Extraordinary, I was totally immersed in this story, absorbing every word in case I missed something important. It’s a long book and it took a while to read but I thought it well worth it. Every character in the two main families is flawed and self absorbed and totally controlled by the phenomenon created by the parent generation of a treasure hunt book containing clues to the position of buried golden bones. Secrets and lies are revealed slowly through a dual timeline that shocks and confounds. How far would you go to protect someone you love and what is the nature of family?

Good family saga summer read. Albeit somewhat meandering in parts it eventually comes back together as part of a long ending. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

What a book! Somehow Erin Kelly had done it again, no two books are remotely the same, I honestly don’t know how she finds her ideas.

I loved the concept of this tale, where two artists devise a book which grips the world- the book keeping clues to buried treasure- tiny gold skeleton pieces buried in specific locations across the UK, with one piece, the pelvis, never discovered. 50 years later, on the anniversary of its launch, and during a new launch of an online version, events take a macabre twist when a human pelvis is found in its place.

The story twists from past to current day, with some terrible consequences.

I couldn’t put this down, the storyline was complex but gripping and I just had to keep reading. Just Fabulous. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Golden Bones - a mystery and treasure wrapped in a fantasy book - has shaped the lives of author and artist Frank Churcher and his family. But, for his daughter Nell the widely loved story has always had a dark side as she herself became a target of obsessive superfans determined to uncover the book’s secrets.

There’s a lot going on in this story so make sure you’re paying attention or you’ll quickly lose your way in the plot. I enjoyed the ambition of a complex story of a treasure hunt, dysfunctional family dynamics and secrets being revealed, but at times it just became too much. It’s quite a long book (just over 500 pages in the hardback edition) and it really did feel like it. And then after all of it the unveiling of the secrets and the final resolution felt really rushed and didn’t entirely convince me.

There is so much in this book - mystery, murder, secrets and family saga. It really did keep me turning the pages.
The story races along at pace with lots of twists and turns, so you need to pay attention to keep up with what’s going on. This book has a brilliant concept with a treasure hunt and lots of well drawn characters who are introduced in a clear way to avoid confusion. I would thoroughly recommend this book for a totally immersive read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review. I loved it.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

Genuinely one of the best things I’ve read in ages. Imaginative with great characters. Loved how it developed and didn’t guess where it was going at all

The Skeleton Key
Mystery & Thriller
Erin Kelly
⭐️⭐️⭐️

I don't read mystery and thrillers very often but this one made me curious enough to give it a go.

The treasure hunt element was exciting but I did find it a bit confusing at times, especially during the flashbacks.

There were a couple of twists I didn't guess which made it even more interesting but I wasn't keen on the ending.

If you like plots within plots, rivalry and surprises then I'd recommend this book.


*Thank you to @Netgalley, the author and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

A dysfunctional family history and a murder mystery surrounding a treasure hunt book ‘The Golden Bones’ which touches the lives of its creator Frank Churcher and his close family and friends. Inspired by the book Masquerade which was published in 1979, this book had me reminiscing my childhood and my total inability to solve any of its clues. Nell, Franks daughter, has had her life totally disrupted by the publication of The Golden Bones and the increasingly disturbing and violent theories and actions of the ‘bone hunters’. As the story progresses twists and family secrets come thick and fast. I loved this book and would highly recommend. It’s a strong 5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me. Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and the author for letting mr read the arc of this novel in return for a honest review.

The Skeleton Key Erin Kelly


3 stars

I found the initial concept of this book quite fascinating. Frank Churcher is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his book ‘The Golden Bones’ which has been a resounding success for all those years. It tells the story of a skeleton whose bones have been scattered all over the world and captured the imagination of thousands of people who are using the clues in the book to discover all the bones.

However for Frank’s granddaughter, Nell the whole process has become a nightmare. Some of the fanatics searching for the bones have decided that Nell herself has the final missing bone, the pelvic bone actually in her body which had culminated in someone trying to cut her open. She has completely withdrawn from her family and is only reluctantly coming to the anniversary party.

However I just found the whole story too complicated with constant jumps backwards and forwards.It was also a very long book and by the time I finished reading it I did not really care too much about the ending.

I thought the book was very well-written and at times I was really caught up in the backgrounds of what was a very dysfunctional family but I did not really warm to Nell as a character and was slightly disappointed at the ending.



Karen Deborah
Reviewer for Net Galley

As someone that spent their school lunch hours trying to solve Masquerade this book was right up my alley. It twists and turns - one that definitely needs your attention - but the characters, setting and plot were really interesting, different and enjoyable.

Gothic Mysticism…
Haunting themes of gothic mysticism, mystery and spellbound thriller merge in this cleverly crafted and multi layered tale. This is more than simply a treasure hunt. With a beautifully drawn plot and a cast driven by complex personalities, this is intriguing and engaging and will keep the reader enthralled until the final page.

