The Turn of the Key Audiobook By Ruth Ware cover art

The Turn of the Key

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The Turn of the Key

By: Ruth Ware
Narrated by: Imogen Church
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Brought to you by Penguin.

I know you don’t know me but you have to help me. I didn’t kill anyone.

When Rowan stumbles across the advert, it seems like too good an opportunity to miss: a live-in nanny position, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when she 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 her in a cell awaiting trial for murder.

She knows she’s made mistakes. But she’s not guilty – at least not of murder. Which means someone else is…

Full of spellbinding menace, The Turn of the Key is a gripping modern-day haunted house novel.

©2019 Ruth Ware (P)2019 Penguin Audio Crime Fiction Family Life Genre Fiction Gothic Horror Psychological Suspense Thriller & Suspense Scary Highlander Crime Fiction Unreliable Narrator Murder

Critic reviews

"Will hold you captive until the brilliant ending." (Shari Lapena, author of The Couple Next Door)

"So clever and original.... Pure suspense, from the first gripping page to the last shocking twist." (Erin Kelly, author of He Said/She Said)

"Creepy, engrossing, and oh-so-hard to put down." (JP Delaney, author of The Girl Before)
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Really enjoyed Ruth Wares latest book, made even more enjoyable by the incredible narration by Imogen Church. I have read or listened to every one of Ruth Wares books and always look forward to them. THe Turn of the Key kept my attention throughout, with a great cast of characters, and interesting plot.

A masterful narration

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I am not a big fan of Detective stories but the youtuber KrimsonRogue recommended Ruth Ware and I decided to give it a listen. In short it does hold to the tropes of the genre but with a new coat of paint.

The characters are compelling and the story itself has some fun twists and turns. Some you can figure out yourself by it being in modern times, some you can figure out in the reactions of people, and some are red hearings.

The one issue I have with the story is the ending. Without going into spoilers; it left a sour taste in my mouth and made me question if I was hearing it right. I wasn't, and that made it just worse.

A non-detective fan's review

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Ruth Ware is a brilliant writer. And Imogen Church is very talented..! Extremely enjoyable audible..

Brilliant..!

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A gripping story that keeps you guessing. You’ll find yourself hanging on every word, every little detail, trying to figure out what’s really going on and just when you think you’ve guessed it you’ll have the rug pulled out from under you! This is my first Ruth Ware book but it’s DEFINITELY not my last! The narrator is great too, her use of accents, varied timbre, and emotion really brings the characters to life.

Fantastic!

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Gripping story. Had me on the edge of my seat all the time. Great narrator

Gripping

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Excellent book it kept me guessing all the time, with twists and turns through the whole story. A definite must read. The narration was excellent.

The Turn of the Key

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Engaging story with some surprising twists (and some not so surprising ones). A little slow in parts but overall very enjoyable and quite addictive. Can't give enough praise for the narrator, she absolutely nailed it throughout.

Excellent

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A very good read including excellent narration and performance. Very interesting story from start to end you cant stop listening .

Awesome book

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Book of the year? Really?
I bought this book because of the 4 and 5 star reviews and the book was so disappointing. I guess we all have different taste but really Book of the year!
This was one of the most boring, drawn out, mind-numbing books I've read in a long time.
One of the children makes a remark early in the book about how things are better when he's not around. You are led to believe the child is referring to her father. If that's the case, there is no reason for the rest of the story. Everything that happened in the story was to make sure the father doesn't leave.
Nothing was believable, from Rowan to the poison garden. All the characters are shallow and it was impossible to bond with them. You were told early in the story, a child dies.
When the event happened, it just happened. It wasn't really sad, it just was.
Rowan who had worked in child care for 10 yrs, can't handle 3 small children. Sandra and Bill didn't seem to want children and were more concerned about their careers than their kids. Bill was cliche as the super wealthy pervert, as was Sandra as the ditsy blond. The handyman and the maid were just creepy. They would just pop up out of nowhere. The children were not likable.
You could pretty much figure out the ending early on in the book. With the exception of a home which was controlled almost completely by artificial intelligence, nothing really scary happened.
Maddie ( one of the children) was a sociopath. It was unbelievable with all the AI that controlled the house, Maddie was never caught on camera.

Imogen Church was fantastic with the delivery of the story and the only reason I was able to finish.

Book of the year? Really?

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