Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Reviews of The Turn of the Key

The Turn of the Key
The Turn of the Key
Author: Ruth Ware
ISBN-13: 9781501188787
ISBN-10: 150118878X
Publication Date: 5/12/2020
Pages: 352
Rating:
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 13

4 stars, based on 13 ratings
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Book Type: Paperback
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

12 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

justcyn avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 148 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Never read this author before but was entranced from the first page. Unexpected parts in the novel which kept the story interesting to the end. Look forward to reading other books by this author in the future.
MKSbooklady avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 989 more book reviews
This book starts out good and creepy-it looks like a good thriller, ala The Turn of the Screw. And for the most part it is. I wish the authors would think a book all the way through to a reasonable conclusion. Instead, SPOILER- Ware leaves us wondering exactly what happens at the end. END of SPOILER. Wish I had something better to say.
tazabeau avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 12 more book reviews
having read all of Ruth Wares books, I was excited to get this one, except, it didn't grab me the way her others have. The main character seemed whiny, and complained a lot. The story was good, lots of twists and turns, just didn't feel like her others.
craftypatti avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 146 more book reviews
Not sure what the hype was. Could not finish it.
junie avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 630 more book reviews
I started this creepy, ghostly, spine tingling book and didn't put it down until it ended.
The tale starts with Rowan in prison for murder as she writes to an attorney to plead her case.

She applies for and is hired as a nanny for three young girls plus a fourteen year old away at school. The house, an updated gothic in Scotland, is a âsmartâ house and everything is controlled by an app on a cell phone. There were many things wrong from day one.

Three unwelcoming young children.
A quirky eight year old whispering that ghosts won't like it.
The man of the house coming on to her.
The couple leaving for business the very next day.
A hot handyman living over the garage coming and going as he pleases.
An unfriendly cleaning woman.
A Walled Poison Garden.
Cameras in every room, even her bedroom.
Doorbells ringing with no one there;
footsteps overhead;
Deafening music blasting and a catastrophic accident

All with a twist I didn't see coming until the end that wasn't really an end! You have to write your own! I like stories tied up nice and tight but not with this book. However I was so riveted to the story I had to give 5 Stars. Ruth Ware is becoming one of my favorite writers.
reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 34 more book reviews
Good until the ending. Felt it was rushed but in any event did like the storyline.
IlliniAlum83 avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 181 more book reviews
If you liked 'Gone Girl', 'The Woman in Cabin 10', or 'The Girl from the Train', you should enjoy this thriller that I couldn't put down.
The story follows a young woman, dissatisfied with her childcare worker position in London, to a nanny job in an isolated area of Scotland. When the parents, both architects, take off for a business trip the morning after her arrival, she starts to wonder what she got herself into. With a crotchety older cleaning woman and handsome, young grounds caretaker the only adults around, she quickly becomes lonely without other adult contact and overwhelmed with a disruptive 8 year old, shy 5 year old and toddling 18 month old to care for. Plus, within days, the rebellious 14 yo returns for summer break from her private school where she boards during the week.
More hazards exist in the wild grounds than free-wheeling parents who are frequently gone should expose their young girls to, but more worrying are the creepy things that keep happening in the 'smart' house that is wired to watch your every move. Plus, there are those creaking footsteps above her head that the nanny awakes to every night though there is no known third floor nor attic. When the girls warned her at the interview that 'the ghosts won't like it', R should have listened.
tbowman avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 62 more book reviews
I couldn't put down this book. Ms. Ware keeps us engaged by the strange unworldly things happening in the book. I enjoyed the twisty ending, but I found it a little hard to believe. I enjoyed the slightly unreliable narrator and found her believable, relatable.
eadieburke avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 1639 more book reviews
I would like to thank NetGalley and Gallery/Scott Press for a free copy for an honest review.
Rowan Caine applies for a live-in nanny post at Heatherbrae House in the Scottish Highlands. She is now writing to her lawyer in prison as the nanny position turned into a nightmare.
I have read all of Ruth Ware's books but I think this one is the best so far. I read it in one sitting as I found it unputdownable. The characters are very believable and the plot is ghostly and unsettling. The surprise ending left me speechless. I find Ruth Ware to be an excellent storyteller and the book was well-written. I look forward to reading her next book and I would highly recommend this book to those who love suspenseful mystery thrillers.
reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 5 more book reviews
I always enjoy Ruth Ware's books. This one kept me guessing throughout the book. She reveals a lot in the beginning but leaves you wondering how things ended up the way they did. I really enjoyed the suspense and mystery in this book. The ending was surprising.
maura853 avatar reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 542 more book reviews
Page turner. There may be some huge "would anyone REALLY do that?" plot holes, but Ms. Ware papers them over very enjoyably.
reviewed The Turn of the Key on + 9 more book reviews
I would like others opinion On the ending.