Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC!

This was an atmospheric, vacation thriller that grabbed my attention from the first chapter. The windswept remote Cornwall setting and the characters' inability to reach out the outside world really amped up the tension. I liked the multiple POV setup and the way it made me doubt who the killer actually could be. I did not see the twist or killer coming and it was definitely unexpected. I will say that I felt the killer's motive to be a bit tenuous as part of the overall plot. This was a good thriller overall and I will pick up another book by Hannah Richell in the future. A good quick read.

I read this book in 24 hours; that’s how good it is!

I really enjoyed the multiple POVs and the fact that the children play an equal, if not bigger, role than the adults in the plot development. The dual timelines give us a better understanding of the events leading up to present day, even though they led me to the wrong suspect! It was infuriating at times when characters were referred to only by pronouns, and so obviously, I didn’t know who specifically was being talked about, but that’s exactly what helps build the suspense and allows for some major plot twists!

This book addresses the impact of bullying, childhood trauma and suicide, so please check the trigger warnings before reading. Bravo to Richell for handling these heavy topics in such a sensitive manner.

One of my favourite things about this book is the exploration of the bond between parents and their children, as well as that between children themselves.

Title: The Search Party
Author: Hannah Richell
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: January 16, 2024



Max and Annie Kingsley with their twelve year old son Kip, left their hectic yet plush lives in London to move out in the wild countryside to open a glamping business while also wanting to secure a more safer environment for their son who was not thriving in their old life due to many PTSD issues from his old life before Max and Annie.

The Kingsley's want to make a trial run of their business so they invited three close old university friends with their families on a three day reunion to catch up on all their lives since they only see each other once a year if they're lucky.

No one could have predicted the internal fires of resentment and chaos of unexpected and unexpressed feelings that had been buried throughout the years would now be simmering then boiling over into the tranquil environment with a couple of missing children where the adults hadn't noticed until it was too late. When a merciless brutal storm beats down on the families with downed wires and no connections to the outside world and now a couple of adults are missing as well. The chances for everyone to survive is lessened by the hour as the once close friends point fingers of blame with their anger while the friendships deteriorate rapidly where they have become adversaries which will have dire consequences for every person who came to have a relaxing "glamping" trip in the peaceful countryside which is no more than a bitter end to twenty year friendships.

This was a wonderful read for myself filled with so much anxiety, secrets, big egoes, jealousy, hidden insecurities, catty spouses along with a few unhappy children who didn't want to be part of this glamping reunion. The writing and editing were very well done which made the book an exciting pleasure to read. The pacing of the book starts slow and easy and then just continues to build with a frenzy of emotion spilling forth from all of the characters which I loved. All the characters were interesting and well-written where I cared about what would happen to all of these flawed humans among the chaos of the relentless storm and tempers tumbling out of control. The book's suspense truly lived up to the climax which left every family affected in ways that were unpredictable in so many ways.

This was my first book by Hannah Richelle and I will definitely be looking for more of her works in the future.


I want to thank the publisher "Atria Books" and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this novel and any thoughts or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I highly recommend this novel and have given a rating of 4 1/2 UNRELENTING AND DRAMATIC 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌠 STARS!!

The first thing I thought after finishing this was: I feel like I have read this before 🤔 and that’s probably because I basically have. A college friend group reunion thriller taking place in a remote location during a storm… THE GUEST LIST (and many other similar thrillers) anyone?

BUT I will say still enjoyed listening to this one despite some of the cliches and tired themes. You might also enjoy if you like:
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦family/friend group drama
✌🏻multiple POV
🔦missing person investigation
⛈”locked room” mystery
🌊remote atmospheric location

See, this is why even glamping doesn’t work for me! Ya girl needs some luxury (and a wifi connection!) to feel safe. The prologue will really hook you and I read this one pretty quickly. The atmosphere was moody and I love when a book has a map! I enjoyed the mix of weekend POV with the police involvement as it kept the suspense high. I was really enjoying this one but guessed the ending pretty early on which then was a bit disappointing as I got to the end.

Thank you Atria for the review copy of The Search Party, this is a great read for a snowy (or for me rainy/icy and cold) weekend. I love a locked room theme and the glamping setting in Cornwall was great too, though the setting was underused as at times a story like this should make the setting almost like a character in the book. I at times found the multiple POVs a little distracting, it slowed the pace down= and muddied the plot progression a bit, but that is often the case for me with multiple POVs. The book didn't for me quite hold up the promise of the beginning, likely because the different timelines/POVs never quite let me get into the pace of the book, kept me from feeling connected to the plot and characters.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria books for this ARC.

