Shaykitteh's World of Books

Not your typical mystery.

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm normally not a mystery reader, as I can usually figure out who "did it" in the first chapter or two. At first, I thought was was going to be the case. The book starts out with a mom & her daughter (Susan & Caroline) moving into a house that they're renting, complete with the stereotypical reclusive old woman next door and a child in the attic window... a child who shouldn't be there since the old woman lives alone.

This is a difficult review to write without spoilers, so I will just say that nothing is as is seems, and absolutely NOTHING is straight-forward. As you read more of the story and start putting the pieces together, things will start to get clearer and clearer... until the end, when it's Crystal Clear.

I enjoyed the way that the author gradually builds up to the ending, but a few things didn't quite make as much sense as they should have, including the fact that a will is read and an estate settled when the person is still alive. Yet, overall, the twists that the author brings to the story kept me interested in reading it to the end. I'm unsure if this would be a book that I would re-read, but the style of writing is unique enough that I would certainly read other books by R.C. Drake.

EDIT: After posting this review, the author contacted me regarding revisions to the book - mainly clearing up why the will was read before the Grantor was deceased. I would like to thank the author for not only reading my review, but for taking my comments into consideration. I'm not sure when these edits will be incorporated into the ebook and/or the paperback, but the changes make the difference for me and have raised this review from a 4 star to a 5 star.