You Are Fatally Invited is a thrilling locked-room mystery that keeps you guessing until the end. The story follows six thriller writers invited to a remote manor off the coast of Maine, each harboring secrets they are desperate to keep. A killer among them is determined to have these wrongdoings confessed, leading to a tense and engaging narrative.

The well-developed characters, each with distinct personalities and hidden secrets, add depth to the story. I found myself constantly changing my mind about who to trust and who the killer might be. The multiple points of view and excerpts from the characters' books enriched the plot.

This entertaining and creative story is filled with complex twists and captivating characters. The strong ending ties everything together nicely. Overall, You Are Fatally Invited is a fantastic read with a rich, intricate plot that will keep you hooked from start to finish.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine Bantam for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

Wonderful tale! I made every effort to predict the conclusion, but I was caught off guard. Throughout this book, there were times when I believed I understood the mysteries, but then something would change my understanding. I kept turning pages of this book late into the night to know what would happen next!

This was a clever and well written book for a debut novel. While the premise wasn’t necessarily unique, the author did a good job at keeping the reader captivated. I really enjoyed the CLUE vibes this book gave and the CLUE-like map at the beginning was an awesome detail.

The characters in this book were interesting and some of the bigger characters felt flat. Rodrigo has a big secret in the book but I couldn’t actually FEEL his fear of being found out while reading. It’s like he kept saying he was scared but the words did not convey the magnitude of his emotions. Fletcher’s character was on the other end of the spectrum - his overcompensating personality practically jumps off the page to the point where you’re getting annoyed.

Thank you NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group - Bantam, for providing me with this ARC! As always, all thoughts & opinions are my own :)

I was drawn to You Are Fatally Invited based on the premise. I’d never read a mystery quite like this one, which takes place at a writers’ retreat at Wolf Harbor Estate, a mansion on an island. Gee, what could go wrong? For me, nearly everything in this debut novel went right!

The invited guests of an equally mysterious and anonymous author that none of them had met are six mystery/thriller writers, “all masters of deceit, misdirection, and mayhem,” who find themselves immersed in a real-life murder mystery. And oh yeah, there’s a storm, so no getting off the island. Now, they’re trying to outsmart one another for their very survival!

With multiple POVs among the many eccentric and enjoyable characters, I confess I had a little trouble keeping everything straight. While the author generously sprinkled a few bread crumbs, along with a few more “red herrings,” I loved not knowing “who done it” until the end. This was a fun ride, because for me, this book was so clever and fun that it made the journey (complete with things that I didn’t see coming) worth every minute! Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam for the opportunity to read this advanced copy. I happily, and voluntarily, am providing this review.

I liked this book. It was a little predictable however, it was a great palate cleanser to read bettwen my epic fantasy books. I had fun.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the review.,

I found the characters to be unrelateble and the story a little predictable.

I enjoyed the premise of You Are Fatally Invited--a group of people invited to a remote location and murder ensues. But I didn't love the characters or all of the foreshadowing, which really took me out of the story.

I received an ARC of this book from Random House via NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. I am apparently in the minority here, as this book really didn't work for me.

I had trouble keeping the characters straight literally the entire book. This was made worse by when one character is called by a nickname by another, but his own true name in his chapters; I was thinking there was another character.

The in-between chapters written by the villain were confusing. The header pages with descriptions of common tropes were very hard to read on the Kindle edition; perhaps this will be fixed before publishing.

The best part was the description of the resort and the island. The author definitely did a good job building ambience and setting the scene with secret passages, darkness, and isolation.

I was surprised about the villains but honestly didn't care - probably since I had a hard time keeping the characters straight, I didn't develop enough feelings about any of them to have a particular opinion regarding who was guilty.

The very end struck me as far-fetched and a bit corny.

Fantastic story! I tried so hard to figure out the end but I was taken by surprise. It takes place on a remote island with a wild storm coming. It certainly kept me entertained.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An innovative take on “And Then There Were None.” The writing style was refreshing, and the amount of characters’ POVs was enough to keep you engaged but not overdone. This is a must read for fans of mystery/thrillers!

