Having read several books by Ruth Ware, The Death of Mrs. Westaway is my favorite!! I truly enjoyed this book; it's filled with haunting family secrets, intrigue and action. FIVE STARS ALL DAY!!

After her mother's death, Hal is down on her luck with a loan shark on her tail. Having no family around she has no one to turn to for any kind of support, financial or otherwise. Reading tarot cards is just not paying the bills. One day she receives a letter from a probate attorney advising her of an inheritance from the late Mrs. Westaway, allegedly Hal's grandmother. Hal doesn't know who Mrs. Westaway is and while she believes there's a huge mistake, with her financial crisis, she's willing to lie to get her hands on some of that inheritance. And so Hal's intended deception begins, but what she finds instead is a tangled web of deceit in a family with a legacy filled with hidden secrets and intrigue that began before Hal's existence.

I am so grateful that Netgalley, Ruth Ware, Gallery, Threshold, Pocketbooks and Gallery/Scout Press gave me the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. The opinions outlined above are all my own.

I'm torn over this book. I have read all of Ruth Ware's novels, and I find her extremely talented. She's a master at creating moody, foreboding atmospheres, and that was one of my favorite things about this book. I guess my biggest complaint about this novel is that I felt it was a little slow. While I, like so many other readers, appreciate a slow burn with a big payoff, I felt this was just a touch too slow with too little of a payoff. Ware is an amazing author, and was able to hold my attention even when I was ready to put it down and start another book. I will say that I didn't see the EXACT ending coming, but I had a pretty good idea that the book would end the way it did. If you're looking for a fast paced thriller, this is not the book for you. Its much better suited for readers who like taut, tightly wound novels that slowly unfold. I'd give of 3.5 stars, but judging by the other reviews, I am in the minority. I see this book being another best seller for Ware- but it isn't my favorite novel by her, by far. Last thing- I think this is the type of book that would translate well on screen.

I couldn’t put this book down! Kept me guessing til the very end. At first I didn’t care for the main character, but through the book I started to understand her. I haven’t read Ruth Ware before, definitely going to read her other books after this one! Thanks for the ARC!

Reading Ruth Ware new novel brought me back to when mystery books were truly mystery. No thrills and chills just good solid " who done it " mystery. Similar to Then there were none, or the Spiral Staircase, I enjoyed it very much

This one has it all, mystery, a gothic mansion, a disappearance, and an inheritance. It moved along pretty quickly, but I felt the characters could have been better developed. Twenty-something Hal receives a letter from a solicitor that her grandmother has passed and she is expected at the lady’s funeral and reading of the will. Hal has a debt collector to avoid, so she heads out to the funeral. However, she knows the woman is not her grandmother. Hal decides to defraud the family to pay off her bills. However, someone does not want Hal there and will stop at nothing to get her to leave before solving any mysteries. I appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to be an early reader in exchange for my fair and honest review.

Wowzer!!!! Ruth Ware has truly outdone herself with The Death of Mrs. Westaway! I mean from just reading the description I was already on the hook-- this book is addictive with a capital A!

I love Ruth Ware’s writing style! The storyline was carefully and methodically crafted to have you guessing until the very end. I very rarely re-read mystery/thrillers, but I will absolutely be reading this riveting novel again (it’s honestly that good)! The Death of Mrs. Westaway is 5+++ star book that would make the perfect beach read! Must read!!!

21 yr old Hal Westaway struggles to make ends meet, reading Tarot cards on the boardwalk of a coastal England community when a letter arrives in the mail that may solve all of her financial woes. It appears that her grandmother has bequeathed Hal a substantial inheritance but there is one huge snag, Hal knows nothing of her family and the one person that would have all the answers is deceased. Three years earlier, her mother tragically died in a car crash. Hal sets course on a journey to uncover her family history, secrets, and revelations. Ruth Ware has done it again with another suspenseful drama filled with an entangled with a web of lies, deceit, and mystery.

This book had me completely hooked from page one! I have to give this 5 glowing stars for Ruth Ware—who if I’m being honest never disappoints me! This book was positively haunting!!! It was spooky yet meaningful, with lovely prose and compelling plot twists. I cannot recommend it enough!

I finished this book last night. It was one of those books that I stayed up late on a work night to finish, because I was so invested in the story. Hal’s dilemma had me completely immersed in the book. I think most readers will find themselves wondering what they would do if they were in Hal’s position! One thing that Ruth Ware does so well in this book (and in her previous work) is to write about characters that are cut off from society in some way. Sometimes this is done through a setting or an experience, and other times it is done through their social predicament. Hal fell into the latter category, with a dash of the first.

