Shari Lapena – Not A Happy Family

‘Not A Happy Family’ is the latest offering by the marvel that is Shari Lapena! A fast-paced and twisted family drama that just stops short at grabbing you by the throat and whisking you into the story with no time for a breath!

In the quiet, wealthy enclave of Brecken Hill, an older couple, Fred and Sheila Merton are brutally murdered hours after a tense Easter dinner with their three adult children. Who, of course, are devastated.

Or are they? They each stand to inherit millions. They were never a happy family, thanks to their vindictive father and neglectful mother, but perhaps one of them is more disturbed than anyone knew. Did someone snap after that dreadful evening? Or did another person appear later that night with the worst of intentions? That must be what happened. After all, if one of the family were capable of something as gruesome as this, you’d know. Wouldn’t you?

Shari Lapena writes with such skill that as I say I was almost glued to the book from the start. A vicious murder with plenty of suspects really grabs you and the fact that the adult children of the murdered couple all have their own motives. The fact that it was down to Irina, the cleaning lady to bring all of the children up singlehandedly gives you an idea of how the children would have felt about the bully of a dad and a mum who didn’t care enough. To just top it off there are millions to be inherited too! With people as unlikeable as these three, it isn’t really a stretch to consider one of them being the killer, but then there isn’t just the children, to suspect. There are more in the mix!

A book that you keep flipping the pages as you need to know the answers to all the questions raised in your mind as the story unfolds in front of your eyes. As the conclusion draws closer Shari Lapena throws a final twist in just to keep us on our toes until the very end. Another cracker from this author who manages to keep her writing standard right up there no matter what.

Thanks to Random Things Tours and Transworld Digital for my copy of the book.