I quite liked this thriller - I didn't see the twist until the very end and it was quite good. This is my second novel by Catherine Steadman, and I am a fan!

4.5 stars
I really enjoy Catherine Steadman's books, for the twists and the quality of her writing. The Family Game was no exception.
Nothing in this book is as it seems, and can anyone be trusted? Harry has a perfect fiance and is a successful author. She's moved to New York from England. As the holidays approach, her fiance's family, who he's been keeping her away from, suddenly shows a bunch of interest in meeting her. Lots of invitations to holiday events, starting with Thanksgiving, come up, and Harry is thrust into the Holbecks' unconventional and sometimes disturbing traditions, which include multiple nights playing complicated games.
Through it all, Harry tries to decipher the clues her future father-in-law is giving her while protecting her own past secrets.
I especially enjoyed that this suspenseful book takes place between early November and Christmas. Great holiday season thriller/family drama.

Wow what a thrill ride! The twists of this book and I did not expect that ending. I would have liked a bit more of fleshing out of the characters and I feel like the ending was a bit of strange choice for the character, not necessarily in line with what we knew about her. But overall, I enjoyed it. Good domestic suspense!

Harriet (Harry) Reed's thriller writing career is taking off, along with her love life to the heir of the Holbeck family fortune. Newly relocated to America, engaged, and pregnant Harry enters her first stateside holiday season among a family with more secrets than lights on the Rockefeller Christmas tree. When she gets involved with the patriarch of the family, and potential serial killer, Robert Holbeck, can she use her creative skills to get to the bottom of their secrets while keeping her own from derailing her now almost perfect life?

This book was so well paced it made for a quick and captivating read. The story took twists and turns and soon it was easy to predict who the real bad guy was, although how the author got you there and to the ending was a rollercoaster of wild chaos. As we get a glimpse into the lifestyles of the rich and famous Holbecks, the games they play will shock and partially traumatize even the reader as they did for Harry. I didn't know where the ending was going to take me until the final paragraph and it was just as bizarre and winding as the lives of these mysterious people up to that point. Beauty and love woven into tragedy and murder makes for a delightfully twisty, and somewhat messed up, read.

This was a pretty good one. I will say that I did not see the twist at the end.

Harry is a best selling author who is recently engaged to her perfect fiance, Edward. He is from the Holbeck family, the embodiment of American old money. Edward has been estranged from his family for a few years now, but with the impending I do's, it's time for a reunion.

This family is so weird. Every encounter Harry had with them made my skin crawl. From tricking Harry into a Thanksgiving invitation, to scary traditional Christmas games, to the worst Christmas ever I'm sure. I don't want to give anything away. I would definitely recommend to fans of thriller, filthy rich people, and mystery.

My review is going to be in the minority, as I have read so many 4-5 star reviews for The Family Game. Honestly, until I got to about 60% into the story, I was ready to give it a solid 4-4.5 star. However, at this point in the book, things got VERY repetitive. I actually considered DNF'ing at that point, but kept going, again, based on the reviews, because I wanted to see what the big twist would be and how it ended. Well, things continued to get weirder and more far fetched than I could have ever imagined. I did not enjoy the final "twist". The main character, Harry, who I really liked just completely fell apart for me. I wish, in fact, that I would have stopped this book WAY before the point where I considered doing so. I am sorry to say that the last 40% of the book, particularly the last two chapters, dropped my rating all the way to a 2.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Family Game by Catherine Steadman.

Harriet (Harry) cannot be more thrilled with her life. She is on the cusp of her writing career blowing up, and she's also engaged to a beautiful, wealthy man named Edward. And although Harry is anxious to meet her new inlaws-to-be, Edward has his reservations. He has been estranged from the family for some time now, and unsure if he is ready to subject his fiance to them.

Surprisingly, Edward's family finds her, and Harry is thrilled to learn that they are lovely, enthusiastic, and supportive of her. They also can't wait to have her join in on their family holidays, complete with family games. But after Harriet plays the first game for Krampus Nacht (look it up), she is horrified at the types of games they subject themselves to. What is the purpose, and how deep do these games go?

