With a house full of friends, neighbors, and their beloved three adult children, the Calhouns are expecting another picture-perfect event. But a brutal murder in the middle of the celebration transforms the yearly gathering into a homicide scene, and all the guests into suspects.

A solid mystery, if not a little predictable. It was well-written and well-executed.

I’m not how I feel about this book. It was pretty much a giant drama filled book full of family secrets of a rich family. Seemed very cliché and at some points, just felt like a run around. But I did like that they kept you guessing with all the twists.

Thank you NetGalley, Tor Publishing and author Aggie Blum Thompson for this gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

🦋suspense
🦋Drama
🦋Murder mystery
🦋dysfunctional family dynamics
🦋whodunit

I have to say, it was a wild ride! I wasn't sure what to expect when I started it, but it completely blew my mind. It's a locked room mystery that kept getting better and better as I read on. It starts a bit slow, but the way secrets were gradually uncovered kept me hooked. There were so many twists and turns that I couldn't stop reading. The story kept getting darker and darker, and I loved every second of it. I felt empathy for the characters, then I hated them, and then I felt sorry for them again. I kept trying to guess who did it until the very end. This family seemed so lovely and picture-perfect, but boy, were they messed up! I’m glad that there were at least a few sympathetic characters. At first, I was a bit confused trying to keep track of all the characters and their different points of view, but as the story progressed, it all made sense. I highly recommend this book

I really enjoyed this book. It was different than anything else I've read recently. I couldn't put it down! I will keep an eye out for this author's future work!

I’ve been down in the dumps but I’m back and I’m better! What caught my attention first was of course the book cover! I definitely was looking for a romance book that I was able to be intrigued by and this was the first one that I came across so of course had to try and get my hands on an ARC. I like how the story was a good mix between character and plot based, sometimes when I’m reading a book I’m either not emotional connected with the character or plot but I like how this had a good enough balance for me to be interested enough to continue.

This was so fun and twisty! Rich people doing bad things is one of my fave “tropes”. This was entertaining & will make any thriller /mystery lover happy, however, the formatting of the arc made it very difficult to read.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion!

To think people and families like this exist...

Started reading and I knew it was going to be messy. I wasn't wrong. I usually enjoy this kind of books buy this one is even hard to review. The characters are not likeable, I couldn't even feel a thing for "the good ones". By the end of the book, after 90% it became a huge mess and all the twists were too much. The police procedures were unrealistic and that stressed me out.

I'm not saying it was a bad read, I'm just saying it wasn't for me. There's many recommendations for this one so I hope others give it a try and enjoy it.

Isn't this cover pretty? Are you guilty of judging a book by its cover? Have you gotten a book just because you were enchanted by the cover?

Thank you @netgalley and @torbooks for the e-ARC. Happy pub day to this wonderful book!

I love dysfunctional families and coupled with a murder mystery, it's everything I ever want.

This book kept me on my toes. I had no idea what to think or who to suspect. I loved the twists and turns and the ending kept me on the edge of my seat.

I've already added the author's backlist to my tbr!

What a ride! A family drama dripping with secrets, lies and betrayal. I think you’ll love to twisty machinations and piles of questions.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy. These opinions are my own.

This isn’t a particularly new sort of mystery plot: It starts with a party, someone gets murdered, everyone is a suspect and then you spend the rest of the book figuring out the whodunnit. Good news is, I generally love this storyline. Bad news is this one wasn’t much of a stand-out.

The specifics here are the Calhouns are having their annual Cherry Blossom party . . . and the police are there are on page one. By the 20% mark you know who the victim is and then you get to find out exactly what skeletons are hiding in the closets of each family member (as well as a neighbor or two). Things play out via sort of an “everything but the kitchen sink” approach and you really have to throw all common sense out the window when it comes to things like police procedures or legal work – not to mention that no one is likeable or more than a cardboard cutout as far as character development. But it’s getting real high ratings, so what do I know?

I don't often use the word delicious to describe a book, but I was almost rubbing my hands together in gleeful anticipation at all the nasty things this awful family did. Yeah, the mystery was slight, and no, it's not great literature, but I had fun, and sometimes you require nothing more than a book that entertains.

Ah, it was so nice to see spoiled rich kids getting exactly what they deserve.

