Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers/William Morrow for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Release Date: September 19th, 2019
400 Pages
Synopsis: The New York Times bestselling author of What She Knew conjures a dark and unpredictable tale of family secrets that explore the lengths people will go to hurt one another.
When her beloved nanny, Hannah, left without a trace in the summer of 1988, seven-year-old Jocelyn Holt was devastated. Haunted by the loss, Jo grew up bitter and distant, and eventually left her parents and Lake Hall, their faded aristocratic home, behind.
Thirty years later, Jo returns to the house and is forced to confront her troubled relationship with her mother. But when human remains are accidentally uncovered in a lake on the estate, Jo begins to question everything she thought she knew.
Then an unexpected visitor knocks on the door and Jo’s world is destroyed again. Desperate to piece together the gaping holes in her memory, Jo must uncover who her nanny really was, why she left, and if she can trust her own mother…
In this compulsively readable tale of secrets, lies, and deception, Gilly Macmillan explores the darkest impulses and desires of the human heart. Diabolically clever, The Nanny reminds us that sometimes the truth hurts so much that you’d rather hear the lie.
Given these last two books I’ve read, I seem to be on a nanny kick lately. But, let me assure you The Nanny is as different as can be from The Turn of the Key. It’s a slow burn of a story and I’d call it more psychological suspense than thriller, but that doesn’t make it any less of a page turner. Gilly Macmillan’s writing is very detailed and visual, and throughout the story I felt as though I was there at Lake Hall and the village. The chapters moved seamlessly between two time periods and multiple POVs, which isn’t always easy to pull off without taking away from the storyline, but the author effortlessly accomplishes this.
As for the characters, for the most part, they’re not particularly likable and some are downright evil, but they’re well-developed which makes them intriguing. The entire time I was reading I didn’t know who to trust, which further added to the mystery and suspense.
While the dramatic ending was a bit rushed and I was left with a few questions, overall I feel The Nanny definitely lives up to its pre-publication hype. Gilly Macmillan has taken the familiar theme of a dysfunctional family being torn apart by secrets and lies, and given it an original and entertaining spin. This is the first book I’ve read by her but it certainly won’t be my last.
