The Spinster's Fortune

Some many secrets hidden then revealed. Very likable main characters, plus some not so likable ones. Easy to read, flowing well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. While perhaps a little stretched, it was totally believable. Margaret was a little bit scheming in obtaining an inheritance to fix family money problems. Killing was grasping for the same inheritance by any means, and Judith was the least affected by the possibilities. It was a good read that I was reluctant to put down one I opened it this morning. Not a long book, but it did not need to be to develop the characters and come to a reasonable conclusion.

Given that the excerpt is poorly edited, I am not going to even try this book.

The book made me realize we all have parts of our family history we don't know anything about. I'm going to dig a little deeper into my own family history after reading this book. It was a great read!

The Spinster's Fortune is a confident debut, full of family drama and secrets. Based partially on a news story from the 1920's, author Mary Kendall takes the premise of a fortune rumored to be hidden in the home of elderly sisters and makes it wholly her own.

When Margaret O'Keefe, a member of the horses and cocktail set, is contacted by lawyers as the next of kin for her Great Aunt Blanche, she begins to hope that the fortune rumored to be hidden in the Magruder family home will solve her financial difficulties. What she does not expect is the mysteries that begin to unfold as she looks for more than the small rolls of cash that she has a knack for locating within the condemned house, and the slow unraveling of her marriage.

As the story unfolds and the past is uncovered, the story takes on new facets, from the fraught relationship between sisters to the greed of family members to the clandestine meetings of young lovers torn apart by the Civil War. There is a feeling of slight dread as the story of Blanche and Emily Magruder is revealed and Margaret is led down into the tunnels below Georgetown. While I didn't always like the choices that characters made, everything slowly comes together to make a gripping read.

If you enjoy family mysteries and dramas, fraught relationships between sisters, all with a touch of the gothic, do give The Spinster's Fortune a go. Recommended.

This review refers to a digital galley that I voluntarily read courtesy of the publisher. A positive review was not required and these are only my own, honest opinions.

The Spinster’s Fortune really takes place in two different times even though it is a tale of the character’s present. There have been plenty of whispers of a fortune buried in the old Brownstone where the two sisters lived. When only one is left and living in a home people who have long heard rumors of a fortune being hidden in the house start breaking in looking for it.

The executor of the estate is contacted to deal with finding the fortune and handling the care of her aunt. As she searches the house she starts to find rolled up bundles of money which is helpful for a number of reasons; her Aunt needs better care and she needs money to keep her horse farm running and her husband out of trouble.

The Spinster’s Fortune was a wonderful way to spend a lazy Saturday. I sat down with the book and endless glasses of ice cold water. I found myself lost in the stories of both the effort of old Blanche to hide and safeguard her family fortune and Margaret’s desire to find it before all is lost for both of them.

These are characters that keep you turning the pages to find out if all will end well or if like other Gothic tales before it, the fates will deem otherwise. The reader comes to care for both women and wants the best for them. Once I started reading I just kept going until I found myself turning the last page. If you are looking for a book to keep you interested with a solid story and some fun twists this is the one for you.

I received a free copy for my honest review

Secret tunnels, Hidden treasures, and family secrets made “The Spinster’s Fortune” a delightful book to read.

This book was a short one but so effective. I loved the mystery element behind what Blanche was hiding. Initially, the story felt a bit procedural. We would get a chapter on Blanche hiding the treasure, and later Margaret trying to uncover it. But as the story progressed, it became complex and intriguing. I enjoyed how the chase impacted the characters and how the treasure interconnected between the past and the present.

Blanche was my favorite in the story. She is quirky, mysterious, and had a lot of secrets. You never really know if Blanche is senile or acting to get her way. She surprised me quite a few times with her antics. The author also adds humor to the story, especially when Jesse finds her and thinks she’s a ghost.

Margaret is excellent in the role, and I enjoyed watching her using her intuition to help recover the treasure. I also enjoyed the bond that Margaret forms with Judith over the story. It may be a minor thing, but it shows how Margaret wants to bond with her family before it’s too late. The author also did an excellent job with Margaret’s relationships. Lilli exasperated me with her personality, and I laughed out loud with Robert and Margaret when she accused them of their friendship.

Overall, I thought “The Spinster’s Fortune” was a delightful debut by the author and would love to see more such books in the future. Moreover, I would love to see Margaret back in another story and revisit some of the characters from this one.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book and it has a really interesting dual-perspective storyline. While it started off slowly, I became more and more involved in Blanche’s story and the reason behind her seemingly eccentric choice to hide her family’s treasure.

The discovery & diagnosis of Alzheimers and/or Dementia was fairly new in 1929, so Blanche was probably written off as senile and her most lucid moments given less credit than they were due. I also got the sense that Blanche and her sister Emily, living alone as spinsters in their family home, were probably hoarders.

Sometimes it is amazing what we conveniently overlook about our family & loved ones in order to not upset our lives as they are. And sometimes, we need to be honest with ourselves about the truth in order to move on and live a fulfilling life, otherwise we end up buried under all the lies.