Macmillan Audio ALC One Big Happy Family is an easily bingeable summer thriller perfect for the poolside reading. At first, I wondered if this would feel too Molly the Maid - but it didn’t. There’s lots of mystery, some shady characters, and a hurricane that felt like its own character. I love a locked room mystery and rich people behaving badly and this book delivered. The author built the suspense so well with different red herrings, and had a short flashback that helped bring it all together.
Saskia Maarleveld always does a fantastic job! Her performances capture each character and make it easy to keep everyone straight.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. This was a great summer read full of crazy family drama. The story was excellently paced with twists throughout. The characters were well done and some even relatable. Overall a clever easy read.

This was a decent mystery but it wasn't one of my favorites. The family dynamics were interesting but I had my suspicions about some of the characters very early on. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I received a gifted audiobook copy of ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY by Jamie Day from Macmillan Audio!

ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY is set at The Precipice, a family owned hotel on the coast of Maine. An approaching hurricane has left the hotel empty of guests, but nothing will stop the Bishop sisters from coming to claim the property after the death of their father. For Charley, the hotel’s young chambermaid, the sisters’ arrival has her on edge. She’s barely been making ends meet to support her grandmother’s specialized housing for dementia, and she needs the work and the opportunity to lift a little extra cash off the guests. In more bad timing, she’s taken in a woman on the run who needs a place to hide and this could all spell disaster.

I’m sure no one will be surprised to learn that the Bishop family is not exactly a happy one! I really enjoyed getting to know the sisters through Charley’s POV initially. She’s in a tough spot, worried for her job and really hoping to learn that the women who will control the hotel’s fate will be good to her. Unfortunately, the women who arrive at the house are not in the best of moods and relationships and there is much to fear for Charley. I did really feel for her and loved seeing her devotion to her grandmother.

I thought the author did a good job of making slow reveals throughout the book and keeping the pacing up as well. I was able to fly through the audiobook within a single day because it kept me wanting to listen! I would recommend this to those who enjoy adults behaving badly and a twisty ride!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the free book in exchange for my honest review.

If you love locked room suspenseful dramas, then you will love this story. In the vein of Clue or Knives out, we have a whole cast of dramatic characters running around the Precipice, an upscale hotel on the Maine coast, trying to figure out who the murderer is.

Charley is a maid at The Precipice who is working a dead end job to take care of her Nana, in a nursing home. The owner has died and his dysfunctional family arrives for the reading of the will shortly before a hurricane strikes. With the three Bishop daughters and their spouses trapped in the hotel on the night the hurricane hits, the will of their departed dad is read and murder begins.

I found the story very entertaining, and the drama to be over the top. Yes, you feel sorry for Charley and hate the snobby family. The mysterious murder reveal is as expected but the story is fun. All in all, a great, fast paced, locked room mystery!

Charley works as a chambermaid in the precipice hotel in Maine. She lives in a closet, rent free but is still living paycheck to paycheck. She takes care of her Nana, her only family. George Bishop the owner of the hotel has recently died and his daughters are coming to town to hear the will. Hurricane Larry is bound to hit Maine and that's the least of their worries.

Wow, what a whirlwind of emotions, Shock and disbelief mostly. This book kept me on the edge of my seat as I read it. I enjoyed it immensely. It kept me guessing and wondering the whole time. A fantastic thriller.

I'm trying to find a proper metaphor for this story and I'm failing. Maybe a simile. It is as twisty as a curly fry, except you can follow that fry from end to end. Same for a corkscrew. This story is as tangled as kudzu. There are so many twists and turns no maze could compare. The main characters are compelling, as are their back stories. Chambermaid Charley finds out the truth of the adage "no good deed goes unpunished."

"One Big Happy Family ... except it's not" pits family members against each other in hopes of gaining the family fortune. An old plot, set in coastal Maine with a 'nor-easter on the way. This book is twice as long as it needs to be, unless considered a beach read, then there is enough review to cover up lag-time reading. I thought the mystery easy to solve, and I liked the gutsy main character, the chambermaid whose room is a closet.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC I just finished.

Readers who enjoy lots of family drama will like this story. Loved the coastal setting on Maine. It was admirable of Charley to take care of her Nana. Lots of characters with backgrounds that tended to drag on a bit. Wasn't excited about this book but know others might view it differently.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book! Very entertaining! I didn't want to stop reading! Great characters and story!

3 stars for Jamie Day's locked-room mystery that, while entertaining, falls short of being original or thrilling. While I enjoyed the setting and atmosphere, there was not enough suspense, making this more of a high stakes family drama than a thriller. The twists were predictable and the middle dragged a bit, but I would read another by this author.

I really enjoyed Jamie Day’s last book, so I was excited to get to read One Big Happy Family. I loved the setting. The first part of the book dragged a bit for me, but it finally picked up in the last two sections of the book. Some of the characters were unlovable and I could predict some of the twists. It was still a good book, I just enjoyed The Block Party more than this one!

One Big Happy Family was just a sort of a middle-of-the-road read for me. The novel focuses on Charley, a woman who works at The Precipice, a family-owned hotel in Maine. After the owner dies, and with a hurricane looming, the owner’s three daughters come to claim the hotel. Will they claim the hotel. will they discover any of Charley’s secrets, and will the hurricane bring destruction of any kind? So, the premise is definitely an interesting one, but I was somewhat disappointed. The plot moves along at a good pace, and I found Charley’s character to be an intriguing one, but I found the suspense necessary for a good mystery/thriller to be lacking, making this a good but not a great read.

