Another compelling and twisty YA mystery from McManus, this time with family secrets at its core. The author is good at balancing the darker aspects of human nature with h

T he Cousins is another smash-hit from a queen of YA mysteries: Karen McManus herself.

She reminds me of Agatha Christie in her tightly compacted, immaculately paced mysteries. They often demand a second reading immediately, so you can pick up all the tiny hints and threads expertly woven throughout the story. The Cousins is no exception to this trend. In fact, I would probably call this her best book yet.

The story includes a multitude of perspectives and two distinct timelines and it’s a testament to McManus’ skill that it never feels convoluted or hard to follow. Everything is balanced just so, keeping you constantly in suspense and wanting to chase down the final conclusion. That being said, you can’t help but become entangled with our three primary protagonists. Hearing each of their voices really helps you delve deeper into their psyche and reinterpret events through their eyes. McManus’ trademark use of multiple perspectives really ramps up a notch with The Cousins, providing an enriching and thoroughly enjoyable reading experience.

Secrets, scandal and shocking moments are the hallmarks of The Cousins. You feel like you’re peering behind the curtain of immense wealth and privilege to discover the fractured, abhorrent mess the whole facade is trying to hide. Families are always complicated and the Storys are no different. The entire novel revolves around the terrible events of the past that caused this cataclysmic divide and if that premise hasn’t already sold you, then what lies in store definitely will.

The pacing is spot-on, giving it this bingeable nature. It reminds me of the latest Netflix hot hit, in that you have to consume every last page and feel unable to look away. I absolutely flew through it, which is truly a mark of a brilliant book. McManus packs in twist after fiendish twist, with moments that left me speechless. It just has that spark of fascinating mystery and intrigue that would lend itself to screen adaptation perfectly.

The Cousins is an unmissable mystery that will keep you up into the early hours, desperately hunting down the secrets of the Story family until you reach the thrilling revelations where dastardly deeds are uncovered.

Thank you so much to the publisher and The Write Reads for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review and allowing me to be a part of the blog tour!

Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each another, and they’ve never even met their grandmother. Rich and reclusive, she disinherited their parents before they were born. So when they each receive a letter inviting them to work at her island resort for the summer, they’re surprised… and curious.

Their parents are all clear on one point—not going is not an option. This could be the opportunity to get back into Grandmother’s good graces. But when the cousins arrive on the island, it’s immediately clear that she has different plans for them. And the longer they stay, the more they realize how mysterious—and dark—their family’s past is.

The entire Story family has secrets. Whatever pulled them apart years ago isn’t over—and this summer, the cousins will learn everything.


Karen M. McManus always knows how to get someone out of a reading slump! The stories that she write are gripping and incredibly thrilling and her latest novel, The Cousins, is no different. It immediately pulled me in and even though the tone in this is slightly different to the author’s previous books it is still a whirlwind of a ride!

Throughout this book we get to see three different perspectives of the Story family. It is so easy to distinguish between the voices of Aubrey, Milly and Jonah. We get to know the cousins as they get to know one another and watch them develop as people! I loved all of the characters in this book, especially the three cousins. Milly is such a well-round character. She is a New York socialite with so much sass. Aubrey starts off as the quietest and most shy of the cousins but as the book goes on, Aubrey grows a lot! She becomes such a crucial character and the strongest character in the book. I’m a big fan of Jonah and I’ll leave it at that!

It is very clear to see early on into the book that there are a lot of secrets both big and small within the Story family. I really enjoyed trying to work out what they are! The Story family are such a complicated family and I really enjoyed reading the flashback chapters as they were a new insight to the family. We get to see how the story unfolds from the perspective of Milly’s mother, see why the family don’t talk no more and why they have been disinherited!

I loved the mystery in this book. I’m always a fan of family mysteries and this was no different. It felt like Knives Out with even more added drama and I loved that! It has the perfect amount of family drama, intrigue, suspense and mystery! I cannot say much as it would be spoilers galor but be prepared for a lot of twists and turns and never trust what you think!

Karen M. McManus has once again written a marvellous and captivating story that I throughly enjoyed and would highly recommend! Give this one a read!

This was such an unexpectedly great read! Wow...I was turning pages faster than I imagined when I was pulled into this thriller! A great weekend read.