I really struggled with this one at the beginning as there was so much going on and I felt like it dragged in bits but overall I really enjoyed it,

This is the first book I've read by this author and it won't be my last.

Thanks netgalley for this ARC

A good story with lots of twists in it making it hard to see what is going on. At times there is a bit too much going on with different threads but overall a good read

I was attracted to the book cover, and now I fully like the book! The plot is comprehensive but the author pulls it up with clever story building. The story alternates into past and present but fret not, it does not create confusions. There are plethora of characters but they are introduced in such a manner that they don't go over your head while reading. A nice book, all in all.

Oh my goodness!- I found myself wanting to be part of the golden bones treasure hunt, despite the fact it is a work of fiction!
The book si spectacular in drawing in the reader to the madness and to the truth as the book is up for re-release and the madbess intensifies.
The myriad of slightly deranged (and in some cases downright terrifying) fans of the book and treasure hunters supreme have made Nell's life a misery for years. Always fearful for her safety Nell has been stalked and wounded all in the name of Elinore- the fictional skeleton from the treasure hunt and it jsut seems to keep escalating, despite her worst enemy being behind bars.
Fast paced and really, really twisted this is one that will keep you up late into the night- deserved of more than 5 stars!

I have enjoyed other novels by Erin Kelly but this one was not for me. Overlong and confusing in parts, I struggled to concentrate on the narrative. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

Published September 1, this is such a clever, intriguing read. Nell – Eleanor – comes to her family’s home (at her family’s insistence) to celebrate the 50th anniversary of her father’s book, The Golden Bones, wherein he painted a picture of Elinore, murdered and whose skeleton was scattered across England. Puzzles and clues suggested where some of the bones were buried, leading to a treasure hunt that has last all 50 years. Only the pelvis has remained hidden – and the Bonehunters, as they’re called, will do anything to find it. While father Frank Churcher, his wife and their son have enjoyed the spoils of the book, Nell has become a recluse. Now, to celebrate the anniversary, Frank has something special planned… he’s announcing where the final bone is hidden. Great, you think, until everything falls asunder. There’s layer upon layer of mystery in this frankly brilliant read: you get inside the head of all the main players, and it’s clear there’s a lot going on because of the book’s impact, and as well as the book’s impact.

Thanks to Net Galley and Hodder and Stoughton for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
This book was not for me, iI disliked the characters which didn’t help. The first part of the book is an awkward slow laborious read.
The story is told over decades, a murder/mystery/family saga and treasure hunt.
The story wasn’t what I expected and different from other Erin Kelly books I have read,

I really enjoyed this gripping crime thriller cum family saga, not least because it centres around a hugely popular treasure hunt, with the author having taken inspiration from Kit Williams’ ‘Masquerade’. Like the author, I spent hours as a child leafing through the pages of my parents’ copy of this bestselling picture book, so a fictional ‘behind the scenes’ look at how a similar book and hunt came into being and the deadly consequences that it wrought really captured my attention.

The first third of ‘The Skeleton Key’ sets up the family dynamic – the book in the novel, ‘The Golden Bones’, is the product of two artistic best friends, who end up living next door to one another. They both marry and have children, two of whom also become a couple and have children of their own. Some time after the publication of their book, the daughter of one of the artists, arguably the more famous of the two, becomes a target for the more obsessive of the ‘Bonehunters’ and it’s partly from her perspective that we follow the story, though much later in 2021. The book also uses flashbacks to explain the actions of various characters – another element I thought was excellent.

The rest of the novel really picks up the pace as a gathering in the artists’ garden to celebrate the 50th anniversary of ‘The Golden Bones’ publication descends into chaos after real human remains are discovered whilst a television film crew roll cameras. As the ‘Bonehunters’ once again start to stir, family secrets start to become unearthed from all sides and risk tearing all three families apart.

This novel really has so much to recommend it. The plot is fantastic and the core group of characters are fascinating, flawed individuals. There are a series of jaw-dropping ‘reveals’ which I never would have guessed and the author brilliantly coaxes so many emotions from the reader along the way.

Many thanks to the publishers, Hodder and Stoughton, and to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to review an advance copy of this five star read.

When a macabre treasure hunt becomes all-consuming, it can endanger lives and livelihood.
There’s a nasty patriarch baddy, Frank, a skirt-chasing artist who invented the chase. He is juxtaposed against the rest of the two flawed families, his life-long rivalry with alcoholic Lal a constant in all their lives.
The followers of the treasure hunt - the “bone hunters” - are a bunch of crazy loners whose lives have been taken over by the quest and no clue is too absurd not to follow it.
I really struggled through this ambling book. I don’t mind multiple time lines or multiple POVs, but in this case the constant jumping back and forth began to grate. I did not warm to the protagonist Nell either, just could not picture her.
The plot idea intrigued me, but for me it did not deliver.
Just scraped into 3 stars due to the atmospheric Heath location.