The premise for this sounded so good and had a lot of potential. However, there were too many characters and spotlighted D.C. politics and the people involved. The execution was bad and predictable and again too many people to keep track of. Not for me and cannot recommend, which is disappointing.

Thanks to Netgalley, Christina McDowell and Gallery Books Scout Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 5/25/21

The description of this book hooked me immediately. I read it in 2 days. I absolutely wanted to love it, and reading the author's note at the end, I got a better understanding of where it was coming from. While I think that there were the best of intentions in writing this book, I think it fell short in a number of ways. I don't think it quite understands what it wants to be. Does it want to be campy? Does it want to be satire? Does it want to cultural dialogue? Does it want to be serious? Does it want to be a guilty pleasure? It hopped around so much, and touched on SO MANY cultural and social issues, that it never got to really take a strong stance on any. Some of the characters were very compelling but didn't really pay off at the end, or became compelling without enough meat. I think what this books suffers from is spreading itself too thing. There is a lot of great stuff to work with, but it all seems a little half-baked. I would have rather this been a series that told a couple stories completely in each installment. I'm left wanting a lot more about everyone and everything, and ultimately it never comes close to answering the real question about what happened to the Banks family.

Only by reading the author's notes at the end of the book, did I get a glimpse into what she was trying to convey in this novel. I think that she missed the mark by a mile. I found the story to be nauseating picture of D.C. society and politics, but I do not think that the author really honed in on the story that she tried to tell. Although I have not read her memoir about the same time period, I feel that she just repeated her story with new names. I cannot recommend this book.

The Cave Dwellers was dark, twisty, and compulsively readable. This is a novel about the elitest of the elite in DC, their kids, and the aftermath of the murder of a prominent powerful family. DC newcomers try to gain entrance to an elite country club. The children attend an elite prep school. There are senators and sex scandals, wealth and environmental disaster. My favorite character was Bunny, an 18 year old daughter of an elite family. Bunny questions everything - her family history and legacy, racism and white supremacy, while trying to figure out how, or even IF, she can escape her history and make it better. Christina McDowell has created a very realistic community of multigenerational characters, all interwoven beautifully. I’m leaving this story with more questions than answers in the best way possible. A big thank you to Gallery Books for the ARC!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Cave Dwellers by Christina McDowell.

In the neighborhood of America's most elite, most political, and wealthy, is a crime that is too heinous to fathom, leaving an entire family dead. But who would want to hurt such a quiet family, in such a seemingly safe neighborhood. But every strong community has it's secrets, and seedy underbelly...

Wow, this shone just a blaringly hot light on so many hot issues we are facing in our country. Class, race, politics, sexual assault, romance, suicide (trigger warning), family dynamics. And even with it's extremely heavy content, it's still entertaining as heck, and I honestly learned a lot. This would be a phenomenal book club read.

This was a really interesting book, especially in view of what all is happening in government at this time. I don't know if all the stuff in the story really does happen or if this is just the tip of the iceberg and we "common folks" don't really have any idea of how these folks really live. I'll bet it's the latter. I did find it a little confusing at places keeping the cast of characters straight but then I discovered that there was a Character Family Tree in the beginning of the book and found that to be very helpful while reading the rest of the story. I would recommend this book but would make sure I pointed out the family tree when I gave the recommendation.

I was intrigued by this book. I felt like the writing was well done. However, there were way too many characters to keep up with and too many side storylines that in the end didn't really matter. Several could have been left out. I also felt like it left the reader hanging - since the murders weren't truly resolved. While white privilege is something we are all used to hearing and coming to terms with - this book just hit you upside the head with it to an extreme. While I do read to learn I also read to enjoy and being beaten over the head with political issues isn't totally what I consider enjoyment when reading fiction. Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me an early reading of this novel!

This was a fascinating look at privilege and power in DC. I was quickly hooked and couldn't stop turning the pages. There were quite a few storylines going, which could get a bit confusing at times, and meant that some of them didn't go as deep as I would have liked. However, all of the storylines were fascinating and interconnected and helped to paint the big picture of DC society. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it left me with interesting questions on the choices people make and how family obligations/pressures shape those choices.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for an ARC of this book.

