Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced audiobook copy.
This book had two narrators. Both did an excellent job. As for the book it was OK. It’s based on a lot of neighborhood drama. I would not consider this a thriller.

This started very slow. There was also too many characters and side plots for me. It picked up towards the middle. Overall it was an ok read. Maybe good for a vacation read.

****Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review****

Synopsis:
"This summer, meet your neighbors.
The residents of the exclusive cul-de-sac on Alton Road are entangled in a web of secrets and scandal utterly unknown to the outside world, and even to each other.
On the night of the annual Summer block party, there has been a murder.
But, who did it and why takes readers back one year earlier, as rivalries and betrayals unfold—discovering that the real danger lies within their own block and nothing—and no one—is ever as it seems."

My Thoughts:
We follow all the drama on Alton Road through two POV's, Alex and her teenage daughter Lettie. Following both an adult and teen POV rewards the reader with greater insight into the happenings in this neighborhood. We see just how intertwined they all truly are and quickly realize that danger is bubbling to the surface.
There are a lot of characters in this story and it took me a few chapters to understand who was who. While the story felt a little slow at times, other times I was on the edge of my seat. I was fully engaged throughout and enjoyed the multiple twists along the way. Just when I thought I was putting some pieces together, there would be a twist that I hadn't seen coming. This is a fun, twisty ride that kept me guessing right up until the end.

Thank you to @netgalley , @stmartinspress , and @macmillan.audio for the gifted copy of this book.

Thank you St. Martin's Press (ebook) and MacMillan (audiobook) for this salacious secret filled summer read. The Block Party starts off with a murder and then goes back one year earlier to lead the reader into the world of privileged neighborhood lives, uncovering a range of secrets, lies, and manipulations that make you think a lot of people had reason to commit murder.

An engaging, fast paced suspense book that brings the reader into the lives of several characters, connecting to themes on marital strain, drinking, substance use, and the lies that can keep people together or tear them apart. What stood out to me was that many of the themes covered a very real and relatable, delivered with nuance, and done in a way that made me care about most (not all) of the characters, even if they had a lot of flaws. There were some great contextual notes with short segments of posts from the community board (think NextDoor) that were pitch perfect.

Great for fans of the newly released Bad Summer People and books such as Big Little Lies.

One note to readers: there is a significant focus on some high school students, children of the main characters who are also fairly main characters as well. At times the book could feel a little YA given the focus; this worked for me as I thought it actually added depth to what was really going on in all of the lives in the neighborhood and in the families featured but it might not work for every reader.

Wow! So many secrets and lies plus so much drama and dysfunction equals a FABULOUS read! I devoured this audiobook! I was hooked right out of the gate and until the very last word.

4.5/5 stars, rounded up

Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy!

Alton Road is the home to wealthy, stable families in gorgeous homes. At least, they want you to think they're stable. The annual Summer Block Party is the kick off to summer. This year, though, the unexpected spark is a MURDER. Traveling back throughout the year leading up to the tragedy, we're given an insight into the hefty dose of drama the residents are causing and kept guessing about just who is going to get murdered, and why.

I'm going to start with my only complaint: this is not a thriller. Were there aspects of a thriller/mystery? Sure. But this was WAY more a domestic drama/suspense than anything. That being said... I really liked this one. Similar vibes to BAD SUMMER PEOPLE, but better written, in my opinion. The two narrators did a GREAT job -- I particularly liked Leti's representation, it was super believable!

This book had great summer vibes, even though it had elements of an entire year. The characters were complex and full of fun-to-read drama. There was some great growth, especially in Leti (can you tell I had a soft spot for her?) and that made this all the more fun to read. I really didn't know how things were going to end up until the very end, which is always fun. The setting was great and made for an intriguing spectacle. All in all, a solid, summer read that was great on audio. Well-written, fun and clever take on the rich-people-up-to-no-good trope.

I flew through the audiobook in less than 24 hours!! Such a fantastic hook, interesting family dramas brewing through the neighborhood, and palatable suspense in every chapter as the reader tries to figure out if and how the dramas are connected. The story begins at the annual Memorial Day Block Party where someone ends up murdered. The story then flashes back over the year leading up to this fateful night and it told through the dual POV of Alex (mother) and Lettie (teenager daughter). This read has all the drama: lies, stalking, cheating, revenge, drinking/drugs, and eventually murder. Having the two POVs kept the story fresh and offered insight into how the tension and tension between the adults impacted the lives of their children. I swear by the end of this read, I had second guessed every possible connection and I still missed the mark. The ending was draw dropping and nicely buttoned up, which I appreciate from a great thriller. Kudos to the two narrators who did a fantastic job adding nuance, suspense, and drama into their performance!

Don’t hesitate! You need to add this to your summer TBR as soon as possible.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this digital ALC in exchange for my honest review. I will add a link to my social post closer to the pub date.

Thank you to Jamie Day, St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

I did not see the plot twists coming in this book at all! I love when books can surprise me like that. The different POVs were easy to follow along with and added an extra layer to learning about the characters. While I did enjoy this book overall, I did feel like the pacing was off. It took me a while to really get into it. The first 55-60% of the book were pretty slow in my opinion, However, once the pacing picked up I couldn't stop reading this book. The Block Party is a book I will be recommending for a fun summer read!

