An event coordinator with a secret axe to grind is hired by an infamously anonymous author to orchestrate a writers' retreat for the thriller genre's best and brightest. But once the guests have all arrived, she finds she's being set up to take the fall for worse crimes than she imagined.

I know the writer's retreat gone wrong trope is done to death -- pun intended -- but this self-aware version executes it so well!

Debut author Ande Pliego's voice grabbed me from the first chapter, which is one of many musings on why we love to read and write about fear.

There's a little edge of First Lie Wins in here with a morally questionable protagonist trying to outsmart an anonymous puppetmaster.

It's not a straight banger. The author was a little weird about bilingual characters' use of Spanish. (It's not that big a deal to say nada, is it?) The revenge subplot is on the weaker side and some twists are quite foreseeable. But others genuinely took me by surprise and I eagerly tore my way through every chapter.

CW: death of children, obviously lots of murder and violence

Such a fun plot! I had a few things figured out but never the biggest reveal! I can’t believe this is only a debut! I’ll definitely keep an eye out for future books!

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine for the advanced copy!

You Are Fatally Invited: A Novel by Ande Pliego is a delightful cocktail of all my favorite things. This quick read masterfully blends murder mysteries, a deep dive into the lives of authors and writers, and the enigmatic charm of old mansions. The atmosphere is reminiscent of the classic board game Clue, but with a modern twist that keeps the narrative fresh and engaging. If you love a clever, suspenseful story that transports you into a world of secrets and intrigue, this book is an absolute must-read.

Several writers are invited to a weekend by reclusive author J.R. Alastor. No one knows the author - and they come excited.

What starts happening... is the stuff of their worst nightmares. I liked the mousetrap twists and turns. Multiple perspectives, you never know who to trust, it's an interesting premise!

Thank you Random House Publishing Group / Ballantine and Netgalley for an ARC.

As I was reading this I was channeling Agatha Christie and her most beloved novel “And Then There Were None” to the definite detriment of my open mindedness to this book. Pliego’s debut foray into this murder mystery “locked room” genre was admirable, but well Agatha Christie and all. There weren’t many characters to like here and I am going to be smug in admitting that I had a solid hook into what had happened and what was coming so maybe that is enough to explain my “get to it already” attitude.

Although I found the pace too slow and the characters confusing and the often repeated “I have to find who killed my husband” annoying, this was a solid debut and I am sure I would have enjoyed it more if I had never read Agatha Christie. Thanks to Bantam Books and NetGalley for a copy.

Thank you to Lauren from Book Huddle and NetGalley for providing this ARC! This book was a part of the Los Poblanos Inn (New Mexico) Reading Retreat hosted by Book Huddle, where you got to choose between 4 books to read prior to the event and enjoy a weekend of reading discussions with your own Huddle group. I sadly didn't get a chance to finish this until after the retreat, but GOLLY was it worth the time! Highly recommend this book if you like the board game Clue, murder mysteries, and a full cast of sneaky characters. This left me guessing until literally the last page. 5 STARS!

Love a good locked room mystery and it’s been a while since I’ve read a good one. This book totally filled that void.
A writers retreat goes wrong. Or does it? This twisty game hosted by J.R. Alastor will leave you flying through pages, and playing a mental who done it, much like Clue, to solve the mystery.
Loved this. Would totally recommend. Thank you Random House for publishing such an amazing book and Andre Pliego for writing it!

While the synopsis was what drew me into this book, the execution fell a bit flat for me. I liked the idea of there being a mystery that they had to solve and I think the author would have had a really good opportunity to create some interesting dialogue regarding tropes and expectations when the characters are solving puzzles themselves. I think the vengeance plot overttakes the original premise of puzzles, which in themselves could have been a way to eliminate the guests but that ended up not being the case until the very end. The killings come across as random and it took quite a while for us to get any plot twist or reveals until the last bit of the book when everything is explained to the reader. I did enjoy that excerpts of the all the authors' works and how it ties into what is going on in the book. The chapters that are excerpts from Alastor's book was probably my favorite of them. I think this was a good premise and I'll certainly read Pliego again in the future to see what else they attempt.

I absolutely love a locked room mystery and this did not disappoint! This had red herrings, plot twists, and plenty of suspense. So good!

I loved this one! It payed a clear homage to one of my all time favorite books; And Then There Were None. And THERE WAS NO AFFAIRS OR CHEATING! Don't get me wrong... there were certain parts that had me chanting: 'Please don't be cheating." Loved how the different parts of the book were designated by tropes. And how one of the MC's was half Asian? YES!

Read If You Like:
- Locked-room mysteries
- Thrillers set on isolated islands
- Stories featuring writers as protagonists
- Narratives with meta-commentary on genre tropes
- Twisty, suspenseful plots

An exclusive thriller writer’s retreat on a private island promises a week of inspiration, competition, and immersive mystery games. Hosted by the elusive J. R. Alastor and organized by rising literary star Mila del Angél, the retreat gathers some of the most brilliant minds in the genre. But when one of the authors is found dead, what began as a playful, trope-filled game turns into a real-life murder mystery. As a storm cuts off the island from the mainland and the body count rises, Mila must navigate a deadly puzzle where everyone has secrets, and no one is safe.

This novel is a sharp, self-aware take on the classic locked-room mystery, filled with nods to genre conventions while delivering fresh twists. With dark humor, atmospheric tension, and a fast-paced plot, it keeps readers guessing until the very end. A must-read for those who love intricate whodunits with a modern edge.

Thank you #NetGalley and #Bantam for an ARC of this book!

Several bestselling writers are invited by the anonymous author, J. R. Alastor, to a writing retreat set in a manor off the coast of Maine. When some of the authors start to go missing, and J. R. Alastor begins to force them to play his games or confess their secret sins, it is every writer for themself as they try to figure out who Alastor is, who’s keeping secrets, and why are people dying in ways that were written in their books? And what is up with the event coordinator who is apparently running the show?

