★★★★★ 4.5 stars (rounded up)

I thought he took my secret to the grave...But he left it in his will...

What a tangled web the Hunters weave - with the ingenious help of Samantha Hayes at the helm! Once again she delivers a thriller filled with nuance and innuendo that by the end will have us tied up in knots. And while I know is renowned for delivering slow burns, sometimes I wish they didn't take so long to get to the point. I was itching with frustration that the big secrets was on the cusp of being revealed when something else came along and the story took another tangent... But like all of Hayes' thrillers, I know that if I stick around, it's completely worth it in the end. Anyone else that took 40% until it got really interesting, would be ditched, but with Hayes I know I'm not going to be disappointed. That she has something up her sleeve bound to shock, surprise and wow by the book's end.

There are so many subplots within the main story that it is easy to lose track of what we're all here for - the main event. But each thread is then cleverly woven back to the main story and its characters therein. I wasn't confused in any way, but some might find the subplots distracting. But they each play a part in the bigger picture.

The Hunters are all gathering together at the family lodge in Scotland, which had been left to their late father Ray by his parents upon their deaths long before they were born. Kirk View Lodge was renovated by Ray and Connie early in their marriage and had long been a haven to the family over the years. Now Ray has gone and Connie is bringing her girls back together with their families for a reunion at Kirk View Lodge for ten glorious days.

But Connie has an ulterior motive for bringing them together now. Ray's will has been executed and its contents revealed...and Connie knows that she must now reveal the secret she never thought she would have to. But as her girls - Kate, Darby and Bea - settle into the lodge, Connie doesn't know where to begin. But it's Theo, Darby's teenage stepson, who notices the most with his all-seeing eyes as he watches everyone from the sidelines. He seems to be an angry kid intent on messing with everyone, not knowing quite where he belongs. I got my measure of him fairly quickly with the few subtle glances he stole along the way but he also picked up on things within the family that no one else seemed to.

It's not until an invite extended to a nearby neighbour for dinner that things begin to get heated amongst the family. Theo notices right off the cuff, whilst the others are either indifferent or just puzzled. Connie is flustered as a face from her past returns, though not as friendly as it once was. Meanwhile, Kate suspects her husband Adrian is having an affair with her sister Darby and even Connie suspects much the same. Admittedly, so does the reader. But what is really going on between them?

After the somewhat dramatic prologue, so it begins with Part One in which the story unfolds through the alternating narratives of Connie, Kate, Darby, Bea and Theo. We get each of their perspectives and how each of them feel after the passing of their patriarch, Ray, some months prior. Throughout the entire section of this story, it is alluded to a secret that Connie has and that it will all come to light in Ray's will if she does not reveal its contents first. We are privy to the various subplots and nuances of each of the characters as Hayes deftly builds up a picture of the family's dynamics.

Things start to get interesting in Part two as the story rewinds back forty years to when Connie and Ray are younger and newly married. Although the couple have a home on a farm in Lancashire, the setting is entirely at Kirk View Lodge in Scotland, which they were currently renovating. And then Connie falls pregnant. Afterwhich we see what nobody else sees behind the closed doors of a marriage. We see the Ray that no one else see. Through his narrative, which alternates with the younger Connie's, we see a side to him that had not previously been painted and we get a little insight into the secrets in their marriage. And it is not a pretty picture.

But it's Part three when things really pick up and the layers of secrets that Hayes has deftly put in place slowly start to peel away as secret after secret is revealed. The events that follow are both mad and a little twisted. While I had a niggling as to what the secret may be, there was still a piece of it that remained elusive. And when it was revealed, the picture became clear and I'm like "of course!" whilst figuratively slapping myself on the head. The action is really ramped up in the final pages as the truth is finally revealed and all its secrets are uncovered...even if some are blind to its truth. And then there is that ending which comes with a sting in the tail for a couple of characters. Just brilliant.

Overall, another deftly woven plot of intricate family secrets and the complexities of family dynamics by Hayes. Always worth the slow build to get there in the end.

