I found it very hard to read this book. The first few chapters, I didn’t even want to finish the book. But I kept diligently reading because I received the book for free in exchange for an honest review.

The reason I had such difficulty was because I simply did NOT like the main character, Ava. From the beginning, Ava's character appeared to me as a spoilt rotten, bratty rich kid run off to Paris letting her family foot all the bills. I guess there’s nothing actually wrong with such a character, I’m 100% sure they exist in real life. I just can’t relate to the character, the lifestyle, the selfishness. It’s not a type of person I have ever been around, nor would I ever want to be around.

Over half way through the book it did get interesting as the “mystery” deepened. As far as mystery, the book did have an excellent plot and would keep the reader’s interest.

The best part of the book, and the only part I actually enjoyed, was the final chapter. The ending was very unexpected and several times I wondered what Ava was going to do. I did like the ending.

I can’t really say I would recommend the book. For me, it simply wasn’t my kind of book. I do like mystery books – just didn’t like this one.

I apologize to the author. I hate to give bad reviews. I hope you have had many positive, glowing reviews to counter this negative one.

read about this book in some library journal about fiction being released in 2017, and was eager to read this. Thanks to a publisher's approval on Netgalley I was able to get a digital ARC of this book.

I had assumed from the description that this would either be something in the literary suspense vein, similar to Gone Girl or something in the creepy, well written literary freak-out genre similar to We Have Always Lived in the Castle, or The Little Stranger. However, this book was neither. It sort of reminded me of a cozy mystery, crossed with some family dysfunction memoir like Running With Scissors. It read easily, and it was somewhat interesting, but it wasn't something to sink your teeth into, or curl in front of the fire with, which was somewhat of a disappointment to me.

Still, reading about family dysfunction is so much better than having to deal with it, and this novel gave plenty of it. Ava Antipova has escaped her mostly absent father, her alcoholic and early onset dementia diagnosed mother, and her self-centered twin sister Zelda, to live the good life in Paris. But she is called back suddenly when Zelda is suspected of dying in a fire that burned down a barn on her family's vineyard in upstate New York. Upon her arrival Ava is pulled into her sister's final game, an alphabetic puzzle to solve the mystery of her death. . . or maybe just her disappearance. After all, how is Zelda sending Ava emails and leaving her notes, if she died in the barn fire?

It is no spoiler to say that all of the characters are pretty unpleasant. Ava Antipova, the main character, is well aware of her, and her family's dis-likeability which makes her somewhat bearable. She doesn't make many excuses for her definite drinking problems, and for complete disregard for her mother's well-being, so at least she is pretty honest with her failures as a human being. I did not like a single character in this book, but I didn't mind that I didn't like them. Reading about Ava's craving for a "bone-dry Sauvignon Blanc" made me wish for warmer weather so that I could drink a bone-dry white too. . . or a double gin and tonic. Maybe I have a drinking problem too. Reading the so-called mystery was slightly tedious, especially toward the end, but not too bad. My biggest problems with the book was the "twist" and the many, many loose ends. It felt like the author just slapped on an ending without really thinking through how it related to the book.

This wasn't awful, but it reminded me of the mediocre wine from Antipovas' vineyard this book kept alluding to. And I had been in the mood for a good vintage full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon, which this book was not.

Ava and Zelda Antipova are twins and Ava left home 2 years ago to escape her twin and the life she was not prepared to live. Now her sister Zelda has died and she has to return home. Zelda was always the wild one and Ava was the one who always followed the rules. Ava suspects Zelda is playing a trick and now more than ever she is convinced when the letters and clues from Zelda start to arrive. As Zelda's clues lead her from one place to the next she begins to find out things about her sister that her last two years of living in Paris she was not aware of. She is convinced Zelda will show up shortly and say she was just playing a joke or is Zelda really gone. Good mystery read. I would like to thank the Publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.

The premise of Caite Dolan-Leach's debut thriller novel Dead Letters is about two estranged identical twin sisters Ava and Zelda Antipova, one of whom was murdered and the other, left with unresolved anger and feelings of guilt is left to plan her sister's funeral and look after their demented mother. Once back home at the family vineyard in upstate New York, Ava starts receiving several eerie and obscure emails from Zelda from beyond the grave. Ava starts to suspect that her sister may not be dead and is playing mind games with her. She must now try and unravel the enigma that is Zelda's secret life and even more mysterious disappearance. Can she beat Zelda at her own game?

I really enjoyed learning about the two sisters' dysfunctional family, fractured relationship with one another, and quirky nuances as the mystery surrounding Zelda's death/disappearance unfolded little by little. It was an enjoyable and quick read. I rate this novel 4 out of 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: January 15, 2017. Novel Publish Date: February 28, 2017.

I tend to love mysteries, I love family dramas, but for some reason this book missed the mark and I found nothing wonderful about it.

