Engaging, character-driven mystery in which one sister is sent on a scavenger hunt by her recently deceased twin.... or is she? This novel kept me guessing all the way through, as the dysfunctional family dynamics and the sisters' bond are revealed. A clever and intriguing debut novel, this author will be one I'll read again in the future.

'Dead Letters' started out as a slow read... the writing came off as pretentious and the prose was overly-wordy and just cumbersome. I wanted to put it down a few times, but I kept pushing... and I'm so glad I did. After a few chapters, this really turns around and the story becomes quite engaging.

It took me a week to muscle through the first four chapters, but I finished the rest in a day. Now that I've finished, I wonder if this was the author's intention... to design the book much like Ava (our protagonist and narrator) who begins very hard and impenetrable (and frankly unlikeable), softens and becomes more vulnerable over time. Whether intentional or not, it came off quite clever.

(Note: Spoilers beyond this point).

The mystery isn't anything mind-bending or riveting (a la 'Behind her Eyes') but it's enough to keep a steady pace and hold your interest till the end.

The characters (our narrator included) are all deeply flawed, but each had at least a glimmer of redemption.

I found the ending satisfying... loose ends were all conveniently tied, albeit unrealistically. It's not necessarily the ending you want, but the story of the Antipova family isn't one that can really have a neat and happy ending.

A mystery about 2 sisters, Ava and Zelda, the latter of which dies in a fire, or is believed to. Through a series of emails her twin sister Ava receives, she begins to suspect that Zelda might be alive and playing a game with her, It sounds pretty intriguing and it was! I love unlovable characters and this did hold my interest throughout.

I found this book to be particularly captivating - a mix of gothic elements, sisterly feuds, love, bad parenting and a mystery. I began to feel as wrapped up in the confusion and games as the main character, and couldn't help but want the truth to out. I did find that the story was hard to get into at first, but as the mystery picked up so did my pace. I read the books in bits and pieces until I got about halfway through and then flew to the end.

It did feel like you were immersed in the world of the story, which is how I like my books to be. I usually do prefer sympathetic characters, and though none really were it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book or investment in the characters.

You spend a lot of this book thinking you are three steps ahead, only to find Ava and yourself realizing that in fact you were running behind.

This book started out slow, and I had a hard time connecting with the characters. Then, it tried to move to a faster pace, which didn't really work all that well. It was a decent read, but it was pretty predictable and not super memorable.

I had a very hard time reading this. The synopsis was promising, it started off kind of slow...then belly flopped bc it felt like it was a rushed story. Also I tried but later realized it was a preditible one.

This one will keep you guessing for sure! Ava and Zelda are twins. Ava has gone to Paris to live; Zelda is helping at their family’s vineyard in upstate New York, and things are not going well.
When the barn burns down, it appears that Zelda has died in the fire. Ava returns home to help her mother, who has been a basket case for years, she is not so sure that Zelda is really dead. She receives a message and then a series of clues that lead her to family stories she never knew.
This debut novel is filled with the secrets of a dysfunctional family.
Looking forward to another book from this author.

An extremely smart and addictive thriller. On one hand I wanted to see how the book would play out, but on the other, I just didn't want it to end. What an amazing debut!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in return for my honest opinion.

The blurb for this book sounded really good, I was excited to read it. I was a little disappointed. This book has a good storyline, but I found that maybe I never connected with the characters, I am not sure what it was. I thought the plot was clever and I did really like the ending. I know one thing for sure, I enjoyed parts of his book, but I really did not like the main characters, Ava was irritating and I think that is why I did not connect with the book. The ending does make the book better on the whole, but I had to read the whole thing to get there and that seemed to take forever.

May check out other books by this author, might not.

I desperately try not to read reviews before reading the book itself. While everyone was raving about this chilling new psychological thriller, I was expecting things more along the lines of Gone Girl, Her Every Fear and the like. I'm glad Goodreads stated it was more like Reconstructing Amelia and Luckiest Girl Alive - both not near as fast paced or twisty but rather a character drawn book that is dark and moody.

In that knowledge, I thought the writer did a fantastic job with how the book was written. Slowly burning into the characters of the twins. Mom's story could've been left out with no consequence of anything in the book, but that's just my opinion. Those who love the slow burn will like this book. I prefer something a bit more fast paced that smacks me upside the head. I think my mood wasn't ready and so it too me longer than normal to read this. Was I happy to finish, yes. But it took some effort.

This topic is no longer of interest to me and I will not be finishing this book.