We meet a rich, influential family – the Story family. Oh, and you know what else they are? Complicated. Really complicated. I know everyone says that about their family, but it’s true about the Storys (I have to say, in the beginning I was a bit confused about their name lol). Over twenty years ago, Mildred Story disinherited her children. She never met her three grandchildren. But now, out of nowhere, each of them gets invited to her island to spend their summer there working.

The cousins (from the title) are Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah. They haven’t seen each other since they were little kids, and now they’re supposed to spend their summer together for the small chance to get their families back into their grandmother’s good graces. For their parents’ sake. So, as you might imagine, there’s quite a bit of reluctance to find here.

Milly is named after her grandmother. Even though the book starts off with Milly’s story, she is not my favourite. No, that is Aubrey, the girl whose character goes thorugh the most growth thorughout the book in my opinion. Jonah, the third cousin, well – he’s his own kind of funny, and he follows his very own plan this summer. Although I have to say, each of the cousins has their own reason to be there.

Even though with multiple-character points of view books (um, what are they really called?), I often feel disappointed with some of the chapters in some of the points of view, this wasn’t the case here. Each of the characters has enough of interest to keep you reading without hoping the chapter to be over soon, and that is something not many writers I have read have achieved yet.

Of course, the question at the heart of the book is, ‘Why did grandmother Mildred disinherit their children all those years ago, and why did she want to have contact with the grandchildren she never even met now?’ The questions, the mysteries, the twists – the tension was unbearable at times and I found myself reading faster and faster to get to the bottom of the mystery. The answer then comes with a BANG – and every puzzle piece falls into place.

With its summery, beachy setting, the light sprinkle of romance, and the holiday vibes, this YA thriller is the perfect beach read, but even now – in cold and dreary November – it makes for an engaging read. I recommend this to all YA thriller, mystery (especially family mystery!), and of course, to all McManus fans! I, for sure, am one too now!

5 stars from me!

I read this book for a blog tour and having no prior knowledge of Karen McManus' books, I was really pleasently surprised. The book is full of mystery and deceit, the character's interesting and the storyline engaging. I really liked the author's writing style. The whole book had an air of secrecy about it, forboding like a brewing storm. This sucked me in a lot and I didn't want to put it down.
Each chapter is written from a different cousin's perspective. This gives the reader great insight into their feelings but also shows you the difference how they see themselves and how they others see them. I liked that a lot.
While I got behind the big secret quite easily, there were still moments where the author surprised me.
All in all I had a great time reading this book and being part of the blog tour and will definitely recommend this to my younger sister who would definitly love this book.

I must confess, I am not the biggest reader in the young adult genre, but pair a mystery/thriller on top of it and my greedy little hands will have to have it. This is the first book I have read by Karen M. McManus. Shocking I know considering her serious, One of Us Is Lying, is hugely talked about and loved. I still have it on my TBR and now want to smack myself for never reading it which I will be rectifying really really soon because I absolutely loved The Cousins. What a story!

When cousins, Milly, Aubrey and Jonah are invited to stay at Gull Cove island, where their grandmother has a resort, the cousins are not sure what to make of said request considering their parents were disowned twenty four years ago. Milly, Aubrey and Jonah have never met or even spoken to their grandmother in their entire lives. What has changed now and why does their grandmother want to establish a relationship after all of this time? Not everything as it seems and there are secrets aplenty on the island and it is all about to come to a dramatic head.

The Cousins is intricately layered and full of twists and turns where even the twists have twists. The story is utterly shocking as it weaves its way through the present and the past
With clues dropping little by little thrusting you into seeing the bigger picture. I found myself flipping through the pages trying to get down to the bottom of it all and once you have a certain part all figured out McManus drops another bombshell all the way right through to the very last page.

I really enjoyed Milly, Aubrey and Jonah even though Milly and Jonah may not have always been likeable characters. Aubrey was sweet and more of the pushover of the three. Little by little each character starts to grow and I couldn’t help noticing the changes in each of them as they dealt with each other while trying to come to terms with the shortcomings of their own parents. There is a bit of romance thrown into the mix which was okay and definitely brought some needed angst to the table, although, it may have been the least favorite of mine in the story. It still worked, though.

