COMING 6/18/24

I am SHOOK. I DEVOURED The Midnight Feast (pun intended) in just over a day. This is Lucy Foley at her absolute finest. There were so many “OH MY GOD” moments where I had to stand up and walk and take deep breaths. I couldn’t stop thinking about this book in the moments I had to work and complete life duties.

Told in multiple points of view, The Midnight Feast alternates between the days leading up to the Summer Solstice, the AFTER, and the Summer of 2009. I was struck by how quickly I became enraptured with the characters, whether I loved or DESPISED them.

In Midsommar fashion (which is also alluded to in the book), everything goes so quickly from beautifully curated summer bliss to straight up demonic hell.

I don’t want to say anything else, because it’s better to just go in blind and be swept away. Watching the layers of these characters unravel to reveal their true selves was thrilling, especially Francesca, the Gwyneth Paltrow “Goop-esque” wellness guru. Just. Freaking. Genius.

You only have to wait a week, but if you love a twisty story, make plans to snag The Midnight Feast.

Lucy Foley loves an atmospheric thriller full of kind of bad people doing lots of bad things. And I am here for it. I really enjoyed this one. Its dark and twisty and I loved the ending.

The Midnight Feast was an excellent read. Lucy Foley always delivers and this book is not an exception.

Francesca Meadows has created an internet personality for herself as a "feel good guru" . Just become a follower and Francesca will teach you how to look better, feel better, and be a better person. This summer she is about to make her biggest dream yet come true. The summer solstice will mark the grand opening of "The Manor", an extremely posh, spare no expense resort in the idyllic English countryside built on the grounds of her grandparent's estate. Francesca promised to introduce her guests to the kind of wonderful getaway that she experienced there during the summers of her childhood. Of course it is sold out for months ahead of time. Every detail has been curated, even the guests have been screened and must fill out a questionnaire and a personal history. The locals are not as excited about changes to their village.

I believe I have read all of Foley's books and this may be my favorite. This was great twisty mystery and as always I immediately want to visit the setting! Thanks to Harper Collins, NetGalley and Lucy Foley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love a Lucy Foley book, but this was probably my least favorite.

What I liked:
- the vibes were great. I liked the coastal small town, the expensive retreat, the solstice celebration.
- Lucy Foley does a really great job of writing from so many characters POVs and weaving her story.
- The last part of this book really saved it for me. I loved the reveals, and was really shocked by a couple of them.

What didn’t work for me:
- I didn’t love all the time jumps in this one. I kept getting confused where we were in time while I was reading.
- The way the flashbacks were done
- The first 2/3 of this book were pretty boring.

I was lucky enough to snag an ARC of The Midnight Feast from NetGalley and I was SO excited because I've really enjoyed Lucy Foley's other books, but this one fell really flat for me.

We follow Francesca at the opening weekend of her new spa/meditation like retreat/resort. The story is told from the point of view of four people, all bringing different information to the table. The story is told in alternating timelines and I did really enjoy how the past was shown. It was shown via journal entries from one of the main characters.

Ultimately, this book fell pretty flat for me. I felt myself having to put forth effort to keep going during the first half of the book where it felt like there was really nothing happening.

While I did enjoy the few twists and turns throughout the second half of the book, I was still felt feeling pretty meh about the whole experience. For me, I wanted more of certain elements. I wanted more history and reasoning behind The Birds. I wanted more from the flashbacks explaining more about the history of Tome.

::SPOILER ALERT::
I also felt like Shrimp's mother being the one killed was way out of left field. Not necessarily her being the victim, but her connection to Shrimp/Owen. It was literally NEVER mentioned that Shrimp was her child and then all of a sudden it's revealed and then basically like "okay so anyway".

Overall, I just wanted a bit more. Three stars but I will definitely continue reading Lucy Foley.

The Manor, a cliffside resort hotel for health and wellness that is tucked away in the little Dorset village of Tome and with the beach and forests on opposite sides, is having its grand opening this weekend. The three days of luxury, pampering, and spirituality at the retreat will culminate in a midnight feast on the day of the solstice.

However, soon before dawn on The Day After the Solstice, fisherman discover two horrifying things: a body floating in the ocean, and The Manor is burning high on the cliff!
After reading The Midnight Feast, I can honestly state that Lucy Foley is the queen of deception. The mystery was multifaceted, intelligent, and thrilling, and the twists and turns in the plot were greater than the trees in the book. That final one quarter is all I can't stop thinking about!

There were a variety of characters—some I liked, some I wasn't sure about, and a couple who were pure evil. They were all fascinating, three-dimensional, and captivating. I was shocked at how emotionally attached I became to some of these characters' circumstances and trauma—I even started crying a few times.

I love thrillers and Lucy Foley really knocked this one out of the park!

I have always found Lucy Foley books to be hit or miss for me. Some I have loved and others I really haven't liked but she is an author I have always found myself drawn to. So I decided to go into this one with an open mind and pretty much blind to what it was about.
I was grabbed straight away by the plot and I liked the writing style. It was easy to read and the story was all flowing well. I enjoyed the different POV's throughout the book and the characters were well defined and likeable. The tension was palpable and I got the sense that it was all building up to something.
However, I did begin to find the pacing was too slow for my liking. For the first 200 pages nothing really happened but the writing was keeping me intrigued and there was a definite feeling that something was going to happen.
One thing I didn't enjoy were the flashback/diary entry chapters. I know why they were there but I struggled to enjoy them.
This is one of those books that is atmospheric and the mystery was slowly revealed but by the end I was left with a feeling of 'is that it?'.
The reveals weren't surprising and it did all feel slightly flat. It started off well and had a lot of promise but ultimately this one was a bit too slow and drawn out for my taste. I just wanted more to happen!

