I didn't ask for this book and has no plans intentions or reading it. The re idea currently sound like it's not a book I would want to finish.

This book about a team put in place to prevent catastrophe with Y2K looking, started off promising. Who doesn’t love a book set in the 90’s? But the two main characters, Steve and John are so unlikeable that I found it distracting. I didn’t love the overt sexism and misogyny, even considering that the setting was the 90’s. Overall I wasn’t a fan, the story dragged in most parts and I honestly couldn’t wait until it ended. 2.5 stars rounded up. *thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this free book in exchange for an honest review’

I really apologize to the author and all who worked on the book - but I had to DNF this one. It just included a tad too much sexism, unlikeable characters, and the writing just was not my style. I hope others find this book enjoyable and it could just be the wrong book for the wrong reader in my case. I believe the synopsis on this one was more entertaining that the book - I was excited to read about Y2K and the perspective of those during that time and it felt like maybe it would be a thrilling book, but it just wasn't for me. I hope it finds the right audience and readers.

I enjoyed the plot line, it was a nostalgic trip back to the 90s and the Y2K times, but the sexism and writing style was NOT for me. It was almost a DNF, but I made it through to mainly see if anything could be redeemed. Sadly, this is a 1 star for me, and the plot idea had alot of potential.

Net Galley Arc
It took me awhile to get thru this one.
Story starts in late 90s early 2000s during the tech, dot.com, Y2K era. Two colleagues Steve and John develop a friendship that is competitive. John is more successful, comes up with some innovations to deal with Y2K which results in a promotion. Resentments and jealousy begin to grow reaching a pinnacle at a housewarming party.
Story is told in Steve’s POV. His character comes off petulant and whiny which made for a hard read because he was so unlikeable. The story had potential and I was able to keep up with tech talk. It was an interesting time albeit a sexist time which some cringe moments when women were commented about in a degrading manner.
Lots of political and religious talk that felt like fillers and unnecessary.
I did hang in there wanting to know what happened but was left disappointed in the end.

Ⓑⓞⓞⓚ Ⓡⓔⓥⓘⓔⓦ⭐⭐⭐

𝕄𝕒𝕟𝕪 𝔸𝕣𝕖 𝕀𝕟𝕧𝕚𝕥𝕖𝕕
𝗗𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘀 𝗖𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮
Psychological Fiction
254 pages

Sʜᴏᴿᴛ Sʏɴᴏᴘsɪs

This is a story about friends working to figure out the Y2K problem before it came to fruition. John and Steve move on with their lives, one changing jobs. They find each other again, and issues arise.

Mʸ Tᴴᴼᵁᴳᴴᵀs

I had trouble getting into this story. The characters weren’t likable, and it was a bit of a downer. Greed and jealousy were a big part of the story. The ending was pretty good though.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing this ebook for me to read and review.

This book wasn't my favorite. I felt like the pacing was incredibly slow and the plot was all over the place. I was also not a big fan of the writing. This was a no go for me.

Many Are Invited by Cuesta. Entertaining throughout. I haven’t seen this one around much but think everyone should take a dive into this read. You won’t be disappointed. Greed and jealousy abounds. Pre Y2K read, great for book clubs!

Back in the shadow of Y2K Steve meets John. They quickly become friends, but there is jealousy and resentment. Or, at least there is on Steve's side and that is who's POV this story is told. The book begins long after "the event" and then goes back to the beginning. I read the reviews on this one before I started this book and I was expecting it to be awful. It wasn't. The characters are unlikable. But unlikable characters can still tell a good story. Steve is incredibly self absorbed. Both Steve and John demonstrate some toxic masculinity and the way they talk about women is less than ideal. But they felt like a guy you got asked out by once that when you turned them down told you that they were just being nice and that you're actually ugly. So, they felt like actual people. Not ones you want to spend time with outside of a book but people. This is a retelling of The Great Gatsby and there are some references in the book. I haven't read The Great Gatsby, so I can't compare the two. The book was a quick read and keeps the reader interested. The author does not try to explain away or justify anyone's bad behavior, so I did not find it problematic.

Thank you to netgalley.com for this ARC.

This book was just okay for me. I liked the premise of it and it was a quick read, but never really connected with the main character. He wasn't very likeable and there were definitely some odd things that happened. I was about the same age of the characters at the time the story takes place, but just couldn't relate.

Not a bad book, just not necessarily for me.

This book is from a time that doesn't seem all that distant to me, following two guys that are much like like a famously misogynist that is constantly in the news. I'm okay with ugly characters that.reflect our ugly reality, but I need something more in the writing to make it worthwhile as a read.

