Linwood Hall is perched above a cliff, overlooking the Yorkshire moors on one side, and towering over the villagers of Linwood Hollow on the other. Today it is spring of 1921, and the house is preparing the austere burial of its master. The three adult children, all adopted, are coming back for the funeral of their Father. Together with Mother, they are instructed about the will: Linwood Hall is to be sold and the proceedings are to be divided into three equals part, meaning the estate will no longer be in the family after countless generations. That is unless Father died of unnatural causes, in which case the whole estate will go to the child who solves the murder. As father has in fact been brutally murdered, this is the start of an investigation that will delve into the deeply buried secrets of the Linwood family.

Of course, there is the mystery to be solved, but first and foremost, this book is filleting the psychological repercussions of a dysfunctional family: what does it mean to be adopted, how can a child bounce back from a cruel upbringing without any love or tenderness, how strong are the ties that keep siblings together, how can a husband break his intelligent and independent wife? After reading some contemporary quick and dirty "domestic thrillers", I vowed to avoid the genre entirely for a few years, but here we have a clever and interesting take on the genre. The settings are perfect for a fall read, going back and forth between the dark estate in the moors and the bustling city center of London in the pouring rain, while delving into humans darkest motivations and actions. If I were to point out any flaw, it would be the length of the book, because even when reading very nice prose at a perfect pace, sometimes it is just too long.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a different approach to a genre that I thought was largely over its peak.

Unnatural Ends takes us to a Post WWI England in the 1920s.

On Linwood Hall we find Alan, Roger, and Caroline Linwood preparing themselves for their adoptive father’s funeral, Sir Lawrence Linwood, who was recently murdered.
At the testament reading, they are told of their father’s strange last wish: Linwood Hall, along with the rest of the estate will be inherited by the heir that solves his murder.

This book had a really good premise and was a fun read.

I loved the atmosphere of rural North Yorkshire and occasionally it made me long for those simpler times.
The three main characters were easy to like, and it was interesting to see them dig into their pasts, always wondering what they would discover next. Although some chapters could have been spared.
If you are a history buff, you will like the bits of history that are thrown here and there along the book.
The story needs a bit of polishing and sometimes could spare on describing the surrounding environment/buildings.
I would have loved to know more about Lady Linwood’s past. She seemed such an interesting character and I feel she was underused for the benefit of other characters.
The twist near the end was good, but I would have liked to see things play out differently for one of the characters.

I give this book 4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. This is an honest review, and all opinions are entirely mine.

This ARC seemed intriguing and promised Agatha Christie style mystery, I was sold immediately! It’s set in 1920s England, in a Gothic manor, whose lord has been brutally murdered (in his library of all places). Now, to differ from the Clue game, there was no guest called Colonel Mustard in the living room with a chandelier… But there are 3 heirs on a mission to identify the killer.

Alan, Roger and Caroline are young adults with each their own career after the World War (engineer, archeologist and journalist), living far away from their parents but still under the influence of their strict and domineering father. Upon his death they are called to the manor for the funeral, and discover an unusual twist to their father’s will: the bulk of his fortune will go to the first to find who killed their father.

It’s hard to know where to stop in the story summary without spoiling anyone’s fun. It is a good book and has plenty of good ideas, but it also has some flaws. The three heirs have interesting personalities and their own plots and character developments so that’s on the plus side. I liked how the author makes sibling relationships deep and real. The atmosphere and the themes are also interesting. But the pace is uneven, the father’s figure way too black and white, which makes the whole story too unbelievable. And because it was unbelievable, then it becomes just an intellectual puzzle without caring too much about the characters. That’s the reason why I could figure out the solution halfway through. From Goodreads I gather that it’s not due to my exceptional intelligence (I wish 😉), others have guessed it too, even earlier than me.

In short, the book wasn’t bad, but it would have benefitted from a lot more editing and tightening. And the marketing reference to the great Lady Agatha doesn’t do it any favor.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley. I received a free copy of this book for review consideration

The story build-up was good and sounded eerie. The initial pace was a bit slow but then it picked up. The concept was definitely different. Would recommend to mystery lovers.

Excellent read!

This story has a lot of twists and turns, and as soon as you think you have it figured out, you realize you're wrong. The story is not convoluted though and is easy follow. Just enough detail without being burdensome.

Character development is great, and the unique format for describing the important parts from each character's point of view is interesting.

Will definitely look for other works by this author.

A locked room mystery that meandered a bit.

