The Cousins by Karen M. McManusMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Milly, Aubrey and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each another, and they’ve never even met their grandmother. Rich and reclusive, she disinherited their parents before they were born. So when they each receive a letter inviting them to work at her island resort for the summer, they’re surprised…and curious.
Their parents are all clear on one point—not going is not an option. This could be the opportunity to get back into Grandmother’s good graces. But when the cousins arrive on the island, it’s immediately clear that she has different plans for them. And the longer they stay, the more they realize how mysterious—and dark—their family’s past is.
The entire Story family has secrets. Whatever pulled them apart years ago isn’t over—and this summer, the cousins will learn everything.
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Like with all of Karen M. McManus's books, I had this one on preorder the moment it was available to preorder and I was counting down the days until it appeared on my kindle. I loved the sound of this book--I mean, I love stories about complicated families, generations-old mysteries, and cousins. Not to mention this is set on an island. Having previously lived on an island, I love island stories--especially if they're the locked-room variety.
This book tells the story of three cousins who don't really know each other: Aubrey, Milly, and Jonah. Each of them is the child of one of the Story siblings--Adam, Allison, Archer, and Anders--and these siblings were mysteriously disinherited by their mother, Mildred when they were 18-ish. None of the A siblings knows why this happened--but they received a note the following day saying that 'they know what they did'. And this book starts when Aubrey, Milly, and Jonah are invited to Mildred's island. There, they're determined to find out what exactly went on when their parents last set foot on the island.
I'll admit, I was expecting there to be more of a present-day mystery and more present-day danger going on--instead, the book is very much just about what happened to the A siblings. And we have even got a few chapters told from Alison's POV which take place twenty years ago (the rest of it is told from the cousins' perspectives in the present day). But I was just waiting for there to be some sort of present day thrilling event that puts the cousins in danger--and it doesn't really happen until the end. The climax itself is great--we do get the sense that Aubrey is in great danger, and it delivers some HUGE twists. I didn't see those twists coming, so that made this read a 4 star rather than 3.5, which I had been veering toward until that point.
Having said that, while we don't get much sense of Aubrey, Jonah, and Milly being in danger for most of the book--which I found odd given it's a thriller--there is a huge twist with Jonah pretty early on. Again, I didn't see that coming. While it's not a point of danger for any of the cousins, it does create a lot of tension and intrigue.
As always, characterisation is solid--though I did get Anders, Archer, and Adam mixed up quite a bit because their names all begin with A.
All in all, I'd recommend this book. My first finished read of 2021.
View all my reviews
Like with all of Karen M. McManus's books, I had this one on preorder the moment it was available to preorder and I was counting down the days until it appeared on my kindle. I loved the sound of this book--I mean, I love stories about complicated families, generations-old mysteries, and cousins. Not to mention this is set on an island. Having previously lived on an island, I love island stories--especially if they're the locked-room variety.
This book tells the story of three cousins who don't really know each other: Aubrey, Milly, and Jonah. Each of them is the child of one of the Story siblings--Adam, Allison, Archer, and Anders--and these siblings were mysteriously disinherited by their mother, Mildred when they were 18-ish. None of the A siblings knows why this happened--but they received a note the following day saying that 'they know what they did'. And this book starts when Aubrey, Milly, and Jonah are invited to Mildred's island. There, they're determined to find out what exactly went on when their parents last set foot on the island.
I'll admit, I was expecting there to be more of a present-day mystery and more present-day danger going on--instead, the book is very much just about what happened to the A siblings. And we have even got a few chapters told from Alison's POV which take place twenty years ago (the rest of it is told from the cousins' perspectives in the present day). But I was just waiting for there to be some sort of present day thrilling event that puts the cousins in danger--and it doesn't really happen until the end. The climax itself is great--we do get the sense that Aubrey is in great danger, and it delivers some HUGE twists. I didn't see those twists coming, so that made this read a 4 star rather than 3.5, which I had been veering toward until that point.
Having said that, while we don't get much sense of Aubrey, Jonah, and Milly being in danger for most of the book--which I found odd given it's a thriller--there is a huge twist with Jonah pretty early on. Again, I didn't see that coming. While it's not a point of danger for any of the cousins, it does create a lot of tension and intrigue.
As always, characterisation is solid--though I did get Anders, Archer, and Adam mixed up quite a bit because their names all begin with A.
All in all, I'd recommend this book. My first finished read of 2021.
View all my reviews
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