This book drew me in quickly. I wanted to know ALL the secrets of the McTavish family. There was suspense throughout, and the ending seemed just right. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars.

The Heiress is a book that follows Camden and his wife Jules. We learn about his extravagant upbringing and how he fled because of the toxicity. We also see the story through news articles and letters from his adoptive mother, Ruby.

This book has so many plots on different timelines, and this author did it well. I’ve tried reading from Hawkins before, but the subject matter wasn’t for me (Reckless Girls). This book? Amazing. It’ll stay with me for a while.

I loved Cam and Jules. The ending is what bumped the book from four stars to five. The pages went by so fast because I couldn’t stop reading. Before I knew it, it was over.

I only had a couple of issues. The news articles didn’t read like articles to me, which is fine. Ruby’s letters said “darling” about 3,000 times. They also didn’t read much like letters. They read like the rest of the book with “darlings” thrown in.

The dual perspectives for Cam and Jules were written perfectly. I could tell whose chapter I was reading just by the writing style.

I’d recommend this book. I’d also read it again.

I love the way Rachel leaves her readers wondering. If her novel, The Wife Upstairs, we are left wondering what really happened to the antagonist. Is what the wife upstairs sharing true? Is what he said true? Is he alive?

In The Heiress, it ends the same way. Jules and Cam have to go back to Cam's childhood home to tie up some loose ends. He hasn't been back in years and there are very specific reasons why. With Cam's secrets come Jules' secrets as well. Jules is the main character of this story even though Cam and even Ruby seem to be at first.

I did not like the different narrative perspectives. I understand why they are necessary in the book and without them I probably would be saying I wanted them, lol. But, I think it took away from the book. I think they entire thing should've been from Cam's point of view with Ruby's letters, and then find out the epilogue about Jules.

I critique the books I read on characters, plot, pace, and enjoyment. I think the characters are good. I could personally picture each character in my mind; I actually could cast a movie with how clearly I could see them! The plot was okay. I think it could've been a little more concrete, like I mentioned above, but it was definitely different from anything I've ever read! The pace was a little more dragged out than I would've hoped. There wasn't a ton of fluff but I do think some could be taken out and it wouldn't change anything. Lastly, the enjoyment aspect, I really liked it. I read it in 3 days, and it could've been 2! I read it on the Kindle App and would recommend this way to anyone looking to read it! I love the cover of the book so I will probably still buy it to have on my bookshelf.

Ruby McTavish is famous, some would even say infamous, for the fact that she went missing when she was just 3 years old in the mountains behind her family home, Ashby House (the family is rich enough to basically own the whole town in which the house is located). She was found 8 months later living with a poor family who were accused of kidnapping her, and Ruby would grow up being the subject of gossip for the kidnapping as well as for having 4 husbands die on her. When she dies, she leaves her entire fortune to her adopted son, Cam, who wants nothing to do with it since it comes with strings, namely Ruby's hateful biological family, who deeply resent Cam's very existence in their lives. He moves across the country just to get away from them, where he meets Jules, who he marries and builds a life with. When his uncle, Ruby's son, dies, Ben's cousin sends him an email asking him to come home just long enough to check out some major repairs needed on the house, and cut the check to pay for them. Ben has been gone for 10 years, during which time he hasn't touched his inheritance at all, and he doesn't really want to go, but Jules is so excited to see where he grew up, he agrees to the trip. Unbeknownst to him, Jules has checked out the house on social media and has decided that once they get there, they are going to kick his family out and live there themselves.

I enjoyed this book so much! It was told from multiple points of view, including Ruby's, which was a very interesting way to give us her backstory. The characters were well written and the pacing was spot on. The story took many, many twists and turns - just when you think you know what's going on, bam!, another twist! The ending was a complete surprise, which is always a good thing.

All in all, I loved this book very much and highly recommend it!

5/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Rachel Hawkins for the opportunity to read and review this book.,

Ruby McTavish is infamous. Her whole life surrounded by scandal. As a child she was kidnapped, then followed a string of dead husbands.

