Monday 22 October 2018

Book Review: THE WINTERS by Lisa Gabrielle


Title: The Winters
Author: Lisa Gabriele
Publisher: Random House UK, Vintage Publishing
Read: October 2018
Expected publication: out now
My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟1/2


Book Description:


After a whirlwind romance, a young woman returns to the opulent, secluded mansion of her new fiancé Max Winter - a wealthy senator and recent widower - and a life of luxury she’s never known. But all is not as it appears at the Asherley estate. The house is steeped in the memory of Max’s beautiful first wife Rebekah, who haunts the young woman’s imagination and feeds her uncertainties, while his very alive teenage daughter Dani makes her life a living hell.

As the soon-to-be second Mrs. Winter grows more in love with Max, and more afraid of Dani, she is drawn deeper into the family’s dark secrets - the kind of secrets that could kill her, too.


My musings:


If I could sum up The Winters in just two words, I would say: “great entertainment!” For me, this was just such a fun thriller to read – as far as “fun” and “thriller” go together in one sentence. To be totally honest, the book started off very slow, and I imagined a run-of-the mill story that has been done a hundred times before. Young woman meets older rich man, gets married, finds that life as a trophy wife is not as glamorous as expected. I have read a few of those in my time, and most barely held my interest. To my surprise though I found that I soon came to like the young “new” Mrs Winters – who, I discovered, is never mentioned by her first name in the entire book! Slowly but steadily, Gabriele managed to draw me into her tale, until I was thoroughly hooked!

True, the general premise is one that has been done many times in the past, and the book has been touted as the modern day “Rebecca”. However, I felt Gabriele did really well to steer away from stereotypes, giving the new Mrs Winter the personality of a free spirit who somehow manages to stay true to herself for the entirety of the book. Even Dani, the rebellious stepchild, is portrayed in a way where I could see the young vulnerable girl grieving for her mother underneath her facade. I loved the way the ghost of the deceased Rebekah and old family secrets overshadowed the story, giving it a sinister feel. And just as the story was gently meandering along, sweeping me with it into the opulence of the Long Island mansion – BAM! – the rug was pulled from under my feet. I love it when a book surprises me. Which is why I will say not more about the story here, as it is best delved into blindly.

If I had to be picky, I would say that I thought the ominous presence of the house could have been used even more for a more sinister undertone – it nearly got there for me, but not quite! Especially some of the outbuildings never lived up to their full spook-potential (I mean, what is more creepier than an old boat shed?).


If you haven’t read Rebecca, don’t despair, as this psychological thriller holds its own. Sometimes I wonder if comparisons to old classics do a book any favours, as one is tempted to compare them and not take each on its own merit. For me, The Winters perhaps lacked the eerie brooding atmosphere of Du Maurier’s classic tale, but made up for it in its many little plot twists I absolutely did not see coming. 


Summary:


This was a fun, fast-paced read for me, which I devoured on a sunny weekend off. It made for good entertainment and the perfect undemanding beach read!


Thank you to Netgalley and Random House UK, Vintage Publishing, for the free electronic copy of this novel and for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.




No comments:

Post a Comment