Book Review: The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

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.

I really, really enjoyed this book. I'm not someone who scares easily, but I was absolutely terrified at some points whilst reading this. Seriously, is there anything creepier than sinister children? Ruth Ware expertly blends the threat of the supernatural with a very real mystery so that you're never quite sure what's going on until the very end, which takes a lot of skill.

I also loved how it was written entirely in letter format from Rowan to a potential barrister whilst she is in prison. I'm always a fan of a good unreliable narrator and the format Ruth Ware chose for this book enabled the mystery very well.

The one problem I had was the ending, which is pretty key for a thriller. There's a twist just BEFORE the ending which is huge and I definitely didn't see it coming, and although it seemed to come out of nowhere, it made a lot of sense when you looked back on clues scattered throughout the book (very Agatha Christie-esque). But the actual ending, i.e., Rowan's fate, is explained a little flatly and left a bit open-ended in comparison. So, although I liked the big twist, it made the explanation for what actually happened to the child seem a little bit half-hearted, and I finished the book feeling let down.

I rated this one 4 stars - a great thriller, if lacking a little bit of punch at the end. This was my first Ruth Ware, and I will definitely be picking up some of her other books.

Buy The Turn of the Key Here: Amazon | The Book Depository 

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