Woooooo. That was a whirlwind. And not just because a hurricane hit. So many twist and turns I was never expecting. I was expecting him to leave it all to Charley.

This is ok as far as thrillers go. Engaging enough to continue reading but I felt like it was quite slow in developing the plot. Suspense overall was good once it got going. Those who love secrets and family drama would probably enjoy this.

One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day is a gripping, suspense-filled novel that masterfully combines family drama with thrilling twists. Set against the atmospheric backdrop of the legendary family-owned hotel, The Precipice, located on the rocky coast of Maine, this book delves into the complex relationships and secrets of the Bishop sisters—three women who return to the hotel after their father’s recent passing, each with their own agenda.

As the Bishop sisters—Iris, Vicki, and Faith—gather for the weekend to stake their claim on the hotel, a hurricane is on the horizon, heightening the tension. Each sister has a motive, and the secrets they harbor could be dangerous not only for them but also for Charley Kelley, the hotel’s nineteen-year-old chambermaid, who is caught in a web of her own lies and struggles. Charley is smart, resourceful, and more than capable of holding her own, but her life is far from simple. As the storm brews, Charley’s precarious position grows more complicated as she juggles her own secrets while trying to keep the hotel’s disarray from spilling into chaos.

Day’s writing is sharp and full of wit, with a keen eye for the intricacies of family dynamics and the fragility of human nature. The plot unfolds with tension and suspense, keeping readers on edge as the hurricane looms and secrets come to light. The three Bishop sisters are complex and flawed characters, each vying for control of the family business, and their tangled relationships with one another create an atmosphere rife with unease. Meanwhile, Charley’s desperation and resourcefulness add a layer of unpredictability to the mix, making her an engaging and relatable character amidst the family’s dysfunction.

The pacing of the novel is excellent, with Day weaving in moments of suspense and revelations in just the right amounts to keep readers hooked. The twists, particularly toward the novel’s conclusion, are unexpected, and the story’s resolution is satisfying yet chilling. The tension between family loyalty, betrayal, and survival makes for a riveting read that blends psychological suspense with emotional drama.

For readers who enjoy family mysteries, high-stakes suspense, and a touch of dark humor, One Big Happy Family is a fantastic choice. Jamie Day’s blend of heart and thrill will keep you guessing until the very end. This book is an engrossing tale of secrets, survival, and the high cost of getting what you want.

One Big Happy Family is a locked-room mystery meets a soap opera at a fancy hotel, and honestly, I was here for it. It’s full of toxic family drama and secrets, told over four parts with some well-done flashbacks.

Sure, some moments are a bit over the top (you’ll need to suspend disbelief), but that’s part of the fun. The mix of humour and flashbacks keeps things engaging, and the whole thing has a nighttime soap vibe—in the best way. The Bishop family tree is WILD and the dynamic between the sisters is messy and entertaining.

If you love messy family secrets and a dramatic hotel setting, this one’s worth checking out!

Thank you Goodreads for my giveaway win!

I enjoyed Jamie’s debut novel, The Block Party, so I was looking forward to this book and it did not disappoint.

I was intrigued from the beginning. There are lots of puzzle pieces to put together. Things are slowly revealed. While I was able to piece some things together, there were still plenty of surprising twists. I found myself unable to put this book down. It does get somewhat crazy as more secrets and surprises are revealed. I was trying to figure out how one of the characters fit into the story. I had several theories and one of those theories was correct. There were surprises up until the very end. The story wrapped up nicely and left me feeling satisfied.

One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day is a suspenseful novel. I think the author did a remarkable job establishing a solid motive for the main villain. It was a wild adventure reading this book. This book had everything— interesting characters, suspense, and a hurricane. I think readers of this genre will enjoy it. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

Funerals always make family a little crazy and the Bishop sisters are even more over the top. With the reading of the will at the family resort, an impending hurricane, and a body thrown into the mix ot becomes a locked in thriller. Each of the sisters have drama of their own and add in the maid, Charlie, with secrets of her own. The ending is just crazy drama! The gorgeous cover drew me in and the drama kept me there. Loved it!

Block Party was one of my favorite thrillers last year so I was a little bummed to read this one. I liked it though! Locked-room mysteries always go in a certain direction and this did not disappoint. Early on you know it is related to this awful family and most likely robbing someone else of a life. I felt so bad for our main character and was rooting for her the entire time. Luckily the ending played out well and was overall an entertaining read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to be able to read and review this book!

3/5

The Precipice is a legendary, family-owned hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. With the recent passing of their father, the Bishop sisters—Iris, Vicki, and Faith—have come for the weekend to claim it. But with a hurricane looming and each of the Bishop sisters harboring dangerous secrets, there's murder in the air—and not everyone who checks into the Precipice will be checking out.

Each sister wants what is rightfully hers, and in the mix is the Precipe's nineteen-year-old chambermaid Charley Kelley: smart, resilient, older than her years, and in desperate straits.

The arrival of the Bishop sisters could spell disaster for Charley. Will they close the hotel? Fire her? Discover her habit of pilfering from guests? Or even worse, learn that she's using a guest room to hide a woman on the run.

I loved this story from start to finish. Such an amazing read.

I enjoyed Jamie’s first book, The Block Party, and was excited to get the opportunity to read her second novel, One Big Happy Family. I enjoyed the catty remarks and bitterness between the sisters, but the unexpected guest who hides in the hotel was an obvious weakness in the plot. The main character, Charley, comes off as quite the airhead for allowing this stranger, Bree, to stay in the hotel. Bree’s story is weak, which drags down the sharp points of the other characters. I still have faith in the author and I hope to read her next release.
Thanks so much to St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is July 16, 2024.

