Nightcap Books

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On a day that begins like any other, Hal receives a mysterious letter bequeathing her a substantial inheritance. She realizes very quickly that the letter was sent to the wrong person—but also that the cold-reading skills she’s honed as a tarot card reader might help her claim the money.

Soon, Hal finds herself at the funeral of the deceased…where it dawns on her that there is something very, very wrong about this strange situation and the inheritance at the center of it.

Full of spellbinding menace and told in Ruth Ware’s signature suspenseful style, this is a “captivating and eerie page-turner” (The Wall Street Journal) from the Agatha Christie of our time.

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MY REVIEW

Hal is down on her luck. She’s behind on bills, and in serious need of some cash to catch up on her debts. When she receives a letter stating she is to receive an inheritance from her deceased grandmother, she realizes this may be the answer she to her problems. The only glitch, her grandparents are long deceased and she was mistakenly sent the letter. Since Hal is a tarot card reader, she figures she can use her people reading skills to claim the inheritance and get a little money to pay off her debts. Hal takes a chance and travels to the funeral, where she soon realizes that something is not quite right with the home and family of the deceased Mrs. Westaway.

I have read and enjoyed Ruth Ware’s previous novels (In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, and The Lying Game), but The Death of Mrs.Westaway is now my favorite of her books. Ware’s writing tends to be more of a slow-burn, and she has nailed it in this latest novel.

The Death of Mrs.Westaway is a psychological thriller that is both spooky and suspenseful. A great book for fans of suspenseful mysteries with a gothic feel. Dark, atmospheric, and intriguing.

Books by Ruth Ware:

1. In a Dark, Dark Wood
2. The Woman in Cabin 10
3. The Lying Game
4. The Death of Mrs. Westaway
5. The Turn of the Key
6. One by One
7. The It Girl
8. Zero Days
9. One Perfect Couple

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Gripping, emotional, and wire-taut, Not Her Daughter raises the question of what it means to be a mother—and how far someone will go to keep a child safe.

Emma Townsend. Five years old. Gray eyes, brown hair. Missing since June.

Emma is lonely. Living with her cruel mother and clueless father, Emma retreats into her own world of quiet and solitude.

Sarah Walker. Successful entrepreneur. Broken-hearted. Kidnapper.

Sarah has never seen a girl so precious as the gray-eyed child in a crowded airport terminal. When a second-chance encounter with Emma presents itself, Sarah takes her—far away from home. But if it’s to rescue a little girl from her damaging mother, is kidnapping wrong?

Amy Townsend. Unhappy wife. Unfit mother. Unsure whether she wants her daughter back.

Amy’s life is a string of disappointments, but her biggest issue is her inability to connect with her daughter. And now Emma is gone without a trace.

As Sarah and Emma avoid the nationwide hunt, they form an unshakeable bond. But what about Emma’s real mother, back at home?

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MY REVIEW

Emma is a five-year-old that lives a sad life. Her mother and father are less than perfect parents who don’t seem that interested in their daughter. When Sarah first encounters Emma, she has an immediate connection with the little girl because Sarah’s childhood was a bit sad and she often felt unwanted too. On a chance encounter, Sarah takes Emma. As the two avoid the nationwide search for Emma, they bond. However, Emma’s parents are back home wondering what happened to their child. Amy, Emma’s mother, is taking the worst of the suspicions and attacks on the family. To complicate matters, Amy is an unhappy wife and mother, and starts to question if she really wants her daughter to come back to them.

The story is told from both Sarah and Amy’s points of view. The story also alternates from before, during, and after the kidnapping. This was mostly fine, but there were a few times when the changing of timelines was confusing.

Not Her Daughter is fast-paced and compelling. I wasn’t sure how I wanted things to be resolved, but I wanted to keep reading to see how it would end. It’s sad to imagine a child growing up in an abusive household and feeling unwanted, but it’s near impossible to imagine a child living a safe life with a kidnapper. Basically, both Sarah and Amy were unstable, so I couldn’t really root for either one of them.

