The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

 

 The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

 Grade: 4.5 Stars

Audience: Adult

 

Synopsis:

 When she stumbles across the ad, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart” home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.

What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder.

Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the home’s cameras, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman.

It was everything.

She knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder—but somebody is.

 

My thoughts:

 HOLY SMOKES. It's been a long time since I was so sucked into a book I couldn't put it down. I read this book in just a couple sittings. It would have been one, but alas, mom duty called. Last night I finally had a chance to just sit and read for a few hours and I flew through this book. Page after page, I kept turning because I had to know what was going to happen next. 

Generally I am the type that has to at least attempt to figure out how a book will end. I fell successful when I solve it, but also disappointed that I was able to. There was something about this book that kept me from doing that though. I wanted to be told what happened. I was so excited to be flipping the pages that my brain didn't even attempt to wander into the "who done it" space. 

The setting of this novel was a huge character. I love these "middle of nowhere, police couldn't be there for an hour" type of books. Though actually living that sounds like a nightmare to me. Every time the house was described there was this feeling of being watched. Huge windows allow for observing of beautiful scenery but they also make me feel like I am living in a fishbowl. When our main character would go plop herself in front of these huge windows at 11pm I wanted to throw up with stress. Doesn't she know that as soon as the sun starts to go down you have to shut the blinds?! 

 

Each character in this novel was so well developed. Our main character, Rowan, was incredibly likeable. She came across, initially, like she was always trying to be her best self. But then we start to see these loose threads: her need to always ACT like someone else entirely. I really felt for her the whole way through. The young girls were also well developed. Maddie has this level of anger to her. You can almost feel the steam from her coming off the pages. Sweet little Ellie was precious. I have twin 6 year olds and Ellie seemed so much younger than them, even though she was only a year younger. I kept having to remind myself she wasn't 3. She really came across as just wanting to feel loved, and that broke my mama heart. 

 

If you have never tried a novel by Ruth Ware, you are missing out. I highly recommend starting here or with The Woman in Cabin 10.