The plot revolves around identical twins, Ava and Zelda and their dysfunctional parents. Ava is called home from Paris because her twin has burned to death in a fire. Ava cannot believe it's true and she follows a trail of clues to find her sister. I can't be a spoiler, but I found the book exceedingly predictable and not especially interesting.

I kept waiting for this book to get better and at times there was a decent amount of suspense but there were too many things that just so happened at the right time that I don't feel were realistic. While I understand there are some important things the author wanted to portray (dementia, alcoholism). I felt like the whole story just left me feeling empty and overall sad. I know they can't all be happy endings but I just didn't enjoy this one much.

Great story! Looking forward to reading more books by this author!

What a roller-coaster of a book! I don’t often dive into mystery novels, though I’m always happy when I do. Dead Letters by Caite Dolan-Leach takes the reader on a scavenger hunt through the eyes of Ava from her presumed dead twin sister Zelda. Tons of twists and turns make this debut novel a really fun read. The reader is on the hunt along with Ava, and as more secrets are revealed, and things become clearer, the read gets better and better (though honestly, sometimes confusing.)

It is a very dark story though, filled with reveals that often made me uncomfortable or disheartened. Dolan-Leach certainly doesn’t give the reader what they want, and while that can be frustrating, it’s not always a bad thing. She does a great job in feeling like the setting of upstate New York, and a dysfunctional family vineyard, is read and complex, just like the characters. It might be hard to keep everything straight, but it is worth it for the reveals that often come out of nowhere. A perfect classic mystery novel.

Thanks to Caite Dolan-Leach, Random House & NetGalley for providing my copy in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my, my. What a wild ride - all the way from Astounding to Zero cool!

My choice of descriptor words is on purpose - a nod to the main characters in this book, twins Ava and Zelda, so named by their father for the order of their entrance in the world at birth (never mind that he got it wrong). It's also a nod to the plot itself, as a grown-up and gone-missing Zelda leaves a trail of alphabetical clues for sister Ava to follow in a quirky and potentially deadly "game."

Two years ago, Ava left the Antipova family vineyard, which isn't doing well, mostly because of a betrayal involving her twin; they haven't spoken since. She also was eager to get away from their mother, who's not so gradually being overtaken by dementia and alcoholism. The twins' father barreled out years ago and has remarried, an act not since forgiven by either girl.

So Ava heads to Paris, where she finds a new life, a new French boyfriend and happiness at the tender age of 25. But then, her world comes to a crashing halt: She learns that Zelda has died - apparently the victim of a fire that destroyed the barn on the family's property in New York's Finger Lakes region (more on that later).

Not long after Ava returns home, though, she begins to suspect that Zelda isn't dead after all. Soon, she begins to get text messages from her sister, which appear to be clues related to her disappearance - beginning with the first letter of the alphabet. Aha, Ava concludes - Zelda's up to her old devious tricks. As she tries to deal with her totally dysfunctional family (her father returned on a temporary basis when he learned that Zelda had died) that includes her father's obsessive mother and Wyatt, the boyfriend she left behind.

It takes a while, but forensic evidence determines that the human remains inside the burned-out barn are, in fact, Zelda's. The situation is intensified when local police conclude that Zelda's death wasn't an accident - the barn doors were locked from the outside - and a prime suspect is identified. But the messages Ava is getting from Zelda suggest something else is afoot; should she let the police in on her secret or follow her twin to the ends of the alphabet in the hopes of getting to the truth?

Once that decision is made, the book revvs up into high gear - capturing and holding my attention for the rest of the drive even during crucial college football playoff games (although dividing my time between the book and TV did get a little easier, I'm sorry to say, once "my" Ohio State University Buckeyes got thoroughly trounced by Clemson in the 2016 Fiesta Bowl).

Now that I've finished the book (most of the time keeping half an eye on the Rose Bowl), I see the whole picture. Truthfully, I had a bit of trouble believing the whole thing could have been accomplished as efficiently (for want of a better word) as it was, but in the end it really doesn't matter. The whole thing is far more a study in character development and interaction than murder mystery - and what intriguing characters they all are.

My enjoyment of the book was enhanced, I admit, by the setting. One of my favorite places to visit is Seneca Lake; my husband and I have spent many wonderful days relaxing and doing our photography thing at Seneca Harbor Station, hiking the awesome Gorge Trail in Watkins Glen State Park, "touring" the NASCAR track (in between races, visitors are allowed inside) and, not insignificantly, sampling as many wines as we can from the dozens of vineyards in and around Seneca, Cayuga and Keuka lakes. When I head out for morning walks here in my northeast Ohio neighborhood, I often wear the T-shirt I bought at Keuka College mostly because I figured it would be a conversation starter (I was right).

But I digress. In summary, this is a great debut novel - one I hope (and expect) will do very well. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was fascinated with the story line of this book. The characters were great and I didn't want to put the book down. I did shed some tears!