A very dark, intense, and twisted book about college friends who meet for a glamping trip with their families, but every thing does not go as planned due to a change in weather that changes every thing. The story seems simple, but it is a big maze with many dead ends. Everyone is spilling the tea about their partners and their kids! All the secrets are exposed and everyone’s truest form is out in the open. Jealousy and betrayal, no one can be trusted.

I enjoyed Kip’s story as I thought this was a unique aspect that added a mysterious component to this thriller as well as providing a parental point of view of adopting a child who has trauma from the past. We also go through the typical teenage drama and emotions with Scarlet and how difficult it is to bond with/understand your child during that age.

There were some points where it was hard to keep up with the multiple characters, but the ending was well written from Annie’s point of view to wrap up the book!

This is way out there but I wished all the NetGalley titles had the Read an Excerpt.
After reading the excerpt I knew I had to finish this intriguing story and it didn’t disappoint.

The Search Party by Hannah Richell is a suspenseful and taut page-turner that is impossible to put down! Richell captivated me with its twisty premise and left me spellbound by the memory of its flawed but richly-drawn characters. She painted a very vivid picture. And the characters were captivating and drew me in.
A atmospheric destination thriller that kept me entertained and eager to flip those kindle pages.

Thank You NetGalley and Atria Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I love how the backstories of each family slowly unfolded, and the layers of mystery and secrets that surround this group and location. The setting had me hooked! Moody and mysterious!

Max and Annie Kingsley are unhappy with their hectic life in London, so they move to Cornwall to start a “glamping” business. Things are looking up for the couple and their adopted son, Kip, is also doing better in this new environment. Before their grand opening, Max and Annie invite their old university friends and their families for a trial run. With the exception of the limited cell phone and internet service, their friends are impressed with how nice everything is. However, not everyone is getting along - tempers start to flare and explosive secrets could come out. It gets worse when an incident happens between the children and now a storm comes in, putting more than one person in the group in danger.

I enjoyed this destination thriller/family drama. This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but I like her writing style. The story is told from multiple points-of-view at a few different times throughout the weekend. Not all of the characters are likable and my opinion of a few of them keeps changing as more revelations occur. The story takes a bit to get going, but becomes very tense and suspenseful as the storm starts moving into the area. It soon becomes clear that something terrible happens, but you’re not sure what it is or who the victim is. I was able to guess a few of the plot twists, but there were still a few surprises to keep me guessing. I was entertained by this story and liked the way things wrapped up at the end. Overall, it’s an enjoyable and satisfying book.

I received this ebook from NetGalley through the courtesy of Atria Books. An advance copy was provided to me at no cost, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

Max and Annie are enjoying their quiet, remote life now that they have left London with their son to open a glamping site. To test out their site before opening they invite their college friends and their families for a weekend of fun and bonding. Tensions and secrets start boiling over as a powerful storm hits the area and leaves them stranded with no power and no way out as one of the children go missing. Will they be able to find them in time or will their past mistakes prove deadly?

This book is filled with tension in the best way. I was worried at first because it does start off a bit slow and there are lots of characters to learn about but the buildup was needed and much appreciated. Once it starts going though, hold on for the wild ride this book takes you on. Told from multiple POVs and timelines this book keeps you guessing and gave me little panic attacks thinking about what would I do to save my child. I can totally see this getting turned into a movie!

So many twists in this book - had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I loved the premise of a glamping weekend with old friends and their families, gone horribly wrong.

I was worried about the number of characters and thinking I’d get confused trying to keep track of them all, but the author did a great job developing them and letting the reader get to know each one with their perspectives in different chapters.

Really enjoyed this and would highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for the ARC. 🙏

THE SEARCH PARTY was hard to put down. I enjoyed the plot and the multiple POV's. It will not be a story I will soon forget.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for my gifted copy. I will be recommending THE SEARCH PARTY to my customers.

