As soon as I read the synopsis for The Caretakers by Eliza Maxwell, I was instantly hooked. I knew it was a book that I had to read. It's like it was calling out to me saying "read me...read me." What a wild ride The Caretakers had in store for me!

Tessa Shepard made a documentary that helped free a man that she thought was framed for murder. However, when it seems he's killed the police chief's daughter, Tessa's life becomes upended. Around the same time, Tessa and her twin sister inherit a large estate named Fallbrook. There she meets two old ladies who are the caretakers of Fallbrook that have their own crazy story about the past when it comes to Fallbrooks history. With danger lurking around every corner, Tessa must try to survive and figure out the two old ladies' story.

I could not fault the plot of The Caretakers at all. It was absolutely solid from beginning to end. With The Caretakers, I felt like I was sort of getting two stories in one which was great! The first story is Tessa's. The narrative follows Tessa as she deals with her conscience about freeing a man from prison who may have actually been guilty. She's also dealing with the fallout between her and her twin sister Margot. With Tessa's reputation in tatters, Tessa tries to stay out of the spotlight and deal with what's going on in her personal life, but it doesn't turn out to be that easy. The second narrative belongs to the two old ladies and caretakers of Fallbrook, Kitty and Deidre. Their story was the most interesting to read about. Kitty and Deidre remember two different accounts of what actually befell Fallbrook when they were children. It was traumatizing for both of them, and at least one of the sisters has blocked out the actual memories of the horrible event that happened there. I found myself trying to guess which events were the true ones. Kudos to Eliza Maxwell for adding so many plot twists to The Caretakers that I never saw coming! I absolutely was thrilled that there were so many plot twists. Just when I thought I had the story figured out, a curve ball was thrown at me making me have to start my guess work all over again. However, all cliff hangers and questions are answered by the end of the book.

The characters in The Caretakers were all written fantastically! All were fleshed out appropriately even the minor characters. It was easy to empathize with everything Tessa was going through. She had so much bad stuff going on at one time. Learning her back story, it was easy to see why she thought the way she did. I liked Margot as well. While she's not a main character, she does play a fairly important role in Tessa's life. Sometimes I felt like Margot was a little too closed off when it came to Tessa and her husband, Ben. This wasn't due to bad writing, but quite the opposite. I felt like this was a character flaw that even real life people struggle with. I enjoyed Oliver's character. He made for a fantastic antagonist. Oliver was the one who Tessa freed from prison due to her documentary. Through fantastic storytelling, it was easy to see why Oliver went off the deep end after he was released. I felt bad for him actually. Deidre was an interesting character, and I came to understand why she was wary of strangers meddling in hers and Kitty's business. Kitty was my all time favorite character in The Caretakers though. I was sucked up in her childlike way of acting. She seemed to trust everyone and came across as such a sweet person. It seemed like she was too nice to be unkind towards anyone. I felt like Kitty had the most interesting backstory out of all the characters. The Cooke family, who had previously lived in Fallbrook before it became derelict, had the most intriguing story out of everyone. I really enjoyed reading about them.

Trigger warnings for The Caretakers include profanity, murder, violence, drinking, and police corruption.

To say I was blown away by The Caretakers is an understatement. Seriously, this book gave me goosebumps and a severe book hangover. That's how great it was! With intriguing plot lines and fantastic characters, it was such a fantastic read. I would most definitely recommend The Caretakers by Eliza Maxwell to those aged 17+. I really believe readers of all genres will really enjoy this book!

Tessa and Margot. Diedre and Kitty. Two sets of sisters separated by age but united at Fallwood, the crumbling, creepy home Tessa and Margot inherited from their mother, who it turns out was full of secrets. Tessa is trying to hide out and she's been more or less estranged from Margot for years. Dierdre and Kutty are the caretakers of the title- two elderly sisters who have kept the secrets. This one combines a family drama with a bit of suspense. It does move back and forth in time to give you a fuller understanding of things but that works. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A quick and entertaining read. Maxwell is a good storyteller.

Holy cow!! The end of this book literally made my jaw drop! I really enjoyed this book - it was like a Grimm's fairy tale combined with a more modern day suspense/thriller. The end result made for a very interesting and very fun read! I thought the author did a great job with the characters - especially the elderly sisters who have been watching over Fallbrook. I loved how the story slowly unveiled the history of Fallbrook, keeping the reader wanting more and hooking them until the very end. This was not the only hook that the author used - main character Tessa has an unpleasant past with her sister Margot, some event caused a riff between them and it takes her mother's death to force them back into the same space. And of course there is the hook of the wrongly imprisoned man, Oliver, and the events that unfold throughout the book as his life continues to go off-course.