What I love about the way Ruth Ware isolates characters is how it makes you forget the noise of the rest of the world. It’s easy to put yourself in their shoes, because she writes in a way that their problem is so isolated, that it shines right off of the page. Hal’s predicament felt like it became my predicament! Hal’s strength, worries, and ideas felt like my own. I was able to fully empathize with her, and root for her along the way.

The promenade was empty, and the woman had disappeared into the darkness as if made from rain herself.

Hal is alone in the world. Imagine being a young woman, raised by a single mother and with no other family, and then your mother passes away in a horrible accident. Hal has no money, no family, and no friends. All she has left from her mother is her Tarot Booth on the Promenade—named Madame Margarida, after her mother—and the strength to survive instilled in her since childhood. But what Hal also has is a debt that is hard to repay. Surviving comes at a cost, and Hal has run out of options. And then one day, a letter arrives…

Don’t fall into the trap of believing your own lies.

The letter informs Hal that she is set to receive some inheritance from the late Mrs. Westaway, her grandmother. The letter is addressed to Hal by name, and yet Hal knows it cannot be true. You see, Hal knows her grandparents all died long ago on her mother’s side, and the letter references Mrs. Westaway being her maternal grandmother. Still, with debt piling up higher and no chance to repay it, Hal wonders if her career of reading others and telling them what they need to hear might be just the thing to help her play the game long enough to earn a bit of inheritance.

As Hal begins her journey to Trespassen House, she finds herself in over her head. It’s one thing to imagine taking a bit of money from those with plenty, but it’s another to place yourself in the center of someone else’s grief. The other Westaways are real people. And yet, there are many secrets in the home. Hal finds herself wondering if she isn’t the only person hiding something. And what will be the cost if those secrets come out?

I can feel it—my secret—burning me up from the inside.

I have to gush for a moment about the settings in this book. Ruth Ware uses such descriptive language, and this book takes place in some truly fantastic settings. From the spooky, abandoned promenade, to the bare apartment, to the dark mansion—I fell in love with the locations described in this book! I could imagine the settings so vivdly, as though I was there myself. I also loved the opening chapters on Hal’s work in the Tarot booth, and the people and settings she interacts with. I won’t spoil them, but they jumped off of the page for me.

The duality in Hal was also a high point for me. Hal is physically meek, but she has an inner strength. The way Hal has learned to play weaker than she is, and then her shows of surprising resilience and bravery were so wonderful. Hal is an easy character to admire and to root for. Hal is someone who has been cast aside in every way, but she has never allowed it to diminish her. Hal is caring but self-preserving. Hal is honest but deceptive. Hal is calculating but impulsive.

Many readers will enjoy this book, and I recommend it highly.

I am so grateful to NetGalley, to Ruth Ware, and to Gallery/Scout Press for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I've read all of Ruth Ware's books and loved them, and while this one wasn't my favorite, I enjoyed it immensely and powered through really quickly as once you get caught up in Hal's story, you can't let go! A little bit gothic with a creepy old house and secrets long-buried, the novel follows Hal as she receives a letter that she has come into an inheritance. Knowing there's a mistake doesn't quite stop her as she has financial difficulties of her own and this would certainly solve some of her problems. But when she meets the family, she recognizes that something is terribly wrong and she is determined to get to the bottom of whatever mysteries reside in this odd family. In typical Ware style, we are caught up in the action immediately and are in for surprise after surprise!

The other reviews say it all. My favorite Ruth Ware book so far....suspenseful, well written

This is my favorite Ruth Ware book yet. It was so good that I not only read it in record time but I was hesitant to begin another novel because I knew nothing would come close to the excellence of The Death of Mrs. Westaway.

This one has it all, a penniless sympathetic main character plus a creepy old house, a lie that’s spun out of control, dark and rainy weather plus writing that has you reading so quickly that time blurs. I stayed up way past my bedtime to finish this book though it was one of those novels that you just don’t want to end.

When Hal Westaway receives a notice that she stands to inherit something from a grandmother she never knew, she is confused. Her mother, now dead, never spoke about her family and Hal isn’t sure she’s even related to this woman. But a small inheritance would really help her out.

Flat broke and being hunted by a loan shark for a small sum she must repay, Hal goes to the funeral and soon discovers there’s more to the inheritance Mrs. Westaway left to her than she initially thought. She begins to question her mother, did she really know the truth about her? And the brothers fighting over the estate, what are they hiding? Who is locking her in the attic room each night, and why is “HELP ME” etched into the trim around the window?

I am warning you, this book is addictive. Its due out this summer and you will want to pre-order it immediately! I’m not a psychic but I have a feeling this will be adapted for film…

Her best yet. I loved Dark, Dark Wood and Woman in Cabin 10 but this one is even better. Ruth Ware is the master of psychological thrillers and will keep you guessing to the end (though the clues are all there). Highly recommended for fans of Ruth Ware. If you haven't yet discovered her, this one will make you anxious to read the rest!

