Thank you for the copy of The Family Game. I thought this book was super interesting and was intrigued from page one. Definitely very entertaining and suspenseful esp if youre looking for a good thriller!

This was the first of Catherine Steadman’s books I’ve actually read. The mystery of the family kept me guessing and flying through the pages. I will have to pick up her other books.

A good read that I haven’t had in awhile. Knives out meets succession. It was a great and twisty read. The ending had me screaming "WHAT???"

Entering into a high society family can be the chance of a life time. But would you risk your life to win their acceptance? Harry has just received her big break with her new book but could the lies she has buried destroy her chance at love. The family game takes the Family secrets a step forward. Where other books and movies that have done the game to the death only for one night The Family game expands the timeline. Which allows the characters to become more than flat and interchangeable. As well as the reader to feel attached to Harry and have a steak in the mystery.

The Family Game was a decent book. I really enjoyed getting to know the characters. I thought the plot was different. What made me like the book was the ending. I had it figured out wrong it was a great plot twist that made me like the book.

Harriet Reed, bestselling author, is so close to living the life dreams are made of. She is newly engaged to Edward Holbeck, heir of the Holbeck fortune. She has recently moved to New York, leaving (she hopes) all traces of her past mistakes behind her. But Harriet isn’t the only one trying to escape her past. In a fast-paced game of cat and mouse, Catherine Steadman’s latest thriller is a page turner to the end!

I liked the book. The main character was mostly likeable, only partially annoying. I figured out the real “bad guy” pretty quickly, but it was a fun story. As is typical with these kind of thrillers, the end was a quick mash-up of conveniently tied up loose ends - even when they don’t make any sense. Big questions left unanswered. Gaping holes. But - unlike the usual, I actually want to know the answers to these questions. That’s Catherine Steadman, though. Maybe it’s not always as prettily packaged as I’d like it to be, but she always makes it interesting.

Spring break is coming up and if thrillers are your type of beach read, this one’s a great choice!

Thanks to the author, Ballantine Books and Netgalley for this ARC in return for my honest review.

In The Family Game Harry is an author, working on her next book, when her boyfriend, Edward, proposes. Edward is a Holbeck, a very wealthy and well-connected family. While most of them seem to welcome Harry once they meet her, Robert, the family patriarch, is a different story. He gives Harry a cassette tape in which he reveals a confession. This sets off the Holbeck family’s weird holiday traditions and Harry has no choice but to play, if she really loves Edward and wants a future with him.

This family drama suspense story set during the holiday season held my interest from the start. It was entertaining though the family’s “games” were definitely disturbing. I had to see how things would play out. While I didn’t love the ending of this story, I enjoyed the book overall (think sinister Succession vibes) and found it worth reading.

This was weird. I definitely did not see the big twist coming! I liked it for sure, just wasn’t my favorite thriller. Definitely kept my interest though.

Although I had to suspend my disbelief a bit (e.g. that Harry's secret could be vetted, that the family did the crazy, scary games), this was an overall entertaining, easy, quick read. I would recommend it to anyone who likes psychological thrillers.

I really wanted to like this book, but everything was predictable from the beginning. Several of the aspects of the book were copied from other mystery/horror books. For example, the maze was very similar to the Shinning.

It was really hard to connect to the main character from the beginning because you knew everything was going to fall apart from the first meeting with the family.

Several of the more interesting aspects of the novel were never followed through.

I absolutely loved this book. It hooked me and kept me turning pages until I was done. Finished it in two days! The character development was strong, and the premise was unique enough that it didn't feel like anything else I've read.

This book is a fun read! I have a hard time reading and had to finish this on audio but loved the audiobook! Great twists and turns Good pacing throughout the story.

Steadman does it again! The Family Game is unlike any thriller I have read before, and that's my go-to genre so I have read a LOT. I loved this one!

Wow this book had tons of great twists. The author does a good job at keeping you guessing throughout the novel. What an incredible ending to this thriller. This novel is the definition of a perfect winter thriller. So happy I gave this book a chance. Five stars all around.

This was an amazing and completely engaging. I was invested from the very first chapter. The characters were complex. The plot was original.

Fantastic, page - turner of a thriller. Wonderful characters, setting and suspense. I didn't see the twist coming till that last few paragraphs.

"We're going to survive this, you and I. They say you can't chose your family but they're wrong. You can. It just takes way more effort than most people are willing to put in."

The Rules are as follows:
1. Listen Carefully
2. Do you research
3. Trust no one
4. Run for you life

This was one of my favorite thrillers of the year !!! This book follows Harry, an author from the UK, who is newly engaged to Edward and in contract for a second novel.. things are really looking good for her. Since they are newly engaged, she has been invited to the family home for the holidays and this family is intense !! Coming from old money, they are very intimidating and overwhelming. But her love for Edward is worth it to her...

This book was sooo intense... family secrets, family traditions and family drama.... perfect. I loved the whole premise of an intense family game, especially from the POV of the "outsider" This book kind of reminded me of the movie "READY OR NOT" and I loved every minute of it !! Also the fact that it takes place over the winter holidays just added an extra element of insanity !! Highly Recommend !!

Harriet "Harry" is a best selling novelist who now has a deadline to produce a follow up best seller. Her fiancé Edward is from one of New York's wealthiest and most powerful families. The thing is, although he's been estranged from his family for quite some time, he is set to inherit all of his family's fortune. Harry convinces Edward to reconcile with his family and that is when the game begins.

Honestly, this one starts out quite slow but the pace definitely picks up. Edward's father, Robert, gives Harry a cassette tape during their first meeting and this tape reveals a confession. Here is where I struggled a bit because Harry listened to it in bits and pieces. Seriously, knowing what it contained, who wouldn't have listened to the tape in one go? My answer is no one.

<b>The Family Game</b> is a psychological thriller with lots of family drama. And while the story is definitely OTT, it is also entertaining and had me wanting to know the outcome. This is my first Catherine Steadman book, but this has piqued my interest to check out her previous work. 3.5 stars rounding up for the entertainment factor.

This book was a great twisty ride all of the way through. I could not predict what was going to happen next, and you didn't know who you should or should not root for. An incredibly wealthy family plays games that are over the top, because why not? They have the money for it. Harriet is finally meeting her fiances family, after Edward has distanced himself from his family for a long time. And Edward's family sure has secrets, but Harriet does as well. And the question is who's secret is going to come out?

Steadman’s latest thriller centers around Harriet—an author who recently moved from London to New York—now engaged to the man of her dreams—Ed Holbeck. It’s time for Harriet “Harry” to meet the very wealthy and influential family Ed has distanced himself from.

The book title is very fitting. The Holbeck family loves games. Very dark and creepy games, even around the holidays. The first time Harriet meets the family is Thanksgiving. After dinner, Ed’s father invites Harry into his study for a private chat. Harry finds herself strangely attracted to Robert Holbeck—an older just as charming version of Ed. Her thoughts are a bit odd. Before they return to the others, he gives her a micro-cassette, stating it’s a book he’s dabbling with. And the games begin!

Harry begins listening to the tape and finds something more interesting than what Robert promised. Is this a threat? A strange welcome into the family? Now that she knows more about the Holbecks, she’s not sure she wants to be part of the family. Is it too late?

Sincere thanks to the Ballantine Books for granting my wish for this gifted ARC through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

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