It is just post-WWI in the Yorkshire moors and Sir Lawrence Linwood has been found maced to death in his locked-from-the-inside study. Sir Lawrence ruled ancient Linwood Hall like a feudal overlord and fittingly, the murder weapon is an actual mace. Detective Inspector Mowbray tasks the family solicitor to read Sir Lawrence's will. Sir Lawrence, thinking ahead, has left his entire estate to whichever adult child identifies his killer. Will it be the oldest, Adventurer Alan, briefly home from Machu Picchu? Or will it be Aviator Roger, with his bright young thing fiancee? Perhaps Thespian Caroline, who has unwillingly returned from fever-bright 1920s Paris.

The amateur sleuths uncover many secrets. Many, many secrets. A veritable cornucopia of terrible secrets. It turns out that Sir Lawrence was the worst. Every character and their mother had good reason to bash in Sir Lawrence's face. I wanted to help. I was glad Sir Lawrence died.

It takes a while for the plot to build up some steam. The reader has to wade through a lot of backgrounding before the action kicks in. By the end though, I was invested in the travails of the Linwood progeny and hoped they had a good life till the next war started.

#unaruralends by #christopherhuang is a great mystery/thriller. I really liked the setting and the character development. I’ll be suggesting this title to my friends that like these kinds of books. Thank you to #inkshares and #netgalley for giving me this opportunity to read this title.

a brilliant psychological mystery

a man is killed and in his will is mentioned that he'll leave his legacy to either of his children who will catch his killer but as they try to untangle the truth they are left wondering whether their father deserved it..

this is a story of a dysfunctional family primarily focused on the children of the family, all of them adults now. since their childhood they have craved and fought for their father's approval. their father is a larger-than-life persona who has dictated their whole life and career and is still present to them from beyond the grave.
despite all this they firmly believe in their father and think highly of him. but trying to solve his murder which was his way of disposing off his legacy, they uncover some uncomfortable truths shining a whole new light on their father making them wonder whether he was a benefactor or a tyrant?

the plot twist wasn't exactly shocking but i loved the other twists and turns the story took.

thank you to netgalley and publisher for the eARC.

3.5 stars. A very enjoyable mystery that I read in a day.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early peek at the novel. My views are my own.

Loved this book! Sir Lawrence Linwood has been murdered. His children who are adopted are called back home. The will is read and the person who solves the murder inherits the family fortune. However, as they investigate the murder two things come to light firstly the children’s lives are not what they seem, and there is more to this murder than meets the eye. Brilliant, and such a great twist.

Thanks to Inkshares, via NetGalley, for this advance reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

I almost DNF'd this book when I started it. The first third, till about the funeral of the despicable Sir Lawrence, was slow. I'm not sure if was the overall pacing or the storycrafting that seemed to drag and to be dull.

Once the 3 adult children, survivors of abuse and cruelty (TW/CW), started their own investigations did the book become relatively more interesting. (Also, TW/CW for spousal abuse, drugging people, imprisoning people, racism.) The plotting is intriguing and led the reader down false paths and faux suspects.

I requested this title due to its premise and that interest held, keeping me curious enough to want to know who the killer was.

My biggest complaints are about the over-use of explaining and the aforementioned pacing. I found this "schooling" and need to describe and rationalize to be distracting and juvenile. I skimmed mightily whenever explanations came up, usually/especially in the clunky and obvious flashbacks. Oh and please ready yourself for lots of references to the weather and the layout of buildings.

Unnatural Ends is a good mystery, with complicated characters whose motivations you will quickly begin to question as their flaws, weaknesses, and secret backstories are revealed in a quest for understanding following the murder of a family patriarch. A twisting mystery that will try and leave readers guessing at the identity of the true culprit and second-guessing their own conclusions until deep into the novel.

While clever readers and veteran mystery connoisseurs can probably figure out what is going on and who the true murderer is before the big reveal, I did really enjoy the conclusion of the book and how the characters reacted to elements of their past being uncovered during their hunt for the killer.

The Linwood siblings are called back to the family home on the murder of their overbearing, domineering father, only to find that the terms of his will is to pitch them against each other. Each sibling finds out about their history, with their father continuing to control them from beyond the grave. A page turning murder mystery with lots of twists and turns.

This is a 1900s-20s caper/whodunit so it's a little bit camp. I had a hard time giving this a star rating because more often than not I was like "why should I care about this sad, sad, egotistical little man who was awful to literally everyone but especially his family?" also he was CRAZY
Then we find out what happened and it's just so outlandish it had me cracking up. Don’t take it too seriously I think it’s meant to be camp and fun, although if I’m wrong I’m so sorry Christopher Huang 😂 It really reminded me of like an old timey whodunit where it's kind of funny. It gets a bit confusing at times, the ties to Christianity and the reasoning behind everything were an odd choice but I liked the writing style and it was a fun read! Weird, but fun! 3.5 ⭐️ because it was so so long but still enjoyable!
thank you to NetGalley and Inkshares for this advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my fair and honest review!
this title is expected to be available January 2023

Wow! This book is in contention for being one of my favorite murder mysteries of all time. It feels equally driven by the characters and the plot, which is hard to come by these days; the glorious complexity of the mystery doesn’t overshadow the complexity of each Linwood sibling. The prose is dazzling, the descriptions full, the setting haunting. You can really tell how much thought went into crafting every little detail, and I give Huang so much credit for putting this all together.

