TYBEE BEACHCOMBER | MAY 2019 27
BOOK
REVIEW
By Nell Klein
The Death of Mrs. Westaway
By Ruth Ware
For some strange reason, the last four or five books that I have read have
taken place somewhere in England. I’ve loved every one of them so I felt
I needed to pass on one of the better ones. The Death of Mrs. Westaway is
Ruth Ware’s fourth book and it’s a doozie! Although I don’t usually review
an author twice, and I already reviewed her first book, The Woman in Cabin
10, I feel the need to pass on her latest thriller. It’s just that good.
Harriett Westaway, known as Hal, makes a living as a tarot card reader
in a booth on the local pier and she is down on her luck. After her mother
is tragically killed in a hit-and-run accident three years before, she has
struggled to make ends meet. She’s even gotten herself involved with a
loan shark who is threatening to break some bones if she doesn’t come up
with their money. What’s a girl gonna do?
One cold and dreary evening after work, Hal comes home to a pile of
bills and a mysterious letter from an attorney. The letter claims that Hal’s
grandmother has died and that she is listed as a beneficiary in a substantially
sized estate. Hal knows that it’s a mistake, as her grandparents have been
dead for over twenty years, and no one has helped her since her mother
died three years before. But, hey, she’s desperate and she wonders if she
can use her tarot reading skills to worm her way into the situation, grab
some money and get the loan sharks off her back. What’s the worst that
can happen?
So, Hal finds herself at Trespassen, the sprawling English estate which
is home to the Westaways. She finds the family gathered to pay their
respects and claim their share of the fortune, but of course, no one knows
of the existence of Hal, so her appearance is cause for the family to worry
about what her share will be. Hal, on the other hand, worries that her case
of mistaken identity is going to get her into more trouble that she has
bargained for. How in the world has she gotten into this situation? Who are
these people and why do they think that Hal is related to them?
Hal is such a likeable character that I wanted things to get better for
her, but what she has to deal with to succeed is more than most people
could endure. Mrs. Westaway appears to have been an extremely mean old
woman, and her housekeeper, Mrs. Warren, is the epitome of hatefulness!
The family members are just as bad. Are they out to get her out of the way
so that they don’t have to share their fortune?
Ruth Ware (a former waitress and bookseller) lives in Sussex, England
(where else!). She has a knack for sucking you into the story and not letting
go. Her descriptions of things are so realistic that you can feel the heat
coming off a bag of fish and chips and Trespassen was such an old and
drafty house that it chilled me to the bone!
I give this book 4 roses. The beginning is a little bit slow, but if you stick
with it, you won’t be disappointed!
Until next time, read a book. If it’s a good read, pass it on!
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