The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Meet Author Lucy Foley:

"Lucy Foley studied English Literature at Durham and UCL universities and worked for several years as a fiction editor in the publishing industry, before leaving to write full-time. The Hunting Party is her debut crime novel, inspired by a particularly remote spot in Scotland that fired her imagination.

Lucy is also the author of three historical novels, which have been translated into sixteen languages." ~Amazon

Follow her on:

Twitter: @lucyfoleytweets

Instagram: @lucy_foley_author

Facebook.com/lucyfoleyauthor

A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLERS OF 2020

“I loved this book. It gave me the same waves of happiness I get from curling up with a classic Christie...The alternating points of view keep you guessing, and guessing wrong.” — Alex Michaelides, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient

"Evok[es] the great Agatha Christie classics…Pay close attention to seemingly throwaway details about the characters’ pasts. They are all clues.” -- New York Times Book Review

A wedding celebration turns dark and deadly in this deliciously wicked and atmospheric thriller reminiscent of Agatha Christie from the New York Times bestselling author of The Hunting Party.

The bride – The plus one – The best man – The wedding planner – The bridesmaid – The body

"On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. The bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. It’s a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed.

But perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. As the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. The groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. The bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. The bride’s oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast.

And then someone turns up dead. Who didn’t wish the happy couple well? And perhaps more important, why?" ~Amazon

Numeric Breakdown:

1: didn't like it/skip it

2: it was okay/not for me

3. liked it/worth a read

4. really liked it/loved it

5. it was amazing/must read!

A complex and satisfying psychological thriller worth the read.  

This is my first book by Lucy Foley, and I don't think it will be my last. A standalone novel, this work of scintillating conspiracy gives you the perspective of the bride, the plus-one, the best man, the wedding planner, and the bridesmaid. You're given a preview of the wedding evening and the crowd of guests tucked on the dance floor in a tent on a remote Irish coast. However, it soon becomes apparent that murder is in the air. 

At first, you're given the background knowledge of these five main protagonists as they prepare for the wedding of Julia Keegan and her groom Will Slater. Jules has built up her life and career as an online magazine titan. She has met the man she wants to spend the rest of her life with, and nothing is going to stop this wedding. Her match in ambition, independence, and perseverance is found in actor and ultimate charmer Will. He's the yin to her yang, and both seem eager and excited for the approaching day. A note left in her possessions telling her that Will isn't the man she thinks he is has given her a thread of suspicion that she just can't shake. 

Hannah, the plus-one, is married to Charlie -- Jules's best friend. They've known each other for a long time, and their friendship has always had an undercurrent of something more. Tangible but unconfirmed, Hannah doesn't really want to know if and when there might have been more between there two. Married for several years, the parents of two, they are about to embark on their own journey of self-discovery. If Will makes Hannah feel comfortable and accepted among this group of posh elites, what's the harm? After all, Charles keeps disappearing with Jules.

Johnno Briggs is best man, confidant, and secret-holder of Will. This wedding weekend proves to be the culmination of all those secrets, and Johnno isn't so sure he wants to keep them anymore. They've preyed upon him since their youth, and he can't help wondering if the only secrets are those they've kept from others or if Will is keeping secrets from him as well. 

Aoife Malone is the wedding planner for this weekend soirée, and she wants everything to go without a hitch. It's her family island off the coast of Ireland, and she and her partner are setting up their first catering event. Everything feels like it's under control, but little cracks in the festivities and people begin to show. If she can keep it all together for 48 hours, she'll have what she's always wanted. Yet, nothing is ever that simple, and a storm on the way to her island's cliffs only adds to the drama and mayhem.

Olivia is Jules Keegan's half-sister and bridesmaid. She has so many secrets, they're bubbling up in her and spilling out in the most harmful of ways. Her desire for someone to talk to isn't going to happen while she's surrounded by family and people she can't trust. Then Hannah arrives, and it seems as though there's someone who she can confide in without fear. After all, Hannah's a stranger and has no connection to her family. The secrets Olivia hides start to resurface, and Hannah makes a great confidant, but there's one piece of the retelling Olivia isn't willing to share just yet. Since that truth can never be taken back.

All the secrets and lies and histories of these people bubble and boil over this 48 hour party to celebrate the wonderful couple. No one is immune to learning the truth, and what they learn leads to murder. Yet, there are too many culprits to choose from, and when you learn what really happens, you'll understand the genius behind it. Is it really murder, if the victim deserved to die?

With that breakdown, I want to say how brilliant and expertly this plot unraveled upon the pages. The points of view, secrets slowly revealed, connecting the dots as you read, overlapping mysteries, and so much more made this an intoxicating read. You definitely can't put it down once you pick it up. My 3/5 rating comes from the worth of reading this book and seeing what it's all about, but it also shares my personal opinions on things that didn't sit well with me -- language, certain relationship scenes, etc. I know it's to be expected or is a possibility when you pick up a mystery, and I'm not trying to minimize the author's talented and creative work. If you want a complex and satisfying psychological thriller, a steady-paced and intricate spider web of information, and a worthwhile read, then you should give The Guest List a try. 

Thank you for joining me, and as always, Happy Reading!! :)

~Rebecca Reddell, Author