I was very excited to receive this arc and reading and loving her debut Block Party. This has a very strong atmosphere and descriptions and I loved that about this book. However the twists seemed to leave me feeling meh because I saw what was coming. I prefer surprises or non predictable turns. I did enjoy this book overall though.

I’m a huge fan of closed-door thrillers and this one did not disappoint! This was my first book by Jamie Day and it will not be the last! The characters are well-written, interesting, and made it so easy to get into the book and that doesn’t even touch on the twists and turns! This book was so good!

This novel started out well with an intriguing locked room premise that takes place at an isolated hotel. However, the plot ultimately goes off the rails and becomes unbelievable.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195790534

This story is about Bishop's family stuck in their hotel along with two other people during a hurricane. Each family member is hiding a secret. Over the course of the night, everything unravels leaving a few people dead along the way.

This is the second book of Jamie Day that I am reading. The setup and the final reveal is kind of similar to the first book. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

I enjoyed this book. Though I did find Charley a bit naive about Bree and too accommodating to her, the story had enough interesting characters to make for a suspenseful read. Beautiful details about the Inn and it’s contents made me visualize the setting.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day.

I really enjoyed The Block Party by Jamie Day so I was excited to read this new title. Unfortunately, it fell a little short for me. The cast of characters was large just like the block party, but almost unnecessarily so in this book. Not a single one of them is likable except the main character, Charley, who is a maid at the hotel.

I was able to predict who the “bad guy” was pretty early on even though most of the characters are terrible. The story was initially interesting and I was curious to see how it all tied together, but it just kept getting more unbelievable. I love thrillers/mysteries that stay within the realm of reality or close to so maybe that’s why I didn’t enjoy this as much as I’d hoped.

If you like family drama and eclectic stories, this one could be for you!

I am grateful to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an arc of this book.
3/5 stars.
I had high hopes as I love a good murder mystery but certain aspects came across very predictable. The main character Charley was very, very naive for being portrayed as a strong, take care of business young women. I felt she made a lot of silly decisions and trusted WAY too easily. Growing up how she did, you would expect her to be a little more sceptical and a lot more closed off.
There was a lot going on in this book, which mostly kept me guessing but some added backstory I don’t feel was needed (Rodrigo and Black?)
What I did like was the writing style.
It was lovely, and the descriptions made it easy to place yourself into The Precipice Hotel.

I love a locked-room mystery, and this tale of a dysfunctional trio of sisters and their families (plus staff) stuck in their family’s hotel during a hurricane in coastal Maine was a classic example. The story is told from the perspective of the maid, Charley, with flashbacks to the origins of the secrets that the sisters have kept—secrets that largely have made their lives miserable—and that emerge during this stormy weekend. I loved the setting and the unexpected turns (the sisters were more than a little unhinged), although the story felt a bit predictable at points. I didn’t love it as much as Day’s debut novel, The Block Party, but it is a solid thriller and very entertaining. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

Received this one from Netgalley and boy oh boy, one big happy family is really one big crazy family. If you think your family is nuts, then you must read this book. Your family will look like pussy cats compared to this one. At one point I didnt know who to trust or who to even believe. Trust no one because you will find a surprise hidden in this story. But I guess everyone's family goes a bit crazy when a member dies and there is a will reading. And the results of that will are not what one is expecting. Well written and a real page turner. Will be released July 16, 2024 - put it on your TBR list now!

One Big Happy Family starts off with three sisters who are extremely close and mischievous as young girls. The grew up living in a family jill owned hotel. They didn't have a relationship with their mother as she was an alcoholic. She used alcohol to hide her pain! Her husband was a cheater, he cheated with the young chambermaids. Each sister had there own story, one sister became a drug addict and a model! Another was gay, and the oldest sister worked for their father. This book had a lot of twists and turns. The end was a surprise, every character in this story brought suspense and drama. I couldn't put this down and kudos to Jamie Day! I look forward to reading more books from this talented author! I received this book free from Net Galley and my review is of my own accord and my honest review!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the author for an ARC of this book! I’m a huge fan of mystery thriller and I was very excited for the read.

This main character here is Charley, a maid at a Hotel. Charley is young and broke and needs money to pay for her elderly grandmother’s care. The owner of the hotel she works at dies resulting in the daughters visting to read the will and receive their inheritance. There’s a huge storm happening at the same time so all the characters are stuck in the hotel until the storm passes. There is lies, secrets, weapons, murders, and twists and turns you won’t see coming.

I like the short chapters that ended in cliffhangers but must admit the book dragged on for a bit too long. I also found it difficult to really care for Charley. There wasn’t enough in her past (other than struggling financially) to really feel like she deserved better.

