I will be honest; I didn’t read this book. The title intrigued me initially when I requested it years ago, but looking back at it, post COVID, it doesn’t interest me but I wish the author well

More of a slow-burn than a lot of thrillers are these days. Hard to put down and will be a great book to cuddle up with in the new year when it comes out

Very excited for this, the synopsis sounded fantastic. When I finished the book, I sat there thinking what did I just read?

This book got much crazier than I ever expected! It's a story about familial drama and secrets. Would recommend!

This book was fairly confusing for me in the first half but I did end up really enjoying it for a quick thrilling read!

I loved this "how the other half lives" mystery. It pulled me in from the first page and I kept wondering where it was headed.

This was my first experience reading a novel by Emma Rous. I enjoyed the storyline and the writing was very suspenseful. It kept you guessing and involved with the story. I look forward to reading additional works by this author.

This was a book that I've had for a while and when I saw it I decided to finally read it. The story is interesting. Who is the baby in the picture with their mom and why not the other twin? The book captivated me from page one and wanting to continue reading to figure out what happened. It is a fun mystery novel that won't leave you bored.

"The Au Pair" is a contemporary family drama/mystery with dual timelines, switching back and forth between the adult heroine and the titular character in the past. The ending wraps up loose ends, but I think what can be a little jarring is the multiple "aha" moments where the characters suddenly recall a previously forgotten but important tidbit.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was overall a good read. I liked the style of writing and the story kept me guessing. I don’t know why, but I kept imagining that the story took place in the 40s or 50s rather than the 90s and the present day.

3.5

Seraphine Mayes and her twin brother were raised in their beautiful Sommerbourne Estate. After her fathers death she finds a picture of the day they were born, the family smiling and her mom holding one baby. Where is the other baby? Who is she holding? and why right after the picture was taken her mother threw herself from the cliffs of their estate.
The Au Pair fled the same day, and the villagers started with their rumors, about the au pair, and the wealthy family.
If Seraphine can find the Au Pair maybe all her questions will be answered, but does she really want to find out. Thank you #NetGalley for the free preview of #TheAuPair.

Very suspenseful and I was hooked almost immediately! I couldn’t put it down and I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future!

I really liked this premise, and the mystery part is well done, but I just couldn't connect with the characters. I didn't feel that emotional impact when they discovered something.

On the very day Seraphine Mayes and her twin brother Danny were born at home on their family's Norwalk their mother committed suicide by throwing herself off the cliffs, their older brother's au pair fled and the small village's love of superstitious nonsense kicked into overdrive with talk of witches and changelings and sprites. Twenty-some-odd years later, Seraphine still lives on the family estate mourning the recent accidental death of her father. It's while she's going through some things that she discovers an old photograph, presumably taken on the day of her and Danny's birth. Their father, their mother, their older brother Edwin and....one newborn baby in their mother's arms. Is that baby Seraphine or Danny and where's the other one? Seraphine, who has spent her life being called a sprite, remarked upon that she looks nothing like her siblings or father, and saddled with grief, is determined to find answers. And for that, she needs to track down Edwin's former au pair, Laura.

So begins Emma Rous's debut suspense novel, The Au Pair: family secrets, with a sprinkling of Gothic, told in time slip fashion - Seraphine in present day and Laura the au pair in the early 1990s. The first half was a bit rocky for me mostly because Seraphine comes off as borderline hysterical (save me from hysterical female protagonists in suspense novels) but it smooths out a bit as the story lines converge and threats surface to warn Seraphine about snooping around in the family's dirty laundry. There's even a very light romance thread to spice up the proceedings, making this one of the more nostalgic Gothic throwbacks I've read this year.

The ending is, well OK. I'll be honest, it's really light in the pants on motive. All the family secrets come tumbling out but why The Bad Guy did what they did doesn't hold up to much scrutiny. But it's an ending, I guess? And it helps distract from the other large issue in this story, which is that all the adults are really gross. I mean, I think I'm supposed to not like Laura in the end and be a Judgey McJudge Pants about the choices she makes back in 1992 - but Laura was an 18-year-old girl with a mountain of baggage thanks to her Mum, Stepfather, and a relationship gone bad. Did she make good choices? Well, no. But frankly she was 18 and the frickin' adults in this book were ADULTS and yes I'm going to hold them to a higher standard. But then we wouldn't have had much of a story.

In the end this was better than OK for me but I wasn't in love with it. That said, there's enough on the page of this debut novel that I would definitely be interested in reading Rous's next book.

Final Grade = B-

Special thanks to Berkley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

I really wanted to love this one so much, Secrets between family members, mystery & more. Rous does a great job with the twists & the turns, but I just wasn't fully invested in getting to the bottom of the story. If you don't mind a slower-paced mystery novel with more of a gothic feel, this one may be a winner for you!

Thank you for the opportunity to be an early reader.

This book sounded a lot better than it actually was. It seemed unnecessarily long. I lost interest somewhere around the middle, and the ending seemed way too "soap opera"-y: both confusing and convenient. I almost put this down a few times, but since it was an arc from Netgalley, I decided to plow through. I didn't enjoy some of it, but the writing was pretty good. Not sure if I'll pick up another book from this author. Thanks, Netgalley, for this arc.

Disclaimer: I received an e-arc of this book. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Au Pair

Author: Emma Rous

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 1/5

Publication Date: January 8, 2019

Genre: Mystery

Recommended Age: can’t recommend as DNF

Publisher: Berkley Books

Pages: 360

Amazon Link

Synopsis: Seraphine Mayes and her twin brother Danny were born in the middle of summer at their family’s estate on the Norfolk coast. Within hours of their birth, their mother threw herself from the cliffs, the au pair fled, and the village thrilled with whispers of dark cloaks, changelings, and the aloof couple who drew a young nanny into their inner circle.

Now an adult, Seraphine mourns the recent death of her father. While going through his belongings, she uncovers a family photograph that raises dangerous questions. It was taken on the day the twins were born, and in the photo, their mother, surrounded by her husband and her young son, is beautifully dressed, smiling serenely, and holding just one baby.

Who is the child and what really happened that day?

One person knows the truth, if only Seraphine can find her.

Review: I had to dnf this book at about halfway through. I just felt like the story was really uninteresting and the writing really lazy when memories and such just spring to mind at the perfect time. The book also jumps back and forth between several timelines and it can be hard to keep track of it. It just didn’t captivate me.

Verdict: It wasn’t for me but it sounds good?

This was a good thriller! It kind of scared me since I was an au pair myself, but thankfully it was before this book ;)

Well, it is interesting and it is Gothic. I liked those parts. I did get a bit agitated with some of the "ok that was stupid" aspects. I have problems with that in books or films. Now, that said, I liked all else, so I'm giving this book 4 stars. I do appreciate the gothic and mystery aspects.
My copy came from Net Galley. My thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is left of my own free volition.

I enjoyed this novel. I was constantly trying to figure out who was the main characters family, true parents, etc. It was a great domestic suspense novel. I would recommend to my patrons who enjoy the genre.