So many prompts could fit this prompt, so just picked one from my TBR. I’m a fan of Karen M Mcmanus’s YA thrillers and The Cousins is a standalone that fitted the bill.

What it’s about?

Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each other, 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.

What I think:

Karen M. McManus is an autobuy writer for me. I have enjoyed all of her YA thrillers.

The Cousins is a standalone based around the Story family. The teenage cousins, Milly, Aubrey and Jonah all have complicated relationships with their own parents, who in turn have complicated relationships with their mother and each other. It is one dysfunctional family. The return of the Story grandchildren to Gull Cove, the island resort owned by the family, is big news. The town is buzzing with gossip.

Told through different POVs, the Cousins are trying to get to know each other as well as out do each other with the hope of inheriting the grandmother’s wealth. There are also flashbacks to their parents generation so the reader can piece together why the family fell apart in the first place.

As usual with McManus’s books, there are lots of secrets and very twisty twists to keep you guessing.

The ending of this is dramatic to say the least.

This isn’t my favourite book of hers. But it was a fun and fast-paced read and her fans will love it.