Come for the gorgeous cover, stay for the vibes! Lucy Foley's latest, The Midnight Feast, takes place at a fancy wellness retreat in England called The Manor. The Manor is supposed to be the ultimate luxury getaway for the rich, but something dark is brewing, something menacing is hiding in the forest, and secrets from the past are about to come to light.

I found the book to be really atmospheric, and I could really feel the oppressive heat and creepy vibes the characters were feeling. Speaking of the characters, I found them to all be really interesting, and I liked the alternating POVs in the different chapters. Francesca, our wealthy hostess, gives off unhinged Gwenyth Paltrow vibes, which I found fascinating.

The plot was a bit slow, and it took a while to figure out where the story was going, but the alternating timelines/POVs and super short chapters really kept me turning pages. There were some great twists that I didn't see coming, which is always great.

Overall, I wasn't blown away, but I did really like the book. It may be a little too slow for some, but if you don't mind a slow burn and like short chapters and good atmosphere, I'd recommend checking this out!

This wasn’t my favorite Lucy Foley book. It was a bit hard to follow the story line at times. However, I did not anticipate all of the twists and turns at the end. I did find myself reading a bit faster at the end to find out what happened.
The birds storyline was also a bit much at times.

This book took me a long time to get into. It started out slow and didn't really pick up until the last 1/4th of the book. I expect my thrillers to be less of a slog. 3 stars.

A childhood summer in Tome. A high end, extravagant getaway in the same town. And a series of interconnected mysteries and murders that burn the entire mansion down.

Lucy Foley does an incredible job of weaving a story across time and characters - effortlessly making connections that the readers won’t unfold until the point of drama in the story. Set in a sleepy, country town, A Midnight Feast follows a cast of characters on an opening weekend at a high end resort during the summer solstice. But unsuspecting to all - everyone’s past will play a role in the weekend and the folklore of The Birds will met out unserved justice by morning.

I throughly enjoy Foley’s storytelling - her ability to create characters that are unlikeable and toxic to ones that you begin to root for is a sheer talent. Her story lines and plot points are a masterclass in thriller writing, and never allowing your readers to know where your story is going to go. I had an incredible time unfolding this story as I read, and I genuinely didn’t put much together until it was practically revealed to me. Overall an enjoyable read and I look forward, as always, to her next novel.

This was such a great book! Lucy Foley continues to be a favorite, and has written another novel that kept me guessing, and entertained, the whole time!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of this book. My overall rating is 3.5 stars! ⭐️

This is my third time reading a book by Lucy Foley, and this one definitely follows her same patterns of storytelling and weaving of characters, which I appreciate. I highly recommend the audiobook as it is fun to follow along with the different characters’ POVs.

While I did enjoy the plot of this book, it isn’t one that is super thrilling. I would say that this book is more suited for mystery readers who want to guess plot connections rather than thriller readers who want a book that is hard to put down. The birds connection may be difficult for some to connect to, but as someone who grew up watching Hitchcock movies, I appreciate this fun connection. 🪶

Would recommend, especially the audiobook!

Lucy Foley does it again in her newest book "The Midnight Feast". This book will keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat. Such a fast paced fun thriller.

Always enjoy a Lucy Foley book!
Liked:
-interesting characters
-atmospheric setting
-eerie
-multiple POV
-the journal entries
-the wild ending full of chaos
-how things connected at end

The “birds” were and bit overdone and I wouldn’t say this is my fave of hers, but still enjoyed!

Thank you to Lucy Foley, William Morrow, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

First I want to say that this cover instantly drew me in. It grabbed my attention immediately.

Second, there were way too many storylines in this one. At times it became confusing and I had no idea what was happening. It was also slow at times, and I didn't find it very thrilling.

I LOVED Foley's first two reads. Amazing.

I actually had not read The Paris Apartment so did not know what to expect by Foley's newest book.

It was fun, but felt like it was recycling the pattern of the first two books, without me liking the characters as much.

Still twisty and turny, and a good time!

This book started slow for me, but it did pick up in the second half, and I couldn't stop turning the pages towards the end. It was a little difficult keeping track of some of the characters, and Eddie was the only one I found to be likable. I enjoyed the flashbacks told through Bella's diary entries. The folklore aspect was interesting, but I didn't feel that we had enough background on it. There were some good twists at the end.

Thank you, @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks, for the #gifted e-arc and physical ARC of this book!

3.5 stars rounded

It happened again... too many story lines for an underwhelming finish that was not at all satisfying. All the pieces tie into each other in a very obvious way - it just wasn't thrilling for me at all. It felt like every character was designed to be a plot twist but they were all thrown in there to be overtly twisty. This just fell so short for me and had all the same mish mash vibes as her previous reads.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read an ARC of the midnight feast.

When an heiress fixes up her grandparent's estate and opens up a tasteful (i.e. exclusive and covered in white linen) resort experience in an area where those who have made the specifically cultivated guest list would never step foot otherwise.... what could go wrong? Told from many POV's, one of which is the wealthy heiress herself as she tries to persuade the reader that she is as humble as they come and creating this experience for those who are the most "in tune with their health and the vibrations of the world" (not a direct quote, but very much the vibe)., all the while watching as her past, and her present unfold. The other POV's are told from a variety of characters, who each have a lot more to do with this story than you may originally thought....

