"Not a Happy Family" by Shari Lapena
Money, Money, Money.
Fred and Sheila Merton have lots of it. Just look at their
magnificent home in the exclusive Brecken Hill estates in
upstate New York. Fred's shrewd acumen for business has
afforded him the life of luxury.
But behind the scenes, the walls of this splendid home would
tell a story of a dysfunctional family with a vindictive, often cruel
patriarch, and a detached mother who couldn't be bothered with
the monumental task of raising three very different children,
all longing for unconditional love.
The annual, obligatory Easter dinner this year with Fred, Sheila, their
grown children and significant others, is especially contentious. And
that night, after all the angry goodbyes, an unknown intruder bludgeons
Fred and Sheila to death, in what police describe as a vicious and
brutal crime. Clearly someone hated the Mertons with a passion.
The grieving children, of course, are overwhelmed with shock and
sorrow. But are they really? As recipients of a sizable inheritance, it
isn't long before investigators target each, or all of them, as prime
suspects in their parents' violent demise. The millions coming their
way would certainly solve insurmountable problems, but first the
police have to prove it.
The Merton family is about as unhappy as a family can be. And it's
been that way for a long time. Just ask Irena, the loyal housekeeper
and nanny who quietly observes every little thing that goes on.
She knows exactly what each child has endured throughout their
childhoods. As adults, they're all hiding tawdry, salacious secrets, but who
actually had the motive and means to carry out such a cold-hearted,
dastardly deed? Then again, maybe the kids weren't the only ones
about to become filthy rich.
Expect to be thrown off the trail time and time again, until the last
few pages in this fun, one sitting, whodunit with a divinely, delicious
ending.
