Also so grateful to be starting off the year on top of my ARC game! Starting off strong and hopefully will not fail miserably with posting review copies on time as is the curse that comes with being a MOOD READER and not being able to control my impulses. I mean seriously I cannot stop myself from reading a book I’m feeling at the moment in exchange for a book I seriously need to review. Its awful. Hence why I’m trying to work on that this year.
2019 do your thing and try not to let me down.
The Au Pair
by: Emma Rous
Published on: January 8th 2019
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Seraphine Mayes and her twin brother Danny were born in the middle of summer at their family’s estate on the Norfolk coast. Within hours of their birth, their mother threw herself from the cliffs, the au pair fled, and the village thrilled with whispers of dark cloaks, changelings, and the aloof couple who drew a young nanny into their inner circle.
Now an adult, Seraphine mourns the recent death of her father. While going through his belongings, she uncovers a family photograph that raises dangerous questions. It was taken on the day the twins were born, and in the photo, their mother, surrounded by her husband and her young son, is beautifully dressed, smiling serenely, and holding just one baby.
Who is the child and what really happened that day?
One person knows the truth, if only Seraphine can find her.
My Review:
The Au pair was a dazzling little mystery that I simply tore through and could not put down! It was storming like crazy when I decided to pick up this book and the weather combined with this spine tingling tale keeps you wanting more! A book purely made from that of a readers DREAM!
The Au Pair is a book that switches between two POV’s; thats of Laura the family's Au Pair from the 90’s who mainly took care of Edwin, the couples son, and Seraphine who’s POV takes place in modern day and involves her trying to discover the secrets her family that are since long buried. Both characters are rather intriguing but I must say I enjoyed Serapine’s a bit more only because I was drawn in more to the mystery and shockingness that was surrounding her every move! The border line scary stalker things that occurred just about made my little head explode!
Also I found the whole family dynamic from Laura’s POV to be a little messed up (and by a little I mean A LOT) Ruth, Edwin’s mother would constantly be scampering off to events with Uncle Alex leaving little Edwin without his mothers attention for at least a few hours a day, sometimes she would simply disappear for days at a time. Edwin’s father was also at work most of the time so really his main care taker became Laura at almost all times of day. Not to mention Ruth’s often dark mood swings thrown into the mix. All of this combined made for a quite distorted house hold if not in the quietest of strange ways. This combination of eeriness with the devastating discovery regarding summer born twins had all the makings to creep me out just enough to keep me fully enthralled and turning the pages for more!
Meanwhile Sepraphine is trying to puzzle together her origins after her father's death. She often scattered around town in search of picking the brains of the locals, turning up folklore and other twisted tales of how her fate came to be. Slowly she starts to think how she doesn’t seem to quite fit in with it all. This combined with the worries of her brothers and how their slowly starting to think her accusations and discoveries are the makings of a sister gone mad. Throw in a splash of romantic attraction between an old flame and I am completely entertained at this point!! So much so that I don’t even hear the rain crashing on my windows any more! Instead I am thrown into the world of Rous’s mystery and I’m not sure I ever want to come out!
The writing is also perfect for this kind of storyline. Rous keeps its light but sharp, easy to read yet tumbled together with a just fast enough plot line to keep you guessing an questioning nearly everything you suspected or thought you knew. This book is truly an intriguing read that is just light enough to make the plot line melt on your tongue and gripping enough that the flavor makes you crave more and more!
I highly recommend this read to anyone looking for an intriguing suspense book revolving around a bit of mystery thrown in with twists and turns that will make you question the very sense you thought you had when predicting the plot this book possesses! An easy, fast paced read made more all ages I hope you get the chance to pick up on a perfect rainy day!
The Au Pair is a book that switches between two POV’s; thats of Laura the family's Au Pair from the 90’s who mainly took care of Edwin, the couples son, and Seraphine who’s POV takes place in modern day and involves her trying to discover the secrets her family that are since long buried. Both characters are rather intriguing but I must say I enjoyed Serapine’s a bit more only because I was drawn in more to the mystery and shockingness that was surrounding her every move! The border line scary stalker things that occurred just about made my little head explode!
Also I found the whole family dynamic from Laura’s POV to be a little messed up (and by a little I mean A LOT) Ruth, Edwin’s mother would constantly be scampering off to events with Uncle Alex leaving little Edwin without his mothers attention for at least a few hours a day, sometimes she would simply disappear for days at a time. Edwin’s father was also at work most of the time so really his main care taker became Laura at almost all times of day. Not to mention Ruth’s often dark mood swings thrown into the mix. All of this combined made for a quite distorted house hold if not in the quietest of strange ways. This combination of eeriness with the devastating discovery regarding summer born twins had all the makings to creep me out just enough to keep me fully enthralled and turning the pages for more!
Meanwhile Sepraphine is trying to puzzle together her origins after her father's death. She often scattered around town in search of picking the brains of the locals, turning up folklore and other twisted tales of how her fate came to be. Slowly she starts to think how she doesn’t seem to quite fit in with it all. This combined with the worries of her brothers and how their slowly starting to think her accusations and discoveries are the makings of a sister gone mad. Throw in a splash of romantic attraction between an old flame and I am completely entertained at this point!! So much so that I don’t even hear the rain crashing on my windows any more! Instead I am thrown into the world of Rous’s mystery and I’m not sure I ever want to come out!
The writing is also perfect for this kind of storyline. Rous keeps its light but sharp, easy to read yet tumbled together with a just fast enough plot line to keep you guessing an questioning nearly everything you suspected or thought you knew. This book is truly an intriguing read that is just light enough to make the plot line melt on your tongue and gripping enough that the flavor makes you crave more and more!
I highly recommend this read to anyone looking for an intriguing suspense book revolving around a bit of mystery thrown in with twists and turns that will make you question the very sense you thought you had when predicting the plot this book possesses! An easy, fast paced read made more all ages I hope you get the chance to pick up on a perfect rainy day!
So what are your thoughts? Thinking about picking up The Au Pair? Have any good stormy reads recommendations? Perhaps another thriller you loved? Let me know in the comments below!
-BubblyBooks
**A huge thanks to Penguin Random House for an advanced copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are my own**
Ooooooh a storm raging with a brilliant mystery? This sounds like a dream indeed! Light and sharp writing is a brilliant way to read a mystery, so that does sound quite good. I might have to pick this one up when I'm feeling my next mystery fix. Great review, Jamie! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you!! and oooh yes please check it out!! It is pretty suspenseful in a slower sort of way (if that makes any sense lol) but I think thats what makes it so good! Thanks for stopping by :)
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