4 / 5 stars. thank you netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. this book sucked me in pretty quickly. i hadn't dived too deeply into what the plot was before i began reading, so i was pleasantly surprised that it was right up my alley. the plot was well executed, interesting, and kept me on my toes throughout the novel. the length was perfect, not too long and not too short. some parts of the book were worse than others - a lot of the tropes were recycled, seen a hundred times before. i knew by the third or fourth set of ruby's letters they were not intended for cam - and i had guessed the ending well in advance. i thought it was a little strange and unrealistic how it had all panned out, and execution could've been smoother. i would've liked to have seen more of the mctavish family side characters contributing to the plot in ways other than them being jerks. overall, not a bad read and i look forward to the author diving deeper into storylines like this!

A kidnapping, a string of murders, a greedy family and the adopted son and Heir who wants nothing to do with any of it. Cam McTavish is the sole Heir of his adopted family's estate which is pissing off more than a few people. He doesn't want anything to do with the home, status or wealth and has more or less been living as if it doesn't exist. When his cousin Ben reaches out to Cam's wife, Jules about renovations that need to be done in the estate that is starting to go to ruin, Jules jumps at the chance to see the family home Cam grew up in and hopes to convince him to stay. She thinks his family can't be as bad as he makes them out to be.
The story is told through Cam's flashbacks as well as through his deceased Mother, Ruby's letters to an unknown recipient. Ruby had four husband's throughout her life and somehow they all turned up dead through mysterious circumstances. Although many people are convinced she caused the deaths, she was never convicted for any of them.
This book was fantastic! There was so much going on and so many interesting plots to keep my interest. I also did not see the end twist coming; which is hard to do these days when every book seems like it has cookie cutter plot lines. I think this is my favorite Rachel Hawkin's book so far! She really crushed it with this one. I wouldn't consider it a thriller like some of her other novels though. It was more of a slow burn mystery with a lot of family drama which did not deter from my 5-star rating. Bravo!

Family. What can you do? That’s the question I asked myself through this entire fantastic book. Rachel Hawkins is an auto buy author for me, and she should be for you too! This gothic thriller doesn’t disappoint!

Ruby McTavish is famous - or infamous depending on your view - for being the little girl who disappeared on a family picnic and was found some time later. Everyone always wondered what happened to her in the time she was gone. But then she becomes known for being the woman who lost four husbands. She is known for her marriages, her wealth, and her privilege. When she passes away and leaves everything to her son Camden, things get very interesting.

The McTavish family has many secrets, and the means to keep those secrets hidden. Every character in this book is not what they seem. Ashby House and the surrounding woods are a character all on their own. This book is fun, twisty, and full of surprises. It’s best to go into it with little prior knowledge.

I absolutely loved the audiobook version of this story! It is narrated by an amazing cast. I could listen to an entire story of Ruby’s letters - those were my favorite parts of the story!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read and listen to this book! I’m very appreciative. I loved The Villa by Rachel Hawkins, and was so excited for this one! I’m looking forward to what she writes next. This one is out now - I highly recommend that you pick it up today!

This one was great, definitely kept me reading! Was a tiny bit predictable, but still a ton of fun!!

First of all I adore Rachel Hawkins’ thrillers. The Heiress is no exception, I really enjoyed this one.

Sooo twisty and both MCs here are unreliable. Cam is fairly likable (mostly), while Jules grew on me. This one is a tough one to describe without giving stuff away. The twists keep coming right up to the end!

The house here is like a character in itself and it’s super atmospheric. This family certainly gives evil and makes the Manson family look good. I loved to hate them all.

So glad to have my early copy and really did enjoy this one.

the secrets that money can buy you…

The synopsis does not do this book justice. I really felt that the book was going to be a slow one, but I am so happy that I was wrong.

Jules is marries to Camden who she knows comes from money, but has long said he wants nothing to do with his family. One day she arrives home from work to hear that Camden’s family has asked him to come back home. To the place he grew up as the only adopted son on Ruby McTavish, Ashby House. A huge mansion located near the Appalachian Mountains. This trip home reveals so much about the secrets money can buy, and how even people born into wealth will do anything to keep it. Ruby McTavish has so many secrets, in fact her whole life is built on one. But then again so is everyone else’s.

Ruby McTavish dies a rich and notorious woman in NC. Her family owns Ashby House, a remote estate in the Blue Ridge Mountains and she gained an infamous reputation for being widowed, 4 times.

Her adopted son Camden wants nothing to do with Ashby House or his unlikable relatives still living there. After several years of being away from the property and estranged from the family, Cam now finds himself returning, along with his wife, Jules. Cam hopes to sort estate matters in the wake of his uncle’s death, but it seems everyone in this family, including Ruby, has something to hide — A secret or two, or ten.

I’ve read Rachel Hawkins’ last 4 books and The Heiress is her best! I enjoyed the suspense and building tension, and appreciated the story’s quick pace. I flew through this one and enjoyed the ride and its reveals.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A super creepy and suspenseful thriller.

Ruby Tavish was a very wealthy woman who was kidnapped as a little girl and then found and returned to her family and later widowed four times under suspicious circumstances. Ruby adopts a son, Cam. After Ruby’s death, Cam inherits everything but leaves town and does not want to return… until he is begged to return 10 years later by his cousin.

This book is told from several points of view and from several time periods. The plot raises your hackles and makes you wonder which narrators are reliable. I thoroughly enjoyed the suspense.

Thank you to the author, St Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my opinions.

