Review: Twenty-Six Letters

Twenty-Six Letters by Charlotte Nash
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A delightful, feel-good read that kept me invested the entire time.

The plot sees aimless Wil searching for more info about the past of her deceased mother, after belatedly receiving a stack of letters written before she passed.

Wil's a bit of an unintentional train wreck - she doesn't quite know what she wants from life, and her choices always seem to end badly for her, no matter how innocent her intentions. I loved that she wasn't intentionally a black sheep - things just kind of ended up like that for her.

The mystery of her mother's words takes her to an English village which I really loved. It was such a cosy setting, and the writing really drew me there. I loved how fanciful her mother seemed - despite the fact that we only hear from her through letters, she holds a strong presence in this book - and how that is echoed in Wil without her really noticing it.

The characters drew me in easily, and I love how naturally the relationships developed. I could so easily picture these characters, and I felt everything they did. It was easy to sympathise and yet really understand all the layers to each character. Even Wil's father, Cameron, had a good side, despite very much seeming a 'bad guy' to begin with. I really appreciated that these characters weren't just 2D cliches; there was a depth to each that showed multiple facets of their personality.

The mystery of the letters is fun, and we get enough of them to keep us hooked. You can tell the story Wil's mother is telling has quite a lot of twists and turns, and it makes you eager to see where it's all heading. At the same time, we get satisfaction from Wil's investigations - the tidbits she gets from locals, and the info she digs up herself. There's plenty here to keep us entertained for the entire duration of the novel.

A little predictable, but most books are for me these days! There's not a lot I read now that hasn't been done before, so for me it's more about the delivery of the twists than the actual twists themselves. I loved how this whole story unravelled, so there was no loss for me in guessing at what would happen.

This book kept me entertained the entire time, and had me really immersing myself in Wil's emotions. I became quite invested in her story, and I generally enjoyed how this story warmed my heart.

A wonderful, light read with a mystery to keep you hanging for more. Highly recommend.

With thanks to A&U for an ARC

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