This was a fun and quick read. I enjoyed the light mystery and it was written well. While I didn’t find it to be super memorable it is still a book that I would recommend to others.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and fair review.

Mystery novel set in the first half of the 1900s: it's a huge yes for me. It's a must read if you like mystery books and thrillers and you fancy Agatha Christie's books and so on.

Sir Lawrence Linwood is found dead, better murdered with a mediaeval mace, in his study at Linwood Hall in Yorkshire. It's 1921. Alan, an archeologist, Roger, an engineer, and Caroline, a journalist, are the three Linwood siblings and they go back to the estate as soon as they find out about the murder. After the funeral, Sir Linwood's will is read out loud: in its first writing, it read how Linwood Hall was to be divided in three equal parts for his adopted children and in its second writing, it reads how Linwood Hall will go in its enterity only to the one who manages to solve Sir Linwood's murder in case he didn't die of natural causes. Thus, now Alan, Roger and Caroline must find out who is the murderer and why this person decided to kill their father.

Half of the time while reading this book, I was confused, the other half I was so thrilled. Every single chapter has the pov of one of the characters (mainly Alan, Roger and Caroline's, as they are the main characters) and so it did help seeing things from their perspective, but it also confused me more. In their chapters there are also many flashbacks and their thoughts are often painted with the memories of their childhood and their adoptive parents.
Furthermore, throughout the book many historical events are mentioned which may be a little hard to grasp if you don't know them. On the contrary, I loved how the three sibilings grew up believing to be living in Camelot and how they pretended to be King Arthur, Merlin etc. (I love the legend of King Arthur and Merlin).
Moreover, I'll say that I did see the ending coming pretty soon, but I wasn't really certain of it because the author gave so many different and contradictory hints which did a great job on my brain.
The story was very captivating yet I found it hard in certain points as English is not my first language and I still am a full C1 level. I am saying this just for those who don't come from an Anglophone country and are interested in this book which, trust me, is worth it!

My rating: full 4!

Huang crafts a delightful mystery with memorable and distinct characters in this really fun novel. The characters were the most compelling part of the story for me. There are three central characters, three siblings, each adopted and raised by the same lord in early 20th century England, a few train rides outside of London. Huang does a great job of making each of these three unique while still showing how they came from one family, one upbringing. Their behaviors and attitudes overlap in the often-undefinable way that happens with close siblings, yet each has grown up to be their own person. It helped that the chapters alternated between different points of view, mostly staying with these core three characters, so we were able to see them from within and without. They are the heart of this story, and I was impressed with them. There are a handful of ancillary characters, some of whom get an occasional POC chapter and some who don’t, and they are all fine, too. The seeds are planted for most to have more compelling life stories and not to be simply two-dimensional placeholders to move the plot along, which means they never felt lazy or convenient.

The story itself is a fun detective mystery, with the siblings working, both together and apart, to find their father’s murderer. I will say that I was able to guess the ending pretty much from the moment we were shown the crime scene, which may be in part due to my consumption of genre fiction. Even with that being the case I enjoyed watching the characters unravel the mystery, including discovering deeper levels of meaning that my broad-stroke guesses had failed to identify. Importantly, the characters always feel like they are making appropriate decisions given the knowledge and tools they have available to them, which is not something that can be said for all stories found in this genre. The story is divided into four parts, which wasn’t entirely necessary insofar as there weren’t time jumps or anything major between the distinct parts, but I actually appreciated the feeling of structure it gave the narrative and the characters. The mystery’s conclusion felt fulfilling and the story wrapped up in a way that seemed fitting with the rest of the novel, it didn’t ever feel like the reader was being cheated or manipulated (which can sometimes happen when mysteries don’t do the work to earn their “twists” at the end).

The writing itself was quite pleasant. I don’t have a strong reference for early-twentieth century semi-rural England, but the language seemed natural and the dialogue flowed well. The writing was tight, not overly flowery or ornamental, but still warm and inviting. Since different chapters offered different POVs time worked in a somewhat back and forth fashion… Sometimes the chapters, regardless of whose perspective they were form, flowed in perfect chronological order. Other times we would see the same day happen three different times, giving us a somewhat back and forth chronology. None of this bothered me, it never felt forced or uncomfortable, and in fact I appreciated the way the three characters all had different experiences of the same rainstorm, for instance. Part 1 of the novel had a lot of place setting and character introduction, but after that the writing had a lot of forward momentum—even when we repeated the same day from different perspectives—and I didn’t want to put it down, it kept driving the story, and importantly the emotional inner story, forward in compelling and enjoyable ways.

I want to thank NetGalley and Inkshares, who provided a complimentary eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book had an excellent premise and I was really excited to read it, but unfortunately something fell flat for me. I'm not sure whether it was the flot or writing, but I ended up getting bored for most of the book.

I really liked this! The mystery was suspenseful enough to keep me on my toes. A nice summer read that was very entertaining. However, I don't think I will be thinking about this book for a long while!

I loved this book its like a combination of Agatha Christie and Downtown Abbey! It hooked me at the first line and kept me enthralled the whole time. I would recommend running to get this book!

