The Guest List: A Novel

Secrets Secrets Secrets!!! This book will have you thinking back to the last large wedding you attended and wondering just how many mini dramas were taking place all around you, while you remained completely oblivious. If the people attending your event anything in common with the wedding party and their guests, in the aptly title THE GUEST LIST, probably more people than you think are holding secrets and harboring resentments. THE GUEST LIST is a fast read that unfolds with alternating chapters, told by various members of the wedding party and their 150 guests. The book, from start to finish is an excellent testimony to the skill of the writer. It is interesting from the start, with well written characters that come alive on the page. There is a lot going on here, but it unfolds smoothly, as we learn about the backgrounds of the various players, their secrets and their innermost thoughts. It never feels disjointed or like the characters are unconnected, because each of them, despite their differences, have some connection to the bride and groom. The wedding itself connects people in unexpected ways and leads to several characters gaining new information about things that had happened in the past. The newly acquired information solves old mysteries and stirs up powerful emotions that change the course of the wedding and the future of many people there. A less skilled writer would never have been able to make this clever complicated story such an enjoyable read

I enjoyed this book. It was told from various points of view, a style of writing I enjoy very much. The setting is great; the characters are well defined, and I didn't know who committed the crime until almost the very end. The story moves back and forth in time, but unlike other nonlinear books that I have read, this book is very clear as to where you are on the timeline. I thought the author was quite skillful in how she plotted her story. There is a sense of unease in the book almost from the beginning, but the murder and the mystery come fairly late in the story. There are clues as to who the murderer is and why the crime was committed, but they are pretty subtle. The book is a quick read, a fun read. I enjoyed it.

This atmospheric thriller earned <b>3.5 Stars</b> from me! <b>SUMMARY</b> An elaborate wedding is being planned on a foggy, beautiful but possibly haunted Irish island. The story is told in turns from the bride, best man, brides maid, a <i>plus one</i> wedding guest and wedding planner. The island setting plays a huge part in the story, it has been mostly abandoned aside from the wedding planner and her husband who live at the venue. It is said to have been haunted, it kind of gives off a creepy vibe and it is known for tumultuous storms which knock out the electricity. Early on we learn that something has gone awry. There is a huge storm which turns the electricity off. When the lights go back on, blood is discovered. Several of the ushers go out to try to find the source of the blood. In the 48 hours that the wedding party is on the island, secrets are discovered, relationships come into question and peoples wills are tested. <b>WHAT I LOVED</b> I loved the multiple narrator's points of view. Probably my favorite one was the <i>plus one</i> wedding guest. She didn't know any of the other guests well so I felt like her point of view was the most reel and the least biased. I loved the way the setting was so much a part of the story. Replace the mental hospital with a castle wedding venue and it had kind of a <i>Shelter Island</i> feel to it. Very dark and foreboding with potential danger around every corner. The bride and groom were both well known, minor celebrities. It was interesting watching a celeb wedding from the inside. <b>WHAT I DIDN'T LOVE</b> I really didn't find any of the characters likeable. As the story progressed, I began to find some sympathy for a couple of them, but I still couldn't find any love and it was almost hard to care who was bleeding. There was one twists toward the end that was waaaayyyyy too much of a coincidence. I could easily believe the first few twists but the one that one was too much of a stretch for me. I knocked it down a half star for the lack of believability. <b>OVERALL</b> Definitely worth reading if you like a good Brit-Lit thriller set on a remote island. It kind of had a vibe that was sort of a mix between an <i>I Know What You Did Last Summer</i> and <i>Shelter Island</i>. It would make a fantastic movie or limited series.

Just got done with this book. Really enjoyed reading it. It kept my interest throughout the book. Good ending!

The Guest List is an intriguing mystery until the end as there are little moments of lucidity sprinkled in as the night of the murder plays out that lead you to crave more. And you don’t even know who was murdered until the end as secrets go behind closed doors initially and are sparingly revealed. The story will flash back between past and present and give you just enough that you’re left wanting more. Your desire never fully satiated in all the right ways until the big reveal at the end. I loved all the twists and turns to get there. As this is very much a character driven, atmospherically thrilling story where we get to know people while feeling like we still don’t know what they’re capable of. Jules, a magazine founder and publisher, and Will, a smarmy survival show TV celebrity, who are also the bride and groom, look beautifully radiant and accomplished on the outside, but are they who they seem? Everyone has skeletons in their closets especially the most seemingly well-polished and pristine. Nonetheless, even if ugly secrets threaten to rear their cataclysmic heads and rain on the much anticipated brightness of the big wedding day, guests are invited to congregate for the wedding of Jules and Will amidst the haunting backdrop of the island the event is taking place on with precipitous cliffs that become a character of their own with all the forbidden wildness, reckless incivility, and rule-breaking treachery comparable to that of the Yorkshire Moors in Wuthering Heights. Even though there were more perspectives than I would’ve normally liked, it actually worked for me here. My favorite characters being Olivia, the bridesmaid, and Hannah, the wife of one of the groom’s friends who has to confront her husband’s submission into the herd-like mentality that exists among members of the wedding who went to the same school in the groom’s past and like to chant almost ritualistically that if they "can’t move heaven they will raise hell." Olivia has troubles and secrets of her own, though, that she’s just biting back. And shares intimate moments in a hidden away cave where they become more openly clear on the island with the flame of a flickering candle the only source of light in Hannah’s company where she feels most free to talk and let her guard down. I thought those characters were some of the most well-drawn and developed. Their backstories being crucial to the scintillating climax. One thing I didn’t like was some of the writing itself, specifically the overuse of the expression “boys will be boys” because I think that’s a terrible excuse to let terrible behavior get a pass although I suppose that’s kind of the point in this context (even if it still quietly irked me). Because boys won’t be boys they will be held accountable for their actions. However, this story was still enjoyable and popcorn-worthily entertaining with also important statements on how the past and our actions will come back to haunt us much like how this isolated island forebodingly looms and inches closer and closer.

