Oh this one is fun! I’m a bit wimpy and watched too many Datelines in my life so I always approach this creepers with one eye open. But this book— Fun, twisted, hooks you in and keeps you guessing to the very end.

I can’t wait to dive into more Rachel Hawkins!

** Thanks for the advanced copy. That cover is perfect!

This is my third Rachel Hawkins book, and while I am definitely a fan, I feel like we must think in a similar way. I enjoyed the twists in this book but I did see them coming. I liked the dual POV between Jules and Cam with various articles and of course Ruby’s letters interspersed.

When Camden MacTavish’s family calls him home to the dreaded Ashby House in which he was adopted and grew up in, he wants to decline. Jules, his wife, convinces him it’s time to face the toxic relationships he left behind and together they head across the country to reclaim what is rightfully Cams. But when the lies and family secrets slowly start to trickle out, it becomes unclear whether or not he’ll be able to leave with what is his without facing the demons he left behind. Told through multiple view points as well as letters from his adopted mother, the secrets and lies keep the book moving quickly with surprises until the very end!

THE HEIRESS is a domestic thriller about North Carolina’s richest and most notorious woman, her adopted son and heir, and the family battle for her estate.

Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore died 10 years ago and left her estate, including her home, the Ashby House (think Biltmore Estate), to her adopted son Camden. Camden left North Carolina immediately after Ruby’s death and hasn’t been back since. But when his cousin reaches out after the death of another family member, Camden and his wife Jules decide to return to settle the estate for good.

The story is told by multiple POVs: Camden and Jules in the present day, and letters from Ruby that tell her backstory and reveal the truth behind the deaths of her four husbands. I felt like Camden and Jules’ voices were very similar but I liked the letters which uncover secrets Ruby has kept hidden for years. As one would expect with rich families, money seems to equal power and influence for the McTavish clan but secrets can only stay secret for so long.

This is the story of a very dysfunctional family, filled with truly terrible people. I’m not sure there was really a redeemable character among them by the end. Ashby House was its own character and created a very compelling location for all the drama that unfolded. Living in North Carolina, it’s always interesting to read a story set in my state, so I enjoyed that aspect as well.

My favorite thing about Hawkins’ books is I can usually read them pretty quickly and they’re reliably solid, if not exceptional, thrillers. I found parts of the story a little over the top and unrealistic, but overall I really like Hawkins writing, was entertained by the plot, and enjoyed the North Carolina setting. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was so fun to read- amazing twists and turns typical of any Rachel Hawkins novel! Such a great fall mystery read. I am so thankful to have received an ARC copy of this novel from NetGalley.

This was a wild read.
Every time I thought I had things figured out, I learned that I did not.

The book goes through 2 POVs and letters. They’re easy to keep track of, so that was done well!

Would recommend!

Twists abound in this family thriller set in the North Carolina mountains. They say that money corrupts, and the McTavish family couldn't possibly be any more corrupt if they tried. Told in multiple POV, including a series of letters, the story pulls you in with satisfying suspense. I couldn't put this one down and could have stood for a few more chapters just to make it last a little longer.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy and opportunity to provide an honest review.

Really enjoyed this book and the way the stories were woven together. There were some good twists. Definitely recommend.

Your family may not be who you suspect! I loved this book of murder and mystery. Interwoven story of both past and present and backstabbing family members. This was so hard to put down because of the great writing and rich people drama. Such great storytelling with gothic vibes. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of the ARC in exchange for my honest review. 5 star

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins was a great story. Camden and Jules find themselves the heirs to an exuberant fortune and a giant, beautiful house filled with mystery. Camden the adopted son of Heiress Ruby wants nothing to do with his mothers fortune or his adoptive family. He especially wants nothing to do with the home he grew up in. Camden had been contacted by his family multiple times, but finally with the push of his wife Jules decides to head back to his huge mansion in a small town, completely owned by his family.

It is obvious the rest of the family is angry that Camden is the heir to their biological family's entire fortune, but at what lengths are they willing to go to, to have it return to "its rightful owners". This twisty and fun story, explores the life of Ruby McTavish (who by the way is 4 times widowed), and her complex history with men and her family. Hearing each letter written about one of Ruby's husbands was a highlight and something I thoroughly looked forward to. I wanted to keep reading, just to find out what Ruby did next.

The twists were surprising, especially at the end, but not a thriller as I half expected. Solid 4 star read! I love Rachel Hawkins

Great story, fabulous ending

This starts out like a dysfunctional family drama, but as a fan of the author's previous work, I expected a little mystery or a few twists. I was not disappointed.

Ruby, the first-born daughter of a wealthy North Carolina family, disappeared as a child. That just started her drama. She was married and widowed four times. The first marriage ended just a few months after her wedding. Her only family remaining was a sister married to an alcoholic wastrel, a niece, and a nephew. Ruby's father's will left everything to her. Her sister got a significant but relatively paltry amount from a bequest from their mother, along with permission to live in the house for her life by her father. Childless Ruby adopted a boy, Cameron. Cameron escaped his toxic family by moving to California and working as a bartender and later school teacher. He and an actress (well, an actress at a historical museum), Jules, go back to the family mansion at the request of the nephew to straighten out some financial details and look at needed house repairs. Cam's aunt and cousins are living at the house and deeply resentful that so much of the fortune went to Cam, who has no blood ties to their family.