As much a murder mystery as a 1920's historical fiction, Unnatural Ends is an interesting look at family, identity, and betrayal.

The novel has a lot of great things going for it.

The first is the point of view. It’s third person limited but follows three characters - the siblings - primarily, but with a few chapters following a few others. This really broadened the mystery aspect because you were able to see the threads of the story from different angles. It was fun to watch the revelations one person discovers line up with another deciphered by a different sibling.

A great deal of this novel also focuses on identity - the siblings, as you find out from the first page, are all adopted and have no idea who their parents are or their ancestry. As such, part of the mystery turns into not just who murdered their father but who their parents were. I really loved how diverse the cast was. Normally books written in this period have everyone being white, which just wasn’t true. But while race and culture are a small aspect of the mystery in relation to the parentage of the siblings, it’s not a book about race. It’s normalized and quite refreshing for a book set in the 20s. Normally when I read books written in the 20s, I have to suffer through stereotypes if there are any people of colour, so it was great to read a book that felt like it was written back then but without the problematic elements.

The writing is lovely. It’s drawn out yet purposeful, full of strong descriptions and good dialogue. There isn’t any humour, romance, or action, but it’s easy to read while retaining an old-world feel.

Unfortunately, the characters were where the novel fell a little flat for me. They were likeable enough, but I didn’t love any of them. They are consistent, but I never latched on to any of them as a favourite character, and none were overly memorable. This could be because their father, despite being dead, was such an overbearing presence (due to flashbacks and their conversations about him). I think I also felt they were a little flat because while they suffer quite horribly in their lives, none of them seemed worse for wear psychologically. They all have memories, but none of them really wrestle with them.

In truth, it was the setting that kept me reading. I love old manor houses in the countryside, as well as the Interim war period in general, so I loved the attention to detail in these facets. It’s evident this is a well-researched book, and the author was very thorough. The focus on the aftermath of WWI, the gradual ousting of the rich landed gentry from their manors (check out Ishiguro’s The Remains of the Day for a great one on that), the technological boom that always follows war, and the social changes. It felt authentic, and I very much enjoyed that aspect.

Now, I will say the result of the mystery isn’t very surprising. While it’s not like I “figured it out” right away, there are hints pretty much on the first page as to the mystery’s solution, so what did end up being the twist was always in the back of my mind as the most plausible option. I couldn’t figure out how to get there given the information I knew, so it was still an enjoyable mystery to see come together, but my reaction was more like “nailed it” than “ah ha!”

But figuring out plot twists too early is my mutant power.

Overall, if you love the 1920's and mystery, you will likely enjoy this book.

2/5 stars
It's 1921 and Sir Lawrence Linwood has been murdered. The murder brings together his three adopted children: Alan, Roger and Carolyn, who soon find themselves playing detectives when it's revealed that sir Linwood had a will with a particular clause: the state will go to the heir who solves his murder.

I picked this book after reading the summary thinking it would be a detective story of the likes of Poirot but it's more of a family drama than a murder mystery. Whatever intrigue the plot had gets quickly derailed by the siblings confronting their complicated relationship with their father and their families of origin. At times it seemed like the book wasn't certain of what it wanted to be and that confusion really affected the pacing. This book moved quite slow until the very end where everything happened too fast.

I did solve the crime before the end of the book but I do think the idea and plot twist wasn't bad, just not executed correctly. This book also had too many points of view. It made sense for all the three siblings to have povs but then it seemed like everyone got a pov. By the end of the book there were maybe 10 points of view that only lasted one chapter and weren't particularly interesting or brought anything to the main plot. I did not care much for the characters in this because I never truly got to know them.

I would also like to let future readers that the book deals with the concept of eugenics and race. There's also child abuse, verbal abuse and implied sexual coercion.

🌟🌟½

<b> Thank you to NetGalley and Inkshares for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review </b>

Alan, Roger, and Caroline are called home to pay respects to their dead father Sir Lawrance Linwood. Once they arrive they learn that their father didn't simply die - he was murdered - and in his will, he made the child who solves his murder the sole heir to his estate and money.

When I read that synopsis I was excited! A historical mystery? Siblings pitted against each other in a fight for an inheritance? A creepy mansion (it wasn't creepy)? That sounded like something I would enjoy...it was, and it wasn't.

This book is more of a character study of our three main characters rather than a mystery, in my opinion. Yes, the question of who killed Sir Lawrance is there, and it gets eventually revealed, but I think at the core it's about these three individuals and their tumultuous (and abusive) relationship with their father.

The characters are definitely very well defined and muli-layered but are they likable? No. Well, Alan is, I liked him the most but Caroline and Roger in their best moments bored me and in their worst straight-up annoyed me.

The answer to the mystery was all right. I guessed what happened to Sir Lawrance quite early on (once you catch on what the book is actually about i.e. the siblings and their relationship with their father, I think it's pretty easy to guess what the twist is going to be).

Overall, it was okay. I was bored for the most part and the mystery wasn't working for me, but the character studies are well done, and the writing is nice.

