3.5 stars

This was a unique and clever take, and I really enjoyed it. The reveal wasn’t unexpected for me, but I still enjoyed the ride.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

4 ⭐️

A captivating read with a twist I didn't see coming! I will admit that at first you're thrown into the story, which I liked, but it made it a bit hard to keep track of who was who at the beginning. As the book went on, I didn't even realize the connections I was making to the characters until I was almost tearing up towards the end. Please know that this story is heavy at times, and be sure to check the content warnings. If you liked the vibes and unique take of <i>The Love Of My Afterlife,<i> this book may be for you! (Please note that this one is not as romance-heavy and not as light and comedic as <i>The Love Of My Afterlife.<i>) What a strong debut!


Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC 💓

United States Publication: April 15, 2025

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this advanced reader's copy. In exchange, I am providing an honest review.

Genevieve Dempsey works with grieving people. Her work explores the stages of grief, supposing they go beyond the traditional five and that there are seven or more to work through. A handpicked group has been assembled as Genevieve's first group with whom she wants to test this theory of seven or more stages as she assists them in working through their grief. Victoria, Mischa, Freya, and Callum meet with each other and Genevieve every Tuesday night at seven o'clock to participate in this new kind of group therapy. The four participants have each experienced a profound personal loss that has literally stopped them from living their lives any longer. They can't function, and their friends and family are at a loss as to how to help them. This grief group is, in many ways, the end of the road. If they can't find a way to move through their grief with the help of Genevieve and each other, the lives they hope to return to might be lost to them forever.

This was a fascinating examination of how people can move through grief and the idea that grief isn't limited to stages. Ireland creatively brought these strangers together and threw a twist in that was so subtle that it was delightful when, as the reader, everything became clear. As the reader, you have no idea that the story isn't straightforward until Ireland introduces more of the story. I appreciated Ireland's creativity and ability to tell such an interesting story. I'll look forward to other stories she chooses to share.

It was 2:00 in the morning by the time I reached the “WHAT?!” moment of The Seven O’Clock Club- no one to turn to, no one to stare at in disbelief…all I could do was keep reading!

Freya, Callum, Victoria, and Mischa come from different walks of life, but they all have one thing in common: grief. Once a week at 7:00 PM, the group meets with their therapist, Genevieve, to discuss what their lives looked like before and after the death of a loved one. Through this “group experiment”, the members not only showed tremendous growth as individuals, they came together to form inseparable life-long bonds.

The prologue immediately captured my attention; I was anxious to learn more about Genevieve and the project she was creating. I found myself curious about each character and couldn’t wait to hear their story- to find out why they were at these group sessions in the first place. The novel was written through multiple characters’ POV; I find this to be confusing sometimes, but Ireland’s writing made it easy to keep track of each character.

I enjoyed this novel a lot more than I anticipated. I fell in love with the growth of each character, it was so heartwarming to see the bonds created, especially Mischa with Victoria and Callum with Freya. I found myself grinning with each final chapter; I was so worried how Ireland was going to end the novel!!

Thank you Berkley, Amelia Ireland and NetGalley for allowing me access to this ARC. I absolutely recommend The Seven O’clock Club.

[I have rated this book 4.5 stars on app/platforms that allow half star rating increments]

It’s not very often that something completely captivates me, but this book did just that.

It was the kind of story that gets into your head and re-evaluate how you live your life. While the subject matter is different, I had a similar feeling when I read A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.

I fell in love with every single one of the main characters. However, Freya resonated with me most. I saw pieces of myself in her character, and the story behind her grief broke my heart several times over.

This isn’t the type of book that I reach for very often, but I’m so glad that I read it. It felt like a giant breath of fresh air that left me with tear-stained cheeks and a smile on my face.

Thank you so much to Berkley and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book!

Read if you like:

✨A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman
✨Forced proximity
✨Stories about grief
✨Multi POV storylines

The Seven O’Clock Club by Amelia Ireland
.
Four strangers who couldn’t be more different meet for a new kind of grief therapy. As each strangers goes through a stage in the grief process, they find that they share a little more of themselves with the group, which draws them each to the next session.
.
What I liked:
-I loved that this book wound up being a journey that I was not anticipating! It’s always so much fun when books surprise me.
-Getting to know each of these individuals was touching. They each had their own background and personality, and their grief was so heavy for them.
-It was wonderful to see them form bonds with each through therapy and outside of it.
.
4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really enjoyed this touching debut.

