Murder mystery that takes place in a mansion all in one day? Sign me up!

I love the atmospheric setting of this novel. Lists of drama, mystery, and unreliable narrators to keep me intrigued. I needed to know what was going on!

My two biggest qualms with the story was that there were sooo many characters that I needed to keep straight. Not sure if it was because of the switching back and forth between characters but it was difficult to keep up. I also craved more from the haunting within the mansion. I wish that was delved into more.

Overall, an intriguing story that had many depths that would be great discussions for a book club.

This fast-paced thriller doesn’t disappoint! I would label it as a locked room style scenario, not because the characters are trapped but because the action takes place during a short time period. Although we get lots of background information about the characters through flashbacks, the main story takes place during the sweet sixteen birthday party for Sophie, the daughter of Ethan and Kim who are divorced. The setting for the party is the home of Ethan, a psychiatrist, his new young wife, Dani, their infant daughter and the Irish nanny. This is Kim’s former dream home and this is just one of the many factors that could lead someone to murder. Among others are Dani’s postpartum depression and possible psychosis, Kim’s alcohol abuse, a superstitious nanny, gossipy friends and neighbors and teenage angst. As the story unfolds, more secrets are revealed and the complicated relationships just make the book more and more suspenseful.
This is such a cleverly written and enjoyable read! I liked the suspense of knowing that someone was going to fall from a balcony at the beginning of the book but not knowing who or why. The reveals were surprising and juicy but not over the top. There’s no way that I could have predicted the ending but it was very satisfying. I will definitely look forward to more from this author.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own.

This was an interesting read! It felt different and had a fresh take on the thriller genre. I absolutely love the locked room trope and think it just adds to the tension and suspense of reading a thriller. You don't know who to trust and that adds to the impending doom and sense of paranoia that keeps one at the edge of their seat. I liked the setting of this, too. A lavish 16th birthday party at a rumored-to-be haunted house? Yes please! I appreciate that the twists weren't outlandish. While I do appreciate a good gasping moment, sometimes twists can be too far fetched that it takes away from the story. This was a solid debut and will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.

I really enjoyed this thriller ! It kept my attention the entire book and had me on the edge of my seat wondering how it would end. I loved the atmospheric setting of the old house where the party was held. It was a very quick read with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. I recommend giving this one a read if you enjoy suspense/thriller type books.

Thank you Netgalley and St.Martin's Press for the digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

Wild story with lots of secrets and lies.

We know from the beginning that someone dies, but we don't know who or how it happened.

A huge sweet sixteen party for Sophie is occurring at her father Ethan's house. Ethan is married to Dani, who has recently given birth to a baby and has had some psychological issues post-partum, so they hired Irish nanny Orlaith. Also among the attendees at the party are Mikayla, Sophie's best friend, and Kim, Sophie's alcoholic mother and Ethan's ex-wife. As the party progresses, each of the character's secrets begin to come to light with explosive results.

This book is a wild ride! There are so many secrets revealed--some I saw coming and some I did not. There are twists galore and the ending is very satisfying. The book even had me questioning my own sanity at some points as various characters are lying, gaslighting, and the reader doesn't know who to trust. It's told from multiple points of view and some of them are definitely unreliable narrators.

I listened to the audiobook of this novel, and it is a full cast narration which really elevated it for me. Each character has their own distinct voice while we are in their first person narration, so I was able to keep them all straight with ease. I highly recommend the experience of this book as an audiobook.

If you like bingeable thrillers with twisty plots, definitely pick this one up.

PARTY OF LIARS is a quick and bingeable read. I enjoyed the short chapters, different POVs, and twists. Some of the aspects of the story took some time to fall into place, making it a bit confusing, but the ending was worth it.

I did enjoy this book, but at times it was difficult to keep the many characters and storylines straight. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This debut novel focuses on Sophie Matthew’s super extravagant Sweet 16 birthday party (one in which a body eventually falls from a balcony onto the dance floor), as well as on the secrets and suspicions harbored by many of the invited guests — including Sophie’s family and friends. Although I definitely found this to be a page turner, it contained too many eye-rolling moments for my taste. Also, I really like novels told through multiple POVs, but this one seemed to be told through far too many (however, all those POVs did somewhat help me keep the characters straight — and there are plenty of them!). All in all, I found this to be a good and enjoyable read, and I look forward to the author’s next endeavor.

At first, it was a little confusing keeping up with the characters because there were so many POV's. One character in particular, I wasn't sure how they really fit into the story and the author does a good job misleading you because my thoughts about the character were completely wrong. When everything starts to come together for the conclusion. I had a better idea at what was happening but I was still surprised by some things. We lived in San Antonio for three years and ony recently moved from there so it was also really fun to see places I've been mentioned in the story.

