With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the book in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was interesting, engrossing and a marvellous story to read. The death of Mrs Westaway opened up a past full of secrets and lies, mysteries and murder. It would make a wonderful film.
Highly recommended.

The Death of Mrs Westaway was a delicious read.

Twenty one year old Harriet (Hal) Westaway is on her uppers - barely scratching a living by reading tarot cards in a kiosk on Brighton pier, and heavily in debt to loan sharks. Undoubtedly, Hal’s situation is dire and since the unexpected death of her beloved mother, she has no one to fall back on. When she receives a letter from a solicitor advising of a bequest from her deceased grandmother, it should seem heaven sent - except for the fact that Hal knows the lady in question can’t possibly be her grandmother. But the wolf is not only at but inside the door and Hal is all out of options, so she uses the last of her money to travel to Cornwall - to Trepassen, the country house of the late Mrs Westaway.a

Hal has no idea what to expect, but what she finds is still a surprise. Trepassen is a chilly Gothic pile complete with creepy housekeeper - and not everyone is pleased to see her. Hal herself, all too aware of her own deception and feeling she has no right to be there at all, is just hoping her skills as a “cold reader”, honed in her kiosk on the pier, will see her through. The late Mrs Westaway still looms large over her family, and in the wake of her death, secrets, lies and dangers will be uncovered...

I’ve enjoyed all of Ruth Ware’s books but I think this is her best yet - the plot is intriguing and the character of Hal very engaging. It’s easy to sympathise with the situation in which she finds herself at the beginning, and all her actions and reactions seem credible.

A very enjoyable read with the tarot reading element, while in no way integral to the plot, adding an unusual extra dimension.

I love Ruth Ware’s books as you always know there’s going to be a great mystery at their centre.
In this book Hal is struggling to make ends meet in Brighton and her tarot reading booth is not making enough for her to live on.
She is then chased for money she owes by an intimidating thug and she doesn’t know what to do.
Hal then receives a letter telling her that her Grandmother has passed away and has left her something in her will.
Unsure whether to believe it, Hal goes to the funeral and is invited to stay at the family home for the night.
There’s Uncles, cousins and an Aunt that she’s never met before but deep down Hal knows they have contacted the wrong person, but waivers about what to do next.
As the days pass by more and more family secrets are revealed and Hal is left reeling when she makes a shocking discovery.
This is a gripping read and the final few chapters are breathtaking.
Thanks to Vintage Digital and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I really enjoyed this book, which kept me riveted throughout.
Each new book by Ruth Ware seems to be so very different from each other, unlike some authors who seem to trot out the same story, or setting, with only minor variations.
The thing linking her books seems to be that they are very well written, and have a certain suspense to them that keeps me reading until the book is finished, regardless of what I am meant to be doing with my time.

Ruth Ware is back!!! I still remember how completely engrossed I was in In A Dark Dark Wood, surprised that it was a debut novel, and now, three years later, I get excited when she has a new novel coming out. With a very likable main character and a gripping and suspenseful plot, THE DEATH OF MRS WESTAWAY has quickly become my favourite Ruth Ware’s novel.

Harriet “Hal” Westaway is 21 years old and she makes her living reading tarot cards at a pier in Brighton. Her mother died in a hit-and-run three years earlier and she has never met her father. She is also broke and she owns a lot of money to a loan shark. So when she receives a letter from a lawyer to inform her that she is one of the heirs of the estate of a Mrs Westaway, Hal thinks this is her chance to solve her problems and travels to Corwall to claim her inheritance. But she didn’t expect three sons estranged from their mother for years, a house full of secrets, and a past that it is slowly revealed.

I really liked the character of Hal. Even though she pretends to be someone else to inherit Mrs Westaway’s estate, she is a good genuine person. The only family she ever had was her mother and she’s been completely alone since her death. By pretending to be Mrs. Westaway’s lost granddaughter she hopes to get not only a bit of money that will get the loan shark off her back, but also a new family.

The family secrets, the gothic oppressive mansion in decline, and, also, an old servant who can’t cook and seems to know more than she should create a gothic atmosphere worthy of an Agatha Christie’s novel. The house in itself is a character of the novel with its secrets and its strange vibe that I almost expected a ghost to make an appearance.

If you are looking for an entertaining and intelligent novel, this is the one for you. THE DEATH OF MRS WESTAWAY is one of my favorite novels of 2018, an unsettling, gripping, and propulsive read that shows that, once again, Ruth Ware is really good at what she does.

Well, I devoured this book. It took me just over 4 hours in total to read. I have read every other book by Ms Ware and this one was just as good.

