The Heiress is a quickly immersive tale that thrives on the stories of a deceased heiress and the many secrets of her own heir. This mystery/thriller novel has a fast-paced plot that quickly pulls readers in by creating an atmosphere of mystery and unease. The constantly changing narration style makes it nearly impossible to stop reading. The narration flows from first person, to newspaper articles, to letters written in a fascinating style that is captivating because there is always something new to learn about the mysterious McTavish family.
The book doles out fun and interesting secrets at a fairly fast clip, making each character as interesting as the last. The story follows the life of a young married couple who find themselves drawn once again into a dramatic family that thrives on their secrets. As the story moves on, it is thrilling to try to figure out which characters hold the most interesting secrets.
One of the most interesting parts of the novel was that the Heiress herself, who had the most well rounded life stories of the cast, was in fact, already deceased. Her story was told through a series of letters written with wit and a whole lot of truth. These letters laid out her life in vibrant detail and she quickly became my favorite part of the novel. The narration style during these moments really helped develop her as a character. Not only was her story told, but her personality shone through as well.
The only part of this book that I struggled with was the ending. For a book that was so detailed and full of life, the ending fell flat. The biggest reveals and twists were revealed too early and it was difficult to care about what happened next. Once the perspective fully shifted back to present day and our Heiress’s heirs, the drama in the finale was not nearly as interesting as the Heriess herself and her associated experiences. It was almost as if the earlier drama was lessened by the lack of a great resolution and thrilling climax.
This book is a wonderful read for anyone who loves to get into the depths of a character and why they make the choices that they do. It was fun to make guesses and that really kept me going!
⅘ stars
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
The Novel Llama 