The Skeleton Key: A family reunion ends in murder; the Sunday Times top ten bestseller

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The online shit-stirring wold have been harmless if the jewel had been left in the tree. . . . Taking the jewels would have been harmless . . . without the online shit-stirring . . .’ Overall, this is a good homage to Masquerade by Kit Williams which is a much loved book of the author.

Inspired by the author’s love for Masquerade, this is a taut, mesmerising novel of danger and obsession.The Skeleton Key spins out in multiple directions and readers come to see deep, often disturbing, links among the two central families and immense character flaws in each of these individuals. If you enjoy books drenched in suspense with characters you can never quite be certain of, you're going to love reading The Skeleton Key. I found that to be true—even though the novel wasn't as bookish as I'd hoped when I began reading. The Skeleton Key features two families - The Churcher's and The Lally's. They seem to have lived quite an affluent lifestyle due to the success of The Golden Bones. It's quite the portrayal of dysfunctional families, and I felt both of them were largely unlikeable. Some scenes are lively and a bit mad but in the best possible way and I really enjoy their colourful nature. There are some good jaw descending with a thunk moments especially as you come to appreciate how Nell’s life has been tainted. I come to really like and admire her especially her frequent wry tone but most especially her love and loyalty to her ‘stepdaughter’ Billie who is a shining light among characters with somewhat dubious morals.

Escape Rating A: It’s all too easy to comprehend the obsessions of the ‘Bonehunters’ while reading The Skeleton Key, because the complex, twisted nature of the puzzle – and the people at its heart – sinks its teeth into the reader and does not let go until the end.

When Bran begins to escape into a world of brainy misfits, the book improves dramatically. Her best friend, Jay, is devoted to the art of flamenco but his teacher is almost completely blind, and thus can’t help him with the fact that his dancing is an embarrassing mess. This may sound like an unconvincing sitcom premise, but in Zink’s hands, it becomes a serious examination of the nature of art. Even better is Bran’s infatuation with the hyper-erudite Peter, who spellbinds her with references to Arthurian legend and French theory, and becomes her informal life coach and almost-boyfriend. These characters are maddeningly predictable and frighteningly unpredictable in the way of real people. I am usually hooked on books by this author but unfortunately this one didn’t grip me, maybe because I’m not a fan of treasure hunts. Incredibly compelling family-secrets story, with the premise of a book like Masquerade by Kit Williams that made it's creator's family rich, and also targets.

Obsession and clues, death and mystery: all this fed into my new novel The Skeleton Key. My book-within-a‑book is called The Golden Bones: the treasure is a jewelled skeleton, scattered and buried at seven locations. Unlike Fenn, my fictional artist calls off the search when crazed fans can’t tell their fictional quest from reality and threaten his family. One golden bone – the pelvis – remains undiscovered. In the present day, the artist decides to update and reissue The Golden Bones, and reveal the treasure’s whereabouts. But human remains are uncovered instead, and dormant obsessions resurface.MY THOUGHTS: I became fully immersed in the story of the Churcher and Lally families to the detriment of everything else I was currently reading. The extended family dynamics enthralled me. I became obsessed by their machinations, and their relationships, which are almost incestuous. But now the Churchers must be reunited. The book is being reissued along with a new treasure hunt and a documentary crew are charting everything that follows. Nell is appalled, and terrified. During the filming, Frank finally reveals the whereabouts of the missing golden bone. And then all hell breaks loose. Xavier Marx and the Missing Masterpieces by Hilary Genga and Sean Cronin is the latest in a long line of treasure hunt picture books. The eponymous Xavier becomes embroiled in an art heist on a school trip. Visual and verbal clues point to a physical location where a token – the nature and appearance of which is itself hidden in the book – can be presented to the authors and exchanged for the prize money.