Overall, Not Her Daughter is a great debut novel. I would have enjoyed a little more resolution toward the end, but, then again, it’s nice to ponder a few things.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books by Rea Frey:

1. Not Her Daughter
2. Because You’re Mine
3. Until I Find You
4. Secrets of Our House
5. Don’t Forget Me

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In this twisty psychological thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Before, an actress plays both sides of a murder investigation.

A struggling actor, a Brit in America without a green card, Claire needs work and money to survive. Then she gets both. But nothing like she expected.

Claire agrees to become a decoy for a firm of divorce lawyers. Hired to entrap straying husbands, she must catch them on tape with their seductive propositions.

The rules? Never hit on the mark directly. Make it clear you’re available, but he has to proposition you, not the other way around. The firm is after evidence, not coercion. The innocent have nothing to hide.

Then the game changes.

When the wife of one of Claire’s targets is violently murdered, the cops are sure the husband is to blame. Desperate to catch him before he kills again, they enlist Claire to lure him into a confession.

Claire can do this. She’s brilliant at assuming a voice and an identity. For a woman who’s mastered the art of manipulation, how difficult could it be to tempt a killer into a trap?

But who is the decoy . . . and who is the prey?

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MY REVIEW

Claire is a struggling actress in New York City. She needs money and has a hard time getting decent acting jobs, so she works undercover with a law firm to catch cheating husbands. It’s not glamorous, but it pays the bills. When her latest client ends up dead, the husband is suspect number one. The police hire Claire to help catch him. They are certain she will be able to get him to confess, but nobody expects the twists involved with Claire on the case.

A fast-paced psychological thriller. This novel keeps the reader guessing as to what is really happening, but it also gets a little confusing. I really enjoyed the first half of the book, though things got a little too twisty for me as the story progressed. Good for fans of twisty thrillers.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books by J.P. Delaney:

1. The Girl Before
2. Believe Me
3. Playing Nice
4. The Perfect Wife
5. My Darling Daughter
6. The New Wife

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.

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Kim Lord is an avant–garde figure, feminist icon, and agent provocateur in the L.A. art scene. Her groundbreaking new exhibition Still Lives is comprised of self–portraits depicting herself as famous, murdered women―the Black Dahlia, Chandra Levy, Nicole Brown Simpson, among many others―and the works are as compelling as they are disturbing, implicating a culture that is too accustomed to violence against women.

As the city’s richest art patrons pour into the Rocque Museum’s opening night, all the staff, including editor Maggie Richter, hope the event will be enough to save the historic institution’s flailing finances.

Except Kim Lord never shows up to her own gala.

Fear mounts as the hours and days drag on and Lord remains missing. Suspicion falls on the up–and–coming gallerist Greg Shaw Ferguson, who happens to be Maggie’s ex. A rogue’s gallery of eccentric art world figures could also have motive for the act, and as Maggie gets drawn into her own investigation of Lord’s disappearance, she’ll come to suspect all of those closest to her.

Set against a culture that often fetishizes violence, Still Lives is a page–turning exodus into the art world’s hall of mirrors, and one woman’s journey into the belly of an industry flooded with money and secrets.

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MY REVIEW

Maggie works in an art gallery where an exciting new exhibition is premiering. The exhibition is by Kim Lord, and includes self-portraits depicting herself as famous murder victims. On opening night, Kim is a no-show. As hours and days pass, it appears something sinister may have happened to Kim. Maggie starts asking questions, and trying to piece together what has happened to Kim.

Still Lives is told from Maggie’s point of view. As Maggie looks into Kim’s disappearance, she learns more about her coworkers and the art gallery. There is plenty of drama and secrets, and Maggie herself has a curious past. While the characters were interesting, I never connected to them or was drawn into the story. I did find the art world to be a compelling setting for the story. Still Lives is a good read, but not as thrilling as I was hoping for.

Books by Maria Hummel:

1. Still Lives
2. Lesson in Red