I enjoyed this book! There were several twists and turns throughout, some more obvious than others, and I was definitely excited to see how it ended.

I am a diehard Lucy Foley fan. I was lucky enough to meet her at the release of this book in NYC, and it was by far my most anticipated book of this year. While her other book, The Guest List is still my favorite of her titles, this book is in close running for my 2nd favorite, along with The Hunting Party.

Like Foley's other titles, this one has multiple perspectives and multiple timelines that slowly drive the reader towards the twisty conclusion. This book focuses on the opening weekend of The Manor, a posh and exclusive resort that has been built smack in the middle of a small town that is not known for its welcoming atmosphere. Though the opening weekend is all glitz and glam - an upscale glamping experience for those with enough to pay for the privilege - the locals are none too happy about the intrusion on their lands, and the woods are even less accommodating of outsiders that invade their lands.

This book has all the best parts of Foley's other books wrapped into it. The characters - my personal favorite was poor, handsome Owen - all have their own unique voices and backstories. None of them felt like they were thrown in for no reason, and even the "villains" were easy to picture and understand. Man, I could read 7 books that were just designed around hating Nathan Tate.

This book is Foley's first foray into using folk horror as an element in one of her stories, and the plot was all the better for it. There is a lot of mention of the ominous figures in the woods, bent on keeping the local lands as they should be. But what are The Birds, really, and what threat do they pose to the wealthy experiences that are being spun at The Manor? This element added such a great creep factor to this book, and I hope something like this shows up in Foley's books again.

If I had to wage one complaint it would be that, at times, it can be hard to follow the plot through the shifting perspectives and timeline. This is especially true of the end of the book, where the chapters are short and choppy and the past starts to bleed into the present. The integration of the mystery into the modern day is done really well, and the ways that the characters come together both makes sense and feels like a well-crafted story instead of a "Gotcha!" moment like some thrillers. Every one of the twists could definitely be guessed with the clues that you are given, and I definitely prefer that in a book. Don't suddenly tell me that this character is suddenly, conveniently, 12 years younger than you made them out to be. That irritates me immensely. Give me the clues I need and let me suss it out on my own, if I so choose.

Overall, this is another hit for Lucy Foley. I will be eagerly awaiting her next release, and all I can say is that I am definitely disappointed to have read this so quickly!

This book starts with a body on a beach and then jumps back and forth from the present to several days prior to lead the reader to who it is and how it got there. At its heart is a tale of a well-to-do family who believes themselves to be better than the locals, a brand new high-end destination built by this family, and many secrets concerning a summer 15 years earlier. No one is quite who they seem and nature has a way of balancing itself out with a little help from locals... A tense and page-turning masterpiece that kept me reading way, way past my bedtime.

Another great Lucy Foley book. I enjoyed the story and the characters. Read through this one pretty quickly.

I never really got invested in this book, even though I've really enjoyed most of Lucy Foley's other books and the premiss of refurbished country house, a corrupt health guru and slow burning revenge should have been a slam dunk - but what's with the birds?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review.

I'm a fan of Lucy Foley, but almost gave up at the start of this one. I was not connecting with the pretentious characters. Luckily, I kept reading and the book got better. This story has multiple narrators, and even at the end, I didn't like many of them. They tell the tale of a new, high-end resort built into a very tenuous town. Flashbacks brings twists where you see how current-day characters met each other in the rundown town. Long-ago mistakes come forward in the present day resort. There were twists near the end that I didn't see coming and which amped up the plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for a digital copy of this book!

It’s opening night at The Manor, a new resort where every last detail has been intricately arranged with absolutely no expense spared. What starts as a lavish celebration ends in chaos, lies, deceit, and death. Some guests are not who they appear to be, and secrets long buried come to light.

I loved the premise of this book, and found myself highly interested in what was going on from the very beginning. Told from multiple character perspectives through a dual timeline, the pace of the story was fast, which was very effective in maintaining a feeling of tension and suspense throughout.

The Manor itself was eloquently described, its beauty and opulence serving as the perfect contrast to the treacherous things that were happening on its grounds. Adding to the mystery were the bits of folklore woven within the plot line.

Overall, The Midnight Feast was an enjoyable read that I flew through, so why only 3 stars, you ask? For me, the resolution of the story was underwhelming. While the action was exciting, there were no gasp out loud moments where I was shocked at how something turned out. One of my favorite aspects of Lucy Foley’s writing that I have come to expect are jaw-dropping plot twists, and in this case, everything wrapped up somewhat predictably. Ultimately, it was still an exciting and entertaining book, so I would recommend trying it.

"The Midnight Feast" is one of Lucy Foley's best yet! The twists and turns take the reader on a wild, English countryside ride and she drops "A ha!" moments that keep the pages turning to find out what happens next. I also LOVED the ending. A must read!