The Death of Mrs. Westaway

Genre: Fiction

This is the story of Har (short for Harriet) Westaway whose mother just died in a terrible accident. Har's life is hitting some bumps. She is seriously strapped for money (as in she can't pay her bills or her debt collector), she's not sure that she can keep her job reading tarot cards on the pier in Brighton, England, and she is suffering from the sudden and overwhelming loss of her mother, her constant companion and support. And then she gets a letter from a lawyer informing her that her grandmother (what grandmother?) has passed away and left her some money. Will this be the answer to all of her problems? Family and money all in one? Told alternately from Har’s perspective in the present, and her mother’s perspective in the past, slowly we learn what really happened to Har's mother and about this new family that has adopted her under false pretense. This is an intricately woven tale of deceit and lies, about families and learning that sometimes, families are made of love and kinship and not just DNA.

This is a very good story. Ware does a great job taking us through the roller coaster ride that is this story. The first half of the book is a slow climb up that steep hill and then during the second half, so many details of the story are thrown at you so fast. The story itself was really well-thought out in term of the path of the storyline. That said, the writing, in particular during the first half of the book was very slow and repetitive, and while I understand the purpose of creating a mystery, I do feel that it went on a bit too much. But, overall, I enjoyed this one and, I think, you will too, if you are a fan of this genre.