Is it nature or nurture that makes you who you are? This generational story of the powerful, secretive McTavish family in Tavistock, NC is told through letters, newspaper clippings and first hand perspective in which the main characters are speaking directly to the reader like an old friend. Twists and turns abound throughout the story that don’t stop until the end of the book. Another Rachel Hawkins winner that must be added to your TBR list. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for this ARC.

The Heiress is a top notch domestic suspense that had me reading late into the night. Two writing devices were used to propel the story: breaking the 4th wall or directly speaking to the reader and confessional letters written to a character.
Based on the early kidnapping and subsequent life of Ruby McTavish later known as many surnamed Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore who has passed away a decade before and left a considerable inheritance to her adopted son, Camden. She also left behind a sister, brother-in-law, niece, and nephew all of which feel they are more entitled to the family Estate, Ashby House, it's holdings, and the money.
Camden has fled his familial obligations for the West Coast and eventually a lovely wife. But after 10 years and with the urging of his wife, Jules, they head back to North Carolina to see what can be done to repair the Estate, if not the family.
Like all good domestic suspense stories, secrets abound and are revealed a bit at a time, and some surprising ones, at that. The chapters are split up between Ruby, Camden, and Jules and as the pages turn, it becomes harder to determine just who is playing who.
4.5 Stars rounded up to 5
Put The Heiress on your TBR as it becomes available Jan 9, 2024.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for access to an early e-copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

Thank you Net Galley for an early copy of The Heiress in exchange for an honest review. This book reminds me of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, but in a cryptic-thriller sense, where the husbands keep dying.

I enjoyed the style of this book! Told from three perspectives. 1 - Ruby McTavish, heiress to the grand Ashby home, who writes letters to a mysterious person explaining what really happened to those four husbands. 2 - Camden the son who inherits all the wealth and fortune AND Ashby, but refuses to return. 3 - Jules, Camdens wife, a spunky little thing, who has a secret of her own.

Told through letters, first hand perspectives, and newspaper articles, this is a fast read and enjoyable!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC, in return for an honest review. I have read all of Rachael Hawkins, recent books, and I’ve enjoyed them all. However, this one is my new favorite! Lots of drama, an old, family home, interesting characters, and lots of twists, and turns that I did not have figured out. This was a 5 star review for me!!!

I received an ARC of this novel through NetGalley.

This is a character driven story of a North Carolina family that has had huge wealth for generations. Ruby McTavish wound up being the sole heir of the family fortune and estate home. Ruby is quite the character. She went missing for months as a child before being found under the care of a family in Alabama. In this story, she has been dead for 10 years, leaving her adopted son as the sole heir of the family fortune.

Her son wanted nothing to do with the family fortune or other family members. He lives in Colorado with his wife, Jules. Jules is much more interested in a life of luxury.

As the characters are being developed in the early part of this novel, I was wondering where this book was going. But then secrets started being revealed. And the strife within the family started rising to the surface, validating why Ruby’s son wanted nothing to do with these people.

The prevailing theme in this story is that material wealth doesn’t mean everything. Wealth creates lots of tension in this family, making wealth seem much more like a burden than a luxury.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a Kindle copy for review. I am not sure if this book has yet been published.
Jules and Cam are a young couple living in California and doing well enough when his rich family summons him back to Ashby House, his mansion home in North Carolina. He has successfully avoided the family and the setting for ten years. He claims to not even want his inheritance because of bad memories of living there. Tied into this story is his mother who has had four husbands die and her own kidnapping as a child. These are only a few of the delightful secrets, twists, and shocking turns in this great book.

This might be my favorite book by Rachel Hawkins so far! The Heiress is about Ruby McTavish, infamous heiress of Ashby House. Kidnapped when she was three years old and then found and returned to her family, Ruby grew up and went on to marry four times and become a widow four times. Now her adopted son Camden is back home to take care of the fortune and house that Ruby left him. But what secrets are Ashby House and the McTavish clan hiding?

I loved the concept of The Heiress and thought it played out well. The plot was interesting and seemed like something new and fresh compared to all the mysteries and thrillers out there. Ruby was a fascinating character and seeing her side of things from letters she wrote made the story all the more unique. I tend to read books faster and get into them easier when you can get to know the characters, and this was no exception. I had NO idea how the story would end up, but was definitely curious to find out what happened to Camden, his wife Jules, and the crazy McTavish family. Definitely check this one out if you’re interested in stories about interesting family relationships!

A rich and notorious woman completes this story. This talented author has written a story of mystery and intrigue. It is a page turner. Family and friends pull this captivating novel together. The many voices were somewhat confusing and the letters. That being said,I could not wait to find out the ending. This book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher and the author. Twists and turns keep the reader intrigued. Hawkins is a dynamic author who writes outside the box. I liked this innovative story.