If you enjoy twisty thrillers that will leave you gasping then you definitely will not want to miss out on The Cousins.

Wow. Just wow! I devoured this book within 3 hours! The characters are great and their development is fantastic. The plot is intricate and exciting without being overly confusing. The book was gripping and left me wanting more with the end of each chapter.
I highly recommend that everyone who likes thrillers, family drama or just a quick fun read, reads this!

This was the first book I ever read by Karen McManus and oh yeah I can see why her other books are so popular and why I often see my students with one of her books in hand not being able to put it down. The Cousins takes us on a journey to Gull Cove Island and to unravelling family secrets.

The book is told from different points of view in first person narrative. The main characters – The Cousins- have most of the chapters. Some few chaptes are told by Aubrey, Milly’s mum, and give inside into her past and help to slowly solve the mystery.

I instantly liked the book but I couldn’t put it down anymore once I crossed the 60% line. Then it really picked up speed and I wanted to know what was really going on. Of course you know straight from beginning that there is something wrong with the Story family but although I manage quite often to spot the murderer in advance when watching crime films, I had no idea what was really going on here.

The characters really grew on me and throughout the book there is a great character development. I kept disliking most characters I didn’t really like straight from the beginning but some characters really grew on me, like for example Aubrey. Being a mother myself I had huge problems with her behaviour towards her daughter at the beginning but was really able to feel for her at the end.

The book offers everything the young reader – and also the older reader like me- wants from a book. Suspense, mystery and love. In my opinion it is the perfect book for young adults as it is a up to date, contemporary book actuating many topics young people are interested in.

I definitely recommend reading it.

Milly, Aubrey and Jonah are cousins, but they hardly know each other. Their grandmother – Mildred Story, rich, yet reclusive, disinherited their parents long before they were born. But, one day, they receive a letter from their grandmother. This is the first time they are receiving any news from her. This letter is an invite all the three of them to spend the summer working at – Gull Cove Resort. This seems very Orphic yet it spikes their oddity.

They are left with no choice, but to pack for a summer of jejune and selcouth. Mildred for the first time has made any contact and their parents feel that this shouldn’t missed at any chance. This is the only way to meet their grandmother.

When they all arrive on the island with a plan to get to know their grandmother and work on the island, the plans seem to be claggy. To top it, one among the cousins is an impostor too. The longer they stay put there, the darker it gets when conundrums fusty their spirit.

Do the cousins really form a bond?
Who among them is the impostor?
Why did Mildred disinherit their parents?
Why are they called to the island for the first time?
What mysteries resurface?

Rating – 5/5 Stars
Recommendation – Very High

Conclusion,

This ignominious read has multiple POV’s which alternates between all the three cousins. It’s also infused in between with the past happenings. Even though there is so much happening, it is written trenchantly. The dots are connected beautifully. The plot and character development is blase. I was hooked to this book right from the start till the end. Overall a brilliant read and I thoroughly enjoyed this captivating read.

The Cousins is a great YA thriller like I expect from Karen M. McManus.

Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are invited to work at their grandmother’s resort for the summer. Their parents were unexpectedly disowned from their mother eighteen years ago and this is the first time anyone has heard from her. The parents make their children go to try to get their inheritance back. The family is not close and nobody has seen each other in years. The Storys are known for the secrets. Why were the children disowned? What secrets will the cousins uncover? What secrets are the cousins keeping?

I was invested in The Cousins from the first page. I was so curious to find out why Milly Story disowned her children. Milly, Aubrey and Jonah haven’t seen or talked to each other in years. Together they try to figure out what happened eighteen years ago. Milly and Aubrey quickly become close. I enjoyed reading about their new friendship. All of the family drama was interesting and I couldn’t wait to find out all the secrets. Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah all have difficult relationships with their parents. The grandmother was very standoffish and avoided her grandchildren which made me even more intrigued.

I recommend The Cousins to fans of Karen M. McManus and family based YA thrillers.

Thank you NetGalley, Penguin Random House Children’s UK, and the Write Reads for The Cousins.