This book prompted me to reread it upon finishing, which is one of the highest levels of praise I can give to a mystery. Its conclusion was foreshadowed so cleverly that I felt compelled to revisit the little clues I missed the first time around. In contrast to mystery/thrillers that seem to just pick the most shock-worthy ending possible, this one seems to have been carefully developed to convey Huang’s overarching message. The “red herrings” are not fake outs that lead to nowhere, but rather serve as important pieces of the puzzle. The cast of characters is large enough to yield a wide array of theories, but not too large that it causes confusion or information overload. As an aspiring writer, this is a piece I’ll be revisiting as an example of so many things done right.

I’ve tried to break down some of the many factors that came together to create what I’d consider to be a masterful piece of work, which I included in my Goodreads review (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4916632058) as to not take up too much space here. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Inkshares for this ARC in exchange for my review! I’m so thrilled to be able to share my thoughts about it and can’t wait to see if other readers felt the same.

Oh Hai, the vibes the vibes the vibes of this was immaculate. I mean you are atmospherically transported to 1920s England! With odd siblings, and a mystery! It ticked off all the check list there is of an Agatha Christie-esque novel but the writing is what I struggled with. I hate to say this, but it read too YA. I have nothing agaisnt the YA genre ofcourse but I wasn't expecting it to be so juvenile. I did enjoy the cozy mystery and how action packed and fast pace it was. Although I'm not sure if I would call this a favorite. Overall it was just okay.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read and enjoy this beautifully written e-arc.
I really enjoyed this novel it was a very fast read and Id definitely recommend.

This was brilliant!! Let met say it again: This. Book. Is. Brilliant.

At first it seemed like I was going to need some time getting into the story and the writing style, but this was not the case at all. The concept of this story was so good and I could not wait to get into it. It did not disappoint. I really liked the flashbacks and different povs, they really helped to progress the story.

I loved the characters and how different, yet similar they were. They all have their own lives and stories. For a long time everyone was a suspect and their were many plottwists that I did not expect at all. I genuinly gasped out loud several times. So many important events were seen from several point of views.

It was a complicated mystery, but a very surprising one.

(please note the Link section where I've posted my review to Goodreads- the API from this website is faulty with my profile)

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to preview this book.

This book is the definition of nonchalant murder writing. You might be thinking, J what does that even mean? To me it means boring, predictable, and disinteresting mystery fiction.

First, though the tag is not there, I finished this within 3 hours or less. This means the prose carried little depth, and I'd call it young adult. I've tried and tried on Goodreads to get what "young adult" even is, but this prose does not live up to anything someone over 16 couldn't EASILY read. The content doesn't either.

While "adult content" or lack of doesn't bother me at all, I deeply appreciate novels that are actually functional and challenging. YA is not a great representation of the broader world, and I think young people should be shown prose that is more difficult. Remember, content to me is different... there are some "easy to read" books with heinous content that (if I were a parent) I wouldn't want a kid reading. This isn't that, though. It just lacks on every front.

If you asked me in a sentence to describe this novel I'd say: "evil Downton Abbey but way more predictable than that". Actually Downton Abbey might be more sinister!!

We have a woefully limited cast of characters- to the book's credit some are intriguing.

We also have two major twists. The first was enjoyable; the second was stupid and ruined the whole novel for me. There's also the doctrine presented of "blood is thicker than water" which I am goddamned sick and tired of in modern prose.

As I mentioned this read like a kids' book and there was no atmosphere. I'm not sure whether or not I'm happy I nearly DNF'd this. I did see it through but it was so just... lame that I've got very little to say about it. Even with our small cast of characters, deeper surprises could've been cast.

The wife character could have been fleshed-out a lot more. Can you imagine letting your husband father biological children via mistresses just because you're infertile? I bet she was pissed-off. What was that arrangement?

I do not recommend this book. I've written many better reviews but this book doesn't deserve it, quite simply.

Wow! What an interesting mystery to read. This follows three siblings: Alan, Roger and Caroline. They have been tasked with finding their father’s killer. The plot intrigued me right from the beginning, and this story had many twists and turns that I did not expect. By the end I was fuming at a particular character…I’ll let you guess who!

I really enjoyed reading this from the multiple perspectives. Not only did we get to see things from the siblings POV but also from side characters as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for an honest review!

Review has been posted on Goodreads and StoryGraphs.