I was really intrigued by the premise of the plot! I love a good locked room mystery. I wish the author gave us a little bit more in terms of the plot. I also thought there were too many POVs - not enough time to really develop the POVs for all of the characters used. The end was fairly predictable and I didn't love the Josh's sister/Dominic storyline, felt myself skimming a lot of the text towards the end. Overall, I liked it, didn't love it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this advance read. The book started strong for me. The only issue was the amount of characters but I was able to handle it due to the character list. I think the book was quite good but it may be a bit too long and it was extended by the amount of characters and that was a bit odd for me.

DNF at 25%. This definitely might have just been a case of the wrong time for me to try this one. Home sick with a miserable head cold I thought I would love to get lost in a locked room mystery. Unfortunately - this wasn’t it for me. There are many different character POVs and different timelines and I’m finding it hard to care much about any of it. This feels so similar to so many things I’ve read before and my overwhelming feeling is I just don’t care. Note: as I said at the start this could definitely be coming from the fact that I’m generally sick and miserable at the moment so ymmv. Thank you to the publisher, Netgalley and Librofm for the free ebook and audiobook to review.

🎧: The Search Party by Hannah Richell (@hannahrichell)
⭐️: 4/5

A reunion destination thriller set among a group of longtime friends with a weekend that goes terribly wrong.

Max and Annie left the city with their son, Kip, to the countryside where they - of all things - decide to open a glamping site. (Is a glamping campsite called a glamp-site? I digress…) When their friends and their families arrive for a glamping getaway, the secrets start to unravel quickly, ending in disappearance and death.

At first glance, I was concerned with the extensive character list at the start of this book, but Richell was able to get all the narratives in without confusion. The ending, while predictable as it approached, was still completely captivating and a stay-up-late-to-finish kind of page turner.

Big thanks to @atriabooks via @netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for a honest review. The Search Party is out on January 16th!

Max and Annie have moved on from London to start a glamping business in the wilds of Cornwall. With their business nearly ready, they invite a group of their friends and their kids along for a test run. As the weather turns and isolation creeps in, one of their own goes missing…

THE SEARCH PARTY by Hannah Richell is a destination thriller that dives into old friendships and the lengths a parent will go through to protect their child.

This is my first read by Richell and it pulled me in immediately!

The atmosphere really built an eerie tone and the rotating POVs and mixing in of the police investigation kept me wanting to read more.

By the end, I did feel the “destination” aspect of this book wasn’t utilized as much as it could have been and some of the story choices didn’t fully click, but it was an intriguing read regardless!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Publication Date: January 16

This one started out stronger than it finished. What began as an interesting premise ended up a convoluted and rather corny plot. Not recommended.

The Search Party by Hannah Richell is a highly recommended mystery. This locked-room thriller is part mystery and part procedural that gets better with each chapter.

A group of old friends are going to a glamping site for a reunion weekend. Max and Annie Kingsley with their twelve-year-old son Kip have left London and are setting up a glamping site/business named Wildernest in Cornwall. They have invited their old university friends, Dominic Davies (with his wife Tanya), Kira de Silva (with partner Frank), Jim Miller, and Suze Miller along with everyone's children join them for the long May Day weekend. Their last reunion was tense, but everyone is hopeful this will be better until tensions arise the first night when a misunderstanding between children causes Dominic to lose his temper and he holds on to his anger. The weekend heads downhill from this.

The Search Party opens with a map of the area and a list of characters. The characters are all quite distinctive as individuals, so it is easy to differentiate between them. An ominous foreboding atmosphere is set at the opening of the novel where a young woman is planning to jump off a cliff. The locked room aspect sets in immediately because when guests arrive they learn that there is no phone reception. Then later a storm rolls in, cutting power and access off. The procedural elements are found in the narrative, which allows the story to unfold between current questioning by police and past recounts of what happened during the weekend.

Because the answers to all your questions are slowly revealed during police questioning of each character and the story of what happened is told incrementally through the viewpoint of each character, the pace is slow until later in the narrative. The charged, tense atmosphere, however, begins early on. Knowing that something awful is going to happen (Someone is unconscious in the hospital) and waiting to pick up clues and hints as they are slowly revealed about the events from the weekend is part of the enjoyment. However, as I was reading I did question why these friends from 20 years ago still have such a strong bond when they really don't all seem to like each other that much.
Richell uses the locked-room plot device to a good effect and The Search Party is enjoyable. Disclosure: My complimentary review copy was courtesy of Atria Books.
The review will be published on NetGalley, Barnes & Noble, Edelweiss, X, and Amazon.