I was lucky enough to be able to read the ebook and listen to the audiobook. The narrators did a great job. Their narration was fun to listen to and really helped me pushing through some of the slower pacing throughout the book. Macmillan Audio always does a fantastic job with casting their narrators and this audiobook is no different with the great casting job.

4ish stars

I really enjoyed this domestic suspense thriller. I didn’t really know who the “bad guy” was until the ending, and although it wasn’t a huge surprise, in hindsight, I wasn’t upset by the conclusion. There was a lot going on throughout the story, and for some reason, I had trouble keeping some of the major characters separate in my mind. Although that made things a bit confusing at times, the overall premise worked and was intriguing, if not a wholly new concept, and I had fun reading it.

Thanks to NetGalley for an audiobook ARC. I ABSOLUTELY devoured this. I love a good fancy neighborhood scandal novel… and this was exactly that. Lots of Big Little Lies vibes, and I am 100% here for it. I hope this book is super successful!

Thank you Netgally and MacMillan audio for the free ALC in exchange for honest review. I had really high hopes and unfortunately this didn't work for me I dnf it at 45% it was moving far too slow at 2x speed.

That should really be called The Real housewives of Alton Road. I'm a Housewives fan of most of the franchises, and this audiobook really reminded me of that.

We have Alex & Nick and their 17 years old Lettie. Alex is an attorney who tries to negotiate divorces. Lettie is a smart kid, but is a misfit that and I don't think she minds that at all. She beats to her own drum.

Then there's Emily who happens to be Alex's sister and her husband, Ken. They have two sons who are athletic.

Then we have Willow and her husband Evan, who are in the middle of a divorce and their 17 years old Riley.

The Kumars. Samir & Mandy are the newest neighbors and their 20 your old son, Jay lives with them.

We also have Brooke, who is the black widow of the bunch.

There's a lot of juice that happens between this cast of characters. Gossip and juice that kept me wanting more. I really got involved in all of the storylines. I liked the way it wrapped up. Just who is the murderer? You'll have to read this to find out! I highly recommend it.

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Every year the residents of Alton Road have a block party where things can sometimes get out of hand, but this time sirens have neighbors going to the Facebook community page to see what is going on. Signs are pointing to a homicide, but who? And how? Nobody knows! This group of neighbors has it all! An alcoholic, a mysterious widow, new neighbors with a lot of secrets, a couple about to divorce, and that’s not even including the kids and all of their drama! As we are taken back through the previous year up to the night of the homicide, we learn so many secrets about these characters! This is one domestic thriller that is not to be missed!

This book includes all the drama and doesn’t leave much out! It is addictive and so well executed in my opinion. I really enjoyed how the author nails switching from a YA POV to an adult POV so seamlessly! I feel like that can be difficult, but I really enjoyed all of the varying narrators throughout! And if you have ever been in a neighborhood Facebook page, you will love the excerpts that are included from that! It is so spot on to how people interact! I found myself laughing out loud! There are so many conflicts and drama with different kids and adults throughout this book and each one is wrapped up so nicely! Even in the epilogue, I had questions, and they were all answered before the end of the book! I loved the end! The narrators did an amazing job of keeping me so wrapped up in this story! Highly recommend audio!

Wow this one was insane! I’m pretty sure my jaw stayed on the floor for 2 minutes after I was done, because WOW. Highly recommend!

Thank you #NetGalley and #MacmillanAudio for the opportunity to read and review of #TheBlockParty by #JamieDay. This was an amazing book. Loved the drama and secrets the neighbors had. Highly recommended.

I had high hopes for The Block Party by Jamie Day but unfortunately had to "not finish" it at 44 percent. I found the cast of characters friendships not believable and thought that the events occurring throughout had no relation to the plot line. The most interesting part to me was the little tidbits on the message boards, which weren't leading to the "before" sections.

Who doesn't love a good party?

Although I almost always enjoy books about dysfunctional and unlikeable protagonists from posh neighborhoods attending parties, this book was not for me.

WHY?

Too many characters with too much back-and-forth between the then and now.

I much prefer books with fewer well-developed characters.

Also, when I selected this book, I was not aware that it contained these triggers: rape, drugs, a teenager sleeping with her boyfriend's father, and suicide.

I listened to the audiobook read by Megan Tusing and Suzy Jackson. The narration was good but not great.

I'm clearly in the minority so check out the many glowing reviews.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 ⭐️
Suspenseful and entertaining story, however, I did feel like there was an excessive amount of side characters that were hard to keep track of. Made it more of a chaotic read.

*Thank you to the author, the publishers, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ahead of its publication date*

Someone is murdered during a prestigious neighborhood’s block party for Memorial Day! Everyone in attendance and in the neighborhood has secrets that they are keeping hidden. It could be anyone of them that was murdered and anyone of them could be the killer.

This was a slow burn murder mystery that was full of drama and secrets. I recommend if you like watching reality TV with hot mess characters.

Thank you @macmillan.audio and @netgalley for allowing me to listen to this audiobook ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

The story opens at the annual neighborhood block party. We then go back a year in time to the previous years’ party where someone was murdered. Everyone in this neighborhood has secrets and dysfunctional relationships are the norm.

There are a lot of characters here, but they are easy to keep straight. This is a fun domestic drama and the narration on the audio is well done. Thank you to @netgalley @macmillan.audio for an advance audio copy.