Book Review – The Cousins by Karen M McManus
The Storys are the envy of their neighbours: owners of the largest property on their East Coast island, they are rich, beautiful, and close. Until it all falls apart. The four children are suddenly dropped by their mother with a single sentence:
You know what you did.
They never hear from her again.
Years later, when 18-year-old cousins Aubrey, Milly and Jonah Story receive a mysterious invitation to spend the summer at their grandmother’s resort, they have no choice but to follow their curiosity and meet the woman who’s been such an enigma their entire lives.
This entire family is built on secrets, right? It’s the Story legacy.
This summer, the teenagers are determined to discover the truth at the heart of their family. But some secrets are better left alone.
My rating:
I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
This has a different vibe to McManus’ other books – more family mystery and fewer tense thriller moments. I found it worked pretty well for me, it was an interesting concept! I figured out earlyish what the parents had done (or close enough) but definitely missed a good proportion of the rest.
I really liked the idea of this family drifting apart because the matriarch disowns everyone, and the study in how it affected her children in different ways was fascinating. Milly, Aubrey and Jonah are good views into the world of their parents, and into the current goings on of the island. I also loved getting to meet Archer and see what felt like an honest battle with addiction.
I’d have liked to have seen a little more background on how everything worked out between the two timelines we see, but otherwise I have no complaints! 😂
A very intriguing and addictive read. 4 stars.
I was so excited to be on the tour for this book! I love Karen’s other books, and feel honoured to have been given a chance to read it early. Today is the last stop on the tour, but I highly recommend checking out the others!
Thanks to The Write Reads, Penguin Platform and Karen McManus for this blog tour 🙂
Buy The Cousins from Waterstones.
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One Comment
Ellie
Great review, I’m glad you enjoyed this book!