⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
One Big Happy Family
By: Jamie Day
Publisher: St.Martin’s Press
Pub Date: July 16, 2024

This is another new author for me. This was a fun read that reminded me of the game clue. The family dynamics in this one is so toxic. You know it’s all going to go horribly wrong. Three sisters who all have secrets from the other.
Charley is the maid at The Precipice hotel. A family owned place run by George Bishop. George has unexpectedly passed which brings his three daughters and their families to the hotel for the funeral and reading of the will. To add more chaos to the situation there is a hurricane bearing down on the coast of Maine. But before long the bodies are going to start dropping and no one has any idea what’s going on. Will Charley get things worked out before everyone dies?
Thanks to St. Martin’s Press Jamie Day and NetGalley for this galley.

This is an intense drama with some wild characters. The plot offers multiple interesting twists as the story unfolds. The characters are sharp and engaging. Readers will especially love the dialogue between the characters which is either witty or funny. The setting, in a hotel during a storm, heightens the drama. Readers will really enjoy this family drama and the surprising outcomes.

Charley works for The Precipice hotel as a maid. When the owner George passes away his daughters come back to the hotel to hear the reading of the will. A hurricane is coming through and no one can leave the hotel. A strange poem is found and murder starts to happen.
Charley is trying to hide Bree because she is a victim of physical abuse.
Thanks to the publisher St. Martin's and to NetGalley for the ARC.

This locked door mystery gave me total Clue vibes and had me wondering whether Colonel Mustard really did it in the library with the candlestick. Full of secrets and lies, family drama and a hurricane to add to the suspense, I was hooked from the beginning. The story started out strong but after the halfway point, it became somewhat predictable and I pretty much had it figured out. There were a few minor twists that I wasn't expecting, but overall it was your typical locked door mystery with a little too much predictability for my taste.

Thank you to netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC

This book is a blend of suspense, family drama, and thrilling twists set against the eerie backdrop of The Precipice, a storied hotel on Maine's rocky coast. The Bishop sisters—Iris, Vicki, and Faith—gather to claim their inheritance after their father's passing, each harboring secrets that could spell disaster. With a looming hurricane and the air thick with tension, the stage is set for a weekend filled with unexpected turns and deadly revelations.

Central to the story is Charley Kelley, the hotel's nineteen-year-old chambermaid. Her resilience and street-smarts make her a compelling character, especially as she juggles the sisters' demands and her own precarious situation—hiding a woman on the run in a guest room.

Jamie Day expertly weaves together wit, heart, and edge-of-your-seat thrills. The narrative keeps you guessing, delivering a unique brand of summertime suspense where not everyone checking into The Precipice will check out. "One Big Happy Family" is a riveting read, perfect for those who love a mix of family intrigue and pulse-pounding mystery.

3.5 stars. The Bishop sisters are coming to town for the reading of their father’s will. He owned a hotel, where the maid, Charley, lives and works to save money supporting her grandma. Charley recently let a woman, who was on the run from an abusive ex, hide in the hotel for a few days, and hopes to keep her out of the sisters’ sights. The sisters also have secrets they’re hiding, that threaten to surface after the reading of the will. There’s murder, there’s chaos, and there’s lies. Who will make it out alive?

This was a fun read and my first Jamie Day book! The plot reminded me of Clue a bit, with the big hotel, random murder, many rooms, and group investigation. While they proposed a few different theories, I was not super surprised by the ending. It was definitely a cozy mystery, with a touch of pure chaos.

I received this eARC a few months back and was waiting till closer to publication to delve into it. I read Jamie's book, Block Party, last year and really enjoyed the craziness of it. I'm happy to report that enjoyment continued with this one!

I loved the overall setting of this being in Maine and during a hurricane and very Agatha Christie in the sense of all players being confined to this hotel. The characters were certainly a very... interesting bunch, to say the least 🤣 I will note that most of the big reveals regarding the Bishop sisters in part 2 were pretty easy to anticipate and predict. Some of the other characters' connections and secrets were also easy to generally predict but still had some added details and backstory. However, the easy predictions of some things didn't take away from the rest of the story and present day plot for me.