At first, I couldn’t get into the story and may have missed some key details, but once it picked up, and it did pretty quickly, I was HOOKED! I love how the book weaves in trope after trope, as if making fun of them, yet they are pulled off so well. The twists were never ending and I couldn’t guess what was going to happen next. I loved the ending and genuinely had a good time with this one.

Some plot points and character arcs didn’t quite make sense to me, but I can chalk that up to me not tuning in from the beginning to really get to know the characters, so that’s on me. This book made me wish I had written something like this first and now I feel this novel will spawn more of its kind in the future!

I enjoyed this book which I received from NetGalley. It kept me guessing throughout. I didn’t feel connected to any of the characters because I know better than to do that in an «and then there were none » situation. Also they were all unsympathetic tbh. The plot was so intricate and the puzzle more complicated than you’d typically find in the trope.

I do find the ending and motives unconvincing. Especially the choice of who was invited and why. And were Alastor’s motives for setting up the whole thing in this specific way. Anyway, it was a good « no thoughts, head empty » read

Rating: 4.3⭐️
Narration: First person past tense, multiple POV
Thank you to Random House, Ballantine, Bantam and NetGalley for the eARC!

What a fun, wild ride this was. If you combine Knives Out Glass Onion, Clue and And Then There Were None, you would get something like this. So if you’re a fan of one or more of those, this might be the book for you!
This is a book I will be recommending to any friend who enjoys a mystery.

In You Are Fatally Invited, a reclusive author invites 6 mystery/thriller authors over to his private island for a sort of writer’s retreat, which quickly turns deadly. Throughout the week there are games set up by their host and event coordinator that will reveal their long hidden secrets.

This was such a well crafted, complex and smart story. The way the story was told also added to making this feel like a puzzle you should solve along with the characters. It doesn’t hold your hand but still leaves bread crumbs (and red herrings) along the way that you can definitely solve it on your own. I loved that the book made you work for it and made you really think through the details. I was totally ready to pull out note cards and yarn but I did instead keep notes on my phone trying to play around with the Clue game they were playing and trying to keep track of each character and their past.

This feels like a love story to the mystery genre, even with the new section pages including mystery trope definitions. But it also has something new to add. It feels fresh and exciting, it’s difficult to put down, and especially once the Clue game came out I was absolutely hooked, reading this even walking from room to room.

Other details: Perfectly atmospheric setting, good range of characters from I hope they die to I hope they get together, perfect ramp up of stakes, eerie details further adding to the vibes.

I had really high hopes for this one, but unfortunately, it fell quite short of those.

On paper, this had everything I love in a mystery: locked door setting, a complicated group of characters, a delicious Who Dunnit full of twists and turns, But The further along into the story I got, the more of a struggle it was to motivate myself to continue going.

With a cast of character this large, it's not easy task to make each of them unique and interesting. I felt like while they all had their own personalities, I never particularly cared for any of them and in some cases was even rooting for their demises to come along at a more expedited pace.

I told myself I was going to see the book through because I wanted to know what the final twist was and find out who Alastair was, but by the time that reveal came I was already mentally checked out and thinking about what Amy next read would be.

Six thriller writers are invited to an exclusive writing retreat hosted by a famous author whose true identity is unknown. Mila, the event coordinator, runs the show. However, when one of the authors turns up dead, Mila realizes she is in over her head and her own plan for revenge starts to go awry.

This book had me on the edge of my seat and kept me guessing from the first murder. I enjoyed the way the author incorporated each thriller trope and multiple antagonists. The isolated setting of the island and multiple view points added to the mystery and suspense. This was a great debut novel and look forward to more books from Ande Pliego! Thank you Bantam and NetGalley for this arc!

I was excited to dive into this one and was into it for maybe the first few chapters but then it just dragged on and on and had wayyyy too many characters and POVs and I simply did not CARE.

The concept is fun - six thriller authors are invited to an island retreat but then one is found murdered. And then another. And then…you get the idea. While there was intrigue there was also a whole lot of nothing and a whole lot of unlikeable characters and just too many tropes. It definitely fell flat for me, maybe 1.5 or 2 (generous) stars. Go ahead and skip this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

You Are Fatally Invited was an insane, twisty turning novel that made me question everything. From the beginning, as in from when I read the blurb of the book, I knew that I wanted to read this book simply because it was the game of Clue come to life. I absolutely love a locked door mystery, and the writers retreat being on an exclusive island set the tone for this book. With multiple POV’s and a character acting as a narrator that you can’t really trust, this story unwound slowly and sneakily in a way that made you really wonder how to each of these characters know each other and what the hell did they do to deserve to be murdered.

I really loved how each chapter told just enough information to get you to the next one and never enough to figure out who the real murderer was. There’s a scene where they have to play a game of clue and honestly when that board game came out, I was kicking and screaming with excitement because how freaking fun.

I thought that every character had a great backstory and great depths. They’re not perfect by any means and most of them deserve what they got in this book, but there’s a redemption arc that was really nice to see. I really enjoyed just how intertwined these characters were and how intricate the plot was. There were so many times I would read something that made me go oh my God as I read.

I can’t wait to see what this author does next, and I definitely will be reading all of their books.

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego is a thriller about a writer's retreat where people start dying one by one. Very similar to Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None, but slightly more unhinged. This was a fun read, and I had absolutely no idea where it was going. I really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it to anyone that enjoys a good locked room mystery. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

You Are Fatally Invited is a great read for those who love psychological thrillers and mysteries. Its a fast-paced, engaging story with a good conclusion. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a suspenseful, thought-provoking novel.