The Bequest

By: Joanna Margaret

Narrated by: Kimberly M. Wetherell

After her professor’s suspicious death, a PhD student uncovers dark machinations among her academic associates in this “richly atmospheric and irresistibly readable” (Joyce Carol Oates) Gothic mystery set between Scotland, Italy, and France.

Fleeing a disastrous affair with a colleague in Boston, Isabel Henley moves to Scotland to begin a PhD with a renowned feminist professor―only to learn, upon arrival, that her advisor has suffered a deadly fall. Soon after, Isabel is informed that another scholar at the university is about to publish a book on her dissertation topic, leaving her disconcerted and in search of a new subject, all while struggling to acclimate to her new home abroad.

Isabel needs a good friend during such a rocky start, and finds one when she reconnects with Rose Brewster, her charismatic classmate from undergrad. But when Rose confides to Isabel that she is in trouble, and then goes missing, Isabel’s already-unsteady life is sent into a tailspin. A suicide note surfaces, followed by a coded message: Rose is alive but, unless Isabel can complete the research begun before her friend’s disappearance, both women will be killed by her captors.

As Isabel follows the Rose’s paper trail from Genoa to Florence and, finally, to Paris, she uncovers family secrets, the legend of an enormous cursed emerald, and a chain of betrayal and treason which parallels her own perilous present. If she can put the pieces together soon, she could solve a 400-year-old mystery―and save her and her friend’s lives in the process.

Combining epistolary elements, Gothic suspense, and an atmospheric “dark academia” setting, The Bequest is a gripping literary thriller that will appeal to fans of Alex Michaelides’ The Maidens and Donna Tartt’s The Secret History.

©2022 Joanna Margaret (P)2022 Blackstone Publishing

oh dear no, not so much

A very nice reading of a poorly plotted book. The author cannot write character beyond stereotype and our heroine is so implausible as a person I felt bad that, given the necessities of the genre, she would likely be the only survivor. I finished it because I had guessed the ending and needed to win my own bet with myself.

Narrator amazing

Recommend to anyone who enjoys mysteries involving academia, and or historical and linguistic research. The machinations of 16th century historical figures seem more realistic than those of the contemporary characters in the somewhat over the top plot. But it’s a fun listen to a marvelous reader with impeccable pronunciation of Italian and French and really good pronunciation of European English accents.

Don't sleep with your supervisor...duh.

There were some great things about this book, anyway all of them are about the amazing narration. Great work. There are also some really fun parts about the book, mostly about the historical family the student studies. But there are just way too many cliches and fantastic facts (aka complete inaccuracies) about academia to make this enjoyable. There is just one cliche after another which add up to an unbelievably naive protagonist and a smarmy cast of supporting characters. With some pretty basic research into American graduate students studying in the UK and how PhDs are actually written along with giving a pass to the basic "female grad student sleeps with male supervisor" and "academics have no common sense" story lines, this could have been a great book. Clearly the author put a lot of research into the story within the story, it's just such a shame the same research didn't go in to the rest of the narrative.

Just not sure . . .

This book has promise but it just doesn't hold together in terms of actually starting a story that you might want to stick with. Lots of promise but just needs to provide more 'connective things' to bring one along. The author seems like an interesting, well educated person but the writing just isn't there . . . . yet. I hope she keeps going

omg

This is probably the worst, most convoluted story I've read/ listened to in years. Seriously. I finished it simply to hear how far the author would go to spin a more bizarre plot line. Don't waste your credits on this one