Outside of the story itself, I thoroughly like Jamie's writing. As much as I love my thrillers and mysteries, they're not always a genre that makes me want to reach for my highlighter for passages where the writing itself just makes me go, "ooohhh." But Jamie did quite a few times throughout this book.

This was a rollercoaster of a wild ride, as wild as Hurricane Larry himself from the story. After 2 fairly solid reads in 2 years now from Jamie Day, I will definitely continue to seek her out for future reads and automatically put her at the top of my never dwindling TBR pile.


▪️Thank you to Net Galley, St. Martin's Press, and Jamie Day for this eARC.
▪️Expected US publication: July 16, 2024

I must read any book that Freida McFadden says is "unputdownable"!! I was immediately drawn in to reading One Big Happy Family and knew that this is the kind of book that you clear your schedule for and do some hygge reading under a blanket while drinking a warm beverage--and I was right! 5/5 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Jamie Day, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I don't know how I feel about this book. The beginning of it was so slow, that I wanted to give up reading it. But I stuck with it. It did pick up towards the end, but it wasn't enough to redeem itself.

I really didn't like any of the characters. It was hard to connect with them.

One Big Happy Family by Jamie day I could start this review about how the three sisters had a secret and it caused one of them to become a drug addict the other sister to become a overachiever and the other it didn’t bother at all. I could talk about the child between two of the sisters the man between two others and the murders between them all and though yes let’s not forget Charlie the chambermaid who has a secret of her own hidden in a guestroom upstairs. The family is gathered to listen to the reading of the will by the lawyer who is suspicious her self but when someone dies while the hurricane is hitting the last thing the family should do is relax and think the The problems are over because The murders and their problems are far from it. This was an awesome awesome book from the mystery to the who done it to the small romance happening at all makes for an awesome book. Jamie Day is definitely becoming one of those authors I think of who rides a complex plot with many tentacles that all get tied in a pretty bow by the end. Well put together stories are far and few between and this is definitely one of them it is a book I really and thoroughly enjoyed and definitely recommend. Please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review #SaintMartin’sPress, #NetGalley, #JamieDay, #OneBigHappyFamily,i

The Precipice has been owned by the Bishop family for years. With their father now passed, the three daughters are ready to take ownership. Charley Kelley, a chambermaid, is preparing the hotel for an imminent hurricane and the arrival of the Bishop sisters, who insist on proceeding with the reading of their father's will despite the storm.

What follows is a fun, if somewhat predictable, mystery filled with secrets, murder, romance, and the chaos of a hurricane.

While much of the story was foreseeable, it remained an enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

19 year old Charley is barely making end meet; she has to pay for her grandmother's medical care and she lives and works as a maid at the Precipice, an old family hotel. Ownership is now passing to the three Bishop daughters since their father has died and Charley's future at the hotel is questionable. The sisters have gather to hear the will while a hurricane is approaching. At the same time, Charley is hiding someone she just met in a room who needs to escape her abusive boyfriend and the three Bishop sisters have secrets of their own; now that they are all locked together in the hotel with no escaping, secrets may not stay hidden for long, and not everyone may make it out by the time the storm abates.

This was a fun quick respite from work and stress; I half listened and half read it and flew through it in a day. If you're looking for a popcorn mystery/thriller this is a good one - the twists and turns are there, they're not going to blow your socks off (and some are a bit predictable) but it is a pleasant escape. I was engrossed and invested the whole time and for that I would recommend, it's a great throw in your beach bag and keep you busy for a day; or listen to it while doing errands and it will definitely make a long drive, laundry or dishes more fun.