I just wasn't a fan of this story. It tried too hard, and it did too much. I could never quite get into the creepy weird family traditions and vibes, and I hated the dynamic between Harry and Edward's dad Robert.

A wonderful and suspenseful thriller that had been white knuckling the book the entire time. This was everything I want in a tense read with twists and drama that had me hooked.

Highly recommend for thriller lovers or anyone wanting to get into the genre. This can be read all year long but I especially enjoyed this during spooky season.

Catherine Steadman delivers a fun cat-and-mouse game with a juicy twist, but with an ending that ultimately felt rushed and disjointed. Harriet - or Harry - is engaged to Edward Holbeck, the eldest son of an incredibly rich "old money" family that's been accumulating wealth for generations. Until they got engaged, Harry hadn't met anyone from Edward's family, and she's certainly intimidated by this intense, tradition-oriented clan. Over the span of just two months, she meets the Holbecks and is introduced to their strange games - literally, they play games at every family gathering, all of the games serving as a twisted test of the players' aptitude and ruthlessness.

I enjoyed the build up of the novel so much. Harry is a mostly likeable character, and you enjoy rooting for her against this Succession-like family that seems to set her up to fail. The mystery unfolding, the research, and the games all added so much to the story and family lore - the unfolding of Krampusnacht was brilliant and gripping. But the story fell apart for me when Edward and Harry to go "The Hydes" for Christmas. I saw so many glaring plot holes and gaps that couldn't be explained, and the left field twist was somewhat poorly executed, with way too much action trying to be packed in a sparse number of pages. This would have been a five-star read for me if not for the rushed and head-scratching ending.

Thank you to Ballantine for the ARC via Netgalley!

The way the novel unfolds will keep the reader completely engaged. Edward and Harry have been getting to know each other and Harry (Harriett) moves to New York from England as she is a writer. Edward pops the question while ice skating and now they are engaged Harry is introduced and gets to know the famously rich family of Edward's. The novels engrosses the reader in small hints and thrilling tidbits throughout the novel and as Harry gets to know the family the reader is introduced as well learning their traditions and secrets. Will Harry be able to survive all the traditions or will learning the traditions drive her pregnancy to end???? This is definitely a wonderfully laid out and enveloping story that the reader will want to toss everything else aside to finish in a day. Enjoy how the story unfolds and see what the family is really like under the pretty curtains.

Thank you Netgalley, author and publisher for the opportunity.

I didn't know what to expect when I read this book, but oh my gosh was it so much fun! I really enjoyed it. The suspense, the thrills, the drama was priceless. I loved the main character and all of the fun games happening before our eyes. I also enjoyed the pacing of this book was perfect. Never was I bored or overwhelmed. It was aa very well plotted out story and Ill be reading more from this author.

This honestly reminded me a lot of would you rather - but make it into a family version instead? Thrillers having a plot so insane but intertwining that with some family history and sinister games always have me. I loved this a lot and cannot wait to see what others think too!, highly recommend!

4,5 ⭐️

When last year I read The Disappearing Act I finished my review saying it was my favorite book by Catherine Steadman. Well, that honor belongs now to The Family Game. Wow! Such a fantastic read! Me changing favorites every time I read a new one means she’s getting better and better. With so many thrillers out there with similar plots and characters, Catherine Steadman always presents interesting and original plots that keep you on the edge of your seat.

Imagine meeting your in-laws for the first time. Stressful, right? Now imagine those in-laws are part of the 1% and your fiancé has had a estranged relationship with them for years because of their high expectations. Not the most appealing scenario. That’s the situation Harry, a novelist from the UK, finds herself in. The Holbecks seem to welcome her with open arms, so she’s drawn right into their world, but the Holbecks like their games so when Robert, the patriarch, gives Harry and old cassette tape making a shocking confession, a twisted game that could turn out deadly will be set in motion.