Just finished reading The Cave Dwellers, and I have a love/don't love relationship with it. Having lived in Washington, DC for a couple of decades, the characters and scenarios generally rang true to me. The writing was good, but the plot was predictable. That said, the characters were engaging enough to hold my interest--for the most part--even though the trajectory of the plot was not terribly original. My chief objection was feeling like I was being clobbered over the head with woke political messaging. Even though I have no disagreement at all with the points being made, I would rather have had that material better integrated into the story. Three stars because the writing was good and the characters were mostly believable, even though the plot was somewhat tired. I would read another book by this author.

"A compulsively readable novel in the vein of The Bonfire of the Vanities - by way of The Nest - about what Washington, DC’s high society members do away from the Capitol building and behind the closed doors of their stately homes.

They are the families considered worthy of a listing in the exclusive Green Book - a discriminative diary created by the niece of Edith Roosevelt’s social secretary. Their aristocratic bloodlines are woven into the very fabric of Washington - generation after generation. Their old money and manner lurk through the cobblestone streets of Georgetown, Kalorama, and Capitol Hill. They only socialize within their inner circle, turning a blind eye to those who come and go on the political merry-go-round. These parents and their children live in gilded existences of power and privilege.

But what they have failed to understand is that the world is changing. And when the family of one of their own is held hostage and brutally murdered, everything about their legacy is called into question.

They’re called The Cave Dwellers."

After the following few years and months in particular I am now kind of Washington, DC obsessed... thankfully there's The Cave Dwellers...

This could have been so much more - A dark, twisty, suspenseful novel but it seemed quite shallow. White privilege is touched on but not explored, there are too many characters for the sake of having characters, and story lines weren't developed enough.

Engaging, depressing, a bit predictable, yet readable novel with way too many extraneous characters that I would still recommend as I looked forward to returning to it whenever I put it down. I enjoyed the author’s writing style and I would read other books written by her. I fluctuated with my rating as I did mostly enjoy reading it but I think the author needs to reduce the number of characters, make it a bit less peachy and a bit less predictable.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an early release in exchange for an honest and fair review.

McDowell's novel nudges the reader's subconscious until we get it: this is a retelling of Plato's Allegory of the Cave adapted to present times! Set in Twenty-First Century Washington D.C., this novel chronicles the lives of the elite--adults and children. The plot is chilling. The prose is exquisite. This is a book to be savored and is going to last a long time. It is not to be missed!

‘This country is eroding…as we know it.” So says Meredith Bartholemew, one of the many entitled one percenters in The Cave Dwellers, a novel that is part mystery, part satire and part comedy of manners.

There are two conflicting sets of characters here. The first are the parents, members of Washington, D.C.’s high society who are wrapped up in their own self importance. Their world of secret societies, exclusive clubs and long dictated behaviors is disintegrating and none of them know how to handle it. Then there are their restless teenage children who have grown up in this world but want more. Breaking out of this life is more painful than they think. So they mitigate this pain with drugs and alcohol.

The novel begins with the horrific triple torture and murder of the Banks family, friends to all. A young African-American man is quickly arrested. Bunny Bartholemew, a friend of the Banks’ daughter, becomes obsessed with the case, much to the horror of her mother. She realizes how her life of privilege sets her apart and tries, but in an insensitive way, to help. Her friends also see how trapped they are by wealth and how hard it will be to give that up.

As you follow these sometimes complicated, interwoven plots, you’ll see the dark undercurrents that make The Cave Dwellers a book to discuss. Race and privilege, political ambition, violent sexual behavior, workplace predators and abuse, both physical and emotional, all bubble under the surface. Christina McDowell grew up in the Washington and knows her subject well. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery Books and Christina McDowell for this ARC.

