The Death of Mrs. Westaway book cover

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware Summary

The Death of Mrs. Westaway
Ruth Ware
Mystery
Suspense
Thriller
Fiction
Overview
Key Takeaways
Author
FAQs

Overview of The Death of Mrs. Westaway

When a struggling tarot reader attempts to claim an inheritance that isn't hers, she uncovers deadly family secrets. Ruth Ware's New York Times bestseller, hailed as "the Agatha Christie of our time," masterfully blends gothic atmosphere with modern suspense. What happens when the deceiver becomes the deceived?

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Key takeaways

1

A Fortune-Teller's Desperate Gamble

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On Brighton Pier, twenty-one-year-old Harriet "Hal" Westaway reads tarot cards for tourists, using her keen observational skills rather than any mystical ability. Three years after her mother's death in a hit-and-run accident, Hal barely survives on her meager earnings. When a loan shark's enforcers start threatening her, desperation sets in. Then, like a miracle, a letter arrives from a solicitor in Penzance informing her that her grandmother, Hester Westaway, has died and named her as a beneficiary. There's just one problem-Hal's grandparents died decades ago. This must be a case of mistaken identity. Yet as she researches Trepassen House online and discovers it's an impressive country estate, hope flickers. Could even a small inheritance solve her financial troubles? Despite knowing it's wrong, Hal wonders if she could pull it off. After all, isn't she uniquely qualified to play this role with her skills as a cold reader? When one of the loan shark's men breaks into her flat and destroys her belongings-including the only photo of her mother-something breaks inside her. She books a train to Penzance, deciding to take her chances with the mysterious inheritance.

2

Secrets Behind Trepassen's Walls

3

Disturbing Discoveries

4

Traps and Revelations

5

The Truth Unravels

6

The Final Confrontation

7

Breaking the Cycle of Secrets

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