WOW
This book had everything I didn’t know I was craving—a glittering setup, razor-sharp twists, and characters that flipped the script on me more than once. Just when I thought I had it figured out, Kelsey yanked the rug out from under me—AGAIN

It’s masterfully written, every detail layered with intention, leading to a finale that tied it all together with a perfectly sinister little bow 🎀🖤

You’ll love some characters, hate others… and then question everything by the end.

The Texas vibes? Spot on. No one but a Texas girl knows the true scale of those homecoming mums—absolute beasts!

This isn’t just a party. It’s a trap.
A luxe Sweet Sixteen deep in Texas Hill Country turns deadly in a modern, high-stakes take on a locked-room mystery.

✨ Black-tie drama.
✨ A possibly haunted cliffside mansion.
✨ A twisted guest list full of secrets.

DANI: the new stepmom barely holding it together
ÓRLAITH: the Irish nanny with a sixth sense
MIKAYLA: the underestimated best friend
KIM: the ex-wife who won’t let the past die

And of course, the birthday girl herself.

Everyone’s dressed to kill.

Kelsey Cox left me wanting more. I can see this story on the big screen. I couldn’t put it down. every twist pulled me in that much further

Party of Liars by Kelsey Cox is a thriller set at a sweet sixteen birthday party in Texas. Told from multiple points of view, the story starts with a tragedy that ruins the party. We then go back to the beginning of the day as the story weaves together.

The story kept me interested overall and had some twists and turns to keep you guessing. I really struggled to find any of the characters likable and that made the story harder to like for me.

3.5 ⭐️

An over the top sweet 16 party turns into a locked room whodunnit murder mystery. This story takes place over the course of one party via several POVs with several flashbacks to the past in order to provide a solid backstory. The author did an amazing job with this and I felt like I knew every character and I did not trust any of them! The chapters were satisfyingly short and I could not tear myself away. The twists and the ending were mind blowing.
Posted on Goodreads also.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing this ARC for my voluntary and honest review!

Party of Liars was a wild ride! Several storylines happening simultaneously (nearly too many) that kept the suspense consistently high. The author did a great job weaving all of the different characters together, though some of the content felt a bit unnecessary for the plot. Overall, a pretty satisfying ending.

This was a unique thriller. I really enjoyed it. The story centers on a young girl's sixteenth birthday. Her dad Ethan and her Sep-mpm are going all out to make this party special for her. But there's a mystery going on. The young Stepmom suffers from post party depression, and just in the knick of time an Irish woman shows up at their door to help her with her baby. The house too is supposed to be haunted, another you g mother a century ago fell to her death from the balcony, and her ghost is said to haunt the house. This is a slow building suspense thriller, with lots of twists and turns, and an ending I didn't see coming. Wow! Check it out for an exciting read.

The story started strong with an intriguing story line and multiple POVs. However, it was extremely slow-burn and a lot of chapters seemed pointless when I looked back on them. The ending felt very rushed and it didn’t give the villain of the story enough of a story line.

Rich people behaving badly! long-held resentments and jealousies, alcohol, gossip and backstabbing, what could possibly go wrong?...Murder.

Sophie Matthews’ sixteenth birthday party is an exclusive bash in the heart of
Bulverde, Texas estate owned by her father, Ethan, and stepmother, Dani. The residence, reputed to be haunted, becomes the scene of tragedy when a body falls from the balcony during the event, lending new weight to local rumors. Potential suspects include Sophie herself, Ethan, Dani, Orlaith—the nanny to Sophie's infant half-sister Charlotte—Mikayla, Sophie's longtime friend who is experiencing strains in their relationship, and Kim, Sophie's mother, who may still harbor past resentments.

I did enjoy this book but would have liked to see more development in “the haunted house” and some character background. I don’t want to elaborate in case of spoilers. I thought it was well done for a debut author. I would definitely read what Kelsey Cox has for us next.

Very twisted story! This plot had a lot of twists that I didn't see coming. The story was told by 4 different characters. It was a lot of switching and for some reason I had trouble keeping the wife and ex-wife straight in my head. The story was told with some references to the past and some in the current time. It worked well for the most part and the story unwound at a pretty good pace. I thought several times I knew what was going to be revealed next and was very surprised when there was a twist in the plot. I enjoyed the story and would definitely read more from this author in the future. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Another slow (very slow) burn novel, which are not my favorite. For the first half of the book, I wasn’t even sure what the point of the story was and the multiple points of view made it difficult to get invested in it because as soon as something got good, you moved on to someone else. Overall, I somewhat figured out who was responsible but it wasn’t until the very end until you understood what they were responsible for. Did I finish it? Yes. Am I glad I did? Not really. It was just OK for me but fans of slow burns and multiple points of view will enjoy this one.

The big 16th birthday calls for a big party. I enjoyed this book by Kelsey Cox and will probably seek out more by her. This book was given to me as an advanced reader and did not disappoint. It had some twists that I did not see coming and a few that I did. Would I recommend this to a friend? Yes, yes I would.