The Skeleton Key

Nell Churcher returns to the family home in the summer of 2021, though she would far rather stay away. Her relatives insist that the gathering marks a special anniversary, and she is expected to take part. Her father, Sir Frank Churcher, has cult status among many admirers.

Half a century earlier, Frank published The Golden Bones, a hybrid of picture book and treasure hunt built around Elinore, a murdered woman whose skeleton was scattered across England. Clues and puzzles hidden in its pages pointed readers to seven locations where golden, gem-set fragments had been buried, each one a different part of a skeleton. Readers dug them up one by one until only Elinore's pelvis remained unfound. The book became a phenomenon. A devoted group called the Bonehunters formed, and their rivalry grew hazardous. Some sold their homes to travel to England in search of Elinore, marriages collapsed under the strain, and one man lost his life. Frank grew wealthy from the book, while the affair did lasting damage to Nell.

Now Frank has gathered the family again for a specific purpose. The book is being reissued alongside a new treasure hunt, and a documentary crew is filming the anniversary. Nell is horrified and frightened by the prospect. During the filming, Frank at last discloses where the missing golden bone is hidden, and matters quickly spiral out of control. The novel is by Erin Kelly, author of He Said/She Said and Watch Her Fall, and offers a suspenseful story about a daughter shadowed by her father's legacy.