ARC Review: Inheritance by Nora Roberts

Inheritance
Author: Nora Roberts
Series: The Lost Bride Trilogy (Book 1)
Publication: St. Martin's Press (November 21, 2023)

Description: Inheritance is the first in The Lost Bride Trilogy by #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts―a tale of tragedies, loves found and lost, and a family haunted for generations.

1806: Astrid Poole sits in her bridal clothes, overwhelmed with happiness. But before her marriage can be consummated, she is murdered, and the circle of gold torn from her finger. Her last words are a promise to Collin never to leave him…

Graphic designer Sonya MacTavish is stunned to learn that her late father had a twin he never knew about―and that her newly discovered uncle, Collin Poole, has left her almost everything he owned, including a majestic Victorian house on the Maine coast, which the will stipulates she must live in it for at least three years. Her engagement recently broken, she sets off to find out why the boys were separated at birth―and why it was all kept secret until a genealogy website brought it to light.

Trey, the young lawyer who greets her at the sprawling clifftop manor, notes Sonya’s unease―and acknowledges that yes, the place is haunted…but just a little. Sure enough, Sonya finds objects moved and music playing out of nowhere. She sees a painting by her father inexplicably hanging in her deceased uncle’s office, and a portrait of a woman named Astrid, whom the lawyer refers to as “the first lost bride.” It’s becoming clear that Sonya has inherited far more than a house. She has inherited a centuries-old curse, and a puzzle to be solved if there is any hope of breaking it…

My Thoughts: Nora Roberts begins a trilogy set in a haunted house. The Prologue set in 1806 shows the death of the first bride and the beginnings of the curse that will take the life of six more brides who come to live at the manor. 

Sonya MacTavish is surprised to learn that she has inherited an estate from the late father's unknown twin brother. The babies were separated at birth and her father put up for adoption. She is curious to know the circumstances that caused the babies to be separated.

The bequest comes at an interesting time in Sonya's life. She has recently ended her engagement to a co-worker who is now trashing her to fellow employees at the graphic design firm where they both work. She was going to keep the fact that she walked in on him in bed with her cousin quiet until he started saying that she changed her mind due to emotional stress. However, conditions where she works at a job she loves have become intolerable due to his harassment. 

But Lost Brides Manor might not be a stress-free change. She has to move to a small town in Maine and live in the house for three years. Locals including her lawyers who were friends of her uncle Collin Poole all believe that the house is haunted. It isn't long before Sonya starts having encounters with ghosts herself. From sobbing and piano playing in the dead of night, to a ghost who uses Sonya's phone and tablet to provide timely music, to a ghost boy who plays with her new dog and a maid who makes her bed and keeps her house in immaculate condition to the ghost of the woman who killed and cursed the dead brides, Sonya is surrounded by ghosts. 

Sonya isn't alone in trying to understand what is happening at the manor. Trey is the third Doyle in the local law office and provides a lot of help to Sonya. His father Deuce was Collin Poole's friend and Trey and his sister spent a lot of time in the house while he was growing up. He's had his own encounters with some of the ghosts. Trey is also the love interest in this story. And Sonya has her best friend Cleo to provide support too. Cleo was her college roommate and a fellow artist. She is also more open to the idea of ghosts than Sonya having a Cajun grandmother who instilled beliefs in spirits and demons. 

This was an engaging story with many of Roberts' hallmarks. Both the female and male leads are strong, self-sufficient people with a circle of close friends. Neither looks to the other to fill in lacks in their own lives. Both are open to a relationship because they have seen good relationships all around them. Both Sonya and Trey are interesting people with strong opinions. 

My one quibble with the story is that it felt particularly unfinished to me. Yes, I know it is the start of a trilogy, but neither the romance nor the curse reaches any sort of resolution. In fact, there is a definite cliffhanger of an ending that has me aching for the next book. 

Favorite Quote:

"I dated an artist once. It was more like ten minutes. Inexplicable abstracts and a weird obsession with Virginia Woolf."

"Definitely wasn't me. I'm more thrillers, fantasy, and a side of romance where the bad guys get what's coming to them, the world is saved, and love eventually conquers. I like the spooky, too, but I'm giving that a pass for now. Considering."

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.