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for providing a copy for review.

True page-turner! Absolutely fantastic read. Perfect mix of mystery, history and suspenseful twists. Loved it. Thank you publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

The Caretakers is a novel about how the wrong decision can affect one's life. The story is an amalgamation of history, thriller, and mystery. Reading the synopsis, you would think the book is about Tessa and her hard life, but truly it's about sisters, their secrets, and the extent they would go to protect each other. The hardship of living with guilt, remorse, and hurt is well written by the author. Surprisingly the story was not heavy on the emotional side. Many plot twists and suspense was very good. Worth the read. A true page-turner.
Thank you NetGalley, Eliza Maxwell and Lake Union Publishing for reader's copy of this novel. This review is my own and is not influenced in any way.

Part thriller, part historical fiction, part mystery, The Caretakers is the story of Tessa Shepherd, a filmmaker struggling after the man she helped free - has now killed the sheriffs daughter. But that's only part of the story.

The Caretakers is a story about sisters, and about how far one sister will go for the other. Both sets of sisters, Tessa & Margot and Deirdre & Kitty, struggle with secrets about the past and about hurt.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Definitely worth reading! There were more twists and unexpected surprises than I anticipated.
Thank you to NetGalley to allow me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely wonderful !! Suspense at it's finest , so many plot twist and turns you never see it coming. This is a mind boggling murder mystery , with characters that will pull you in immediately.

Omg! This is the best book ever!, I absolutely loved it!

They each had so many secrets that no one will knows and even of their hometown of Fallbrook..imagine that! I couldn’t stop reading until the end of the pages!

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy...

In The Caretakers, by Eliza Maxwell, we see two mysteries blur past in one of the fastest paced novels I’ve ever read. In the present, Tessa Shepherd is dealing with the aftermath of helping an innocent man get out of jail. In the past, an entire family unwittingly approaches their own demise. Tessa is the link between the two cases, but things happen so quickly in this book that, if you blink, you might miss it.

Tessa begins the novel with the smug knowledge that she did the right thing. She helped expose a frame job that sent a man to prison for fourteen years. The only problems she has at finding out how to dodge her mother’s attempts to reconcile Tessa with her estranged sister. But then, almost immediately, the freed man releases a video in which he claims to have kidnapped and killed a woman. And Tessa’s mother passes away. That’s when the shit really hits the fan…which makes it the perfect time for Tessa to learn about a secret inheritance.

The Caretakers is all plot. It never really pauses for character development or, sometimes, logical motives. But, after the heavy books I’ve been reading lately, I was glad to read something that didn’t carry so much emotional weight. The mysteries were interesting to watch unravel and the ending is pretty spectacular. Sure, it’s not the best mystery I’ve ever read but it’s a pretty fun ride.

4.5 stars

WOW, I did not see that twist coming! I honestly don’t know what else to say without giving the story away. There were so many components to this story—twists and turns that just kept building and truths kept hidden until now—that I was completely caught by surprise at the end. The only parts I didn’t like as much were those of the current situation with Oliver Barlow. I preferred diving into the past and unfolding what happened decades ago at Fallwood House.

Still, I highly recommend this book!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3233952491

The story starts leaving you conflicted by the main characters. A young woman who seemingly helps free a convicted killer who then proves himself a killer. Her horror is compounded by her mother's death and her antagonistic relationship with her sister. As this back story is set, the characters flee the negative publicity to a community from their mother's past that they did not know existed.
Eliza Maxwell has woven the two sisters and their story along side the story of the two sisters they find taking care of their mother's past home. Each layer of the story reveals family history that set the stage for the current sisters to either bond together or face their demons alone. The book is well written and will surprise readers at the end.

Tessa Shepherd is a filmmaker who freed a man she believes was falsely incarcerated for murdering a young girl due to the evidence she unearthed. Eighteen months later Tessa's life and reputation are turned upside down when he commits murder. 

Consumed with guilt, Tessa's life descends further into darkness when her mother passes away suddenly and she is suddenly faced with confronting her past with her sister Margot but the tension only rises. Seeking refuge from the turbulent storm and relentless reporters that has become her life Tessa needs a lifeline. The sisters learn of a secret inheritance from their mother - a crumbling estate known as Fallbrook, and it seems like life may have finally thrown her something to catch her breath. 