I would like to thank #SamanthaHayes, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheInheritance in exchange for an honest review.

This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were well developed and the story was engaging. I recommend that others try this book as well. Well done!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #Bookouture for the ARC of #TheInheritance by #SamanthaHayes. This book blew me away. Not only did it have lots of family drama but drama inside drama. All the lies and cover ups led to some huge twists and turns I never saw coming. Amazing work Samantha!!

A perfectly fine whodunnit with a couple of twists and turns thrown in. Enjoyable while you’re reading it and forgettable once you’re done. Samantha Hayes has a huge back catalogue to jump right into for more of the same though!

Again, one of my go-to-authors and again, Samantha Hayes has written a fabulous read!

I felt drawn in to the Hunter family from early on in the book, each member with their own secrets and trying to ‘maintain’ normal family life. The characterisation is written so well, despite there being many characters, that each person appeared clearly to me.

Whilst some parts of the story were easy to predict, they were wrapped up in plenty more twists and turns that I could not see coming. The plot was certainly layered and kept my brain puzzling trying to connect all the stories together.

Samantha Hayes has a great way to tackle tough subjects with sensitivity in her books, several crop up in this book: grief, loss, fear, childbirth, amongst several others which I will not mention as they may be plot spoilers. The importance of family comes across very strongly too, in whatever form that might be.

What I particularly loved about this book is that I became so immersed, I forgot that I was actually reading! A thoroughly enjoyable, fast-paced book, which I would recommend.

My head is spinning!🤯 This book has turned me completely into a fan of psychological thrillers. All the twists and turns, I lost count and I’m here for it! When a book throws you completely off and they never see it coming. That’s when you know the author did their job.

It did move a little slow at the beginning but then it picked up great and I enjoyed this book.

Thank you Netgalley and Bookouture for the EARC! As always, my review is my opinion and thoughts.

The Inheritance by Samantha Hayes

A family mourning the loss of their father gathers to their Summer home: 3 sisters, their families and the family matriarch; Connie. Connie knows she must tell her daughters the truth before her husband’s will unfolds. She prepared herself for the looks of betrayal, loss of trust, anger but she didn’t prepare for the past to come back to haunt her and her family again…

This family drama has many twists and turns (some truly shocking). The Author makes us suspect every single character, we don’t know who to trust. This definitely adds on to the suspense and thriller elements of the book. The ending was truly shocking, I don’t think I ever saw it pan out the way it did and it surprised me in the best way! While it may be a slow start, it picks up very quickly so hold on to your handrails!

UK author Samantha Hayes's latest family-based psychological thriller, The Inheritance has numerous revelatory shocks. The opening scene sees emergency services recovering a body of a family member on holiday along with the chilling acknowledgment of a murderer in their midst. The narrative then moves back in time a week to the start of a family gathering at their cabin on the shores of Loch Muir. It's been a difficult year with the loss of the family patriarch, as his wife, their three daughters, their partners and four grandchildren get together for a relaxing family time. Throughout the ensuing week, the underlying family tensions become all too obvious and the dark secrets from the past are exposed. A rollercoaster of a read with continual surprises and shocking family lies, that is a suspenseful four star rating domestic noir. With thanks to Bookouture and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without inducement.

Another great story from Samantha Hayes. Lots of twists to keep the reader gripped. This is a book I definitely recommend .
Many thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC

This wasn't the best book I've ever read. 80% of the book I felt was just describing a village, a Loch and its surroundings with people talking around it. The best part of the book was the last 20%. If the rest of it was as good as the last part, then I'd have thoroughly enjoyed it. It won't put me off reading other titles by this author though, as I've heard some good things about her

I wanted to like this book - the description and the prologue had me hooked but I feel they were misleading as to what this book actually was. It was setup to be an action packed thriller, and instead it was slow burn domestic mystery that frankly had me bored at times. I found the characters insufferable, and I almost didn't finish the book a few times. I'm glad I pushed through, because the last 25% of the book was captivating and some of the plot twists I didn't see coming - I'm still trying to wrap my brain around the final twist before the epilogue. Overall I think the biggest thing that bothered me was the multiple POV's. Some of them felt superfluous and distracted from the main drama, and I feel like that was a detriment to the plot. I'd be interested in reading more of Hayes' books, maybe this one just wasn't my cup of tea.

