THE TURN OF THE KEY by Ruth Ware
B&B Rating: 5 / 5
Mood: if your goal is to think everY noise in your house is a serial killer out to get you - I recommend this one.
Synposis
Rowan, a child-care provider in her early 30s, lands her dream job working as a live-in nanny in the remote Scottish Highlands. The salary and location seem too good to be true. What’s the catch? The family seems normal enough, if not ungodly rich. And her new quarters are gorgeous, with a private bathroom and enough space for a family in its own right.
The day Rowan moves in to her new position, the parents unexpectedly take off on a business trip, leaving her alone with the three little girls. The house - an old Victorian that collided with a modern smart house - has architecture like she has never seen before. Being a complete smart home, everything is controlled by an app, “Happy,” that Rowan thinks has a mind of its own. The house is wired everywhere - making her feel watched, listened to, and creeped out.
The girls are unruly, testing Rowan at every angle. She is determined to make it work, using every trick in the book while the parents are gone. It’s not the kids that are making Rowan second-guess her commitment though, it’s the house. With its smart technology ingrained everywhere from the kitchen to the bathroom, mixed with the mysterious sounds of what could only be a ghost or a serial killer roaming in the attic, Rowan feels both haunted and hunted. Something here isn’t right. Combined with the house’s tragic past, the recent history of four other nannies quitting in the span of a year, Rowan is determined to stay, despite everything going wrong, as if the house is driving her away. If only she knew her stay would end in a tragedy that would ultimately be blamed on her, taking away her freedom and potentially paying the ultimate price…
Review
I LOVED this book. I think obsessed would be the proper term. I devoured it in two sittings and had a hard time putting it down to sleep (the only thing separating myself and this read while I was on vacation). This is my first Ruth Ware novel, and it’s apparent I need to catch up to what I’ve been missing! She has a way of creating a world within a world, weaving a tale so rich and vivid it’s as if you’re living in it. I recently moved into a new (to me) house that’s over 50 years old that’s filled with its own creaks and shifts, making noise at all times of the day and night. I’ll admit, I felt like I WAS Rowan at times, jumping at every noise my old house made, constantly checking behind the shower curtain and turning on all the lights. Hey, I needed some comfort! I live alone!
Written from Rowan to her hopeful lawyer, her letters detail the harrowing incidents that led up to the fateful night that landed her in jail, awaiting trial. The writing is beautifully done, with the right amount of descriptive details to paint a picture, but leave a touch to the imagination. I ached for Rowan, feeling for her and connecting to her character in a way I haven’t felt in an eternity.
Drink Pairing
A whole bottle of Chandon Vintage Brut because you’ll be reading all day, mixed with as much peanut butter toast you need for comfort.