This story is interesting. I like how there are characters from all around the world and in places that writers usually overlook or don't bother using as representation. I also like the writing, which is descriptive in a balanced level. I just feel like it's incredibly slow paced, so it's hard to connect with the story and feel entertained when after 150 pages (about 1/4 of the book) it still feels like nothing big and important happened. I like slow burn but it has to have engaging elements sometimes so it doesn't feel like the story is dragging too much to the interesting part.

This book did not capture my interest at all. It felt really slow moving and I had a hard time getting invested with the characters.

I was honestly unsure what to expect, but this was fantastic. It definitely reminded me of Umbrella Academy mixed with The Inheritance Games mixed with Sherlock.

The whodunnit led us through so many different lives and really I had no idea who it was until the very end, and it all clicked. A really great read!

I received an ARC from nergalley.

The first thing I noticed and loved about this book was how much it reminded me of reading an Agatha Christie novel.

Set in 1921, when Sir Lawrence Linwood is found murdered in his study, nothing is as it seems.
His three children return home for his funeral and learn about an odd clause in their father's will: IF his death is a murder, the child that finds his killer will inherit the entire family estate.

My only criticism is the pacing. It did take a little time to get into the story due to the in-depth, descriptive POVs. Once the plot came together, the pace picked up with surprising twists and turns.

Anyone who is a fan of Agatha Christie or historical murder mysteries will enjoy this read.

Content warning: The book does not describe the abuse in graphic detail, but it may be triggering for victims of domestic violence.

Beautifully written. The twists of the story were introduced delicately, enough that still shocked you but didn't seem entirely impossible. The writing was also very well done. A nice story to take with you to the beach, though it might be hard to place it down.

I had such high hopes for this book. It seemed to be right up my alley. The perfect historical fiction, murder mystery story. However, this just fell a little flat. I felt that the book was very slow moving to keep my interest. There weren't enough clues for me to keep interested and guessing as to who the murderer was. Then, once the plot to catch the murderer was determined, it seemed to be just thrown together. I also felt that even though this book was set in the early 1900s, the words and derogatory terms used just weren't necessary to keep the setting in the historical sense.

I really enjoyed Unnatural Ends. It reminded me of a golden age classic mystery. A locked door mystery with strong central characters and equally strong secondary ones. Partly based on true historical events I feel this book will appeal to lovers of both mysteries and historical fiction.

In 1921, the three Linwood children (Caroline, Roger and Alan) are summoned to their childhood home, the grand Linwood Hall following news of their father’s murder. However, as we learn more about each of the children, it is revealed that their father’s fortune will be given to whoever finds out who caused his death.

Told through alternating perspectives of each of the children, and through both flashbacks and present day portions, author Christopher Huang builds out his characters as three dimensional. Huang also really establishes a distinct sense of place and time; I think even if the chapters were not dated, we would know the general time period based on the language, architecture and customs present. The language does take some getting used to (I had to reread some passages at first), but really has an effect of transporting you to the time the story is set in.

Without giving anything away, the truth is slowly revealed just like the puzzle pieces on the cover allude to. Just like in life, the truth is complicated and surprising and sometimes hard to digest.

My main criticism here is the pacing. While Huang’s prose is beautiful and absorbing, I found that portions of the book did drag. Because of the big focus on character development, exposition and back story, sometimes a little bit of the edge-of-your-seat feeling wasn’t always present and I sometimes found myself struggling to pick this one back up. I prefer my mysteries a little more brisk than this, but can also appreciate character development; I just think the balance could be a little better.

Overall, I’d describe this as a slow-burn, historical murder mystery; if this is something that sounds interesting to you, definitely give this one a shot!

This is a murder mystery and historical fiction set in 1921. It has wonderful character development. It has a lot of flashbacks, but they are important to both the plot and understanding the depths of the characters. I did not find this to be predictable at all. And I loved the history and various academic references. The writing is beautiful, but not full of fluff. The perspective switches between the main characters, and the reader slowly gets more insight as each one works toward solving the murder of their father. It reminded me of the game clue or an Agatha Christie novel, to an extent, but better written. The setting, with hidden passage ways and towers, reminded me of novels I read in my youth, like R. L. Stein. In this regard, there's something nostalgic about the novel. But it is written in a much more sophisticated way, but still an easy read. Highly recommend. It surpassed my expectations.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! Unnatural Ends sounded like something right up my alley, and I loved that it was a murder mystery set in the 1920’s, but the writing wasn’t really for me. I found the story to move so slow that I got bored many times. It seemed to just drag on and on and I ended up skipping a lot of the long descriptions to just get to the dialogue. The book as a whole just came off really pretentious and wordy, and overall was not for me.

It took me a while to get into this one, but once it gets going it’s great. I struggled in the beginning because the writing felt a bit dry and impersonal. Several characters are introduced right off the bat and felt rushed. I was also thrown off by the time jumps since I was already pretty vague on the premise. Once the investigation fully starts after the funeral (40% in?), the story sends off fun chills that reminded me of the movie Knives Out. It’s exciting and intense and I liked the ending. No question that this is a great story, but parts did drag on a bit in addition to the slow start.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.