Rachel Hawkins has written another wonderfully twist-filled tale! Usually when a novel has this many secrets revealed I get lost in the details, but not with this book. I was right there following every turn of the plot and gleefully enjoying the intrigue. Some of her delightful descriptions were so good I read them out loud to my husband.

It’s hit or miss for me with Rachel’s books. This one fell right in the middle. I was drawn in at some spots and bored at others. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Three stars.

i loved this book. It was fun, spicy, and had a few twists I enjoyed. The ending and alternate ending given were fun to read., cant wait to read more from this author.

Absolutely fabulous. Could not put this book down. The story, told by three people, kept me guessing until the very last page.

Twisty and turny just like I expect from Ms. Hawkins!! Great characters and unique plot. Highly recommend!

Another well done story by Rachel Hawkins! While lots of secrets (for both Cam and Jules) are alluded to, they will get slowly revealed thanks to chapters voiced by each of them as well as Cam's long dead mother. Great cast of characters, great setting in the family home, and lots of intertwining stories. Recommend!

Synopsis (from Netgalley, the provider of the book for me to review.)
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When Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore dies, she’s not only North Carolina’s richest woman, she’s also its most notorious. The victim of a famous kidnapping as a child and a widow four times over, Ruby ruled the tiny town of Tavistock from Ashby House, her family’s estate high in the Blue Ridge mountains. In the aftermath of her death, that estate—along with a nine-figure fortune and the complicated legacy of being a McTavish—passed to her adopted son, Camden.

But to everyone’s surprise, Cam wants little to do with the house or the money—and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into an everyday life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules, a woman just as eager to escape her own messy past.

Ten years later, Camden is a McTavish in name only, but a summons in the wake of his uncle’s death brings him and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but coming home reminds Cam why he was so quick to leave in the first place.

Jules, however, has other ideas, and the more she learns about Cam’s estranged family—and the twisted secrets they keep—the more determined she is for her husband to claim everything Ruby once intended for him to have.

But Ruby’s plans were always more complicated than they appeared. As Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Was there any truth to the persistent rumors following her disappearance as a girl? What really happened to those four husbands, who all died under mysterious circumstances? And why did she adopt Cam in the first place? Soon, Jules and Cam realize that an inheritance can entail far more than what’s written in a will––and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave.

You gotta love a book about a possibly dirty, nefarious black widow and her family dynamics … and when it is the daughter-in-law doing the digging in hopes of a much wealthier life, you can expect some fireworks and explosive news. I love the description of how an inheritance can reach beyond a will and a grave…this is one messed up family and its secrets are delightfully DIRTY. This is not a woman you ever wanted to wrong or get on the bad side of.

If you are like me and you go down rabbit holes with Google over real-life things, you will spend a lot of time there. Just at the beginning of the book The Wineville Murders, Bridget Cleary and Bobby Dunbar?...well, that was three hours gone. Their stories and those of the characters in this book will stick with you for a very long time it is haunting it is spooky it is scary. What a book.

A perfect Rachel Hawkins book, as always, to say the least … highly recommended to anyone with a messed up family or in search of a really good read.

Plot twists at their finest, Rachel Hawkins has created an extraordinary thriller in The Heiress. Hawkins perfectly captures the wealth and privilege that shapes the people of Ashby house and the town of Tavistock. The plot and the characters are incredibly believable, in spite of some very unbelievable circumstances. The lies, scandals, hidden identities, and selfish motivations of each character are expertly revealed by Hawkins through the format of letters, published articles, and alternating points of view. It is up to the reader to determine what is truth and Hawkins leaves you guessing until the final pages.

I could not put this one down! A must read!

The twist and turns. I really enjoyed this book., I couldn't put it down!!! I recommend reading this one! Thank you NetGalley!

Wow. This book took me by surprise. I loved how this was written. The characters were talking at you, the reader, so it felt very natural. Almost like watching a documentary & you couldn’t change the channel. There is so much drama in this family. Not in a bad way, it was entertaining. Plus, talk about secrets. Those will not stop till you finish the last page. This was an excellent read, one that you will not want to put down.

Rachel Hawkins has been hit or miss for me, and I really liked this one.

We follow Jules and Camden, a married couple going back to Cam’s family home where he stands to inherit his late mother Ruby’s fortune, but he has declined it for years. Ruby is semi-famous, having been kidnapped and returned as a child, and having 4 husbands who have all died. What lengths is a family willing to go to protect its secrets?

I will say - a couple of the twists I saw coming. But that didn’t make the journey less interesting getting there. Toward the end, the family web got a little complicated, but I loved how this story was told in dual POV, along with letters from Ruby to *someone* and news stories. It made for good storytelling and I was satisfied by the ending.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic from beginning to end! I read the whole thing in one sitting (thank you vacation!) and found every twist creative and fun. I love how the author used so many different mediums to tell the story. Emails, news articles, letters, and one character speaking directly to the reader like she’s a friend. Definitely the author’s best book so far!