This Novella is a nonsensical story written either entirely by AI or with only slight human oversight. I picked it up free in a group promotion via Bookfunnel. I don’t recommend that you do the same. It is not worth the price of free. The author has social media pages, but no website and no amazon page. This novella is not available on Amazon and not listed on Goodreads. So, probably just a scammer trying to harvest your email.

The story features Avalyn Kennsington, an 18-year-old heiress who, at the start of the story, has killed her parents and is inheriting the family mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City. We never learn how Avalyn murdered both parents and got away with it, not why. She is not that happy about the money.

While going through her mother’s things, Avalyn discovers a photo of her mother and a woman who looks a lot like her, but whom Avalyn has never seen. She hires an investigator, who tracks down the mystery woman — Avalyn’s aunt Charlotte, he mother’s sister. Avalyn jets off to Seattle in the spring to reunite with this long lost branch of the family. (Avalyn apparently does not attend school and has no plans for college. She also has no friends in New York.)

In Seattle, Avalyn meets her cousin, Ashlyn. Charlotte ‘s daughter looks remarkably like Avalyn, but with dark hair and eyes. (The confusion caused by the similar names is frustrating to a reader.) Avalyn begins plotting some scheme, which is foreshadowed in obvious, repetitive narration for six or seven chapters when nothing much happens over several weeks (or months?) while the newly united cousins get to know w each other, except that we find out very little about either.

After a long middle of remarkably similar paragraphs and chapters with a formulaic feel but no substance, Avalyn convinces Ashlyn to return to New York, alone. (Ashlyn also apparently does not attend school, although her family is not rich.)

Back in New York, Avalyn springs the trap on her master plan. The big twisty ending is {spoiler} both predictable and lame (yes, Ashlyn is Avalyn’s long-lost separated-at-birth twin — but not identical). It is also poorly executed such that there is no tension. The resolution is something that might seem tidy to a bot, but is not satisfying to a human reader.

I can’t say for sure if this free story is merely a device to harvest emails for some scammy purpose, but it probably is.

Stay away. You have been warned.