Fascinating read!! I thought the author did a superb job of creating a mystery full of interesting twists & turns. Its a great read about sisters, families & dysfunction.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Ava returns home to upstate New York when she hears of her twin sister Zelda's death. She can't believe that it happened, especially when she finds her sister's burner phone and gets a number of e-mails through it. This leads her on a scavenger hunt through the alphabet, figuring out what happened to her sister, and facing her family and the people she had left behind. The entire Antipova family is dysfunctional, but Ava is drawn into Zelda's game, determined to make it through from A to Z and discover what had happened to Zelda.

I find it hard to believe that Dead Letters is the first novel for Caite Dolan-Leach. It's intricately plotted with very believable and finely detailed characters. They're not always likable and are very achingly human.

Ava has moments where she is horrible to people around her, but at other times she can be very loving and thoughtful. She's fallen under her twin's spell, and as a result, we do, too.

Zelda is a fascinating character, and discovering her machinations in the two or so years Ava was away brings the sensation of watching a human train wreck.

The relationships are at the center of this novel, between the twins, with their mother, their father, their grandfather and the people in the town. We see glimpses of happier times, but simmering beneath the surface is the dysfunction that comes with pills or alcohol.

It's a roller coaster ride, and I was drawn into Ava's world and rooting for her to find out the truth. Z was very surprising, and I think I was just as much in shock as Ava was. There are hints at more of Zelda's plan that Ava never discovered, and Ava was so caught up in the alphabet scavenger hunt that she also didn't look for other explanations.

I enjoyed the book, even with the unpleasant moments, because I simply had to know what happened next. I look forward to more books by this author.

I was very intrigued by the plot of this book before diving in & had heard some people were raving about it. The writing was exquisite - I had to look up more words in this novel than in any I've read in a long time. Dolan-Leach is clearly intelligent & talented. However, I think the story felt somewhat flat. It was easy to assume how the story would end, which killed the suspense for me and, in turn, the interest. In addition, I didn't feel connected to the characters at all so it was difficult to care what happened to any of them. Overall, I would say I'd recommend this to my non-reader friends, but not to avid readers.

Amazing read. I will be purchasing for my library.

well done debut thriller with a clever premise but the storytelling occasionally flags. I liked Ava, thought the atmospherics were good, but the dysfunctional family got a little too dysfunctional to make this a fun read. There are a lot of issues here, not all of them fleshed out- this would have benefited from a dispassionate edit to weed some stuff out. That said, thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I'd like to see more from Dolan-Leach.

I was a little disappointed that this was not a "mystery/thriller" per say-more like contemporary fiction.
However, I still really enjoyed it and surprisingly loved the game of A to Z. That was certainly unique and kept my interest.
I did buy this through book of the month subscription because it was a fun read.

I want to sincerely thank Caite Dolan-Leach and Random House Publishing Group - Random House for the opportunity to read and review this.

Book Review:
Dead Letters
by Caite Dolan-Leach
Publish Date 28 Feb 2017

This is one of those books that you're not quite sure what to think of when you finish.. Hmm. Was it an interesting concept? yes. Are you satisfied with the ending? not really sure (all the strings tied up in a little bow at the end, but I don't really like how the bow looks. Would you reread it or want to read something else by this author? Probably not. Did it keep you guessing? until about 75%.

A girl dies in a horrific fire, or does she? Her sister is sent messages beyond the grave that makes her doubt that her sister is really dead. Through these letters you see either an ingenious plan to fake her death and disappear or a desperate attempt to have one last conversation with her sister before she dies. Because I didn't care for how the bow was tied, I can only give 3 stars.. you might like the ending, give the book a try.

This is a complex book that deals with the emotions of loss, growing up and familial relationships in a dysfunctional family.
It is set in America, in wine country and features twin sisters who have had a falling out. One must return from her refuge in Paris when the other is presumed dead in a mysterious fire. She returns to investigate her sister's so called "death", but things are not quite what they seem, as she receives "dead letters" from her twin.
I could not put this book down as I had to discover the ending.
I thought this book was an extremely brilliant illustration of how families become broken and how people delude themselves as to their roles within life with the added twist of a murder mystery to keep the plot going at a good pace.
I would highly recommend giving this book a read.

Initially, I had a difficult time getting into the book. But I stuck with it and I'm SO glad that I did. A fascinating look at a dysfunctional family. Well written with beautifully crafted characters, good/foibles and all.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone. It kept me on the edge of my seat and honestly I was sad when it ended.

*I would like to thank the author/publisher/NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book exchange for a fair and honest review*