Book Review: The Heiress By Rachel Hawkins
Hi friends! I haven’t written an actual book review in a very long time – especially via blog post! I think when I lost my original blog website during Covid in 2020, I lost all of my prior reviews, and haven’t published much since. It’s honestly surprising because I think I love reading as much as fashion! Recently I joined a website called Net Galley which allows you to apply to review unpublished books. I figured what they heck, I’ll give it a try – and I was so excited when I was approved to review my first book!
Rachel Hawkins is one of my favorite authors. She’s a relatively new author to the suspense-thriller genre and I’ve enjoyed her prior suspense novels, my favorite is The Wife Upstairs, so I was thrilled to read her newest book The Heiress – set for publication release on January 9th, 2024.
My review of The Heiress:
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Similar authors: Frieda McFadden, Mary Kubica
Triggers: Some bad language (not frequent – more so used in jest), some violence (not gory)
Please note: I rarely give a book 5 stars – I reserve that rating for books that capture me from beginning to end, I can relate to and love the main characters, and it’s a book that truly sticks with me… that kind of book you read and literally go into a book slump for awhile because nothing compares to the book you just read. You laugh, you cry, and the book gives you true emotion! Those books are 5 stars! 🙂
When Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore dies, she’s not only North Carolina’s richest woman, she’s also its most notorious. The victim of a famous kidnapping as a child and a widow four times over, Ruby ruled the tiny town of Tavistock from Ashby House, her family’s estate high in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Plot summary via Amazon.
But in the aftermath of her death, her adopted son, Camden, wants little to do with the house or the money―and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into a normal life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules, a woman just as eager to escape her own messy past.
Ten years later, his uncle’s death pulls Cam and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but the legacy of Ruby is inescapable.
And as Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Was there any truth to the persistent rumors following her disappearance as a girl? What really happened to those four husbands, who all died under mysterious circumstances? And why did she adopt Cam in the first place? Soon, Jules and Cam realize that an inheritance can entail far more than what’s written in a will––and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave.
Now, let me tell you – this book was close to 5 stars. The plot is unique and draws you in right away. I love a book that is a quick read that you can’t put down. The main plot setting is near Asheville, NC – a town I have never visited, but for sure is on my bucket list! The house described as “Ashby House” wraps you into it’s beautiful character and makes you want to buy a similar old house to live in. I didn’t hate or dislike the main characters – I was more curious to learn about their back story – and the mystery of it all wrapped me in beginning to end. One of the main characters, Jules, she even made me laugh with her sarcastic/witty humor! I didn’t give it 5 stars because I didn’t have the “book hungover” feeling after reading it, but it was 100% a really good book!
If you read Frieda McFadden or Mary Kubica and enjoy these authors, books by Rachel Hawkins provide a similar experience. I would recommend The Heiress to anyone that enjoys a quick mystery/suspense book, non-horror (however there are crime/violence scenes but these are not overdone), with a unique story line that will keep you guessing until the end!
I highly recommend reading The Heiress upon release date January 9th, 2024. I hope this book review helped those that love to read as much as I do and can help pick out your next book to enjoy!
Happy reading!