The family is the stereotypical selfish, entitled kind. Cam is different. He wants to return to his "normal" life as soon as possible, but Jules loves the family home and would like to convince him to stay and kick out the family.

The story alternates between letters from Ruby that tell about her life, including her husbands' deaths, Cam and Jules.

I loved this book. I read it until I couldn't keep my eyes open. When I woke up four hours later, I read until I finished it. The end has just enough twists to make it great without jumping the shark.

Highly recommended.

This was a perfectly played out mystery, layered with unreliability and intrigue. Every minute of this book was enjoyable!

The McTavish family and estate have a long history, and the heir to it all is called back to the one place he never wanted to go back to. Camden and his wife Jules take a break from their quiet life and venture to Ashby House when Cam’s uncle dies and the will is read.

Cam, the adoptive (and only) son of the late matriarch, Ruby McTavish, is heir to the house and a large inheritance. Surrounding him is the family he left behind, the family who never accepted him, who never gave up the chance to tell him he was not one of them. Can doesn’t want it, but he has to make an appearance at Ashby House.

Everyone in this book has secrets, including Jules, who wishes to come clean to her amazing husband, and Ruby, who has more secrets than all of them combined. Can left the family before Ruby’s death and stayed away afterward… until now.

Through these pages, we get tons of sibling rivalry, dark pasts, and uncovering of deceptions long since buried. This was possibly my favorite book from Hawkins so far. There was so much to love about it.

I think everyone killed someone.

The Heiress is about how messed up families are, especially rich, entitled families. So much drama, so many mental health issues! Ruby McTavish is the McTavish family matriarch and we follow her life in a series of letters she wrote. Meanwhile in present day, we follow her adopted son reckoning with being Ruby's sole heir. Camden doesn't want anything to do with the McTavish family or any of the money left to him. But his wife does.

Short, quick, easy read with a few not very shocking twists. I didn't have them figured out but they didn't change the story to drastically. Enjoyed the read but it was underwhelming.

Thank You to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC provided through NetGalley. This book will be published on January 9, 2024.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this advance copy in exchange for my review.

WOW another perfect book from Rachel Hawkins!
I've loved everything that Rachel has written so far, The Wife Upstairs being my favourite, but The Heiress might have just bumped it for first place.
The Heiress was the perfect amount of suspenseful and twisty. Secrets and lies are told throughout with multiple POVs and timelines.
If you loved The Woman in the Window for it's Film Noir vibes, you'll love this so much.
I simply cannot say one bad thing about it, it was beautiful.

The Heiress

When Cam is summoned back to his childhood home in the wake of his uncle’s death, his wife Jules can’t understand why he’s so hesitant to return to the estate and fortune his adoptive mother Ruby, the heiress to the McTavish wealth, had left him. The McTavish clan is home to something far more sinister than the beautiful mansion in the Blue Ridge mountains, however, with rumors of Ruby’s past—including four dead husbands, and an array of family members desperate to claim their piece of the pie.

Hawkins’s gothic thriller brought all of the twists you’d hope for, and then some. While very palatable and an overall fun read, there did almost get to be the feeling of there being too many twists, almost as if after the first couple, Hawkins was like “hold my drink.” That being said, I did thoroughly enjoy reading this piece.

The alternating chapters between Cam’s and Jules’s points of view, inter-spliced by letters from Ruby confessing about her past, worked really well to slowly reveal the motivations of each character and ultimately build to the major “twist” so to speak.

This is the perfect read for fans of Riley Sager’s The Only One Left.

9/10 - Really enjoyed this book! I found myself constantly wanting to pick the book back up and learn more about the main characters. There was a lot to unfold, and I really liked the story line. Highly recommend when it comes out in Jan of next year!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sharing this digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this thriller. Rachel Hawkins continues to impress me with her writing and ability to perfectly tell a story that unravels a little bit at a time. I highly recommend this to anyone looking a fast paced thriller with a great plot twist.

This is my third Rachel Hawkins book and right now it is still the same. It just didn't really work too good for me. It is not great but it is good. I liked it but was not really fond of how the "twist" went.

Oh my goodness! This book was so fun to read, especially if you love mysteries and thrillers. This book had so many twists and turns, some you were expecting but Hawkins through you off in many of the plot twists!

Ruby McTavish is the richest woman in North Carolina. She died ten years prior to where our story begins. She has left her entire estate to her adopted son Camden, who wants nothing to do with the life or the rest of the McTavish family. Forced to return, Cam and his wife Jules visit Ashby House where they must face family secrets in order to claim what is rightfully theirs.

Throughout the story, we alternate between three main points of view: Ruby's (from the past told through letters), Cam, and Jules. Ruby's past is captivating!! All three are hiding dangerous secrets from each other.

This story, the mystery of Ruby's childhood, along with the characters secrets and the way they are connected to each other kept my turning the pages. This book is hard to put down. A must read for mystery lovers!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for providing an ARC for me to read in return for my honest review.

First off, thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my review! I’ve read Rachel Hawkins’ latest 4 novels now and I have to say that I believe this is her strongest overall. I’d recommend this one for fans of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
The novel alternates between first person present day and the letters of Ruby McTavish. Ruby’s story had me captivated; in fact, I could go for more Ruby and less present day. But alas, the present day chapters were equally essential for pulling the story together. The story flowed smoothly until the end where I feel like the “shock factors” got a little busy. Overall, I will be recommending this novel when it comes out in January!