If only real life was like this . . .

This one was hard for me to get into. There were a lot of characters to keep track of, and they were all rich B-Holes. Personally, I have a tough time getting into these types of stories, but a lot of people love that type of drama.

Once I got to the second half of the book, I flew through it. I liked seeing how all the pieces fit together. It was a classis whodunit. All of the family members were hiding secrets, and I don't always love when the narrator is blatantly telling the reader that they are keeping secrets without revealing what they are. Again, this is something that works well for others.

Overall - my thoughts on the book are very pointed and tied to my personal likes and dislikes. It wasn't one that I absolutely loved, but I think that others will.

I’m sorry, but I tried downloading this multiple times and the formatting is off. Further, the story didn’t capture my attention enough to distract from the flawed epub.

This book was okay, I've noticed after reading so many thrillers the plots tend to all slide together. I think it's perfect for a new to the thriller genre reader more so than seasoned.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Aggie Blum Thompson - 4.5 stars rounded up!

The Calhouns are hosting their annual party at their home in Washington DC to celebrate the return of the cherry blossoms. Their three children are all home and the house is full of friends and neighbors. Everything is perfect until the party becomes a homicide scene. Suddenly, all the family members are under suspicion and their secrets may soon come to light.

This was a delicious scandal of a book - you won't be sure who's the guilty party but you'll know that you can trust no one. The Calhouns' children, Theo, Nate, and Ellie Grace have very complicated relationships with their parents, to whom appearance is the utmost importance. I love a good dysfunctional family story and this was done to perfection. Told from multiple POV, the secrets and twists kept coming. This is a family you will love to hate! Loved the cover too.

This had a good premise and the Calhoun's were despicable people. The problem is that at times the story relied heavily on tropes and character outlines where there could be more depth.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

4.5⭐️. This is my third book by Thompson and they just *do not* disappoint. She has a way of writing that sucks you in and you seriously can’t put the book down. The characters in the Calhoun family were atrocious and unlikable but not to the point where you don’t have any interest in them. She’s good like that. I thought the addition of Cookie was great because he kept me wondering if there was more to him than met the eye and kind of the same thing for Danit, so a couple of red herrings thrown in for good measure makes for a great book...Deplorable people with a motives galore, you’ll be guessing the whole time.

I struggled to push through this arc honestly. It wasn’t because of the story by any means, but rather the awful formatting of the ARC. The file was funky and made it really hard to read. If it weren’t for the forbearing u probably could’ve skated through this in a day or so. It followed Rich family drama and it was nearly a messy reality TV shows.

Overall, I’d give this 4 stars. But, I will more than likely be giving this a second chance in audio format to see if that changes my opinion.

In "Such A Lovely Family" Aggie Blum weaves a gripping tale of family secrets, betrayal, and murder against the backdrop of Washington, D.C.'s springtime splendor. The Calhoun family appears to have it all—a picturesque home, successful careers, and tight-knit bonds. However, beneath the surface lies a web of deceit and manipulation that ultimately unravels during their annual spring celebration.

The narrative kicks off with the murder that disrupts the seemingly idyllic gathering, setting the stage for a riveting whodunit. Harper masterfully crafts each character, from the controlling parents to the troubled sons and the Instagram influencer daughter, drawing readers into their complex lives and hidden motivations. As the investigation unfolds, family dynamics come under intense scrutiny, revealing long-held grudges and buried secrets.

What sets "Such A Lovely Family" apart is its exploration of the darker side of familial relationships. Aggie delves into themes of parental control, sibling rivalry, and the facade of perfection, creating a compelling narrative that keeps readers guessing until the final pages. The tension steadily mounts as alliances shift, suspicions arise, and the true extent of each character's involvement comes to light.

While the resolution may feel somewhat predictable to seasoned mystery readers, Blum's skillful storytelling and vivid prose make for an engaging read nonetheless. "Such A Lovely Family" is a must-read for fans of domestic suspense, offering a captivating blend of mystery, drama, and intricate family dynamics.

The book itself was a decent story, but I was constantly distracted by the formatting for the arc. I powered through, but had issues that deterred from my enjoyment. I’ll probably end up buying this in a physical copy so I can give it another go. I don’t think the formatt8mg should stop anyone from reading and liking this book.