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

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James’s fictional characters have now taken on a sort of life of their own. In 1968, the late author Rumer Godden moved into Lamb House in Rye, now a National Trust property but once home to Henry James. She lived there for several years and claimed that she could sometimes sense the spectral presence of two watchful children. She thought of them as Miles and Flora.

As the mystery deepens, there are a lot of intriguing elements that get put into the story. Some are fairly typical like creepy attics and disembodied footsteps, but I thought the garden of poisonous plants was a particularly creative touch that I haven’t encountered before, or at least not that I can remember. There is something about a Ruth Ware book that makes me excited to read it. I loved The Death of Mrs. Castaway and I knew that I would love this one once I opened the book. This is gothic suspense, a mystery, and a thriller. It is so creepy. I loved the gothic atmosphere and it's elements. The book was quite addicting. It was totally gripping, especially if you like gothic suspense like me. It is so haunting.No, the line that “It doesn’t matter” changes everything. If Rachel were still in prison, the letter becomes extremely important. In fact, it would be a crime to not deliver that letter to the authorities. If Rachel were released, the obvious solution would be to send a letter to Rachel telling her that they found stuff that belonged to her. Even if they weren’t sure they could find her, they would have discussed this as it’s the obvious thing to do: it belongs to Rachel, lets pass it over to her. Then there is the angry, belligerent eight year old, scared five year old, and the needy baby with a new nanny who is very ill suited for the job. Add in the fourteen year old, who comes home from boarding school, totally out of control and threatening to tell secrets about Rowan and things go downhill from there. A child dies and Rowan is blamed, thus her letter searching for a lawyer who is willing to believe her and help her. I also liked how Ware framed the story within a letter to a solicitor. It worked so well that I'm surprised I haven't read books that have done this before (that I recall). Discuss Heatherbrae House and its many “amenities”. What it would be like to live in a house dependent on technology? Could you live there? In the book, the house in question was once the typical haunted house with a storied and mysterious history, but has since been gutted and updated to cutting edge technological standards by the current family, the Elincourts.

Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the unravelling events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the cameras installed around the house, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. I think the story line , that a devoted mother with a cheating partner, 1) doesn’t know what’s happening in her own home, 2) allows a perfect stranger to take over the first day she arrives, is ludicrous. Also, the daughter Rihanna, was with her. That she would be arrested was a bit far fetched too. The protagonist, Rowan Caine, stumbles upon an opportunity that she considers amazing and I would consider an absolute nightmare-- a live-in nanny to four children, including one baby and one bratty teenager. On top of this, she's staying in the high-tech Heatherbrae House - a refurbished "smart" home with constant surveillance, voice-activated lights, and an app to go with it. Ware presents a modernized version of the old Haunted House story. Instead of creaky doors and candlelight blowing out, there’s technology that malfunctions and user setting that are messed up so that lights don’t turn on. Is it as creepy as the old-school version? Maybe not, but it’s an interesting twist on an old mystery trope, so overall I had to give Ruth Ware props for trying it. Three problem children and a baby (like 80’s movie name, but please be sure this is not comedy): * years old, middle child of the family, Maddie’s irritating behaviors; reminds us of Regan from Exorcist with her attitudes as if she’s embodied by devil ( at least she didn’t do the terrifying head spinning) and Hereditary’s Charlie (At least her head hasn’t been cut out of her body with a car accident)!Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the home’s cameras, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman.

In the last chapter, the truth of what happened to Maddie is finally revealed. How does Ellie’s letter align with Rachel’s retelling of that night? What, if any, questions remain? Let’s just say that if you’ve got an Echo, you’re going to unplug it as soon as you finish the book… What Ware does beautifully is infuse The Turn of the Key with a creepy Gothic sensibility. For all of the novel’s contemporary touches—particularly the house’s malevolent smart technology—she has delivered an old-fashioned horror story, peopled by children with ‘eyes full of malice,’ a dour housekeeper straight out of Rebecca and an inscrutable handyman."There are certainly homages to The Turn of the Screw in Turn of the Key, and the initial setup has some similarities. In both, the main character arrives to a large house as a governess/nanny and the primary guardian/parents is largely absent. 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.

What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder. Another way is to press two of these keys at the same time: Ctrl, Alt, Shift, or Windows Key. Pressing any combination of these keys should work, provided that the option to do so is enabled in the Settings menu (It's enabled by default.).I tell you what, there is no way I would have spent numerous nights in this house like Rowan did. I was completely creeped out as nightfall hit each evening. Things were happening and they appeared to be supernatural. Given the history of this home, there is no doubt that is what would be running through my mind if I were staying there. Add to it this "smart house" with all the amazing, yet creepy features. That would drive me mad in itself. If I were Rowan I would be concerned that my employers were watching my every move, meaning that someone else could be too. In Ware’s latest book, The Turn of the Key, she delivers a novel full of twisted tension that will have readers looking at technology a little bit differently... It solidifies her spot among the greats." From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lying Game and The Death of Mrs. Westaway comes this thrilling novel that explores the dark side of technology. If you say: “I’m in!”, I recommend you to consume it with lighter foods( greasy popcorn is not a good option especially at the parts of the book you’re introduced porcelain version of Annabelle baby’s head who could cut some parts of your body and make you bleed!) non-alcoholic beverages(You need clear mind to concentrate and enjoy the story.) She knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder—but somebody is.