The Caretakers by Eliza Maxwell

The Caretakers

by Eliza Maxwell
Published: Lake Union Publishing, 2020
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Amazon, Goodreads

“Keep my secrets,” it whispers in her ear. “For my secrets are yours.”

About the book

Filmmaker Tessa Shepherd helped free a man she believed was wrongly imprisoned for murder. When he kills again, Tessa’s life is upended.

She’s reeling with guilt, her reputation destroyed. Worse, Tessa’s mother has unexpectedly passed away, and her sister, Margot, turns on her after tensions from their past escalate. Hounded by a bullying press, Tessa needs an escape. That’s when she learns of a strange inheritance bequeathed by her mother: a derelict and isolated estate known as Fallbrook. It seems like the perfect refuge.

A crumbling monument to a gruesome history, the mansion has been abandoned by all but two elderly sisters retained as caretakers. They are also guardians of all its mysteries. As the house starts revealing its dark secrets, Tessa must face her fears and right the wrongs of her past to save herself and her relationship with Margot. But nothing and no one at Fallbrook are what they seem.

Review

The Caretakers is a captivating mystery that illustrates the bond between sisters and the impact secrets can have.

Tessa, a filmmaker with a strained relationship with her sister Margot, attends the release of inmate Oliver Barlow who, after 14 years in prison, is free thanks to Tessa’s film which showed lack of circumstantial evidence in Oliver’s trial.

Several months later, Tessa receives the shock of her life when Oliver kidnaps Chief Winters’s daughter and proclaims to have killed her. The next day Tessa experiences a death in her family, leading her back home to her estranged sister and the revelation that their mother was adopted. Facing the blowout from Oliver’s actions, Tessa travels to a remote home in the Pennsylvania woods that is now hers. 

Kitty and Deirdre, sisters whose mother once worked for a wealthy family, live on the old estate as caretakers. Yet, they both old dark secrets about what really happened in the murder of their benefactors. 

The stories of Tessa and Margot and Kitty and Deirdre slowly come together in a surprising, yet satisfying, way.

The Caretakers has multiple storylines and, at times, it’s confusing why these plots would be included together but I promise it’ll come together in the end!

I found it very difficult to pull away from this novel; the dramatic suspense was timed skillfully and the writing very gripping. Along with the action, I also appreciated the complex family relationship with both set of sisters. Though there were a few scenes that I foresaw, the novel is filled with good ole twists and turns to keep the storyline interesting.

I’d recommend The Caretakers to any mystery/thriller fans.