The Cousins

Product Information

The entire Story family has secrets. Whatever pulled them apart years ago isn't over - and this summer, the cousins will learn everything. La verdad es que en Lazos de sangre desde el primer momento parece que vamos a ser testigos de algo macabro, de un misterio que lleva décadas desenvolviéndose frente a los ojos de los lugareños de la isla Gull Cove y honestamente, creo que no termina de ser tan increíble como parece en un principio. Sí, está bien. Sí, tiene giros que me dejaron completamente descuadrado. Y sin embargo, y lamentándolo mucho, me esperaba algo más.

I have strong feelings about each of the characters, which I guess you could say is good, but it depends on the context. It should come as no surprise then to hear that McManus’s latest novel, The Cousins (available now from Delacorte Press), is full of many of the twists and turns that her readers adore. But what sets this book apart as, perhaps, the author’s very best work is the way McManus also weaves a detailed family story that’s simultaneously poignant and tragic. Following three cousins who find themselves searching for long-buried secrets among the lush oceanfront views of Gull Cove Island, The Cousins is a masterwork of familial angst and multi-perspective storytelling all wrapped up in a thrilling young adult mystery. While the children were interesting, the whole unearthing process made the parents even more so. They clearly grew up wealthy, and their desperation for a relationship with their mother, as well as their drive to keep their secret under wraps from their children is gripping and keeps readers on the edge of their seat.I suppose this fast pace makes up for the slow beginning, which is not typical in McManus' previous work, where readers are thrown into the action head first, but it can still be seen as a little jarring. Quite a few people have asked what actually happens at the end of The Cousins as it isnt’t that straightforward! I thought about sharing the conclusion here, but don’t want to ruin it for others so if you want to clarify things after finishing the book, please feel free to drop me a line!

Ending :- I would have given it a solid three stars if that ending would have been different . I mean com'on author could have thought of something more intelligent than that. I felt like I have read this type of ending a thousand times before and it was so rushed like people dying, fire , blah blah all accommodated in one chapter. So for a mystery lover like me , this wasn't something original at all. I mean wow , money , rivalry , stupidity , this isn't something new , but it's the way author present it . Although I’m new to Karen M.McManus’ novels, I’m no stranger to the buzz surrounding her work so I jumped at the chance to read her latest book as part of The Write Reads blog tour. And speaking of endings, I was generally sated by the wrap up at the close of The Cousins. Itt hit a nice balance between tying up loose ends and leaving a few to fly in the wind. If I’m truthful, I would have liked a few more clever revelations, but maybe I’m just being greedy! What Happens at the End of The Cousins? I felt like the story delivered a decent amount of twists, some of which took me by surprise. I thought I had it all figured out at one point only for one final plot twist to steal the show at the last minute. While I think the execution of the final twist was spot on, I did feel like the minor reveals earlier in the story were overly explained, lessening their impact.

SN: Mysteries and thrillers have this storied history of ocean-front settings in everything from things like Murder, She Wrote to We Were Liars . What is it about that beachfront, island setting that lends itself so well to the genre? Aubrey is probably my favorite character, because I actually like her personality. She's sensible, smart, and genuinely nice, which was great compared to the other characters. I loved when she called out all of the manipulative and selfish people in her life and I feel so bad for her about her dad and all that, no one deserves that. As The Cousins begins, it appears as if Mildred Story has invited her teenage grandchildren, Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah, to spend the summer living and working at an island resort she owns. The invitation surprises the cousins because Mildred disinherited their parents years ago. The cousins have never met her. They met each other when they were children, but they have not seen each other since.

Goodreads Description: The Storys are the envy of their neighbours: owners of the largest property on their East Coast island, they are rich, beautiful, and close. Until it all falls apart. The four children are suddenly dropped by their mother with a single sentence: Except, it doesn’t happen right away. For the most part, the first third of The Cousins allowed some of the cousins — and myself — to get to know each other. While I honestly thought such a slow start would’ve irritated me, I found it to be a much needed introduction into the Story’s… well, story. Filled with complications and mysteries, and concerning secrets, there was no shortage of rabbit holes to follow throughout the novel. Nos encontramos antes un thriller juvenil de una de las autoras superventas actuales. McManus tiene un don para crear personajes redondos, y sin duda es lo mejor de esta novela, que en inglés tiene un título diferente ( The Cousins) y que a España llega como Lazos de sangre, en mi opinión, acertado pero peca de demasiado misterioso para una novela que quizá no cumple las expectativas en este aspecto. Aunque no deja de ser un libro de misterio. And Jonah: good looking, a little douche, mysterious, smart, perfect pool player: Anders’ son who truly hates his father and we don’t know the reason why!! A ver, empezando por lo que comento de los personajes... De verdad, sin duda lo mejor de la novela. Me han encantado los tres, cada uno a su manera. Milly, Aubrey y Jonah son un trío impecable para resolver un crimen, con personalidades muy diferentes pero que cuadran perfectamente para un libro que se desarrolla en un entorno paradisíaco y misterioso a partes iguales. ¿Qué puede salir mal cuando juntas a tres primos que no se conocen y todos tienen secretos que no pueden confesar?