The Turn of the Key: the addictive new thriller from the Sunday Times bestselling author

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Rowan applies for the nanny position with Sandra and Bill Elincourt, and their 4 daughters ranging from 18 months to 14 years old. The family live in a remote part of Scotland in a house that jolts between new and old. The Victorian architecture of the building clashes abruptly with the high-tech sensor and communication technology that controls features throughout the house. Door access, lighting, heating, curtains, music and room-to-room communications all offer an opportunity to mix faulty operation, malicious intent and/or paranormal interference. Before Rowan has even taken up the position, young Maddie warns her not to come as the “Ghosts wouldn’t like it.”

James, an American living in England, got the idea for his novella from a tale told to him one winter evening by no less an authority on the afterlife than the leader of the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury. But it just wasn't very strong as a mystery, in my opinion. The culprit can be guessed pretty easily (this really isn't a surprising reveal anymore) and it irked me how it doesn't make sense for Rowan to withhold the identity of the dead child, though of course she does so because once we know who it is, it removes any doubt as to who the killer must be. Are you attached to your Alexa? Do you control various aspects of your home from your smartphone? Prepare to be creeped out. Ruth Ware’s latest thriller, The Turn of the Key, tells the story of a nanny in a smart home that turns downright harrowing." In The Death of Mrs. Westaway, the writer changed the main idea in that now, the main character walks into a dangerous situation while fully aware, and who has intentions of committing a crime. Hal, the main character, is a tarot reader who doesn’t believe in tarot cards. She is just like the psychics who fake-pretend to be psychics and don’t actually believe in all the supernatural behind it.

Ruth Ware is a magician. Her novels—suspenseful, sophisticated, relentlessly compelling—blow the dust off half a dozen crime genres, from Golden Age whodunits to psychological suspense. And The Death of Mrs. Westaway, her latest, is also her best: a dark and dramatic thriller, part murder mystery, part family drama, altogether riveting. More, please, and soon. (A.J. Finn) When Lana and her three colleagues sign up for the "dark, complex and immersive" escape room game, The Masked Ball, they are expecting a fun day out of the office, full of team-building and camaraderie. But someone has other ideas, and as the group struggles to complete the room, it becomes apparent that there is a very twisted mind behind the puzzles and clues. When she stumbles across the advert, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss: a live-in nanny position, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten by the luxurious ‘smart’ home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.

With a churning plot worthy of Agatha Christie, and fresh on the heels of her bestselling thriller In a Dark, Dark Wood, Ruth Ware twists the wire on readers’ nerves once again. “Cabin 10” just may do to cruise vacations what “Jaws” did to ocean swimming. You’ll be afraid to go out on the water. (Star Tribune)The first Ruth Ware book does have a few hints of horror, however, if you do not like horror novels, the book is safe to read. There are only glimpses, and the actual horror never materializes. However, there is a lot of claustrophobia in the Ruth Ware books, especially when someone is thrown together in a relatively confined space with a bunch of relatively unknown and very different characters. This is my third book by the author so by this point I know she's great at creating an atmosphere, a creepy ambiance.