Prompt 52 – Published in 2024

The Traitors by C. A. Lynch is one of NetGalley reads. I picked it because the blurb sounded interesting and the cover artwork is really atmospheric.

What it’s about?

Six people find a thick cream envelope on their doorstep. Inside is an invitation to spend 24 hours in a crumbling manor house and be in with the chance to win a portion of one million dollars. The Beechwood Castle was the site of one of the most horrific murders in modern history.

The smell of blood, decay and death still hangs heavy in the air.

Six people walk into the house. One of them is an imposter, all of them are traitors, which of them will survive the night?

What I think:

I really liked the sound of The Traitors. I love a good locked room murder mystery and the sinister premise and spooky location were really appealing.

The books starts slowly. Six people have been invited to Beechwood Castle, a decaying mansion with a horrific past. It’s gloomy atmosphere casts a long shadow over the town.

Each of the different people are introduced. They have different connections to the house. There’s a true crime writer, a clairvoyant, a former detective linked to the case, a podcaster, an architect and a survivor of the original massacre. If they can survive a night in the house there is a big cash prize available.

The build up was slow and interesting. You get to find out about each of the characters, their secrets and motivations for going to the house. The problem I had was that I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable and wasn’t rooting for any of them. They all seemed like potential imposters to me.

The last third of the book was a lot faster paced. Once the killer put in an appearance it turned into a very different book.

I didn’t guess who the killer was. But by then I didn’t really care. This one just just didn’t work for me. There were bits of it that I really liked, but my lack of investment in the characters led to a bit of a disconnect.

Thank you to NetGalley for my gifted copy of The Traitors.