One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day was a fantastic whodunit reminiscent of Agatha Christie. Great plot points and twisty character ARCS and development.

This was an entertaining locked-door thriller that had a lot of twists and turns. The story started off strong with a lot of build-up. About halfway through, some of the twists became a little predictable, and I didn't find that the romance really fit in all that well. The ending was full or surprises, and I like how everything was wrapped up. Overall, it was a fun read!

Like so many other thrillers, this one has a premise that sounds like a page-turner. Authors know that many mystery readers love a locked-room setting, a force of nature keeping people from escaping, and a murderer on the loose. This book attempted to fit that model, with a dose of dysfunctional family thrown in for good measure. Unfortunately, the characters were so unlikeable, and the pacing so slow, that I lost interest long before the end.

This theme of big old house and terrible storm arriving has been used many times. I almost passed on this book because I didn't think anyone could come up with anything new. I enjoyed the story but it didn't add anything different to this theme. The Precipice is a legendary, family-owned hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. With the recent passing of their father, the Bishop sisters—Iris, Vicki, and Faith—have come for the weekend to claim it. But with a hurricane looming and each of the Bishop sisters harboring dangerous secrets, there's murder in the air—and not everyone who checks into the Precipice will be checking out.
Each sister wants what is rightfully hers, and in the mix is the Precipe's nineteen-year-old chambermaid Charley Kelley: smart, resilient, older than her years, and in desperate straits.
The arrival of the Bishop sisters could spell disaster for Charley. Will they close the hotel? Fire her? Discover her habit of pilfering from guests? Or even worse, learn that she's using a guest room to hide a woman on the run.

One Big Happy Family....hmmmmm. maybe not! This is a perfect summertime book, but can really be read at any time during the year.
I also love that this book is available on Kindle Unlimited.

4 1/2 stars

One Big Happy Family is a study of family dynamics under duress. After George Bishop, owner of the Precipice Hotel, an eclectic and gimcrack filled hotel in Maine, dies, his three daughters arrive for the reading of the will. The sisters are accompanied by their families, and it isn’t long until things begin going south..

Charley, the chambermaid at the hotel, finds herself in the middle of things. With a hurricane approaching, she and the family are locked in. Communication is cut off, and when people start to die, Charley feels responsible for figuring out who’s behind things. She knows that she wants to live long enough to see her grandmother, who’s living in assisted care, again.

I really enjoyed this book. The writing was excellent, the world the author created inside that hotel was remarkable, and the twists and turns were mostly unexpected. The book is filled with a lot of surprises. This is a story about a dysfunctional family, sibling rivalry, and a young woman trying her hardest to do all the right things.

I’d call this book a modern gothic mystery. It’s highly atmospheric with the storm pressing in, the darkened rooms, and the isolation. For those with sensitivities, this book touches on parental death, sexual predators, child abuse, and foster care.

This book started off a bit slowly for my taste, but quickly took off and didn’t look back. There are a variety of characters, mostly rather stereotypical, but still interesting. Despite that, they still added an interesting touch to the happenings going on between the pages.

I recommend this book.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley. I thank all involved for their generosity, but it had no effect on this review. All opinions in this review reflect my true and honest reactions to reading this book.

This book is a locked room mystery set in the current day. It kept my attention but was also a little bonkers.

This one started out rough for me. I considered throwing in the towel a few times but I stuck it out. At 25% into the book there was still a whole lot of nothing going on. So to say that this is a slow burn thriller is an understatement. I will say that the second half of the book was better than the first half but I don’t like it when it takes that long for a book to sink its hooks into me. You spend a huge part of the first half “Getting to know” the cast of characters. Although this is great, since there are so many characters, it doesn’t really fit in a thriller. It takes too long to get to the action. I also didn’t like that most of the backstories were told during part 2 instead of just being blended into the current day story. It was too big of a break in the current story and left me feeling a little off kilter. I think that flashbacks of the past or even dual timeline from chapter to chapter would have worked better.

The story is told in first person but from the perspective of Charley, a 19 year old maid at the Precipice hotel on the coast of Maine. Charley is young and broke and trying to work to pay for dementia care for the grandmother who raised her. Charley's despicable boss, George, dies unexpectedly sending his 3 daughters to the Precipice in the wake of a hurricane for the reading of the will. The daughters are your typical rich, spoiled and greedy heirs of a fortune. They aren’t nice and they can’t be trusted. Throw into the mix a stranger who has asked for Charley’s help in hiding her from her abusive boyfriend and you get all kinds of crazy.

The third and fourth parts were where the story picks up and takes on the old-school game of Clue vibe. The story is full of lies, deceit, and dramatic family secrets. They are willing to do just about anything to keep their secrets hidden. This is an incredibly toxic family, which should make it fun, but they are so incredibly unlikeable that it makes it hard to enjoy. I don’t want to say that the characters are well written because they are. They are complicated and have very distinct personalities but they are such jerks to each other and everyone around them that you end up disliking most of them. I did really like the sarcasm of the title. These people are anything but a big, happy family. They practically hate each other but they are so passive-aggressive in their hate that it is a little annoying at times.

In the end, I didn’t love it or hate it. It hit middle of the road for me which is why I gave it 3 stars.

When the owner of a large hotel passes, his three daughters, along with their families, gather at the hotel to go over his will.
With the hotel deserted due to a storm rolling in, there are limited suspects, when someone is murdered.

This was a twisty, creepy book that kept me guessing.
Right when I thought I figured something out, the book shot in a different direction.