This book had me spending all the free time I didn’t have reading. From the moment I started this book, I was hooked. Lucy Foley does a fantastic job keeping you engaged with character perspectives in each chapter. The last 20% of the book was a nail biter. If you like suspense thrillers, this one will hit you hard!

I read this for the 52 Week Book Challenge, which challenges you to read a book a week. Week One was on the theme of the "locked room" mystery. This novel is a variation of the "locked room mystery": that is, the main characters are in a literal or figurative locked room, with no one able to enter or exit, when a crime, usually a murder, occurs. A well-known version of the the "locked room mystery" is Agatha Christie's "Murder on the Orient Express." The victim is murdered aboard the famous luxury train while it is moving: hence, the murderer had to be one of the passengers. A key element of the locked-room mystery is the mutual fear and suspicion the characters, who are usually strangers from different walks of life, have for each other. Another element is the claustrophobia as there is no way out of the locked room. In this particular telling of the locked room story, the locked room is an island, the fictional island of Inis, specifically, in a remote area off the Atlantic coast of Connemara, a region in western Ireland. The main characters--the bride, groom, bride's sister, the groomsmen, and so forth--have all gathered there for the destination wedding of Jules, a famous blogger and influencer, and her TV star fiance, Will. The wedding is orchestrated by Aoife, the wedding planner, local, and owner of the inn where the wedding takes place. One of the wedding party will wind up murdered, and the rest of the guests as well as Aoife will fall under suspicion. As is also traditional in this kind of story, most characters have a motive for killing the victim. The story was a little slow at first but picks up in the middle. It is artfully told through multiple points of view of the guests and the wedding planner with their individual perspectives on the other characters and the story events. The narrative also moves back and forth in time, until focusing on that one fateful moment: the murder. This is a worthwhile read for lovers of the mystery genre.

I absolutely loved The Guest List! It kept me completely hooked from start to finish. The character development was so well done—my feelings about who I liked, disliked, suspected, or rooted for kept shifting, which made it even more fun to read. Lucy Foley’s writing is incredibly vivid. The details painted a perfect picture of the eerie, isolated setting without ever feeling slow or overwhelming. I couldn’t put it down. The twist and the way all the storylines and connections came together was brilliant—so well woven. Foley always picks the most atmospheric locations, and this one was no exception. My only small critique is that, like in another of her books I’ve read, some of the backstory connections felt a little far-fetched. But that didn’t take away from how much I enjoyed the ride. Highly recommend for anyone who loves a good, twisty whodunit with rich atmosphere and layered characters!

While choosing this book, I came across a few descriptions that compared this book to those by Agatha Christie. This book, however, is no classic murder mystery; in fact, the identity of the victim is revealed only 90% into the book. What this book is, though, is a very good psychological thriller! A reality show star, Will, and an online publishing celebrity, Jules, host their wedding on a remote Irish island that is beautiful and eerie in turn. The presence of the cormorant birds on the island, a harbinger of evil and death as per folklore, quickly indicate the direction that the book will take. The main cast of characters also include Will's best man Johnno, Jules' best friend Charles and his wife Hannah, Jules' half-sister Olivia, the event manager Aoife and her husband Freddy, and an assortment of family and friends. As the book progresses, it becomes clear that most of the characters harbour dark secrets, and these are revealed slowly, layer by layer, leading to the climatic revelations. I do not consider most murder mysteries, including those of Agatha Christie, as particularly well-written -- after all, the focus is on the mystery rather than on the writing. However, The Guest List is a notable exception. Foley writes very well and has a nice turn of phrase. At the same time, her writing is very easy to follow so that the reader can spend her energy in thinking about the various characters and their secrets, rather than in keeping pace with the story. The construct of the book is interesting with the events of the wedding evening narrated in the third person interspersed with those of earlier in the day and of the preceding evening narrated in the first person by Aoife, Hannah, Jules, Johnno, and Olivia. The story is told in the present tense throughout, and this along with the vivid descriptions, makes it extremely immersive for the reader. The pace is languid but at no time will the reader's interest flag -- the slow peeling of the finer details and the interesting psychological studies of the various characters ensure that. The only fault to find, if any, is that some of the standard tropes of a murder mystery have been used, enabling us to guess the identity of the victim and the perpetrator as we progress through the book. But that does not detract from the enjoyment of reading it one bit! Pros: Extremely well written, interesting construct, unputdownable Cons: Somewhat predictable before the end