Overall I rate this a 3.5/5! Still had enough jaw dropping twists for me to enjoy

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC of One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day! I would rate this as 3.5 stars, but rounded to 3. The synopsis of One Big Happy Family intrigued me as it is set in Maine, it’s by an author familiar to me (I gave 5 stars to her book Block Party), and it sounded like it would be a thriller. I feel like the book is in the whodunnit category, and if you enjoy that type of book, I would highly recommend this one! As I was reading, I could picture this as a play as it has all of the features of a whodunnit play . . . An old, fancy hotel, the hotel staff (maid, cook, bellboy), a rich family, a stranger, lights suddenly going out . . . I could practically hear “dun dun dunnnnn!” I think this would make a great audio book. A Big Happy Family is fast paced and a quick read for whodunnit lovers.

Charley is a maid at a historic Maine hotel named Precipe, one that has been in the same family for years. She lives on the grounds in a small almost closet like room to save money and pay for her grandmothers nursing care. When the owner, George dies, his three daughters and their families defend upon the hotel for the reading of the will, during a hurricane no less. Charley is worried about her job, will they fire her if they find out her secret, worse yet will they find the local girl that Charley has hiding in the hotel rent free, and also will she be able to pay for her grandmothers care if she loses her job, should the sisters decide to shut down the hotel.

This book started out very strong for me. I enjoy a good lock room mystery/suspence, especially if you throw in some morally gray characters, and this book had plenty of those. The setting was great, an old hotel on the rocky shores of Maine. It was moody, mysterious, and with the hurricane baring down on them, it felt dangerous.

However, I really liked none of the characters in the story. The sisters especially, were just vile and unlikable, even main character Charley had several things I found I really unliked about her, especially her obsession with peoples looks that seems to occupy most pages in the book. Bree, the girl that Charley was hiding in the hotel , to quote Taylor Swift “ I knew you were trouble when you walked in“

The book was divided into four parts, and the parts each had short chapters, which is always a plus in my book, mostly because I have a hard time closing a book in the middle of a chapter. I will say, I thought the book went on longer than it needed and I got bored with it near the half way mark. There were a lot of family in the book, with a lot of backstories, much I felt was not always necessary to the story.

There was a few good twists in the book, but I felt the ending was predictable and ended rather quickly.

One Big Happy Family had all the trappings of a great mystery, but to me it missed the mark, however if you are a fan of a lock room mysteries, don’t overlook this one, it might just be the summer read you are wanting.

I'll start by saying this story has a solid premise that drew me in immediately. The FMC has a well-thought-out back story, which I appreciate. There are a LOT of characters, almost too many for what amounts to a locked-room mystery. A couple of dead bodies later and everyone is unhinged and side stories are spawning faster than you can keep track. It's almost too busy. I would have preferred a more pared-down plot without all the giant twist revelations. I didn't find the love interest side story to be at all necessary or believable given the primary plot. That said, the story definitely held my attention and had some twists I never saw coming.

If you were a member of the Bishop family, it would be best to hide from them. The three sisters - Vicki, Iris and Faith return to the family home which is a famous hotel in Maine for the reading of their father's will. Always known for his eye for the young maids, George Bishop was not a nice man, and his will proves it. Young maid Charley Kelley spent her short career at the hotel fighting off his advances. Naturally once the daughters hear the will, they are sure Charley was actively involved it getting George to write the will he did. With a one-in-a-lifetime hurricane barreling toward them, Charley must keep her wits about her to prevent someone from getting killed. No one is who they really are in this novel and this builds to an exciting climax.

The premise for this one sounded amazing, but for me it fell flat. It was really slow and I just couldn't get into it fully. I felt like it was overly long and that some things just did not make sense.

This book was fantastic! I didn’t know which way was up and the twists just kept coming. My kind of book completely! The author made it so engaging and fun while also making me want to keep turning the page. The characters were perfect and the ploy moved so smoothly! I’d love to see more from this author, thanks for my free ARC!

Charley Kelley got one of her few breaks in life when hotel owner George Bishop gave her a job as a maid in his hotel, the Precipice, on the coast of Maine. But now he has passed away and his daughters are coming for his funeral...inheritance...but hurricane is coming and they are about to get a lot to more than they bargained for in this twisty domestic drama.

Jamie Day delivers again! I loved how well the characters were written and the ending was fantastic. I highly recommend!

I want to thank the author for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved this thriller. I loved the small town feel setting this book gave off. If you are a fan of locked room mysteries then you are going to love this book from start to finish. You will keep asking yourself who did it and question everybody.

You will not be able to set this book down and will be gripping the sides of your seats the entire time. I had never read anything by Jamie Day before but I think that I found a new favorite author. I would recommend this to everybody I know.

I enjoyed this book! It was fast-paced and kept my attention. I predicted the twist, which was the only down-side for me. It was well-written, and definitely a mystery/thriller that I will recommend!