This is a hard book to rate, and I would probably rank it closer to 3.5. I like what Christina McDowell tried to do in “The Cave Dwellers”, but there is just too much going on. There are way too many characters and subplots and it is often hard to keep them all straight and how everyone is “related”. Also, there is no subtlety, McDowell hits the reader on the head with most of the issues that are prevalent in today’s society. I did “enjoy” this book, if that is the right word, I mean I hated most of the characters, but I did enjoy what McDowell was trying to accomplish, but it just needed to be toned down. However, it is a quick read and it made me want to keep turning the pages. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed the book as much if it didn’t take place in DC and I was familiar with all of the places. However, I do think those that have enjoyed Curtis Sittenfeld and Kristin Gore’s novels then you will most likely like this one.

Huge thanks to Netgalley for providing a free ARC. This book delves into the social hierarchy of Washington DC privileged families, yet leaves a mark of recognition of that privilege. The characters are all interesting and complex and for each family portrayed, there is a hidden truth. The author throws in a social justice theme, which keeps the plot interesting and real. The best scenes are between Bunny, Anthony, and his sister where Bunny learns that even the best intentions cannot save the world. This was a great read. Don’t finish the book until you read the author’s notes as it gives the book even more meaning.

A highly anticipated read this spring.The author spent her early years in Washington, D. C. ,so “ knows of what she speaks”. A scathing, and frankly for me, depressing portrayal of politicos, narcissism, white privilege, jealousy, gossip, scandalous behavior, pathologic ambition, misogyny, and institutions and customs that while still existent, are long past their “ due date”. While it may be “ eye opening” to some, the more cynical reader ( me) will find it “ no surprise”.
I thought it a difficult read, in the sense that their are multiple multiple characters and at times difficult , at least for me, to follow. “Bunny” Bartholomew is the most empathetic,and rebellious, but even at 17-18 years of age seems trapped within the system. If nothing else, you will -post read-not be surprised by the problems our country has.

The Cave Dwellers focuses on the elite of Washington, DC -- both the old families as well as the newer ones trying to break in. As a former resident of the District, it was fun to recognize locations and familiar references, though these characters live in a different world than anyone I knew.

They story begins with the horrific murder of an entire wealthy family and their maid. Some characters go on with their lives as if the event is an unfortunate inconvenience to their sheltered lives. For another, it is the catalyst for a wake-up call as to the reality of the haves and have nots in DC. However none of them really ever breaks out of their "cave". The young woman who seems to be having a moment of enlightenment worries about an African American man who she thinks is unfairly jailed. However, she quickly turns her attention to her lavish drug and booze filled 18th birthday party held at a historic mansion. Overall, it was hard to have much sympathy for any of the characters.

Having said that, I enjoyed reading the story.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this ARC. This review contains my own opinions and is unbiased.

I was immediately drawn in to this twisted tale of DC's elites. There are a lot of characters and it does take some concentration to keep them all straight as so many are quite similar archetypes. I had trouble keeping the wives/moms straight because they all read as very similar to me even though they were supposed to be different enough to have all sorts of petty conflicts with one another.

It was easy to see early on that the author had an agenda, that she wanted to explore issues of race and privilege in this exceptionally privileged and mostly hidden world. I think that this was mostly successful. It was painful to see some characters never have to deal with significant consequences for their behavior, but that is often the painful reality of the world of the elites.

[The one thing I was very disappointed about in this novel was the use of the Russian ambassador's family as villains. When it was discovered that they had leaked an embarrassing video and left town, it seemed like a cheap shot and a perpetuation of unproven media narratives.

I recently finished Ladies of the House - a reimagining of Sense and Sensibility set in the world of DC politics - so when I saw The Cave Dwellers, I was immediately intrigued. I lived and worked in DC for a decade and find books set within its enclaves endlessly fascinating. Well, usually... Unfortunately, this one turned out to be a bit grittier and cruder than I anticipated, with less of the finesse and sophistication I expected given the blurb and premise. The characters and pacing just never grabbed me and I found myself surprisingly uninterested in how it would all play out. From the opening pages I struggled to find my way into the story and ultimately it just wasn't for me.