The Guest List
A Novel
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4.0 • 615 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Don't miss Lucy Foley's latest book, The Midnight Feast!
A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLERS OF THE YEAR
“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 psychological 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 for a remote wedding 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 in this gripping whodunit.
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.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This delectable murder mystery is everything we want in a whip-smart, escapist novel. The Guest List unfolds over the course of a lavish wedding weekend on a remote Irish island. When the glam guests arrive for the wildly anticipated nuptials of social-media darling Jules and reality TV star Will, everyone expects an unforgettable weekend—and let’s just say no one is disappointed. Each of Lucy Foley’s wily, colorful characters is nursing a laundry list of explosive grievances, so everyone’s a suspect when the wedding turns deadly. Recalling the best of Agatha Christie, but with its own very modern sensibility, this book is an elegant and twisty delight.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set on a remote island off the Irish coast where a massacre once occurred, this entertaining if uneven mystery from Foley (The Hunting Party) opens just after the high-profile wedding of Will Slater, the star of the reality TV show Survive the Night, and Julia Keegan, an online magazine editor. During the reception, the lights go out, prompting a "scream of terror," which turns out to have come from a server, who reports having seen a lot of blood. Flashbacks from various perspectives, including the bride and her sister, the maid of honor, recount what preceded the server's grim discovery a body. Meanwhile, Julia is on edge after having received an anonymous note warning her not to marry Will, because he's not who he seems. Foley defers disclosing the murder victim's identity until quite late, but she undercuts the suspense with obvious indications of who it is. The tension of the setup isn't quite matched by the reveals, though the nicely creepy setting compensates somewhat. Readers seeking thrills will find plenty.
Customer Reviews
Must check that list twice
Very good,quick and to the point! Reminder to self guest list require lots of deep thinking!1
Suspenseful Poignant Read
Lucy Foley knows how to tell a good story! Could not put it down until the end. Also loved “The Hunting Party” and “The Paris Apartment.” Cannot wait to read “The Midnight Feast.”
Pacing issues
It got good, took about 100 pages too long to get to the good bits. Just okay.