Today I’m happy to be a part of The Write Reads Ultimate blog tour for the highly anticipated, The Cousins by Karen M. McManus. Now, for a reader to be sucked into an author’s writing style, their narrative, they need the X-factor. Something that allows them to keep coming back…book after book. Karen M. McManus is no exception. There are so many reasons why I keep coming back for more with her stories. The air of mystery, the journey and most of all the care that is given to keep loyal readers.

The Cousins is a story that is reminiscent of the I know what you did last summer trope.

Get ready for a sizzling summer story. An easy, laid back read. A mystery that delivers carefully by hand. Adrenaline and betrayal.

If you haven’t heard of Karen McManus, then where have you been? She is a dominant voice in the Young Adult genre, and I’ve been hard pushed to find someone that delivers on the genre quite like her. Be prepared to follow on the clues to the catastrophic point where everything makes sense but blows up in your face…acme cartoon style!

As I’ve said before The Cousins is a nice laid-back summer read. It’s a story that will have you hooked from page one so make sure you have a comfy blanket, copious amounts of tea and biscuits…because you won’t be moving for a while.

A past and present storyline…which is my favourite way to have a story told to me. We are introduced to a family that live on a remote island off Massachusetts. They are old time money that has jealousy and adoration shrouding them wherever they may go. The things that the other half dream of having, they literally have…Hotels, Restaurants…everything. Members of the family are ostracised, and they are never heard from again. Until of course they are…

The Cousins has everything that I need to keep me engaged. Mystery, past grievances with family members in a type of sins of the father kind of scenario. Families that have more issues than Vogue and a dollop of romance, although it’s a supporting plotline rather than the main one.

The Cousins hit the ground running. My kindle was held so hard, I feared it might break. This kind of storyline takes us into the eye of the storm without a way out and I absolutely love it. Don’t expect to process all the information at once, the payback is explosive and worth the investment. Be prepared to fit the puzzle together but realise that one part has gone missing from a house move….

Siblings disowned by their mother with nothing but these five words, "You know what you did."
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☆☆☆☆ 4/5 stars
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After reading, One of Us Is Lying, I was thrilled to receive and early copy of The Cousins #gifted in exchange for an honest review. The synopsis promised mystery, twists and murder and it did not disappoint in that aspect.
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However, I believe that because I had read one of McManus' faster paced books, I morbidly struggled with the fact that it took a while for anyone to die! The plot twists did keep me guessing but they also had my head spinning at times because there were just so many of them!
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I really wasn't sure how I felt in regards to the story and for the majority I sat on the fence with my rating! Now finished, I can tell you that this was one of THE most perfect endings after several chapters filled with non-stop heart palpitations on my part! I kind of hope there is a follow up because it would be incredibly interesting to see how things play out in the aftermath of the aftermath! (If you know you know 😉)

The way that the plot twists and turns, dpuble backs on itself and still has oodles of tricks left to play on the reader, has swiftly become one of Karen's trademarks. In this, her fourth novel, she takes the notion of consequences for actions being meted out on subsequent generations, and shows, through courage and fearlessness, that the young cousins can redress the balance and restore a sense of justice.

Invited to Gull Cove Island to take up a prestigious summer holiday job, Milly, Jonah and Aubrey feel that they have the potential to question their grandmother, Mildred, about why she disinherited their parents decades earlier.

A one sentence letter, 'You Know What You Did', delivered by the family lawyer, lingers over the cousins lives and they have questions that their parents are unable to answer. The elder Storys, Allison, Archer, Adam and Anders (all initals are 'A Story', get it?) are disaffected, and seperated from each other meaning that the younger cousins have no familial connections. Being based on an island leaves them with little chance to escape and each of them has their own reason for accepting Mildred's propostition.

But as they reveal themselves to each other and begin to piece together what happened in the mid to late 90's, the story is intercut with their parent's last summer on the island. As they get closer to the truth and make the most of the opportunity presented to them, their grandmother seems as remote and as distant as ever. What is she hiding and will the three young teens get to write their own story?

It's am enjoyable read which requires some suspension of disbelief, and not that difficult to work out what was going on, but all the same, this is an enjoyable read which wiled away an evening and would be great for older teens for Christmas.

I am SO happy that I was able to participate in a blog tour for this book! Big thanks to The Write Reads for organizing the blog tour and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of the book.