This book follows four strangers who meet in a grief therapy group, each carrying their own pain and skepticism. There's a tough lawyer who refuses to let anyone in, a lost young woman searching for connection, a famous musician battling addiction, and a designer who's perfect life is falling apart. Slowly, they begin to open up - not just to healing but to friendship, change, and even love.

At first, I found the story a little slow, but then that twist happened, and I was completely hooked. I did not see it coming at all! It changed everything. Once the reveal hit, the book became so much more interesting, and I couldn't put it down. I really liked it, and if you enjoy character-driven stories with surprise turns, this one is worth picking up.

Debut author Amelia Ireland scores with a clever and surprising novel, The Seven O'Clock Club. Four strangers, ranging in age from 20 to mid-4os and with occupations from a clerk to a rock star, are participating in a weekly counseling session designed to help each of them move on from a tragedy. Their counselor, Genevieve, has told them it is an experimental treatment and encourages each to finally reveal the calamity that robbed them of their former lives. They start by recalling a positive experience from their childhood, then progress through a roller coaster of emotions to finally come clean about why they can't shake their overwhelming guilt and grief.

At that point, 70% through the novel, everything changes. I mean, EVERYTHING. And although I knew from other reviewers that there was a twist, I was gobsmacked to discover that the final 30% of the book was my favorite--the most revealing, the most emotional, and ultimately (for me) the most satisfying. The characters of Callum, Freya, Mischa and Victoria, as well as Genevieve, were well portrayed throughout the book, and after a somewhat slow start, the plot galloped toward the final resolution. No spoilers--you have to read it yourself. I'm looking forward to more from this new author.

My thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

Most of my selections on NetGalley are done quickly and once I start reading a title, I don't always recall what drew me to it but I dive right in anyway to see what the book has to offer me.

This novel is very thought-provoking and it uses a set up which brings people together who don't know each other at all and lets their responses and reactions direct the action. In this story, the people are brought together to work through their grief over something that happened in their lives, each unique to the person.

Each person's story is heartbreaking at times, once they are ready to reveal the true details of the event. The ending was very unexpected to me.

I applaud the unique storyline and felt sad when it came to an end. The romantic bit was a bit rushed and didn't connect for me, but I loved the story and found myself wishing for more about each character. Such a sad story.

This book tells the story of four strangers brought together to process their grief using an experimental strategy. Instead of the traditional five stages of grief, this book follows the characters through a seven stage process: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Testing, Acceptance and Transition. It was engaging and compelling before the major twist and fascinating afterwards. I enjoyed the characters and their relationships with each other. The book brought up some thought provoking issues related to grief and afterlife.

Such an immersive plot and character driven book that really explored all stages of grief. This was uncomfortable in the sense that it talked about grief's nasty side effects while also maintaining a sense of comfort and easiness. Absolutely enjoyed.

Four strangers are brought together in an experimental therapeutic group to heal their broken hearts.

This review is slightly biased as I run therapeutic groups for a living. So give me a book involving that and I’m typically sold. This one truly captured the heart of therapeutic groups and how group members can sync together and help each other heal.

The magical realism component doubles as a major plot twist and it is a shockkk I never saw coming! This was such a great little book with so many elements (tears, laughter, nail biting, basically all the human emotions).

The Seven O’clock Club by Amelia Ireland is about four strangers who come together to do group counseling with a therapist called Geneva they’re all very different one is taciturn her name‘s Victoria and she doesn’t believe she belongs there, up next is Fraya she is grieving and has cut all ties with her husband and family the third is the youngest of the group who is a grieving daughter Mischa, and last but not least is the rockstar Callum. All of them agree to meet every Tuesday at 7 o’clock for four weeks for a new therapeutic counseling group for those who are grieving. Everybody said somethings they don’t belong there and some believe they belong there but just don’t want to go. Before it’s over all will be happy they went. They all form a bond some more than others but all will be unlike anything they ever experienced before. There’s romance, friendship LOL moments in a little bit of suspense but mostly it’s just unlike any therapeutic setting I’ve ever read. This book is so original and I am so scared to give anything away that’s going to ruin the story. Just know I was halfway through the story and kept thinking is this all it’s about the therapy? I still wanted to read it but just wasn’t getting with the book was about, then I got to the part where Mischa over hears Geneva saying something very intriguing not only to her but to the reader as well. I really wish I could write something very interesting about the book to make you want to read it just know there’s so much that happens between the 60% part in the end that makes this whole book worth reading although I found the whole thing interesting it got very very good and it’s a book I absolutely loved. So original and so worth the read!#NetGalley,#BerkeleyPublishing, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #AmeliaIreland, #TheSevenO’clockClub,

This book was so good!!! I loved the relationships between all the characters. Thank you Berkley and Netgalley

The Seven O' Clock Club
By: Amelia Ireland

5 Stars

Wow. This is a powerfully emotional and grabbing read. You meet four people; Callum, Mischa, Freya, and Victoria. Each has their own story, but all are joined in the loss of someone. We all know grief comes with anger and disappointment. Genevieve, the one who brought them together, is trying to see if the group dynamic is the secret to healing. We soon see that her methods are a bit different.