In true Ruby fashion she leaves her fortune to her adopted son Cameron. Cameron might have grown up in the McTavish house but he is far from being a member of the family. Determined to make it on his own, he moves to CA and gets a job and falls in love.

Jules is Cameron's wife and when she hears Cameron's uncle has passed she encourages him to return home, to Ashby House.

I enjoyed this book. The story was interesting and kept you wondering what was going on.

“The Heiress” is an interesting title because at first I was certain who it was alluding to but I was sadly mistaken. It didn’t take me long, though, to realize that another character was scheming to have it all. The story of Cam’s mother, Ruby, was rich with gossip including some mysterious letters sent to an unknown recipient. As time on this earth was slipping by for Ruby she decided to come clean about her many dirty deeds which made this correspondence scandalous and priceless. These letters play an important part in the book because once all the secrets were revealed, we had a clearer picture as to why Cam and Jules were really there. Everyone in “The Heiress” was related in some way but one character's connection to the past took me completely by surprise. The twists and turns had me guessing until I read the shocking ending, which I found to be diabolical and disturbing. Ms. Hawkins’ storyline was intriguing as well as frightening, and I am so glad I didn’t finish reading her book in the dark of night.

this book is about a man and his wife coming home to see about his inheritance. it has lots of twists and turns. very good read.

What would you do to live in the most magnificent mansion on the east coast? That’s the question that Jules is faced with after learning about her husband’s estranged family. Unless she already understood….

Hawkins takes you on a journey into a family’s past. Told in alternating views along with flashback letters you get an all-around understanding of what this family is like, but still with mystery to be solved. Cam is not happy about having to come back to his family home after 10 years of staying away, and it doesn’t take long to realize why once he is back in the McTavish mansion. In this family drama you will see how far a family will go to keep their name on top.

I had a hard time getting into this one for the first 60-65% of the book, but then it takes a turn and kept me reading. I felt like it was a slow burn at first, but in the end it wrapped up well. I wouldn’t necessarily call this a mystery/thriller but more of a family drama with some questionable characters and maybe even a little revenge.

A special thank you to Rachel Hawkins, St Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for this advanced copy of The Heiress.

I thought I was good at keeping secrets, but the characters in The Heiress know how to take them to their graves!

Jules Brewster is finally going to get a chance to see her husband Camden’s famous family home, Ashby House, which was left to him by his even more famous mother, Ruby McTavish. As they leave their modest life in Colorado behind to take care of the estate, Jules and Cam become unwillingly swept up in the McTavish family drama. While Camden wants to leave the drama–and the entire estate–far behind him, Jules realizes that she wants to fight for Camden’s inheritance–a fight that threatens to leave death and destruction in its wake.

Told from the perspectives of Jules, Camden, and Ruby (in the form of letters written before her death), The Heiress proved to be a novel that was difficult to put down. I thought the pacing was really good, and the three perspectives really built off of each other and maintained suspense. I generally liked all three characters’ chapters equally well, which isn’t always the case. There were some twists, but nothing too surprising or shocking, and indeed I didn’t rate it five stars because I thought the book was a bit predictable. Overall, a great book and I had a lot of fun reading it!

What a fun wild ride of a book! Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this thriller!
I was already a huge fan of Rachel Hawkins and once again she did not disappoint!
After North Carolina's most richest and notorious women dies and leaves everything to her adoptive son Cam, Cam shockingly doesn't want anything to do with his inheritance or house that was left to him. However, after ten years Cam and his wife Jules finally move into the house and discover a long line of mysteries and shocking secrets.
This was such a fun book! It kept me on the edge of my seat and guessing the entire time! It was very suspenseful and fast-paced. I flew through this book! It was such a great summer thriller! I loved it! I can't recommend it enough!

This was wildly good! With dual POVS, newspaper clips, letters and oh the twists. Talk about some family drama! Releases January 9th, 2024. You’ll want to pick this one up and then you won’t be able to put it down!!

Thank you net galley and author Rachel Hawkins for providing me with the e-ARC of this book!

The Heiress is a thriller centering around a prodigal son and his wife coming back to his childhood home to check on his inheritance. I enjoyed the plot and all of the family secrets, but by the end of the novel, I was slightly disappointed that none of the characters were good people.

