For Christmas, my grandmother mailed me Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale. I had heard of the book, mostly because it’s my job to know about books, and I had read a review of it in People, but I didn’t really know anything about it. So I sat down to read it with no expectations or preconceived notions, and honestly, it kind of blew me away.

The story revolves around Margaret, a bookshop keeper and amateur biographer. One day, completely out of the blue, she is contacted by Vida Winter, England’s most famous novelist (and liar!), who asks Margaret to come to her estate and write her biography. Margaret agrees, and in preparation, reads all of Vida’s works, something she had never bothered to do. She finds herself enthralled, particularly by Vida’s first book, a collection entitled Thirteen Tales, which contains only twelve. Upon arriving at Vida’s estate, she finds the author beautiful, smart, and prickly. Nevertheless, she takes the job, and soon finds herself consumed.

Vida’s story is that of a most dysfunctional family, including the disturbed siblings Isabelle and Charlie, and the strange and viscious twins Adeline and Emmeline. The story is also full of minor players: servants, a governess, a missing baby, and perhaps even a ghost. But Vida is known for telling outrageous lies, and it is up to Margaret to suss out the truth…and only then will she really learn the thirteenth tale.

This was definitely one of my favorite books of 2006. Typically when I read mystery or suspense, I find myself figuring it out halfway through. But with this book, I forced myself not to try to figure it out; I wanted to be swept along with the story at its own pace. I loved all the twists and turns, and now that I know how it ends, I want to reread it and look for all the hidden clues. A spectacular book!