The Cousins follows the cousins (obviously) Milly, Aubrey and Jonah as they are invited by their grandmother to spend the summer working at her island resort. However, their grandmother disinherited their parents before they were born and not one family member has seen or heard from her in about 20 years. So why would she suddenly invited the grandchildren she has never seen?

The book has multiple POV's and a few flashbacks that all add value to the story. The story was FILLED with twists that I did not see coming, and scenes that made me physically smile and cringe and I think my boyfriend thought I was going crazy. All characters have their own value. Aubrey was this sweet, innocent girl who seriously grew some balls as the story developed. Milly was a strong character from the very beginning, but highly underestimated. And Jonah, well he had his own value in the story that I will not spoil.

This was the first book of Karen McManus that I ever read, even though her books have been sitting on my TBR shelf for a very long time. And let me tell you, she did not disappoint. She has a way of writing that makes it hard for the reader to put the book down. The writing style is easy but gripping and that's the perfect combination for me.

I enjoyed this book tremendously and, as mentioned before, couldn't put it down. I will never forget the experience that I was able to read an ARC of a well-known author, even though I hadn't read any of her other books yet. But let me tell you, as soon as my TBR is a little smaller, I will definitely add Karen McManus' books to my collection. All of them.

I had an incredible time reading this book, now I can finally understand all the love there’s for the author and her works, I’m excited to read more of her in the future. This book has many factors that I love to find in mystery, from an incredible setting and solid characters to an addictive plot with surprising revelations. I also love the intrigue it generates and how the important points are slowly hinted at during the plot, it’s a very well constructed book.


In this story, we follow three characters, Milly, Aubrey & Jonah Story who are cousins, but they hardly know each other, as well as they don’t know their rich grandmother at all, who disinherited her parents before the boys were even born. But now each of them has received an invitation letter to go to work at their gran’s island resort throughout the summer. Their parents insist that they should go as an opportunity to return into Grandmother’s good graces, but once arrive on the island they realize that the plans that their grandmother had for them were different and the longer they stay they begin to realize that there are dark secrets in the family past, secrets that this summer will finally see the light.

I think what I enjoy the most about the book is the plot, the idea behind it’s extremely smart and is very well executed, so my applause for the author who has managed to give us an incredibly addictive story that’s very difficult to stop reading. I love how also during the plot some smaller secrets being to reveal and you begin to learn along with the characters some things that were happening with their family and all this information, despite not being the great ending or the great revelation, they also have their own weight. And I really liked how the author decided to reveal these little details to give us more clues because that way she manages to keep you on the edge of your seat trying to discover what really happened in the past of this family that managed to separate them forever.

I’m fascinated by plots focused on family conflicts, especially when it focuses on a mystery, I think there’s something in a family drama that hook me a lot. In this case, we can see some betrayals, many lies, cover-ups, fakers, and above all many secrets, all this involving the Story family, which also owns a huge legacy and a lot of money. It was fascinating to meet the family and each character, and I also really appreciate the family tree at the beginning of the book because when you first start reading, it can be confusing because there are many names and you have to remember who is whose child, so that was really helpful.


The fact that it’s located on an Island seems wonderful to me, you know that I’m trash for a good setting and when it’s an Island even better, I feel that this type of place can give a lot of character to the story and makes it feel much more atmospheric, which I love. We can visit beautiful beaches and mountain places, I love that. Also, all this focuses on a very wealthy woman who owns several hotels and tourist business, so the buildings and her house are all very elegant and majestic, I love that with my soul.

I really appreciate the author’s style, not only was it very easy for me to read the book, but I was also delighted to see how the times of descriptions, revelations, and information, in general, are handled. By this, I mean that everything is given in small and fair amounts, which I really liked, I think it may feel precipitated for other readers, but for me, it was perfect since I don’t usually enjoy over-descriptive books. I think that in summary everything is in its proper measure and nothing is exaggerated or too much.