Five writers are lured by world famous author to his private island with the hope of finally meeting him. Apparently no one has ever met him. He purposes several mystery games that go all wrong. A deep psychological thriller. Scary as the bodies begin to appear. Not my cup of tea as I’m way past wanting to be scared out of my wits. Thanks you Netgally for this Arc.

I loved the setting of this book and it’s always extra fun for me when writers write about authors. There were points in this book where I thought I had the mysteries figured out, but then there would be a twist to what I thought I knew.

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego, JR Alistair is a reclusive writer, so reclusive he’s never been seen in 30 years of writing books but now he’s invited six authors to Wolf Island to a writing retreat held by him. The first suspicious thing is they all signed in NDA, but this won’t be where the strangeness ends. it isn’t long after the retreat begins that one of the writers go missing, but yet the games continue. everyone attending knows each other in some form or fashion and they’ve all got their suspicions of what’s going on, but will they all live to tell about it. I really liked this book not as much as I thought I would but still definitely recommend it. I love books with isolated locations and a murderer a foot but this somehow felt different from that type of book. I don’t know why but it did. I would still definitely recommend it for those who like mysteries because even when you think you know what’s happening it seems the game changes. I want to say I have been obsessed lately with the type of prose and writing style authors have and I very much liked the authors and would definitely read another book written by them. #NetGalley, #RandomHousePublishing, #AndePliego, #YouAreFatallyInvited,

You Are Fatally Invited is a super intense locked room psychological and horror thriller that will keep you puzzled and riveted to the very end. Like a macabre game of Clue, but with more dead bodies, enhanced methods of killing, and a puppet master hellbent on revenge invisibly pulling the strings. Suspenseful, intriguing and dark stuff by Ande Pliego.

Several well-known writers are invited to the private island of famously anonymous author J.R. Alastor for a thriller writers’ retreat. But this isn’t any ordinary retreat. Alastor has hired a host who will help execute a week of contests, riddles and scary situations intended to rattle and inspire these writers who all have a dark secret from their past. Meanwhile, this host has a hidden agenda – she wants to murder one of the participants and feels this week of mayhem is the perfect cover. However, when one of the guests turns up dead and it’s not the person she planned to kill, all bets are off and everyone on the island is in mortal danger. Can the guests outwit the unknown killer in their midst? Or will they all die the death they deserve?

Your brain will get twisted up like a pretzel and you’ll feel cold chills down your spine as you follow the deadly action and try to figure out who’s the mastermind behind this sinister retreat. Every character is both a suspect and a potential victim. They all have reasons to kill while also harboring secrets that someone could find punishable by death an appropriate course of action. Which leads to being deeply skeptical of everyone while also trying to find a sliver of goodness that would eliminate them as a killer. And it’s that dichotomy of fearing the worst but hoping for the best from each individual that propels this story forward. Forcing you to reconcile the two and pick sides until the truth is finally revealed.

The result is an engaging and enthralling story that grips you early and doesn’t let go. Exercising your brain and nerves in equal measure while you watch authors put through hell to see if/how they come out the other side.

Thank you, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the copy of You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego. I loved the plot and having the characters be authors was like a dream come true. I wish the characters had been more clearly defined so I could keep track of them all. At the very least, I would have liked to have a list of characters and a bit about their backgrounds like the old Agatha Christie books used to have. It took so long to connect any of the characters together, I started to lose interest. Good thing there was lots of action, and the days and nights moved at a fast pace. The story was inventive and fun, but I’m not sure I loved the ending, maybe because I never connected to the characters. 3 stars for me, but I can see this being a popular book!