Thank you NetGalley and Celestial Eyes Press for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. I found the start of this story to be a little heavy on the technology side of the Y2K concern. My background is IT so it didn’t bother me, but I can see where it could hinder others. Ultimately, what turned me off the most was the sexiest commentary of the male main characters right from the beginning. This just isn’t a point of view I care to read, so I ultimately put this book aside for something else.

This was one of those books that you read, you don't particularly mind, but.... just doesn't captivate you, you know? I think the characters were okay, but not immediately likeable or relatable. The suspense is typical, but not surprising or intense. After reading, it was hard to remember what all happened because everything came across as so neutral.

Predictable. A bit of a snooze fest. Not what I expected. Disappointed.

Cannot recommend.

Thanks to Netgalley, Dennis Cuesta and Celestial Eyes Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Already available.

The gist of the novel, Many Are Invited centers around 4 friends and the mystery surrounding a housewarming party that ends in a tragedy. It is a story during the late 1990’s about the emerging Y2K problem, the growing Internet expansion, the raging real estate market and basically focus of four obnoxious characters: Lauren, Mary, Steve, and John. It is a story of jealous and secrets, specifically our narrator Steven’s jealously of John life and work directions. It is his behavior and childishness that set-in motion the tragedy that occurs during Mary and John’s housewarming party.

I had a lot of issues with the novel and felt I was not the targeted reader. Mainly the constant berating of women, how they were treated and talked about between John and Steve got old. The sexist views in the novel were unwelcomed. Many Are Invited thankfully was not a long book and had short chapters, but it took a good 70% of the meat book had any interesting things happen.

Thank you to Netgalley, Celestial Eyes Press for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Release date for Many Are Invitedis October 6, 2022

A quick read, Many Are Invited took me back in time to late 1999, a time I remember well and miss terribly.
The novel is psychological and tense, and deals with friendship, pain, love and consequences.
I didn't see the ending coming and was blown away.
Cuesta did an amazing job of capturing the lifestyle of 1999, a day that would offend today.

The timeline of this book takes place in the late 1990s, right in midst of the Y2K crisis. The story is told from our main character Steve’s perspective. Steve spent several years working for a telecom company and became friends with another person who was employed there named John. One day Steve dares John to talk to an attractive woman at a department store but John ends up chatting with another woman named Mary, who works in the same department store as the other woman. John and Mary quickly fall for each other and get married. The other woman, named Lauren, happened to also be Mary’s roommate. Later on in the story, there is a housewarming party for John and Mary. Mary invited a lot of people to attend the party. A lot of things happen that night at the party that are life altering for all of them. I did not expect the ending to play out the way it did. It was a bit of a slow burn but I found all the main characters and supporting characters interesting. I was invited to read this book by NetGalley in exchange for a review.

I got about halfway though and was done the way he talked about women was not okay. I would walk past this book.

I really loved this book in a new to my series and author. I can't wait to read the next one. The characters and location really add to the plot. This book keeps you guessing until the end

Dennis Cuesta does a fantastic job of transporting me back to the pre-Y2K days when people were scrambling to come up with ways to save us from ‘the great terrible thing’ that would happen when 01/01/2000 arrived. The memories of the mass hysteria came bubbling up, reminding me of a time when new jobs were created solely to find solutions for our future unknown problems (that thankfully never happened)..

Like the classic novel “The Great Gatsby” that it refers to, this story is very much about how greed and jealousy destroy lives. It opens with our narrator Steve attempting to come to grips with a tragedy that happened twenty years ago, around the start of the new millennium. He seeks the guidance of a priest, and then a therapist, but then finally finds comfort from writing out his account of what transpired.

His story brings us to the late 1990’s and we learn that from their very first meeting, Steve finds immediate issue with his co-worker John. The two are brought together on a Year 2000 Compliance taskforce, and the lower ranking Steve is jealous right from that start, wanting what John has and feeling like John doesn’t deserve any of it – the better paying job, the more expensive car, the bigger house. “People our age weren’t supposed to have director titles.”

As much as Steve dislikes John, they still spend a lot of time together, and together they meet roommates Lauren and Mary. The ladies also have a troubled friendship dating back years that gives them plenty of ammunition to stab each other in the back with when they’re not looking. These four are ugly people on the inside, keeping secrets, lying, and holding clandestine meetings, all of which makes for a very interesting and page-turning story. Oh, the drama! In the end it’s through their jealousy and betrayal that leads to the tragedy that continues to haunt Steve decades later. I must say the ending is quite satisfying.

It must be said that the banter between the two main male characters is notably cringeworthy, but it was a part of the reality back then with some people. John and Steve nickname and number women, and use derogatory comments throughout the story, but this is Cuesta setting the stage for that time period, and those really were different times back in the late ‘90’s. It reminded me of the ways women were objectified back in those days – It could be horrible. It was a part of the way things were before we survived 1/1/2000 and the world eventually got woke.

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.