The characters are obviously the center of the story, we get to know all the members of the Story family, but also other characters who work with Grandma Mildred, who also take important roles in the plot. I’ll talk briefly about them to tell you how I felt in general.
To start I want to start with Milly, she was my least favorite, not because her chapters weren’t enjoyable because they were, I think they’re also chapters with a lot of important information, but her personality doesn’t resonate with me, she reminded me a bit of Veronica Lodge from Riverdale for some reason lol, and I do like that Veronica, but at times Milly can be too superficial and full of herself for my taste. Even so, I think she’s an intelligent character who knows how to read people well and that helped the movement of the plot. On the other hand, we have Jonah, and he’s a very interesting character to explore although I cannot reveal too much about him, I think he gives a new meaning and another look at the family that’s interesting to explore, he’s also the protagonist of some very solid scenes. And the last cousin is Aubrey, and she’s my absolute favorite, I loved her from the first moment, I felt super protective over her, I know that she’s a girl who always needs the approval of others and lacks a lot of love and acceptance of her paternal family, it’s partly what brings her on this trip, and to all of them really, but in Aubrey I see the most sensitive and empathetic soul of all, and that made me love her immediately and I feel more identified with her in some way. It makes me happy to see that she’s who grows the most and seeing her get stronger and confidence made me very happy.

Then we have secondary characters, and I love how they all have an important role, and in some way, their own main scenes, the adults in the story, Mildred’s children are: Allison, Adam, Archer & Anders, all very interesting characters to explore, I think in general they’re all imperfect and unlikeable characters, especially Adam and Anders, characters that I hate, they have a lot of darkness in themselves and are the most egocentric of all. On the other hand, Allison is an interesting character for me because she gives a new perspective to the story itself, and I loved seeing her when she was young and seeing her eventually grow up and accept her own mistakes. Archer is my favorite of the four, he ends up being such a supportive character with his nephews and represents in some way the most innocent and sweet side of the Story family, I love him, and I love the role he takes in the whole situation. In addition, we also have many more characters that will give it a super interesting twist, and even quite creepy, which is worth discovering for yourself.

There’s romance happening, I can’t tell who they are because of spoilers, but it wasn’t something that I enjoyed, to be honest, I didn’t care much, I think it doesn’t have much depth or meaning for me, I was much more focused on the family and conflicts in itself than in this couple, so I have no opinion about it, it’s just not my favorite thing. On the other hand, I loved the relationship between Aubrey and Milly, I think there’s a genuine connection between them that I enjoy a lot, they have good interactions.

Something that I love in mystery is also the jumps in time, here we follow the POVs of the three main characters in the present, but also we follow a plotline that takes place in the 90 ‘a couple of years before all the conflict happened, and there we followed the boys’ parents as teenagers, which I LOVE! I think that this type of detail makes the plot better understood, makes the reader feel committed to the characters and what they’re going through, and also gives you a better perspective of how the family dynamics were at that time.
It’s always fun to go back in time to find out details of what happened and experience it right there with the characters, I love that, it’s a lot of fun.


Of course, I highly recommend this book, I can’t wait to read more by the author, she has a natural talent at the time of writing the genre, I love how addictive the story is, and how dynamic it is since there are things happening all the time and it keeps you wanting to know what will happen, I never lost the intrigue and it was able to keep my interest until the end, which is great. I really like the revelation at the end, I didn’t see it coming at all, so that’s always positive, but it’s also very well executed and thought out, nothing is left to chance, which feels very good for my brain lol. I loved where the plot went, and the ending is solid, so I know a lot of people will enjoy it.
In short, I know you would like if you enjoy the mystery genre, if you like multiple characters’ POVs, if you like a drama with many family secrets and lies & also if you enjoy an incredible setting.
I’m so glad I read it and I’m excited to read her next work, this was very entertaining from start to finish.

If you know me then you know YA Thrillers aren’t normally my cup of tea but McManus may have just converted me. Filled to the brim with relatable characters and enough twists and turns to make your head spin, I powered through this book in a matter of hours.

The Story family are in disrepair. Milly, Aubrey and Jonah have never met their Grandmother after she disinherited their parents years ago, so when they receive a letter inviting them to Gull Cove Island to work for the summer their and their parents interests are peaked. They each have their own reasons for agreeing to the job, and they each have their own secrets, However, they aren’t the only people on the Island hiding something and it may take the Cousin’s working together if they are to figure the out the mystery.