Wow. Wow. Wow. When I first picked this story up, I expected tears. I got them, but I also got so much more. This story, this set of characters, brings it all. Drama, love, comic relief, remorse, sadness, forgiveness. It grabbed me early, but by the end, I was shocked and awed. It was so good. It told a story that will break you and put you back together again. I'm finding it so hard to do this review simply because some books just hit you and are hard to explain. This book did that. It's well worth the read, but if you pick it up, chances are that you won't put it down. I had to finish it. And it was simply beautiful and written thoughtfully. I really loved this story.


*I want to thank Netgalley and the author for this book in return for my honest review*

Stormi Ellis
Boundless Book Review

WOW.

This was such an incredible book. It was impossible to put down (I love a good multi POV), and had great character building. It takes until about the midway point until the characters really open up but it allowed for a connection to form with each of them. Once I hit that halfway point I finished the whole book.

I think there is beauty in going into this a little blind. The revelation I truly did not see coming. I had ideas but my jaw dropped. I loved where I ended up going.

Thank you to Berkeley Publishing & NetGalley for the ARC.

“The Seven O’Clock Club,” the debut from Amelia Ireland, is unlike anything I’ve read as of late. Ireland has constructed a handful of characters that are struggling with grief following their respective traumatic moments, coming together for a new group therapy experiment led by Genevieve, a sometimes mysterious but understanding therapist (?). You follow Freya, Victoria, Mischa, and Callum, who (mostly) are different enough from one another (the women are written similarly enough so you may struggle to differentiate them until 40 or 50 pages in.) Since the description alludes to it, I’ll say it here. Something about this therapy is different from our typical sessions. It’s a spoiler to share any more than that, but it’s a big twist that may turn you off from the entire book. I’m in the minority.

It’s a shame that this twist happens so far into the book — 75% according to my Kindle — because it’s quite interesting and not as painful as some of the reviewers had “warned” me about. Like them, I won’t ruin it here, but you won’t see it coming … but the book wraps up fairly quickly afterwards as Ireland rushes to the end. This speaks to my main and biggest complaint: Ireland takes far too long to do a lot here. Beyond the twist, she doles out these characters’ backgrounds and what brings them here to this therapy session at a glacial pace. We know they’re suffering through traumatic things but to hold them back in ways akin to plot devices or trope-y, leads to the overall story suffering. It’s a shame since the overall message — our grief or mistakes don’t define us or our lives — is poignant.

If you can make it through the fluff and the author’s writing style and flow, Seven O’Clock is an interesting, magical realistic take on grief — how it unites us and can make us better people — that is novel in this genre (ie, not a romance.) Rounding up to 4 (but it’s a solid 3.5.) Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

A beautifully written thought-provoking and emotionally charged novel that will leave you breathless! Four individuals from vastly different walks of life - Victoria, Freya, Mischa, and Callum - each struggling with devastating trauma, come together for an experimental grief therapy group led by enigmatic Genevieve Dempsey. As they navigate their complex personalities and deep-seated emotions, the group forms an unlikely bond, but secrets lurk beneath the surface.

Just when you think you've got it all figured out, Amelia Ireland masterfully throws in a jaw-dropping twist! With its unique blend of magical realism, romance, and complicated character dynamics, this stunning debut is a must-read for anyone looking for a thought-provoking story with an emotional arc that will leave you laughing and reaching for tissues. With its well-developed characters, nuanced relationships, and a dash of unexpected magic, I'm already eagerly anticipating Ireland's next masterpiece. If you're a fan of books that push the boundaries of storytelling, don't miss out on this unforgettable debut!

Victoria, Freya, Mischa, and Culum lead very different lives and have each suffered devastating trauma. Needing help, they each respond to an ad for an experimental treatment group run by Genevieve. They believe they were randomly selected, but were they? As they finally start to open up to Genevieve and each other, friendships grow, and they feel they might actually be able to come to terms with their grief.

This book started out slowly then the pace picked up and, out of nowhere, comes a totally unexpected jaw-dropping twist that will blow your mind. Well done, Amelia Ireland!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.