I enjoyed this book, but did not enjoy all of the fictional "Southern" names and places. It made the story feel extremely fictional and I had a hard time getting past it.

Best one yet!! Oh gosh!! Where to begin? Rachel Hawkins is an author who gets consistently better with each book. I could not put this one down! SO many secrets! Layers and layers of them! Ruby is a rich heiress. She is part of a horrible family, and they all want the millions left solely to her. She dies and leaves all to her adopted son, Camden. He's not even a true McTavish!! See where this is going? Enter Jules, wife of Camden. Jules wants Cam to return home and help Cousin Ben fix up Ashby house, the family home. Never mind that Cam left over 10 years ago and swore to never go back. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out everyone has an agenda as each short chapter reveals something new. Told from Jules and Cam's Pov's with letters from Ruby herself, thrown in this one had me on the edge of my seat throughout! And I loved the nod to last year's The Villa! This was super fast-paced and one of my favorites so far this year!

Thank you to #NetGalley, Rachel Hawkins and St. Martin's Press for this MUCH appreciated ARC! All opinions are my own.
I will post my review to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Instagram and various other retail and social media sites upon publication.

All I can say is excellent. I have enjoyed 2 of Rachel Hawkins past books but this may be my favorite yet. The back story integrated into the present time was well done. The way the twists are delivered are seamless. Its almost as if when you read it, its like it was always known and you question your own memory. Although Cam and Jules have been together for 10 years , do they really know each other?

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins is everything a thriller/mystery needs. Interesting characters, spooky setting, and lots of unseen twists and turns. 4 out of 5 stars.

Overall I liked this book but with some notes. The good: I really enjoyed the characterization, and thought the book’s themes were interesting without bogging the book down too much. I did think the book had some serious pacing issues howe er, especially in the first half.

This was such a great read! I loved the characters and not
knowing who you could fully trust. There were some cut-
throat women in this story, and I loved it. Even if they were in
the wrong side of the law.
Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore is famous
in North Carolina, not only for her wealth, her kidnapping as a
child, but for her bad luck at losing husbands to death. She
leaves the famed Ashby house and her fortune to her
adopted son, Camden, leaving the rest of her family livid.
Camden wants nothing to do with the family or wealth until
he's drawn back to Ashby house by his cousin Ben.
Camden and Jules, his wife of ten years, return to the great
Ashby House to sort out the mess and destruction of years
of neglect. Jules is in awe of the house and wealth and tries
to convince Camden to secure his place as heir and keep it
all, but he still wants nothing to do with it. During their visit,
secrets pour from everyone's past including the late Ruby.
More questions come to surface as the reader is sent reeling
by confessions from Camden, Jules and even Ruby from the
grave when letters are found in Ashby house.
This was such a great domestic thriller of a dysfunctional
family grasping for the notoriety and wealth of their family
name. The relationships between the family dynamics were
so interesting and kept you intrigued from the beginning. As
you learn Ruby's secrets of her past and the truth behind her
4 marriages you start to wonder if the evil has poured to her
son Camden. Then you realize he and Jules have some
secrets of their own.
Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for a copy of
this book. All opinions are my own.

I am a big fan of Rachel Hawkins books, so I was thrilled to read her newest. This book follows members of a wealthy, well-to-do family throughout various timelines. It is definitely more family drama than thriller. The current day plot line I found to be far-fetched or reaching, but I really enjoyed reading Ruby’s letters that detailed her storied history—these portions reminded me of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. If not for the letters and old press releases, I would find this book to be too typical to so many other of this genre. Thank you for NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Rachel Hawkins for the ARC!

Family drama AND murder?? Yes please! This is my first Rachel Hawkins and I flew through it! I loved the format of this book. The chapters were quick and having news articles and letters mixed throughout made it even more suspenseful. I always love multiple perspectives in a book, and having each person carrying a secret made me excited to read each of their chapters.

I’m not one of those people who tries to figure out the twists before they happen, but wow I never saw that one coming. Hawkins tied everything together so nicely at the end while still leaving the mystery wide open. It’s not easy to make a satisfying ending but this one was 10/10.