I discovered Ruth Ware's book just a year ago and devoured them all. When you've been reading mysteries/thrillers for 40 years, you get to where you can predict the solutions fairly early in the story. The wonderful thing about Ruth Ware's stories are, not only do you not predict the solution, but often you can't even predict the mystery itself. I spend half the book trying to figure out just what I'm supposed to be trying to figure out! I LOVE that!

The latest novel by Ruth Ware has a slow build from knowing that something just isn't right to being dark and creepy and terrifying. The only family Hal has ever know is her mother who died several years ago so when she receives a letter informing her of her Grandmothers death (she didn't know her Grandmother was even alive) and an inheritance Hal knows something is amiss. But Hal is in dire straights and out of choices so this inheritance might be the answer to her prayers.. Upon meeting the family and finding out the scope of her inheritance Hal is left with even more questions, confusion, and a feeling of dread. Nothing is as it seems and the family is full of secrets. Can Hal figure it out before whoever doesn't want her there makes her leave for good.

I've read all of Ruth Ware's books and have to be honest, they weren't my favorite. But this one, I thought was her best one! I really enjoyed the mystery. It moved along at a good pace (a little slow at times, but not too bad). I did figure out one of the mysteries early on, but it didn't take away from the story. The end seemed like it went on for a little too long. I felt it could have been wrapped up a chapter or two earlier than it did.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway is a look into the gnarled and twisted branches of an English country seat’s family tree. Ruth Ware’s latest is an excellent thriller about Hal, a down-on-her-luck young woman, who is given a glimmer of hope when she receives a note announcing a possible inheritance. After her mother’s untimely death two years ago, Hal was forced to take over her tarot reading booth on Brighton’s West Pier. In the slow winter months, she gets behind on her bills and goes to a loan shark to try to get even, but only finds herself further in debt and physically in danger. Hal’s only choice is to escape one danger in Brighton to others at Trepassen House.
While the first half of the novel may be described as a slow burn, the second half is full of twists on every page and is well worth the wait. Ware expertly threads the knowledge of tarot reading throughout the narrative in a way that deftly furthers both the plot and the characters’ developments. It is very enjoyable to follow the character of Hal as she tries to use her dexterity with the tarot cards to read the people around her.
Overall, I definitely recommend this book for its unique twist on the inheritance mystery.
Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery Books, and Ruth Ware for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book.

To be honest, I wasn't really all that impressed with Ruth Ware's last book, The Lying Game, so I was a little hesitant about her newest one, The Death of Mrs. Westaway. But after reading it I can say: Wow! This has to be one of her best books yet! There is just enough in each chapter to reel you in and make you keep reading (despite personally having figured out a majority of the plot somewhere between 1/4 and 1/3 of the way into the book), building up to an exciting ending.

So many things to love about this book! The main character, Hal, is empathetic, and her struggles to make her life work after the death of her mother are painful and true. I loved the concept of the mistaken inheritance and the creepy rundown estate in the country. I'm a big fan of gothic stories and I love how the author both used them and turned them on their head. For example, the forbidding housekeeper is very much in keeping with the genre, but the family is welcoming and kind, though Hal is suspicious of them--and right to be. And the fact that it wasn't the typical scenario of greedy family members vying for their portion of a deceased relative's estate was truly refreshing.

All that being said, when the villain was revealed, I didn't feel like the motivation for said person's actions were clear. I understood what had happened, but I didn't understand why it had played out that way. And part of that, I suspect, is simply that with so many characters on hand and the need to misdirect, it was difficult to make that situation clear without revealing too much in advance.

Still, a very enjoyable read. And I'll definitely be recommending it to fans of the author and definitely fans of the gothic read.

If you're anxiously awaiting a new Ruth Ware book that you'll have to read in one sitting because you're so engrossed and know you can't sleep until you finish it? Well, you're in luck because that's what exactly what her new one, The Death of Mrs. Westaway, will make you do! When the book begins, we find twenty-one year-old Hal; she grew up not knowing her father and her mother died in an accident several years prior. Now she's alone. Alone in her tarot booth on the pier (where her mother used to work), alone in the flat where they lived, and has no friends or family to help her repay a shady loanshark. Everything changes when she gets a letter saying her presence is requested at Mrs. Westaway's estate for her funeral and the reading of her will. Since her mother never mentioned they had other living relatives, the idea of a family and a little bit of money is appealing enough to make her go to this funeral and figure out this mystery. Why did the name on the letter have her name and address, but assume that she was someone named Maud's daughter? As she gets to know each of the family members in a house that is almost a character itself, secrets begin to get uncovered, links begin to connect, and everyone in this house knows that their lives will be forever changed by the last will and testament of Mrs. Westaway.