The Turn of the Key

Books | Fiction / Thrillers / Psychological

3.8

(10.7K)

Ruth Ware

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “A superb suspense writer…Brava, Ruth Ware. I daresay even Henry James would be impressed.” —Maureen Corrigan, author of So We Read On “This appropriately twisty Turn of the Screw update finds the Woman in Cabin 10 author in her most menacing mode, unfurling a shocking saga of murder and deception.” —Entertainment Weekly From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lying Game and The Death of Mrs. Westaway comes this thrilling novel that explores the dark side of technology. When she stumbles across the ad, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart” home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family. What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder. Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the home’s cameras, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman. It was everything. She knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder—but somebody is. Full of spellbinding menace and told in Ruth Ware’s signature suspenseful style, The Turn of the Key is an unputdownable thriller from the Agatha Christie of our time.

Thriller

Mystery

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More Details:

Author

Ruth Ware

Pages

352

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

2019-08-06

ISBN

1501188798 9781501188794

Ratings

Google: 4.5

Community ReviewsSee all

"woman searches for an upgrade in her career finds the perfect nanny job she cannot refuse watching 3 children with a rich family in a beautiful home. however, at every passing day she discovers there may be much more than what she signed up for with talk of past nannies fleeing and dark sounds that keep her up at night. in what seems like a supernatural suspense thriller you will never guess the little twist this ending gives you. this was a must read i couldn't wait to read the ending."

Chena

"This is probably one of my favourite Ruth Ware books. Considering versions of this same story have been around for years, I really enjoyed the atmosphere. "

Rhon

"…page turner…I totally sinked in the book and was sooo anxious to find out what is happening…but the ending, please !! I was disappointed."

LeeLoo Dallas

"Though the plot sounded intriguing, I’m not convinced that is was executed well. I love the idea of stories being told on the forms of letters or notes, however the supposed ‘notes’ Rachel was writing didn’t feel anything like letters, though. I’m not sure how to explain it. Anyway, the writing was alright, but not astonishing. In fact, I found myself dreading picking up this book due to the lack of engagement I felt. The story is a slow one, and the characters don’t feel very well thought out. Instead, they’re flat, static characters, none of which come across as interesting or mysterious. It was quite a struggle to read. Many people do not like the ending to this book, and I’m inclined to agree. Certain details come out of nowhere, and the ending feels so rushed. In addition to that, we don’t even get an explanation for Jack’s actions. Rather than providing closure to the audience, it simply left us with more questions than answers. In my opinion, the book would be more interesting from an investigator’s point of view as he explored the house and those involved. The first letter from Rachel would be what started it all, sparking an independent investigation. Either way, this isn’t really worth the read in my opinion. I highly recommend the author’s other book, “The Woman in Cabin 10”, a much more interesting and mysterious story with intriguing characters. "

Ashtyn (They/Them)

"Ugh, pretty boring. All the lead up for something so mundane and typical. Not worth it. "

Maya

"I enjoyed it, not a favorite. The ending was decent, not great. Left unanswered questions. "

Courtney W

"Well-written and easy to follow from the start. If you like “Home Before Dark” by Riley Sager, you’d enjoy this as well. The only gripe I have is the very end. Without spoiling it, the explanation makes sense but what is revealed by page 331 should have been omitted. Changing that aspect would’ve made the overall story much better. Nonetheless, a great book! "

Skye

"This is a good suspense thriller. Starts out as the proverbial nanny begins a new job for a family in an old Scottish Victorian house…is it a ghost story or just a dysfunctional family???"