Arrowood by Laura McHugh

Arrowood by Laura McHugh is based on a century old home which holds a lot of family secrets and how unreliable our memories can be when we are young.

Arden Arrowood was 8 years old when her 20 month old twin sisters disappeared while they were in her care. Even though there was a suspect he was never convicted of the crime and the mystery of what happened to the twins was never solved. The guilt over the tragic loss followed Arden throughout her life. Her mom and dad separate not long after the disappearance of the twins and while mom tries to find solace by medicating herself, her dad turns to alcohol.

After the death of her father Arden inherits the old family home. There she meets a reporter investigating the mystery and discovers her memory of that day might be deceptive. There are some ghostly appearances, a fortune teller and a needy caretaker adding to the mystery. Will Arden ever be able to find out what happened to her sisters and can she actually trust her memory of the events that occurred that day?

The book started a little slow for me as there were a lot of attention given to details about the house and its architecture. The book though is very well written and picks up pace half way through. I would give this book 3 ½ stars and another ½ star for the ending. It was a little surprising but left with some unanswered questions. I guess the author leaves it for the readers to guess whether justice was finally served.

Many thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for this advance reader copy in exchange for my honest and fair review.

 

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