The start had all the fairy tale ingredients, engaging the reader right from the start. Although things took a while to start moving forward, I was completely mesmerized by the Holbecks. They might have been a bit over the top, but their dynamics were so intriguing, and the promise of so many dark secrets so captivating, I found myself listening to the audiobook every single free moment I had (the author herself made once again an incredible job with the narration. Perks of being an actress, I guess 😄).

The family games don’t resemble at all any kind of games I’ve ever played with my family, and thank goodness! The Krampusnacht game almost gave me nightmares! The atmosphere the author managed to convey was out of this world, and the sense of menace was present even in the most benign settings.

Once Christmas arrived the final fireworks were lighted, and what a remarkable thing they were. Was it OTT? Definitely, but it was so much fun, with so many unexpected twists that I was completely in from start to finish.

The Family Game was a twisty and entertaining story, with raising tension all throughout (forget boring Monopoly or card games), where winning or losing could be a matter of life or death. Absolutely recommended.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read almost all of Steadman’s work and this is one of my favorites. The Family Game is a cat and mouse thriller that induced fear and anxiety. Then, made me second guess why I was even anxious to begin with. I changed my opinion about who the “bad guy” was several times, but in the end, this thriller took me for a ride! It’ll definitely make me think twice if I find myself marrying into a wealthy family. Haha! I highly recommend this one for any thrill seekers.

A good mix of family drama and thriller. I love Catherine Steadman and this is no exception. The pacing and mystery were good and there was a clear build up to the twist.

I was hooked, intrigued and a bit terrified from the first sentence of the prologue. Reading this story I was simultaneously fearful of the Holbeck family and also quite irritated with them. Their family holiday traditions were outright crazy, and definitely not anything I would choose to take part in! I had a hard time relating to any of the Holbeck family members due to their immense wealth, but I loved Harry and the way her mind worked. The fact that she was an author was a good touch, allowing her to work out all the details of the crimes through the lens of book writing research. In hindsight, I should have been able to figure out who was behind everything, and yet I was blindsided when it was revealed. Once I put all the pieces together I couldn't read the book fast enough to see how it would all play out.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

The thriller genre is the one I read the most so I always grade them pretty critically but this one I actually really enjoyed. There is lots of family drama, lots of secrets, and lots to keep readers interested. I will say I wish I listened to this one on audio because I heard the tape player part was cool to listen to so if that's an option for you, I would highly consider it. If you've read this book please slide into my DMs so we can talk about it!

Let it be known that a neon cover font will have my immediate attention 👀

Thank you to Ballantine Books of @penguinrandomhouse for my gifted eARC of “The Family Game” by Catherine Steadman. It’s out this Tuesday, 10/18, and was also a @bookofthemonth pick for October.

⭐️ rating: 3.75 (rounded to 4 on @goodreads)
📚genre: domestic suspense
#️⃣ length: 322 pages
🗓 pub date: 10/18
⏳pace: slow burn
🧮 the vibe: The undeniable power of old money

I would compare this one to “Good Rich People” by Eliza Jane Brazier. Very similar vibe. This one gets extraordinarily dark at about the 80% mark, and I love a moment in a book that’s so dark you have to reread it and sit there stunned.

Synopsis: Up-and-coming novelist Harriet is engaged to Edward Holbeck, heir to a very powerful old-money family. Edward has teetered on estrangement from his family, but his impending nuptials have brought him back into their orbit.

Harriet’s father-in-law-to-be hands her a cassette of a book he’s been working on — but it’s actually a murder confession. Now it’s up to Harriet to figure out how to handle this: is it a game to test her loyalty to the Holbecks? If not, what is it?

This was a like, not a love, for me. If you like rich people behaving badly tropes, this one is for you. The writing was fantastic; it’s just a slow burn, and I really have to be in the mood for that.

I'm going to start by saying that The Family Game is filled with messed up family games and weird traditions that I sure as hell never want to play or be part of. This book was all kinds of twisted. If you ever encounter a family similar to the Holbeck's, run, don't walk, very very far away. Catherine Stedman can definitely write a novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Plus that ending! I did not see that one coming at all. Yeah...This is one family game I'm not playing.

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author!