--- description: Find out why 'The Turn of the Key' by Ruth Ware made the list. title: The Turn of the Key: The 100 Best Mystery and Thriller Books image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ad667b62f83f1b4/698a407316d8840ec4c3c3bf/TheTurnOfTheKey.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Oct 03, 2023 # The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  In _The Turn of the Key,_ [Ruth Ware](https://time.com/4800794/top-10-summer-thrillers/ "undefined") takes Henry James’ classic novella, [_The Turn of the Screw_](https://time.com/5898095/haunting-of-bly-manor-turn-of-the-screw/ "undefined"), plants it in the Scottish Highlands, and gives it a 21st-century makeover. She establishes a few things in her 2019 version immediately: a nanny named Rowan Caine is writing from prison, a child has been killed, and Rowan claims she didn’t have anything to do with it. Through her letters, Rowan reveals how she obtained employment as a live-in nanny for a posh couple at a remote but expansive country estate, and how the house, outfitted as a “smart home,” kept her under constant surveillance. There were signs that this gig, and its hefty paycheck, were too good to be true: the past four nannies all quit, and one of the children warned Rowan to stay away. Through an unreliable narrator, creepy kids, and seemingly haunted grounds, Ware builds a looming suspense that keeps readers on their toes until the last page. —_Meg Zukin_ **Buy Now:** _The Turn of the Key_ on [Bookshop](https://bookshop.org/a/4973/9781501188787 "undefined") | [Amazon](https://amzn.to/3sDvcfi "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-mystery-thriller-books/6309248/the-turn-of-the-key/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-mystery-thriller-books/6309248/the-turn-of-the-key/"},"headline":"The Turn of the Key","datePublished":"2023-10-03T12:01:32.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:21:23.327Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-mystery-thriller-books/6309248/the-turn-of-the-key/","keywords":["Books"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ad667b62f83f1b4/698a407316d8840ec4c3c3bf/TheTurnOfTheKey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ad667b62f83f1b4/698a407316d8840ec4c3c3bf/TheTurnOfTheKey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-mystery-thriller-books/6309248/the-turn-of-the-key/","name":"The Turn of the Key"}}]}] ```