3.75

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC to review

Wow. I read The Block Party last year, and while I loved it… this was GOLD. From the twists, to expertly timed pacing, to the character development? Wow. Some of the twists made me gasp. They were probable but not predictable which is exactly what I want to see in a thriller. Definitely will recommend this

Locked mysteries are always fun to read and this one was no different. With a hurricane looming, the three Bishop sisters find themself stuck at the family hotel waiting for their father's will to be read. Charley, the chambermaid, is especially on edge, hoping her job will be safe. But then the murders start. Everyone is trapped. Who is behind it all and why?

I was lucky enough to listen to this book on audio as I read along and I found myself so invested in the storyline. The plot was solid, the audiobook narration was well done and the intrigue was intense. I was on edge throughout the whole book and was surprised by some of the twists that were thrown in. I enjoyed the author's previous book, The Block Party, but found this one to be even better so make sure you get yourself a copy!

With the recent passing of their father, the Bishop sisters--Iris, Vicki, and Faith--have come for the weekend to claim what they think is rightfully theirs. But with a hurricane looming and each of the Bishop sisters keeping dangerous secrets, things will get even more complicated.

I read this author’s first book and didn’t love it but I wanted to give it another chance. Honestly, I think I am just not the right reader for her work. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, MacMillan Audio and the author for the ARC/ALC.

After George Bishop dies, his estranged daughters Iris, Faith, and Vicki come back to the hotel they grew up in - The Precipice on the rocky coast of Maine. They hold a lot of secrets in this family, including the reasons they all left, and right at the beginning we know that someone ends up dead.

Charley, the hotel maid, is the main character in this story and she has some secrets as well, like her petty thievery from the hotel guests. There is a lot going on between the difficult family dynamics to the fighting to a raging storm keeping everyone from leaving the hotel. There were a lot of parts that dragged the plot, part 2 especially with the deep background of the sisters and their secrets. It's good backstory, but it was a bit OTT for me.

It was an entertaining book, but too much ridiculous antics for me to thoroughly enjoy and remember this one. It would be a good one to discuss among other book loving friends.

Unfortunately I don’t think Jamie Day is for me. This was my second book by her. The story was slow, the characters were horrible and the plot twist was very predictable, the best thing about this book was the narration- great narrator, one of my favorites.

Charley works as a maid at the Precipe Hotel, stealing from guests to make enough money to keep her grandmother in the retirement home she lives in. When the hotel’s owner passes away, his daughters – the Bishop sisters of Iris, Vicky and Faith, arrive for the reading of the will as a hurricane forces everyone to stay indoors at the hotel.

Charley is unsure whether she will keep her job, or the secret of the friend Bree that she is hiding at the hotel while Bree is trying to escape from an abusive relationship.

Vicki the eldest, is greedy, arriving with husband Todd and son Quinn (who Charley is very attracted to). Iris is the ex-convict, drug addict, and Faith is the stylish model who arrives with wife Hope and son Oliver.

Once the murder occurs, we are in a classic locked-room mystery as the Hurricane roars outside the hotel, and Charley tries to survive. Family drama is the main theme as we try and figure out who is the murderer.

I quite liked Charley’s character, despite the thefts, but didn’t really like any of the others. The story is told from multiple points of view and felt quite confused to me at several points. Lots of backstory slowed the plot for a while in the middle.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day, an entertaining thriller that will keep your interest from start to finish. If you think that your family is dysfunctional, just wait until you meet the Bishop sisters. When the three women gather to discuss their father’s will, all hell breaks loose and murder and mayhem ensue. With a missing lawyer, an unusual teenager who speaks in rhymes, and a maid who gets wrapped up in the drama unwittingly, this is a cast of characters that won’t be easy to forget.

This is a wild ride by an author who I will definitely be reading more from in the future.

This was good. I feel like one of the characters should have been brought in later in the book because I knew something was up with them right away. Since this book is told in parts we get more info on the characters in each part. The sisters all blended together and all had some type of issue. They all have secrets to hide and fear what would happen if they would get out. When people started dying and going missing I could not figure out who was behind all of this.

Some of the twists in the end didn't seem as shocking but there are a lot of suspenseful moments in this one. The letter at the end with the shocking news was kind of random but I did like it!