On one of the most remote and windswept islands off the coast of Ireland, Jules Keegan and Will Slater have decided to say their I Dos and host a small but expensive wedding for family and friends. With troubles brewing long before anyone steps foot off a boat or on the island, the soon-to-be newlyweds might have more to worry about than cold feet and or flower arrangements. Everyone is putting on a happy face but barely under the surface lies deeply held hatred, secrets and lifelong grudges that all threaten the happiness of the day. Both the Bride and Groom are keeping secrets from each other and their loved ones that could tear their world apart but still manage to make it down the aisle. Though not long after the ceremony is concluded and the wedding cake is cut, one of the guests is found dead, seemly not in an accident, which turns the barely held together nuptials into a shock-filled disaster. The Wedding Planner/venue owner Aoife tries to get to grips with the situation but she has inner demons she has been trying to suppress. As she endeavours to find answers to what caused the guest's death, the gruesome death of someone on her island is bringing back some dark memories. They are all trapped together without a quick or easy escape until help can arrive, will they uncover what happened before the killer strikes again? 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Another addictive, unnerving and compelling thriller from Lucy Foley. It brings the best of old school whodunits where everyone seems to have a motive and with a contemporary setting. I liked how you kept seconding guessing the identity of the murderer almost to the very end and then the reveal leaves you stunned. Loved the setting as having visited remote islands here off the coast of Ireland I can attest to their atmospheric qualities as a perfect location. I found the main characters were all fascinating and flawed as their backstories unfolded from both a current and past timeline with alternating POV chapters. The twists that brought both people and plot together were ones I never saw coming. Highly recommend.

The guest list a tous les ingrédients du parfait Thriller/Qui est le coupable : un lieu clos, un décor dépaysant et peu rassurant, un cadavre, une poignée de suspects... J’ai beaucoup aimé la narration : le narrateur change à chaque chapitre et il y a deux Time Lines : le moment du meurtre et quelques heures avant. On essaie de savoir qui est le coupable ... sans succès pour ma part ! Je recommande !

Wonderful book

"Everything seems changed on this island. It's as though the place is doing it, that we've been brought here for a reason." (The Guest List, p. 340) Lucy Foley continues the grand tradition of island-bound mysteries pioneered by Agatha Christie (And Then There Were None, Evil Under the Sun) and carried forward by such luminaries as P.D. James (The Lighthouse, The Skull Beneath the Skin). Having enjoyed Foley's first excursion into the crime/mystery genre, The Hunting Party (2018), I was keen to read The Guest List when it was released. My feeling is that this book shows the author's growing assuredness writing in this genre. Close family and friends gather for a wedding at the exclusive Folly on Inis an Amplóra (which we're told translates to Cormorant Island), a fictional island off the coast from Connemara, south-western Eire. Bride Julia "Jules" Keegan and Groom Will Slater are an attractive and high-powered couple, but both have their fair share of family issues and skeletons from the past. The picturesque but windswept island, surrounded by crumbling cliffs, freezing waters and dangerous currents, provides an appropriately dramatic venue for simmering tensions and old grudges to come to the fore, as the bridal party gather for a dinner on the night before the wedding. Even the land itself isn't safe with perilous peat bogs ("turf") to trap the unwary and local stories of hauntings by past islanders who died gruesome deaths at the hand of invaders. There are strong similarities between the books, in terms of structure and style, which is perhaps not entirely surprising. Like The Hunting Party, The Guest List also features a multi-perspective narrative, and a short-period split time device - every few chapters, we flash forward to read a tantalising glimpse from the period immediately after the discovery of the murder. The vast majority of the novel is focussed on the build-up to the crime, the relationships and interractions of the characters which form the basis for someone acting upon their murderous intent - but who? As with The Hunting Party, Foley withholds the identity of the victim from the reader until the latter stages, adding to the tension and mystery considerably. It was only at about the 3/4 point of the book that I formed a fairly clear idea of who was most likely to end up dead! I felt the development of the characters was thorough and convincing, and the multi-layered plot and tangle of motives excellent. Foley uses misdirection and reveals very cleverly to maintain tension and mystery right to the last few pages. The short chapters and multiple view points made this a fast and stimulating book to read. Highly recommended - I can't wait for Ms. Foley's next release!