This book is brilliant and a big reason for that is the characters. Milly is a rich New York socialite, used to getting her own way and used to being ignored by her distant mother. When she gets the Invite she is reluctant to go but her mother see’s this as an opportunity to get back in her mothers good books and Milly desperately wants to please her mum. Aubrey doesn’t even have to think before accepting the invitation. Things at home are tense and a summer away from her father sounds ideal, she is also eager to meet the woman whom she shares a unique birthmark with. Jonah is annoyed that he’s missing out on a Science Camp but knows he can’t defy his father. He couldn’t care less about meeting his Grandmother or his Cousin’s, and can’t wait for the summer to be over. When they first meet there is more than a little distrust, none knowing the secrets the others keep. But before the summer ends they will come out… one way or another.

The setting for this book was almost cinematic in how it was described. A small Island made famous by the family that own it and guests of the past. It is both quaint and regal, it hosts Island locals running little business’ that thrive in tourist season as well as summer balls where the elite show off their gowns. The author does a lot in this book to highlight the differences between the Story’s and the people who live on the Island, how the Story’s were revered and hated in the same breath, and all this helps with the building of the setting and the plot.

The book definitely starts off a little slow. McManus takes her time to build up the characters and the mystery of why the Cousin’s parents were disowned, but once the story gets going I found it impossible to put down. The Cousin’s follows two storylines, the present with Milly, Aubrey and Jonah and the past with their parents. We know they are linked, we simply do not know how and the author does a wonderful job of weaving these two stories together until all the parts come into place.

When I say this book was filled with twists and turns I’m not exaggerating. I had plenty of WTF moments and, although I pride myself at being good at picking up twists in book, didn’t see the majority of them coming. They weren’t, however, twists that come out of nowhere. They are the kind of twists that completely shock you in the moment and then have you hitting your head wondering why you didn’t see it coming sooner.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely be picking up more of McManus’ work in the future. An easy 4/5 stars.

The Cousins by Karen Mc Manus is delightful, young, involves a mystery and is a very very readable book. Read on to find why I found it "very very readable".
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BLURB

The Storys are the envy of their neighbours: owners of the largest property on their East Coast island, they are rich, beautiful, and close. Until it all falls apart. The four children are suddenly dropped by their mother with a single sentence:

You know what you did.

They never hear from her again.

Years later, when 18-year-old cousins Aubrey, Milly and Jonah Story receive a mysterious invitation to spend the summer at their grandmother's resort, they have no choice but to follow their curiosity and meet the woman who's been such an enigma their entire lives.

This entire family is built on secrets, right? It's the Story legacy.

This summer, the teenagers are determined to discover the truth at the heart of their family. But some secrets are better left alone.

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My Take



The Cousins opens with the three protagonists Aubrey, Milly and Jonah Story, the cousins, getting a letter from their grandmother offering them a summer job at an island she almost owns. Each of them leaves home to take up the job for a very personal reason and intrigued by a grandmother who has abandoned her four children soon after her husband's death with just a single line on a paper to their name.

We begin with a glimpse into the lives of these three youngsters and through them into the lives of their parents. The book is divided chapter wise between the three cousins and Milly's mother who seems to be an integral to the reason why grandmother severed all ties with her children.

The author takes her own sweet time to reveal the plot and that is not to say that you will either get bored or lose interest in the story, at all. On the contrary McManus takes us into the lives, emotions and highs and lows of the cousins while the stage is being set up for the final curtain raiser. And that is why I said in the very beginning that it is a "very very readable book".

Though a mystery keeps you hooked to the pages, I am sure the YA audience at which the book is largely targeted, will find their emotions reflected in the personal journeys that Aubrey, Milly and Jonah undertake while on the island.

I found it very very readable also for the fact that it isn't a story that is very twisted. Don't get me wrong! I love my share of twisted mysteries and suspense novels but this one felt absolutely fresh as it had a progression that moved towards solving a mystery yet not in a very sleuth-y way but as a matter of time...the secret whose time is up.

Today I’m happy to be part of The WriteReads blog tour for The Cousins by Karen McManus! I don’t often read thrillers, but when I do, I make a point to choose good ones. The Cousins was a good twisty mystery of sins done in the past and family grudges still running strong – it wasn’t one of those stories where you’re stressed or scared while reading it, which is a good thing – it’s more like a laid back, summer kind of read, but with a fast-paced and tense ending and quite a solid mystery. It’s definitely a good read!