Hal works reading tarot on Brighton pier when she receives a letter that could turn her world upside down. She is summoned to Cornwall as she is named as an heir to Mrs Westaway and is a beneficiary of the will. She believes that there has been a mistake but is in desperate need of some money so decides to use her skills as a cold reader to infiltrate the family and get the cash. Not everything is that simple though.

The book is told via Hal and diary chapters from another character. You follow Hal as she tries to uncover the family secrets.

I’ve just finished this book and the ending has taken me totally by surprise. I didn’t guess the plot which is very unusual.
It’s a dark, hugely atmospheric mystery that kept me intrigued throughout.
This is my first Ruth Ware book which I enjoyed and will read her other books.
I’ve given it 4 stars overall as I found it slowed down mid way through.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️I just love this book! I am a massive fan of Ruth Ware and was so excited to receive an advanced copy of this book. I absolutely devoured the story and didn't want it to end. Once again Ruth Ware has come through with an amazing book.

Hal Westaway is an orphan after losing her mother in a hit and run accident and never knowing her father. She lives in a small apartment in Brighton and works on the pier as a tarot card reader. She is in serious debt to so not so nice people and her life is really going nowhere. One day she receives a very official looking letter from a lawyer to inform her that her grandmother has passed away and that she has been left an inheritance. Hal knows this can't be right as she lost her grandparents over 20 years earlier. But it is addressed to her and she really needs the money... what's a girl to do? She travels to the family estate for the funeral and meets the family. Every family has their secrets and this family is no different. Hal's arrival sees them start to unravel until the truth is finally out.

This book is beautifully written with its gothic scenery and spooky old mansion with no heating. The characters are real and it has an Agatha Christie feel to it. It would make a great movie.

Big thanks to Random House UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book ahead of release in exchange for my honest opinions. Easily 5 ⭐️from me and I will be recommending it to all my book loving friends

Although I really enjoyed Ruth Ware’s debut novel, “In a Dark, Dark Wood,” my reading commitments meant that I have not read any further books by her until this, her latest. However, having enjoyed this so much, I really need to go back and read her other books.

Harriet (Hal) Westaway is a young woman, who lives in Brighton. After the death of her mother in a hit and run incident, she was forced to drop out from college and take up her mother’s job, as a tarot reader on the pier. She just about scrapes a living and has managed to keep the small flat she lived in with her mother, but, when bills mounted, what seemed like to the answer to a prayer turned ugly and she is now in danger from debt collectors.

While Hal is debating what to do about the unpleasant notes, and threatening visits, she receives a strange letter from a solicitor, informing her that she is a beneficiary in her grandmother’s will. Scared of staying at home, but certain that the letter was a mistake, Hal sets out for the country estate of Trepassen House. She hopes that she can pretend to be a member of the family and, possibly, get a financial bequest from the will, to help pay off her debts, and vanish before she is found out as an imposter. However, things turn out to be far more complicated than she expected.

This is a wonderfully creepy novel, complete with a Mrs Danvers like housekeeper, an array of Westaway relatives, dark family secrets, a glorious Gothic estate and rooms with bars on the windows and bolts on the outside of the doors… Can Hal manage to keep up the deception, or is she, indeed, linked to the inhabitants of Trepassen House by more than just her name? I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

The Death of Mrs Westaway had me hooked from start to finish. The dark mystery of it, the suspense and the creepy old house sucked me right in. Lots of twists that all fall into place nicely. I loved The Woman In Cabin 10 (still to read In A Dark, Dark Wood, which I now can't wait to read) and this was another great book by Ruth Ware.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of this ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book for free in exchange for an honest review. I absolutely loved this book and devoured it in two days. I had to keep putting it down though as I wanted to savour it and enjoy reading it in the sunshine, I didn’t want it to end. The creepy old house in Cornwall, the situations the main character got herself into and all the secrets and lies, past and present, made for an excellent read.I would recommend this for a holiday read when you have nothing else to do but enjoy this book.

I would firstly like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

This book follows Harriet Westaway, who receives an unexpected letter telling her she's inherited a substantial bequest from her Cornish grandmother, it seems like the answer to her prayers. She owes money to a loan shark and the threats are getting increasingly aggressive: she needs to get her hands on some cash first.
There's just one problem - Hal's real grandparents died more then twenty years ago. The letter has been sent to the wrong person. But Hal knows that the cold-reading techniques she's honed as a seaside fortune teller could help her con her way into getting the money. If anyone has the skills to turn up at a stranger's funeral and claim a bequest they're not entitled to, it's her.
Hal makes a choice that will change her life for ever. But once she embarks on her deception, there is no going back. She must keep going or risk losing everything.....

