SPOILERS!!!
I was right in my assumptions.
The person behind the letters was Miss Thorndike, and Annie managed to admit the truth when she sent a letter to all the suspects, hinting some blackmail, and Della comes forwards with Andrew. She confesses that she sent the letters because she wanted to help Andrew and get him the position that Mr Hoffmann had as Vice Principal. That’s why she sent all the letters, hinting at some untoward behaviour between Mr Hoffman and Mrs Anderson and even Kitty Baine. The woman even lets out that she visited Hattie the night she died to ask her to leave Andrew. It is not clear whether Della pushed Hattie, but in any case, she left her there bleeding. Della is stopped by Andrew, who is aghast, and we learn later that she is going to be admitted to a mental hospital.
I also guessed the second part too. It was Barbara’s husband who assaulted Laura, thinking she was his wife. Then when Laura is out with Kathleen, Barbara, and the two boys, Jamie is kidnapped. They manage to follow the man with the man to a ship. Barbara and Laura send Ian to warn those in the house. In the meantime, Barbara and Laura are assaulted and tied, and Laura learns that the man holding Jamie is his father, who has returned to claim him. It is clear that Barbara’s husband is a violent man, which is something Barbara didn’t really explain. Thankfully, Seth appears after he saw them go into the ship, and when he discovers the two women tied and Laura gagged, he decides to do something. Yet, despite having a gun, Seth doesn’t have the upper hand as Barbara’s husband threatens to kill his own son, so Seth has to relinquish his gun, and in that moment Bobby takes the gun and shoots Seth. And then another shot sounds, and we see Bobby falling dead and Patrick appearing.
The end is quite lovely. Set has been sent to the hospital, and thankfully he is going to be all right. The bullet only grazed him, but Laura is there for him as he wakes up. I think there might be some romance between the two of them in future adventures. And the best part is when Nate reads Annie’s Valentine’s card in which she tells him that if he asks again, he will say yes, and that is what happens! Really, really lovely!!!
I enjoyed the book like the other previous ones. I found Laura a bit annoying, but she grows as a character as the novel progresses. I also miss more moments with Annie as I felt that Laura took too much space. I am going to read the fourth book next, and I wonder if Nate and Annie are still engaged or will have married already.
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