As a lifelong reader, I have always lived by the old adage “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” However, when you’ve read as many books as I have, you have to be somewhat selective of the titles that get added to your TBR pile. To that end, I typically look at the flap copy and blurbs from other reviews.

Having checked out the description of Catherine Steadman’s latest novel, I admit to not being super excited and thought it sounded like a plethora of other psychological thrillers that I have read. Boy, how wrong I was! I have enjoyed everything that Steadman has written, but nothing prepared me for just how devious she could be as a writer. LOOK IN THE MIRROR is so much more than its front cover, title and summary that I was literally blown away by how this story sucked me in and didn’t release its hold until it was finally done with me.

"What Steadman configures with this story and the secrets of Anderssen’s Opening is nothing short of brilliant and one of the best twist reveals I have seen in recent psychological thrillers."

Nina is grieving the recent death of her father. Both literary scholars, they were very close. So imagine her surprise when she learns that part of her inheritance includes a house in the British Virgin Islands that she never knew he owned. In fact, she doesn’t remember him even visiting the Caribbean.

The other main character in this trippy and puzzling novel is Maria, an American woman who appears to have been hired as a housekeeper for hosts who never arrive. She waits patiently, enjoying the beachfront view and beautiful house with an indoor pool, which happens to be the same property that Nina just inherited. Initially we have no idea of the time frames of the chapters being told from Nina’s and Maria’s perspectives, so we don’t know if their paths will ever cross.

A rather curious Maria defies the instructions of the woman who hired her and ventures into the strange room in the basement that was somehow left open, despite the expensive security. What she finds is a place of horrors that she may not survive.

Upon Nina's arrival, she learns that the house is aptly named Anderssen’s Opening. She and her father were rabid chess fans, and that was the name of the opening move in an infamous chess match from the 1800s. It literally refers to making a wasted opening move just to find out what your opponent is planning by way of their own strategy. It’s risky but potentially effective.

Nina is not there for long before she gets the first in a series of cryptic warning notes: You need to leave. Now. She is not sure what to make of this but finds the house to be quite curious, especially the large white door in the basement that seems to beckon her. The book's obscure title represents one of the bizarre notes that Nina receives directly on a bathroom mirror that is more than it initially appears to be.

What Steadman configures with this story and the secrets of Anderssen’s Opening is nothing short of brilliant and one of the best twist reveals that I have seen in recent psychological thrillers. I won’t give anything away. Just know that T.S. Eliot and his works will play a role in the secrets contained within this house. Once readers figure out what happened to Maria and how it’s going to impact Nina, it may be too late. I cannot recommend this novel highly enough.