I thoroughly enjoyed the thriller One Big Happy Family. Twists and turns abound with the Bishop sisters during a hurricane. This family is anything but happy! Complicated, intense and suspenseful.

**This book will be published on 07/16/2024!**
I received this e-book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and the author/publisher for the copy!

With the passing of their father, the Bishop sisters are forced to return to The Precipice Hotel for the reading of their father's will. Not only have they not returned for awhile. but they are all keeping dangerous secrets that they do not want to share. Charley, the maid, is not looking forward to the sister's return, especially since she has gotten several warnings from others about the return of these sisters. To top it all off, all guests have cancelled their stay at the hotel because of the approaching hurricane, so it will just be the three Bishop sisters, their families, and Charley...but also the stowaway that Charley is temporarily helping out. With a murder before the Hurricane even starts, will more go down once they are stuck at the hotel?

I have read Jamie Day's book The Block Party and I really enjoyed that! But this book, for me, did not meet the expectations that I had. I really wanted to enjoy this one, but it was a super slow read for me. I had a lot of trouble getting into it. I feel as though the main character acted as if she was mature, but her internal dialogue annoyed me and seemed very immature. Especially when she is worried about a guy liking her when her life and others lives are in a significant amount of danger.

The setting is the Precipice Hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. Hurricane Larry is beating at the door and there are no guests at the famed hotel, only the immediate family as they gather to hear the last will and testament of their late father and owner of the hotel along with one lone staff member and the young woman she’s hiding from an abusive relationship. As the hurricane nears it’s not the only thing the guests need to worry about. When one of them is murdered it suddenly changes everything about the weekend. Cryptic messages start appearing and none of them are safe. As the family secrets are divulged, each one worse than the last, we quickly learn there’s no fun in this family’s dysfunction! As the visit unfolds, Charley (the maid) delves deep to unravel the family dynamics and hidden secrets all why trying to save herself from the evil within the Precipice walls. This book was over the top! With each soap operatic turn the story becomes more and more unbelievable, but as a read/listen the narrator brought the story to life and it was still an entertaining book. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for an ARC and ALC of this book.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6163351958

I loved the setting the most! Just the idea of the storm while being stuck in the hotel with the killer, with nobody to trust!! I felt like the tension was constantly building & felt myself holding my breath at what would come next! It was very quick paced and I just couldn’t put it down! Some parts I was able to predict but that didn’t ruin the book for me, it was still really well written & enjoyable.

Charley was a little annoying to me but overall I loved the sister rivalry in this book! I really enjoyed the atmosphere of this book & I could really picture the scenes based on the vivid descriptions!

Overall I really enjoyed this & can’t wait to read more form Jamie Day!

Thanks to NetGalley & St. Martins Press for allowing me to have an ARC!

Twisty, turny, closed door mystery, the murders have to be someone locked inside the hotel, but when every one has motive to kill someone, you'll be shocked to find out who!

A hurricane isn’t the only thing to strike the legendary Precipice hotel in this vibey whodunit…

Following the death of their father and hotel owner, the three Bishop sisters return home to hear the reading of the will and to learn who will inherit the eclectic inn. His death won’t be the only one though, and in this “locked room” style mystery, everyone is a suspect.

Overall, a dark and mildly suspenseful novel with a fun setting. While the pacing and character introduction didn’t quite hit the mark for me, I can respect the author built a good case to throw suspicion at many of our characters. In addition, I appreciate that the characters each had their own unique quirks, but overall we’re not super likeable or well developed.

Big misses for me (mild spoilers?): Please don’t call Charley smart in the book description… she’s anything but. First, she’s going to blindingly risk the job that supports not only her but her Nana (the job that we constantly hear about being the most important part of her life) for a literal stranger, then she’s really going to spend so much time and energy on the *cute boy* she’s trapped with in a murder hotel? No. Idiot. Many other examples… I’ll spare for brevity sake. And speaking of brevity, we needed more of that in this book. It could have been at least 100 pages shorter and benefitted. There was too much filler that didn’t add to the plot or character development, and too much repetitive speech. I think my biggest gripe, though, was that it was super predictable. Sometimes I can guess bits and pieces of the plot having read many thrillers… but if I can predict 75% or more within the first 75-100 pages? Yikes.

If you’re looking for a quick and basic thriller to wet your lips, this might be the one for you. If you like big twisties that leave your jaw on the floor, maybe try something else. Overall, it wasn’t for me, but I’d like to try another from Jamie Day. in the future, as I have heard good things.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ADC.

Reading Between the Wines book review #57/130 for 2024:
Rating: 3 ½ 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book: One Big Happy Family
Author: Jamie Day
Available now!

Sipping thoughts: This was a nice, one-setting story with lies, secrets, and murder. I liked the story but felt it was a tad bit predictable. I loved the sister rivalry and couldn’t wait to find out what happened in the past and why they were acting devious in the present. I think this read is a good, quick summer read.

Cheers and thank you to @StMartinsPress and @Netgalley for an advanced copy of @OneBigHappyFamily.

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