The grand old home has its own tainted history though and it has been left for nature to reclaim with only two aging sisters to watch over its secrets. When those secrets choose to surface Tessa and Margot must work through their own past wounds to save their sisterly bond and themselves. 

I decided to pick this book up on NetGalley because I liked a book that Eliza Maxwell had previously written - The Unremembered Girl. This book is definitely my favorite of the two and I enjoyed it much more than the previous book I read. This story is equally as heart-wrenching as The Unremembered Girl but in a different way. That story wasn't woven together as intricately as The Caretakers and I found myself able to connect with the characters of this book more.

"Mam nods.'He did, indeed. Some would say he lied from compassion, though, Dee. That he lied because a lie told out of kindness is less of a sin that the cruelty of a harsh truth.'"

I did not expect all of the twists and turns that this book would take - especially the ending. It is filled with many different types of guilt and grief. The Caretakers is a book about familial bonds (especially between sisters), love triangles, long buried secrets and betrayal. The modern day story is written from the perspective of Tessa Shepherd while the historical side are memories unearthed by the aging sisters Kitty and Deirdre Donnelly. The past and the present stories collide in an interesting way.

This title isn't without its sensitive topics but mainly murder, abuse and mental illness. I would highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy suspense, murder mysteries, crime, thrillers, family drama and Gothic fiction. Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishers for making The Caretakers a Read Now title.

In this mystery thriller by Eliza Maxwell two storylines are interrelated. Both of the storylines focus on Tessa Shepherd. Tessa is a documentary maker who made a movie about a man, Oliver Barlow, who she believes was wrongly convicted for murder.

And that’s where the first storyline (that made me think about Making a Murderer) starts. Oliver Barlow is free and Tessa is the hero of this story. She is the one who investigated the case and helped an innocent man take back his life. But just when things are working out, Barlow becomes a suspect in another murder case. And this time Tessa is implicated as a suspect too. Her reputation and believability are crumbling and when she thinks things can’t get any worse, her sister Margot turns up on her doorstep. The sisters haven’t spoken to each other in years and Margot has bad news. Their mother passed away and that is where the second storyline takes off.

Tessa and Margot inherit an isolated and decaying mansion, known as Fallbrook. Tessa decides to go to the mansion to hide from the press and the frustrating situation she’s in. There she meets the two caretakers of Fallbrook, the elderly sisters Kitty and Deirdre Donnelly. Tessa becomes fascinated by the gruesome and violent history of Fallbrook. And she discovers a lot of hidden secrets about her past.

The Caretakers is the first book by Eliza Maxwell that I’ve read and I absolutely loved it. The story is full of intricate twists and turns. There is a lot going on in the story and there are a lot of characters. Sometimes this was a bit confusing, although the writing never felt rushed. In my opinion the two storylines would have made amazing separate novels too. I would have liked more details on the history of Fallbrook, as this was my favorite storyline.

I couldn’t stop reading and I enjoyed the gripping writing and mysterious suspense. Besides the mystery part, this is also a story about sisterhood, friendship, forgiveness, revenge and honesty.

The Caretakers is a wonderfully written and suspense filled novel. I thought it was a great read and its getting five plus stars from me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for this advanced reader's copy. Intriguing and suspenseful. Engaging characters. Loved it.

This psychological thriller was a real page-turner that found me burning the midnight oil out of desperation to find out what happened next.

Skilfully weaving the threads of past and present into a complex tapestry of sibling rivalry, family secrets and crimes of passion, Eliza Maxwell leads her readers through the storyline's twists and turns until the final pieces of the puzzle finally come together in the novel's closing pages.

By then I was so invested in the central character and the network of people surrounding her that I had almost forgotten that this was fiction and not real life.

Definitely not a book to be missed!

Such an amazing book! It was suspenseful and had some twists and turns. I thourougly enjoyed reading it and I hated to put it down. I highly recommend it!

I only started reading this last night & I've just finished it! What a fabulous book it was, set in a gothic style house, with just the right amount of suspense to keep you wanting more. A tale full of love, betrayal & the strengths you will go to, to protect those that you love.
Thankyou Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received this from Netgalley.com for a review.

Filmmaker Tessa Shepherd helped free a man she believed was wrongly imprisoned for murder. When he kills again, Tessa’s life is upended. A crumbling monument to a gruesome history, the mansion that Tessa and her twin sister inherited has been abandoned by all but two elderly sisters retained as caretakers. They are also guardians of all its secrets.

Nice twist at the end. I like the way this author writes, it's readable and interesting. The mystery was very believable and all the loose ends got tied up in the end.

3.75☆