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readingwithmanda's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is my second Lucy Foley book I've read and I enjoyed this one and would recommend it to others.
We follow multiple POVs in this book and I felt like it was easy to follow and understand from everyone, as well as the short chapters which I love in books. With the shorter chapters it made my fly through it faster because I just wanted to know what happened.
It's opening night at The Manor, Francesca Meadows who's into wellness decided to renovate her grandparents estate with the help of her husband Owen who's an architect. But the locals are not happy with what she's done and it shows.
Among the guests are some old friends and enemies and finding out everything was crazy to me. You get the view from journal entries and from the past which was a nice touch and helped understand why some guests where there. Just outside the Manor is an ancient forest with secrets looming about. You keep hearing about "the birds" and it always makes you so curious as to what or who they are.
You also get the view of the detective who's on the case. On opening weekend they get a call about something not being right, there's been a fire as well as a body being discovered. So now detective Walker is trying to find out what happened and also uncover some past secrets meant to be hidden.
Fifteen years ago something happened and now it's all coming full circle. So many twists happened in this book and finding out all the connections at the end made this book so good. Finding out little things as you read made the ending that much better for me. This book kept me shocked and wanting to just binge read it to find out how it all connected.
(Thank you to William Morrow, Lucy Foley and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be released on June 18, 2024.)
We follow multiple POVs in this book and I felt like it was easy to follow and understand from everyone, as well as the short chapters which I love in books. With the shorter chapters it made my fly through it faster because I just wanted to know what happened.
It's opening night at The Manor, Francesca Meadows who's into wellness decided to renovate her grandparents estate with the help of her husband Owen who's an architect. But the locals are not happy with what she's done and it shows.
Among the guests are some old friends and enemies and finding out everything was crazy to me. You get the view from journal entries and from the past which was a nice touch and helped understand why some guests where there. Just outside the Manor is an ancient forest with secrets looming about. You keep hearing about "the birds" and it always makes you so curious as to what or who they are.
You also get the view of the detective who's on the case. On opening weekend they get a call about something not being right, there's been a fire as well as a body being discovered. So now detective Walker is trying to find out what happened and also uncover some past secrets meant to be hidden.
Fifteen years ago something happened and now it's all coming full circle. So many twists happened in this book and finding out all the connections at the end made this book so good. Finding out little things as you read made the ending that much better for me. This book kept me shocked and wanting to just binge read it to find out how it all connected.
(Thank you to William Morrow, Lucy Foley and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be released on June 18, 2024.)
armstrongangela83's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
bookmarkonthewall's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
stiney7887's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
maisymaze's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I received this as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.
The premise of this book and the cover made me excited to read this but it just wasn’t for me. There were too many POVs in my opinion, though I know that that is this author’s style. In addition to that, the timeline also flip flopped around a lot and was a tad confusing at times. The characters weren’t very likable to me, but some were meant to be hated I think.
Also, the twists were not very exciting. I wouldn’t say they were predictable necessarily, but the reveals were not executed in a way that made them feel impactful.
I liked The Paris Apartment from this Lucy Foley but this will probably be the last book I read of hers.
The premise of this book and the cover made me excited to read this but it just wasn’t for me. There were too many POVs in my opinion, though I know that that is this author’s style. In addition to that, the timeline also flip flopped around a lot and was a tad confusing at times. The characters weren’t very likable to me, but some were meant to be hated I think.
Also, the twists were not very exciting. I wouldn’t say they were predictable necessarily, but the reveals were not executed in a way that made them feel impactful.
I liked The Paris Apartment from this Lucy Foley but this will probably be the last book I read of hers.
liz_mackie's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
A gripping and, what I would consider a classic whodunnit with all the twists and turns your pretend detective heart could possibly desire with The Midnight Feast, Lucy Foley’s latest thriller as the rich arrive at an exclusive boutique hotel to celebrate midsummer with a summer solstice feast. Fast paced and told from multiple points of view with a varied cast of characters, both strangers to the area comprising of guests and staff, secrets and agendas abound. Tensions between the locals and the hotel’s owner are about to come to a head. I love this author’s style of writing, her short chapters and the strong pacing to her writing makes for absorbing reading. Her characters are intriguing and if you’re anything like me you’ll be jumping between them, suspecting all of them in turn of being the guilty party. And to add to your reading pleasure, the inclusion of some local folklore combined with the whole solstice thing gives the overall story a suitably eerie atmosphere.
jayne193's review against another edition
Listened on audio and found it hard to keep up with the multiple povs
confessions_of_a_bookaholic's review against another edition
4.0
It's the opening weekend of the Manor, a newly renovated luxury getaway spot by the coast. Francesca, the owner, has curated everything for the weekend, including the guest list, determined that the weekend will be a success. The Manor is full of people hiding secrets though, staff, guests and even Francesca and her husband. Nobody is exactly who they seem. As the Midnight feast hits full swing things take a dramatic turn.
This was an interesting book to read. It was a little different to some of Foley's previous books, in that it's not exactly a closed room mystery. It's still full of suspense though, and you spend a large part of the book trying to figure out the connections between the characters.
Speaking of characters, this book is full of broken people. Francesca is deplorable, and you know from very early on that you just don't like her. The rest of the characters though, much as they have secrets and issues, there's a very clear feeling that this is because of things that have happened to them over their lives.
The storyline is split between the past and present, showing us a summer at the Manor many years ago, and the current opening weekend. It's also told from multiple points of view. You learn early on that there is a link between that previous summer and the events that are unfolding in the present day, but it takes some time to figure out who and what those links are. The different points of view are all clear and distinctive, with well defined characters.
I thought Foley did a great job with this book, letting you piece the picture together slowly, which helps to build up the tension. There was certainly a couple of twists that I didn't see coming, and the ending ratcheted things up to a frenzied pace.
Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for an arc in exchange for an honest review.
This was an interesting book to read. It was a little different to some of Foley's previous books, in that it's not exactly a closed room mystery. It's still full of suspense though, and you spend a large part of the book trying to figure out the connections between the characters.
Speaking of characters, this book is full of broken people. Francesca is deplorable, and you know from very early on that you just don't like her. The rest of the characters though, much as they have secrets and issues, there's a very clear feeling that this is because of things that have happened to them over their lives.
The storyline is split between the past and present, showing us a summer at the Manor many years ago, and the current opening weekend. It's also told from multiple points of view. You learn early on that there is a link between that previous summer and the events that are unfolding in the present day, but it takes some time to figure out who and what those links are. The different points of view are all clear and distinctive, with well defined characters.
I thought Foley did a great job with this book, letting you piece the picture together slowly, which helps to build up the tension. There was certainly a couple of twists that I didn't see coming, and the ending ratcheted things up to a frenzied pace.
Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for an arc in exchange for an honest review.
maddiecpaul's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Like all of Lucy Foley’s books, this story is so intricately woven I was left reeling from the ending. You’re tossed back 15 years into the past every few chapters as you unravel more about the intriguing cast of characters. The setting is perfectly haunting and the pagan elements throughout leave you curious to discover more. I would highly recommend this book!