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kriseaf's review against another edition
5.0
Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for the ARC.
Setting: If you are like me and want to read a mystery/thriller in the same setting as the book, you’ll want some combination of: luxury resort, an old world forest, or a cliffside over a beach. Enjoy!
My thoughts: The first 40% was very slow and hard to engage with. There are a lot of characters, though they’re very interesting, and a lot of information/backstory is very obviously being withheld from the reader. The story elements are intriguing, though, and the setting and ambiance and approaching tension and escalation are very well-crafted. The surprisingly disparate characters also bring a lot of “how is this person possibly connected?” small thoughts to the reader.
Foley is a master at nailing the execution, though. Everything escalates so smoothly, so inexorable, so alarmingly high and tensely. All of the secrets are revealed, one by one, and complete a wonderfully detailed, intricately woven plot. The ending is so satisfying on so many levels, not the least of which is from a craft perspective.
I had so much fun reading this!
Recommended for: I think this book has broad appeal, honestly. It’s more on the thriller side than the mystery—a lot of the secrets unwind quite naturally, rather than any one character trying to solve something within the world itself. There’s also nothing alarming or problematic that I would recommend anyone stay away from the book either.
I realize that one of Foley’s previous books has a big, ugly “Reese’s Book Club” sticker on it that we must all suffer, but I do think her books lend themselves well to chatting with friends or discussing in groups. There are plenty of fun elements that you can think about more deeply or consider how you yourself would react to.
It’s also not bad for reading slowly and in sections, if need be; the story changes POVs frequently and that gives you easy points to enter and exit. I do urge people to push through to at least halfway before giving up on it. I struggled in the beginning but the action-packed second-half more than redeemed any slow moments!
Content/trigger warnings were not included in my version, here’s what I noticed:
Sexual assault (on page and off), physical assault (punching), emotional abuse/gaslighting, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, psilocybin/mushrooms use and abuse (non-consensual and graphic), death (on page and graphic), attempted suicide (off page), blood (descriptive), animal sacrifice (farm animal, off page), familial abandonment, birds*
*Included because my mom is deathly afraid of birds thanks to The Birds movie, and this book would freak her out. So if anyone else has the same issue, this is not your book.
Setting: If you are like me and want to read a mystery/thriller in the same setting as the book, you’ll want some combination of: luxury resort, an old world forest, or a cliffside over a beach. Enjoy!
My thoughts: The first 40% was very slow and hard to engage with. There are a lot of characters, though they’re very interesting, and a lot of information/backstory is very obviously being withheld from the reader. The story elements are intriguing, though, and the setting and ambiance and approaching tension and escalation are very well-crafted. The surprisingly disparate characters also bring a lot of “how is this person possibly connected?” small thoughts to the reader.
Foley is a master at nailing the execution, though. Everything escalates so smoothly, so inexorable, so alarmingly high and tensely. All of the secrets are revealed, one by one, and complete a wonderfully detailed, intricately woven plot. The ending is so satisfying on so many levels, not the least of which is from a craft perspective.
I had so much fun reading this!
Recommended for: I think this book has broad appeal, honestly. It’s more on the thriller side than the mystery—a lot of the secrets unwind quite naturally, rather than any one character trying to solve something within the world itself. There’s also nothing alarming or problematic that I would recommend anyone stay away from the book either.
I realize that one of Foley’s previous books has a big, ugly “Reese’s Book Club” sticker on it that we must all suffer, but I do think her books lend themselves well to chatting with friends or discussing in groups. There are plenty of fun elements that you can think about more deeply or consider how you yourself would react to.
It’s also not bad for reading slowly and in sections, if need be; the story changes POVs frequently and that gives you easy points to enter and exit. I do urge people to push through to at least halfway before giving up on it. I struggled in the beginning but the action-packed second-half more than redeemed any slow moments!
Content/trigger warnings were not included in my version, here’s what I noticed:
Sexual assault (on page and off), physical assault (punching), emotional abuse/gaslighting, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, psilocybin/mushrooms use and abuse (non-consensual and graphic), death (on page and graphic), attempted suicide (off page), blood (descriptive), animal sacrifice (farm animal, off page), familial abandonment, birds*
*Included because my mom is deathly afraid of birds thanks to The Birds movie, and this book would freak her out. So if anyone else has the same issue, this is not your book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Death, and Drug use
Moderate: Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Animal death, Abandonment, and Suicide attempt
amateur_bookworm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
My summary: A posh hotel opens in Dorset on the edge of the woods that locals consider to be sacred. The owner, Francesca, has poured herself into the Manor to make it a an exclusive and inviting resort for the wealthy, with an emphasis on spiritual wellness. Celebrating the opening weekend during the summer solstice, it is sure to be unforgettable and put the Manor on the map. But Francesca’s ethereal positivity starts to crack as bits of the deeply buried past begin to emerge during opening weekend. From the owner to the guests to the employees to the locals—no one is telling the truth and everyone has something to hide. And the locals, far off the beaten path in their small town of Tome, have always found that justice seems to be meted out when deserved.
My thoughts: Attentive reading is richly rewarded in this deviously dark thriller. If you like doing puzzles, this book is very satisfying. Lucy Foley masterfully weaves this story together until you feel like you’ve been transported directly into the middle of it. I was quickly pulled into the thrall of this twisty story set in an otherworldly feeling town. The story unfolds with jumps in time between the past, the weekend before the solstice, and the weekend after the solstice. I had no idea where the story was leading at any point, and many of the twists are completely unexpected. It was really satisfying as the pieces clicked into place and the mystery unfolded as you read. I can’t tell you many how many “Aha!” moments along the way made me want to go back and reread from the beginning after more pieces clicked together. There are a lot of characters and it feels like there’s a lot going on, with truly impressive depth to the layers of the story. Everyone seems to have motive, which is always my favorite in a mystery. Lucy Foley is absolutely a mad genius. This book rekindled my love of suspense and mystery books. This is—by far—my favorite Lucy Foley book yet.
••••••••••
Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishing for the ARC copy of this book.
••••••••••
Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishing for the ARC copy of this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Car accident, Confinement, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Stalking, Abandonment, Animal death, Bullying, Classism, Gaslighting, Infidelity, and Sexual assault
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