The tone and pacing of The Heiress were a bit different from the author's previous works. The synopsis intrigued me. . Multiple POVs and letters peppered throughout the story were a bit difficult to work through at times, part drama. Part domestic thriller.

Wow this was so good! Super compelling; I couldn’t put it down. The story telling is excellent and I was filled with anticipation of how this would all play out, right up to the end. A great read!

Camden and his wife Jules return to the estate Camden called home up until his adoptive mother Ruby died and Camden left everything behind. Now with another death in the family Camden returns to make right the estate and money that was left him by splitting with his aunt and cousins. Money is the root of all evils could be the plot but there's definitely killing in the blood theme going on too. It was trying too hard to be twisty.

This latest novel by Rachel Hawkins sucked me in almost immediately.

Written in a mix of duel POV, letters, and newspaper clippings the story of The Heiress is weaved together. More family drama than thriller, the McTavish’s are not your normal wealthy family, they all have secrets.

Not wanting to say too much, this was definitely one of my favorite novels by Rachel Hawkins to date.

This was a book I could wait to pick up and read! It was twisty, and having each chapter told through the perspective of a different character really kept my interest. I started recommending this book to others before I even finished it. Thank you for such a dark ride NetGalley!

Ruby always felt she didn’t belong in her family so when she grew up she decided to make sure she had one of her own. She married four times but each of them died in mysterious ways thus earning her a title no one wants and making her decide to adopt a little boy, Camden, and raise him as her own. The family never accepted Cam either so when he was old enough he flew town and the infamous McTavish mansion and started out his life in his own terms. That is until Ruby died and left everything to Cam but Cam doesn’t want it, he wants to continue the simple life he lives with his wife Jules. But then he gets a letter that his uncle has died and he absolutely must come back to the family home and deal with estate issues and Jules encourages him to go back and face his past finally. But is there more to the story of why Jules wants to go back?
We’ve got three POV-Cam, Jules and then letters from Ruby that tell her story which really give the meat of the past and throw so many twists in you don’t see coming that you’ll be left with whiplash!
This book is whip smart, quick and full of family secrets. Each member of the family has a skeleton that can’t get out or it will ruin everything and they all entertwine with each other.
Expect the unexpected and be prepared to be turning pages late into the night because once you dive into this you’re not gonna want to stop{
Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

I was thrilled to be approved for an arc of Rachel Hawkin’s thriller, The Heiress. It wa everything I wanted it to be and more.

This thriller was so much fun. Set in the mountains of N.C. This is southern Grand Guignol at its best. Over the top, with despicable characters and a bit of camp this book came to life on audio, I could not stop listening. This is a book where all the characters are unreliable and what you think is happening can turn on a dime and I LOVED IT! Did it all make sense? Not really, but who cares when a book is so much fun. It delighted and surprised me at every turn.
Many of the characters are horrible and capable of all kinds of despicable things and it made for a great mystery. Anyone could do ANYTHING and I couldn’t wait to see what would be revealed next. That is all I’m going to say because I don’t want to give anything away. You have to experience this book. The book comes out Jan. 4 and the audio on Jan. 9. Thanks to @netgalley and @macmillan for an e-arc of this novel.

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins was such an intriguing read. I am a full-on Rachel Hawkins fan. I enjoyed the multiple points of view, great sequencing, vivid characterizations, and scenery as well as the superior character development. The plot points were original and so engaging.

I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Thank you @raincoastbooks & @stmartinspress for the gifted copy 🩷

Happy pub week to The Heiress! This was my first read of 2024 and I throughly enjoyed the book.

✨Review✨

The Heiress is a wickedly fun gothic tale that drags you deep into messed-up family drama that can only come with generational wealth.

You have a cast full of unreliable characters and secrets galore. While I was most invested in what took place at Ashby House (I love anything creepy that happens at a house that has its own name), I appreciated the background info from the beginning of the book as the story entered its final act.

I thought the combination of the present day drama with Ruby’s confessional letters added dimensions to the plot and revved up the mystery. And Ruby! Now that’s a woman I’d love to have a drink with 🍸

Because I’m super nosy, I wanted to know more about the nanny and Libby. What was with the gate drama between Libby and Cam? I need a Libby life story, stat. I also have my own theories about what happened to the missing hikers …

The Heiress is perfect for lovers of gothic suspense, psychological twists, and family drama. It would also make a fabulous mini series, @netflixca ;)

I would like to extend my gratitude to my partners, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, and the author, for this gifted ecopy. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

1. 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 - Cam’s family is definitely prone to excessive displays of their wealth and status in the town of Tavistock. It’s no wonder that the citizens are happy to see Cam back home.

2. 𝐃𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 - There isn’t one main character who doesn’t show some sense of deception throughout the course of the story. However, a few have some more devious deeds that are revealed.

3. 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐖𝐡𝐨? - You will find yourself sleuthing your way through the story to attempt to uncover just who some of them actually are. And there are a couple of whoppers!

4. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐅𝐚𝐫 𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐁𝐞 𝐏𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝? - Some stories just leave the reader questioning their potential to enact what could be viewed as immoral and would definitely be unlawful. After finishing, I came to the conclusion that, alas, I do have that capability.

5. 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐄𝐥𝐬𝐞 - A true sense of love really can overcome obstacles if one allows for an open mind and the capacity for forgiveness. Yet, as proven here, some things are over and above these possibilities.

This was one of the author’s best books, but I still didn’t love it. I really enjoyed Ruby’s letters and wish there was more of her POV in the book - she was by far the most interesting character.

I couldn't figure out this one for the life of me. Paula Hawkins does it again - what a great thriller story that had my attention until the very end!