Thank you to Samantha Hayes, Bookouture and NetGalley for the gifted ARC of this book.

Love psychological thrillers and this one truly delivers! The inheritance checks all the boxes…secrets, twists, unforgettable and relatable characters. Must read!

Reading about families is like watching sand on the beach, it constantly shifts and changes.
The Hunter family dynamics was like trying to maneuver a spider web, intricately interlocked and always at cross references.
There is a lot to sort out, many lies, secrets, and frankly none of the characters are that likable.
I can’t believe Connie just shrugged at a revelation at the very end.
It was an interesting read.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

When I saw that the author of The Trapped Wife had a new book out, I knew that I had to read it right away! The Inheritance by Samantha Hayes revolves around Connie, a middle-aged mother whose daughters have grown up. They are all coming back to Scotland in order to bury Connie's husband Ray, who has recently died. But Ray's will contains a devastating secret. One of Connie's 3 daughters is about to get nothing, and when she finds out why, all of Connie's secrets will be exposed.

Here is a thrilling excerpt from the Prologue:

"How had their family holiday turned into this horror? How had none of them seen this coming? Like the storms that lurked behind the mountains – one moment cascades of sun lighting up the heathered moors, the next shards of lightning stabbing at the drenched hills – life had turned on a dime.
...
Only when the stretcher – with its scarlet nylon covering concealing the horrors within – was finally lowered down the rocks, its contents bound in place with black webbing, did the chilling reality hit them.
One of them was dead.
And one of them was a killer."

Overall, The Inheritance is an amazing thriller that you won't be able to put down! One highlight of this book is the nice vacation setting of Scotland. Another highlight of this book are the many secrets and twists, which are par the course for this author. I did take off one star because it was a bit slower-paced, and I wasn't a huge fan of the ending. I will still continue to read anything by this author in the future! If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of thrillers in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in August!

I had a really hard time getting into this book. The beginning started really strong but then it started to drag on and became repetitive without adding new information. I understand that the writer was trying to add suspense, but you can only have so many secret looks between characters and vague hints before you need to add more content and context. I enjoyed the writing but was unable to bring myself to finish the book. DNF 50%.

I honestly don’t know how I felt about this book - I enjoyed it but found it quite predictable. The family comes together in grief, only to find out a heck of a lot more than they were expecting...! Generally, I enjoyed this, the characters were good and there was a good mix, but ultimately it was a little predictable and I had guessed the twist by the time it happened.

This was a hard to put down thriller, not my usual trope but I loved it. If you love mysteries and different POV's this will be right up your alley. I loved that this was told from multiple POV's but it wasn't confusing in doing so. Different but intriguing and holds your attention.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was really excited to read this book as Samantha Hayes is one of my favourite authors, and this book certainly didn’t disappoint.
It’s another fabulous domestic thriller with intriguing characters and plenty of twists.
It’s a great read and one that I’d definitely recommend.

As family come together after the death of the husband and father, Ray. It is while dealing with the aftermath of his death that on hidden secrets come to the surface. Each of his daughters are dealing with their own Demons, whilst his wife is nursing a trauma that is hung over her shoulders for many many years, if the secret comes out in the life of one of the daughters in particularly will never be the same again.

However, it would seem that Ray,. wants the secret to be revealed to the family, his will leaves one child out as Will. As a family begin to piece together, the shattered parts of all of their lives. Hidden lies are beginning to reveal themselves. Will the family ever recover from fallout.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to see an ARC.

This was a complex book with many characters and background story. The book was a little slow and read more as a family drama than the usual domestic thriller. The book is filled with emotion and I enjoyed the last parts where it finally picked up and twist after twist was revealed. Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.