3.5 ⭐️ This was a slow burn thriller that comes full circle in the end. I found the pacing to be a bit off, but it grew on me as I kept going. There were some twists I saw coming, but others were a complete shock. I do think this thriller is one where you really need to pay attention to the dynamics because they play an integral part to the large story.

4.75 stars
I had no idea what a Midnight Feast was before reading this and now I never want to attend one. The pacing was consistently fast paced and easily switched between characters and timelines. What a great summer read!


I read a lot of thrillers and yet I was still surprised by just about every twist. I loved how the story came together and maybe if I was trying real hard then I would have figured it out. I literally gasped out and said likes “no way” multiple times.

I've read all of Lucy Foley's books, and have to say I've enjoyed them less and less along the way. I so wanted to love this book. I wanted another thrill like The Hunting Party. The Midnight Feast is well-written, and an enjoyable enough book, but overall really quite meh for me.

It's told through various POVs and timelines, but truthfully I just didn't care about any of them beyond Francesca. Her POV is wildly entertaining as we see beneath her carefully, almost meticulously built facade. She's an absolute garbage person, but was fun to read. The journal entries were a nice addition, and made me curious as to what happened that summer, but everyone else? Snoozefest. The guests at The Manor are insufferable. The townies were insufferable. Delilah and everyone fawning over her were insufferable. I found myself just not really caring at all about how it ends, or who the body is. That's a big problem in a thriller. That being said, I can totally imagine this as a tv series à la White Lotus. I'd watch it.

Another problem I had with this book: The Birds folklore was an interesting addition, and the aspect I was most excited about. I was hoping for something more ominous, but it was really just a blip. I wish she had leaned into it more. The Teddy Bear Picnic song became repetitive to me. Yeah, it's a creepy song, but after the 7th time of it being used it becomes silly. The solstice setting was fun, though.

I would still recommend this to thriller lovers, but maybe go in with tempered expectations. The twists at the end were fun, and one that I didn't see coming. That and Francesca's chapters made this 3.5, but I'm rounding down due to the other bland characters and side dramas that didn't feel fleshed out.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Marrow for the e-ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

This was honestly kind of hard for me to get through. I didn’t find any of the characters likable. It was extremely slow, and there wasn’t much that I found surprising. There was one detail that surprised me a bit, but made sense. I honestly was expecting more, as I enjoyed Paris Apartment so much.

I really enjoyed this book! The plot/setting/characters were entertaining. Definitely going to check out more Lucy Foley novels.

3.5/5 I've seen a few DNF reviews from people saying they couldn't get into this book and I definitely agree this is a slow burn. I started and stopped this book a couple of times before I finally got into it, and once I did, it all came together into a satisfying ending. I think my main issue with the story was that the setup of all of the characters takes too long and you don't really know where things are going. Then, once you figure out how everything is connected, it ends up being a pretty quick read. Overall, give this book a chance if you like this author, but go into it knowing that you'll be in the dark for awhile.

thank you to Harper Collins and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I have loved both books I read from Foley prior to this (the guest list and the Paris apartment) so I was ecstatic to receive this ARC. One thing I have always admired about Lucy Foley’s writing is that she always pulls you into the world of the novel. There is a lot of set up and many flash backs, but these things help paint a clear picture for the rest of the story to unfold. If you enjoyed The Guest List by Foley, you will likely enjoy this one as well. The book is well paced and incredibly written.

Whew what a ride! I devoured this book. This was much better than The Paris Apartment, and I would argue this was better than The Guest List. Probably Lucy Foley’s best work yet! The pacing was perfect, we had likable and unlikable characters, and the twists were twisting.

Francesca Meadows opens an upscale resort for society’s elites on the family land she recently inherited. She is confident this resort will offer the rest, relaxation, and spiritual reset her guests are searching for. But, between the locals being unhappy about the resort, glimpsing faces from the past, and strange things happening that relate to the local lore, memories from summers past become harder and harder to burry.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this title!

This book kept me guessing the whole time and I loved how the story lines wrapped up. Pacing was a bit slow in the middle (felt like it could have been ~50 pages shorter), but it picked up at the end.

If you like Foley’s other books and/or books about mysterious acts of vengeance happening to rich snobs, then this deserves a spot on your TBR.

Please note: the books does contain an on-page sexual assault

4.5 Stars!

Admittedly, this book had a bit of a slow start for me - but once I got through everyone's initial POV's I was HOOKED.

This book follows a cast of characters who are all apart of the grand opening of "The Manor," a super elusive resort marketed to the uber rich. But there is a dark and mysterious history surrounding the Manor and its Guest.

Lucy Foley does an amazing job twisting in folklore, Midsommer vibes, and a cast of characters who keeps you wondering "who done it" and trying to discover the full story. I think what truly drew me into the story was the summer journal entries. Reading that POV and getting the history of the characters really helped with filling out the story.

The last third of this book really sold me - I couldn't put it down because I NEEDED to know what happened.


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

This book was in my most anticipated for the month because Lucy Foley was one of my favorite authors. But unfortunately, I was so bored by this story. It was told in at least 4 points of view (I lost track) and the characters were just so unlikeable.

This newest offering from Lucy Foley is a fabulous locked room mystery set within the confines of a luxury seaside resort. There is murder, manipulation, blackmail, and class struggle in the opening weekend of The Manor, complete with an ethereal Gwynyth-Paltrow-Goop-Goddess proprietor and the titular masked midnight feast. The characters are mysterious while also being relatable, or in some cases - detestable. Foley has once again written an atmospheric page turner.

I usually really enjoy books by Lucy Foley but this one was not for me. It didn’t hook me at all in the beginning and I was bored and confused. It started feeling like a chore to read so I unfortunately DNF for now.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.