The Skeleton Key

 

 I received a copy of this release from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Skeleton Key

Author: Erin Kelly

Publisher: Mobius

Release Date: 1.24.23 in US

Publisher’s Summary 

THIS REUNION WILL TEAR A FAMILY APART...

Summer, 2021. Nell has come home at her family's insistence to celebrate an anniversary. Fifty years ago, her father wrote The Golden Bones. Part picture book, part treasure hunt, Sir Frank Churcher created a fairy story about Elinore, a murdered woman whose skeleton was scattered all over England. Clues and puzzles in the pages of The Golden Bones led readers to seven sites where jewels were buried – gold and precious stones, each a different part of a skeleton. One by one, the tiny golden bones were dug up until only Elinore's pelvis remained hidden.

The book was a sensation. A community of treasure hunters called the Bonehunters formed, in frenzied competition, obsessed to a dangerous degree. People sold their homes to travel to England and search for Elinore. Marriages broke down as the quest consumed people. A man died. The book made Frank a rich man. Stalked by fans who could not tell fantasy from reality, his daughter, Nell, became a recluse.

But now the Churchers must be reunited. The book is being reissued along with a new treasure hunt and a documentary crew are charting everything that follows. Nell is appalled, and terrified. During the filming, Frank finally reveals the whereabouts of the missing golden bone. And then all hell breaks loose.

From the bestselling author of He Said/She Said and Watch Her Fall, this is a taut, mesmerising novel about a daughter haunted by her father's legacy...

My Review

Another long book and another 5-star review!

Please let this be what 2023 continues to bring me. 🙏🏻

Coming in at over 500 pages, this murder mystery thriller is long, twisty, and features an extensive cast of characters (seriously, pay attention as each one is introduced because they are challenging to keep straight.) The Churchers and the Lallys are friends, partners, in-laws, and neighbors. Frank and Cora Churcher are parents to Eleanor (Nell) and Dominic. Lal and Bridget Lally are parents to Rose, who is married to Dominic (see what I mean.) Switching between the 1970s, 1990s, and current days, the story unfolds of The Golden Bones, a treasure-hunting picture book game. Originally published in 1971, the book is about to have a 50th-anniversary collector’s edition released, with each book featuring an individually stamped number and a QR code to download an interactive app (compared to Pokemon Go.) While the new game allows players to collect a virtual skeleton, the original work had fans combing the countryside for hidden bone "jewels," leading to some shocking actions by Bonehunters (super fans.) From this already full storyline there are multiple others expertly woven to create a book that I could not wait to get back to every single time I set it down. There is murder, artistic conceit, betrayal, competition, and a small storyline featuring a character named Rhiannon that was the icing on the cake for me. I really couldn't count how many jaw-droppers were in this novel. I want to say to the mainstream, basic, boring, and formulaic mystery writers out there who keep giving us lazy writing and lame "twists"...take some notes, because THIS is how it's done.