The book starts with a riddle – four disowned children of a rich family, and an invitation to come work in the family resort over the summer issued to their three children. The invitation is as much of a mystery to everyone as the original disowning of the four Story siblings was at the time it happened.

The cousins don’t really know each other, but their parents will do almost anything to get back into the good graces of their mother, even if it’s more than 20 years later. So the teenagers are shunted off onto the island resort of the Story family, without knowing what to expect, and without really wanting to be there.

In fact, each of them has a good reason not to want to be there.

A Good Premise

The story begins with a slight tension – because you are ever so angry at the grandmother on the behalf of the three cousins. Sure, maybe their parents DID do something to deserve this – but the kids never did anything apart from being born. How did their deserve their grandmother completely cutting them out of their lives, while she lives in incredible luxury?

The first meeting with their grandmother took if out of me – what a cold, awful woman! But I couldn’t help wondering whether there was something else behind all this, because from very early on, the story hints at some old secrets. And as the story goes on, we learn that some of those secrets may even be dangerous – dangerous for all involved, even after all those years.

The Pace And Characters

At first, I didn’t really enjoy the pace and was a little bit stuck until I reached the middle of the book. It seemed a little slow, and it seemed as if nothing was building. But as I reached the middle of the story, I realized the author was just setting the stage and letting us know all the characters better – and there are quite a lot of them.

The most prominent ones, of course, are the three cousins – Milly, Aubrey and Jonah. They are all likeable, but in wildly different ways. They came across as quite realistic people, and I could relate to something about each of them. I liked their back-stories as well. The way they grew up really does give you extra information about the wider history of the Story family, and the snippets of backstory we get about their parents are also integral to what’s going to happen.

What Goes Down

Anyway, after the book hits the middle point, it just gets rolling. I couldn’t get away from it after that point. The story takes off, gets a seriously darker and more dangerous tone, and developments happen quite fast. I would have perhaps liked the story more if the first part didn’t take so long, but it does wind up into quite a good thriller.

And I have to say, never in a million years did I see the book taking THAT turn. I don’t want to spoil it for you, but it was pretty good!! I mean, part of the whole deal with The Cousins is guessing where it’s gonna go and what really happened all those years back. My kudos to you if you actually guess it right!

Likable Characters

I only realized this after I finished the book, but I really liked the characters. The cousins are a trio made up of just the right kind of people – a girl who looks strict, self-sufficient and pretty much perfect on the outside, but very frail inside, another girl who doesn’t even truly know who she is, when she’s not trying to please others, and a regular seeming guy who is actually something of a softie inside. This makes for a good character dynamic, and I’d hate to spoil, but for some good twists as well.

Overall...

Although slow to start, this was a good thriller. I liked the characters, and the main story was quite wild in the end. About the only drawbacks I can think of is the slow start and somewhat lacking execution of the final reveal (I felt like I wished the parents’ personalities came through more than they did, maybe more time was devoted to their backstory). However, I really did like the ending, and after the midpoint, the book kept me racing through the pages. If you want a rather light, but definitely engrossing mystery about family secrets, this will be right for you!

No family is ever perfect, but there are some that seem more dysfunctional than others. Cue, the Story family. Some family secrets are fun, some are deadly. The Story cousins are about to find out what is going in their not-so-perfect family and discover that maybe they should have left the past alone. Each of their parents was disinherited with a single sentence from their mother, and while they are all curious as to why that was, it might have been better to walk away - even with all the money at stake. 


My Thoughts:
Wow, this was a book that was hard to put down! It is one that you are not going to want to start at night when you have to be up early the next morning. I am going to admit, I was stuck in the book until it was finished, and paid for it the next day. When you add in a family secret, a little murder, and a lot of what could go wrong, you are left with a book that is going to keep you enthralled until the end! 

As I was reading through this book, I had a few places where I felt that maybe teenagers would not react that way (but it has been a while since I was a teenager). I did enjoy the overall tone and storyline (no pun intended), as we worked through the mystery surrounding the Story family. This is one that you need to add to your MUST-READ LIST, and do it soon! This book will have you wishing for just a bit more at the end!