Wow what a read! Definitely Ruth Ware's best book so far! The whole plot was intriguing right from the very start, and got darker and creepier the more I read. There were so many parts of the book that literally sent chills down my spine and made my heart race. The whole book was a thrilling page-turner that had me hooked from start to finish!
I loved the main character Hal! She was such a great character that was extremely well written! I'm not a very superstitious person but I throughly enjoyed reading around all the tarot card descriptions and Hal's views on tarot reading and what they meant to her. Brilliant!

Overall, a very cleverly-written hard-to-put-down thrilling book that I highly recommend!!

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
I loved Ruth Ware’s previous book, The lying Game, so had high expectations for this. But unfortunately it did not meet these. Whilst it was well written and fairly intriguing, it was quite slow and lacked impetus and impact.
3.5 stars

I was intrigued to read Ruth Ware’s latest having enjoyed her other books but soon realised this was very different....in a good way...and it took me to the most unexpected of places!

It was a true reading experience that made me shiver despite reading it in the midday sun. It starts off as a story of a girl struggling with life, working as a tarot card reader on Brighton Pier and then....well it takes a remarkable twist the thrill of which lasts throughout the novel

It’s those tarot cards you see - the cards which lead Hal, guide her and warn her of things to come....When she gets a letter saying she’s been left an inheritance from her grandmother who lives in a grand gothic mansion....the cards come in very handy indeed. This was a narrative thread which made em shiver as I read. Very effective and perfect for this gothic twisty tale!

The novel over all has a golden age crime feel to it but also one of Rebecca and indeed the main servant of the house is often called Mrs Danvers. There’s mentions of Jane Eyre (Hal goes to stay in the attic room), sibling rivalry, a dysfunctional family in a grand old house with secrets of inheritance and more to come flooding out.

Trepassen House where the novel is set is fictional but even the name - Trespass - conjures up very real images and emotions.

Step inside...if you dare.
Highly recommended

I'm not sure why, but this entire novel just felt a bit anti-climatic. It starts with good intentions, but so many elements of the plot fold together, and few actually get paid off, until you're left with a bit of a mess of a thriller. Undeniably, there is an homage to Agatha Christie in amongst these pages- the secluded house, the hazy mysteries of the past coming back to haunt the present, the fractured family- but it doesn't have the same satisfaction that a Christie mystery does. Some have said this is Ware's best book so far, but I beg to differ. At times, the novel felt lacking and more often than not, played on cliché and weird plot lines to make things seem more confusing. Nothing truly significant happens until the last 20% of the book, which doesn't exactly make for a gripping read. Even then, the twist that is chosen isn't exactly one that seems clever, just a little out of left field. The writing was good and I'm sure many others would enjoy this type of quick, by the numbers thriller, but sadly, this one didn't really hit the spot for me.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one as I didn’t enjoy Ruth’s previous novel. I’m happy to say this was a good solid tale and I enjoyed it overall. I still think it lacks something of the author’s first two novels however, both of which I loved.

As an inquisitive reader I did not want to put this book down as I needed to know why the grandmother made the will. The story was well paced and the information was fed to the reader in a perfect way. I made my mind up about Hal’s father and mother fairly early on but despite this I was not able to calculate the depth of the story. At the end I silently asked myself what would I have done had I received that letter?
I loved the intrigue throughout and the family discord that appeared to be neatly wrapped up n the ending.. the characters were complex but the descriptions given by Ruth brought them to life and the whole situation felt very real.

LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! I love Ruth Ware’s books! There hasn’t been one I haven’t enjoyed, and this one is no exception. Gripping, questioning, suspenseful, and beautifully written, I found myself easily dragged into the story and consumed by its intricacies. Her writing style is so easy to read, it flows like liquid gold through my mind as I flip page after page.

I found myself thinking I’d figured it out but then questioning again and again what I thought I knew. And what an ending.

Fabulous read! 5 stars!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this new offering from Ruth Ware. Highly atmospheric, with plenty of twists and turns. Had me totally hooked throughout. Highly recommend.

Hal is really up against it; her mother has died and she has the debt collectors threatening her with violence. A letter invites her to come to a funeral in Cornwall of an unknown relative. She decides to go along and see if there is any chance of some inheritance.

Well things aren't quite as she would have wanted in deep, dark Cornwall. This book is a bit of a mixture of Mary Wesley with the Cornish family, Kate Morton with the hidden secret and Agatha Christie for the whodunnit.

There is a fair amount of to-ing and fro-ing before the ending comes punching it's way to climax. Some of the family set up and treatment of the 'poor orphan cousin' seemed more suited to 1895 than 1995, and I have not seen a bitter, scheming housekeeper for a long while - but hey, it is an enjoyable thriller so why be picky?