interesting and kept me wanting to read more to find out the reason behind everyone's behavior. However, the storyline started to go downhill during the second half. Things started getting revealed so quickly that it started to feel unnatural and cringe-y. The dialogue became kind of corny, and the coincidences and connections gradually got more predictable.
I didn't understand the motives of the characters. How the organizers of the "murder mystery game" thought to gather everyone they wanted to seems like it'd be ineffective in the real world. Their plans for what they wanted to do with their guests were also questionable and juvenile.
I am fine that this was more of a tame, family mystery than a supernatural, psychopathic mystery novel; and I really did enjoy the first half. The beginning had so much potential and was paced perfectly, but the way things unfolded in the second half was so disappointing. The back story of Beth and Nina was good, but I think it needed more depth. I felt like everything in the end was just sloppily tied together.
I didn't understand the motives of the characters. How the organizers of the "murder mystery game" thought to gather everyone they wanted to seems like it'd be ineffective in the real world. Their plans for what they wanted to do with their guests were also questionable and juvenile.
I am fine that this was more of a tame, family mystery than a supernatural, psychopathic mystery novel; and I really did enjoy the first half. The beginning had so much potential and was paced perfectly, but the way things unfolded in the second half was so disappointing. The back story of Beth and Nina was good, but I think it needed more depth. I felt like everything in the end was just sloppily tied together.