A fantastic, twisty thriller! This one kept me guessing until the last few chapters, and while I did guess a twist or two it whapped me upside the head a couple times with the way things unraveled.
I loved the setup on this one - authors are invited to a mysterious bestselling reclusive fellow author's island for a themed weekend... and events go sideways quickly. However much it sounds like 'And Then There Were None' at first blush, it is NOT. It keeps you wondering what is going on, who is allied with whom, and what secrets are being kept and revealed in each chapter.
The only reason it's not a five star for me is I would have liked a little more between Mila and the guests, one in particular. And I wanted more of Violet all throughout the story, as I found her intriguing.
Definitely recommend for folks who love a good locked room mystery.

"No one heard a thing, that was the consensus. Unless, perhaps, they all had."

This was such a fun, chaotic, mind-bending read and I loved it! I read it with a group of friends and we were all still guessing all the way to the end! This group of authors, invited to an exclusive writing retreat with an author that no one has ever met let me wondering who was who and who knew what!

I love that, right from the start, we get a map that looks like a clue board! It was so fun and made me excited to get started! I swear my pointy finger was on every last author in this book until the very very end. I never guessed how it would all roll out and the tension and suspense kept me absolutely glued to the page. I will definitely look for more from this author! I loved this one!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Ande Pliego’s You Are Fatally Invited pulls you into a world of secrets, lies, and high-stakes drama right from the start. The concept is undeniably intriguing—a mysterious invitation, a group of characters with hidden agendas, and a setting that feels both glamorous and claustrophobic. Pliego does a great job building suspense, keeping you guessing about who to trust and what’s really at play.

The pacing is fast, which makes it easy to keep turning the pages, but at times it feels like the story sacrifices depth for speed. Some characters could’ve been fleshed out more, and a few twists, while entertaining, came across as predictable or a bit over the top.

Still, the book delivers on tension and thrills, and the writing style is engaging, even if it leans a bit heavy on the melodrama in parts. If you’re looking for a fun, suspenseful escape with plenty of shocking moments, You Are Fatally Invited is worth checking out.

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego

My thanks to Bantam Books for providing an ARC in exchange for this review.

This book was difficult for me to get into. Early on in the story, I thought I was going to regret reading another book based on writers meeting for a writers’ retreat and then something horrible (generally murder) happens. I have read many books like this and generally liked them. This is the reason that I requested this book. Even though I was not hooked at the beginning, I decided to push on through.

I have thought about why this book was hard for me to like. First, I got a bit lost in the characters. There are a lot of them. The main character is the narrator. Unfortunately, I never felt an affinity for her. Second, I found it hard to keep the backgrounds of the characters straight along with how they might or might not know each other. Those relationships are important to the story, and I didn’t get them until the end. This was a problem for me all the way through the book. Third, when a character's background was revealed, it wasn’t complete enough for me. It took me until the end of the book to know and understand every character. I found that frustrating.

Finally, about one-third of the way through the book, the story itself began getting interesting enough for me to continue. One of the “games” the host required the writers and staff to play was to correctly assign each of the following identities to the correct character:
The Child Murderer
The Exploiter
The Perjurer
The Poisoner
The Thief
The Host
The Accomplice
The Serial Killer
This sounds interesting, doesn’t it? Because I still did not have enough background for any of the characters, assigning these identities was impossible for me, but I did begin to enjoy the storyline more.

For me, a murder mystery needs more than one murder. I was happy to find that this book did provide enough murder to suit me. So you see that there are aspects of this story that are interesting and encouraging.

I was glad when all of the loose ends began to be tied up. I finally got to know the full backgrounds of each character and how the characters were connected to one or more of the other characters. It was a long time coming…too long for me to love this book. Of course, I had tried to identify the characters, but I failed on all but a couple. That is actually OK with me. A book that is too easy to figure out isn’t fun for me. I just felt that the author purposely misled or withheld information from the reader. That’s not fun, either.

My star rating is 3 stars for the interesting storyline that kept me reading to the end.

If you’re a fan of spooky yet original books told from multiple pov, twists and locked room thrillers then you are going to love You Are Fatally Invited. This book had me on the edge of my seat, turning pages well into the night.