“The Story family are the envy of their neighbours: rich, beautiful and glamorous. 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 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. The teenagers are determined to discover the truth. But some secrets are better left alone…”
What is the book about?
The Story family are rich, beautiful and glamourous and everyone is envious of them. But suddenly everything falls apart and the Story children: Adam, Anders, Allison and Archer, are disinherited without a single word from their mother except from a letter with a single sentence: you know what you did – though none of them know what they did. More than 2 decades later, cousins Aubrey, Milly and Jonah Story receive a strange invitation from their grandmother to spend the summer working at her resort. The 3 of them are forced to follow their curiosity to get the answers they have always wanted from the woman that ruined their parents’ lives. But, despite their determination to discover the truth, the teenagers find even more questions still left unanswered. The woman they thought had finally wanted to welcome her grandchildren into her life, acts as though she knows nothing about the invitation and doesn’t care about them at all – she only seems to make them more curious. The cousins will stop at nothing from uncovering the truth, but some secrets are better left alone…
What were your initial thoughts on the book?
Once I had read One of Us is Lying and absolutely loved it, I went searching for other books by the same author. While I was searching I came across 3 books, 2 of which I had already gotten and 1 that was The Cousins. After reading One of Us is Next and Two Can Keep a Secret, I was desperate to buy this book. Luckily, I manage to get it and as soon as it arrived I began reading. Before opening to the first chapter, I read the blurb and became even more intrigued at what this book would be like. I was incredibly certain I would adore The Cousins just as much as the other books and I was 100% correct. By the time I had read the first page, I already felt that this book would be more amazing than I had predicted. It started out very quickly and the mystery had soon begun. I really like how the book had 3 people narrating but also a fourth person, who was an important character, which lived through significant events that later affected the situation. Every chapter was more interesting and I loved every bit of the book.
Who was your favourite character and why?
In The Cousins my favourite character was Aubrey. This was because of how kind-hearted she was and how she was always careful with what she said. During the beginning of the book she is much quieter and very sensible, and I think that she during that time she was easily pushed around and would agree with whatever anyone said because she didn’t know how to retaliate and show what was really on her mind. However, near the end, Aubrey is much more determined and able to show people that she would not be pushed around anymore and would tell people exactly what she thought and how she felt. At the end, she is one of the strongest characters who was able to discover the truth before anyone else, this was because she finally realised that she would never get anywhere if she didn’t take matters into her own hands and do what she thought was right, and because of this she ended up saving the day and proving what really happened to her grandmother rand why she disinherited her children.
What was your favourite part of the book and why?
I really liked the ending but my favourite part was a bit earlier. This part was when everything I had learnt finally clicked. I know that usually this is my favourite part in mystery books but it’s because of how everything perfectly fits together and I can properly see how and why everything happened in the book. In The Cousins, there was a specific chapter that really had me confused thinking that nothing would ever make sense. Finally, when the chapter was ending, a single sentence, made me and the characters completely understand the truth. I enjoyed this section because I was able to follow along with the characters and knew what they said or did really meant and why they did it. In a lot of mystery books, the characters suddenly see or hear something that is the last piece of the puzzle, and usually they hide that from the reader so I sometimes can’t follow them and don’t fully understand. I liked how The Cousins let me recognise properly and see the truth at the same time as the characters.
What was your overall impression of the book?
Overall, The Cousins was an extraordinary and wonderful mystery and I absolutely loved reading it. The ending was action-packed and very interesting. It was perfect and concluded the book incredibly well. In The Cousins, I got the chance to read about the past which I think was the best was to really recognise the strange events that took place the year that everything change. I really liked learning about what had really happened and I think it was an extremely effective way to hook the reader, especially with all the astonishing cliff-hangers. I think that this was the best book by Karen M. McManus and I really enjoyed it. I think this was much better than the others because of how the mystery was pieced together. I liked how the clues were given a bit earlier in the book and that I didn’t have to wait until the very end to see the truth. In the other books, particularly Two Can Keep a Secret, I only got to see who the culprit was until the very end, when the characters were in a life-threatening situation and I think that The Cousins was much better as it slowly answered your questions – while giving you more to think about – instead of answering them all in one go. In my opinion, I think that there was nothing I would change from the book; it was perfect and I absolutely love it.
Would you recommend this book?
I think that this book is amazing and I would 100% recommend it, particularly for anyone who has read any other Karen M. McManus books. I think that the book is better for readers 14 or older and any murder mystery lover will enjoy it.
Summarise the book in one sentence. (Verdict)
A mind-blowing murder mystery full of unexpected twists and turns.
Reviewed by Jimena Gutierrez Reviriego
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