Many thanks to Netgalley and Minotaur books for this book. I received this book in exchange for my honest review. My thoughts are entirely my own.


This book has rich people drama and tells the tale of a series of events that lead to someone’s death and the manipulations of one man to three different woman and the chain of events that caused his downfall. In this book we are following Dani, Kim, Orlaith, and Mikayla. Dani is a new mother who seems to be suffering from postpartum depression and believes that she is seeing a ghost of a woman named The Mother who fell off a balcony after her infant daughter died. But after reading parts of the past and present leading to the Sweet Sixteen birthday party of Kim’s daughter with Ethan, Nicole. We find out what ultimately led to Ethan’s death and the manipulation that Ethan used on both Kim and Dani and Orlaith’s daughter who was engaged to Ethan and later killed in a car accident. Dani realizes that Ethan had been manipulating her and that her brain made her forget until the night of Nicole’s party. There are twists and turns throughout this book that I thought was beautifully done.

Multiple POV thriller that takes place at a sweet sixteen . All through the book I kept thinking “ don’t let it be what i think it is …” ( this is all i can say without spoilers) and it was what I thought it was so honestly the book lost a half a star because of it !

My rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Although I didn't recognize the author, I chose this book because the description sounds harrowing. A haunted mansion with a body falling from the balcony - has to be a good mystery. This is a debut novel.

Description:
Today is Sophie Matthews’s sixteenth birthday party, an exclusive black-tie bash in the heart of the Texas Hill Country, where secrets are as deep-rooted as the sprawling live oaks. Sophie’s dad has spared no expense, and his renovated cliffside mansion—once thought haunted—is now hosting the event of the season. Then, just before the candles on the three-tiered red velvet cake are blown out, a body falls from the balcony onto the starlit dance floor below.

It’s a killer guest list . . .

DANI: Sophie’s new stepmother who’s been plagued by self-doubt ever since the birth of her own baby girl

ÓRLAITH: the superstitious Irish nanny who senses a looming danger in this cavernous house

MIKAYLA: the birthday girl’s best friend who is not nearly as meek as the popular kids assume

KIM: the cunning ex-wife who has a grudge she can’t let go of . . .

Everyone is invited in. Not everyone will get out alive.

My Thoughts:
I liked the multiple points of view as it added perspective. The over-the-top sweet sixteen party was lavish. There were quite a few suspects to sift through here. The nanny was strange and kind of gave me the creeps. The mansion's history was a little daunting, but with the beautiful renovations the party was a great way to show it off. When the unexpected death happens everyone is shocked, of course. But was it an accident? What really happened? This was the mystery. This is a good thriller and I think those who like the genre will enjoy this book.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books through Netgalley for an advance copy.

Thank you net galley for this ARC!…

But I had to DNF this book at 36%. Nothing is happening and I am so bored!

The book is told from multiple POV and honestly I don’t care about any of them, because again, nothing is happening.

The nanny gives me the creeps. The mom is an annoying drunk. The best friend is in love with or hates Sophie?? Didn’t make it long enough to figure that one out. And last, the new wife - idk how I felt about her, honestly she seems irrelevant to the story.

Maybe I didn’t make it long enough to start to enjoy it, but I can’t make myself keep reading books I’m just not enjoying.

The pacing of this felt off to me. I expect a thriller to have that pounding, propulsive feeling, but this moved slowly despite the short chapters. I didn’t really care about any of the characters either.

Don’t let the sweet 16 storyline fool you in to thinking this is a YA book- it is filled with adult drama, including addiction, divorce, postpartum depression, jealousy, friendship, and even a little bit of the supernatural.

In the first chapter, a person falls to their death at a sweet 16 party. The whole book is spent trying to figure out who died and who, if anyone, caused their death. The story is told in four POVs over 90+ chapters. I like this format for mystery-type reads as I always find myself saying “just one more chapter.”

Overall, the book was fast-paced and had a lot of twists, many of which I did not see coming. As the title indicates, everyone in the book is a liar and you never know who to trust.

While this is not a literary masterpiece, I would recommend if you want a quick, easy “whodunnit”.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review early.

When Ethan Matthews was married to Kim, they decided to buy a dilapidated old castle that was built on a hill in Texas. Many years before, the lady of the house and her baby daughter became ill. When the mother awoke, she learned that her baby had died and the woman was so distraught that she threw herself off the balcony. The massive home was then closed up. Some even say it’s haunted. So, they worked hard at refurbishing the place and today it is a masterpiece.

Now, Ethan and Kim are divorced and their daughter, Sophie is turning 16. Ethan is now married to Dani and they have a baby daughter named Charlotte. Dani is an expert pastry maker with dreams of opening her own shop one day. Since having the baby she has had some times of feeling uncomfortable in the house. Ethan insists that they get a nanny to help with Charlotte.

Ethan has decided to throw a huge Sweet Sixteen party for Sophie at their huge home. He and Kim have gone all out to put together a huge, over-the-top party with lots of Ethan’s friends invited. Dani has worked hard to make a beautiful birthday cake for Sophie. She loves the girl so much. Kim is attending as well and can’t help but be jealous of Dani. So many of their old friends have stuck with Ethan after the divorce.

We see the big birthday party happen and lots of secrets are revealed. The alcohol flows and people let their hair down. It also exposes some truths that have been hidden and results in the death of one of the attendees. This book was mesmerizing and one that I will remember for a long time to come. Do not miss it. Wow!

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

3.5 ⭐️ | This party was certainly full of liars, and everyone had secrets. Even the unlikeliest of suspects had something to hide. I enjoyed seeing this story unfold, and especially enjoyed being misled as I slowly began to find out some of the characters that I was rooting for were not so innocent, and others that I thought were up to no good weren’t so bad after all. That alone sets the tone for an overall good thriller. The story showed the drama & complexities of blended families, which I’m sure a lot of readers can relate to. It does have a lot of POVs (I think a total of 6) so definitely take notes on who everyone is if you’re one to get confused with multiple points of view.

When Ethan throws his daughter Sophie a lavish 16th birthday party, the guest list is very interesting. There’s Kim the bitter ex-wife, Orlaith the nanny that has her own secrets, Mikayla Sophie‘s best friend & sort of an outcast with the teenage crowd, Dani the new wife that is suffering from postpartum & questioning her own sanity. When one of the guests untimely death dampers the party, everyone’s a suspect.

Overall a solid & enjoyable read that thriller fans will enjoy. Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

This was a "new to me" author that I discovered was also a debut novel. I went into this completely blind so that I had no idea what even the genre for this book was.

This is a thriller that takes us into the life of two families. One - the new family that has a new "young" wife with a brand new baby and the second - the discarded wife and her teenage daughter.

To be more clear - there is the husband, mid-forties psychiatrist Ethan Matthews with his brand new second wife - 27 year old Dani. Dani is a new mother with a baby who is - according to Ethan - having some post partum mental issues that he is desperately trying to help her with.

Then there is Dani, who is living in a house that is supposedly "haunted" who has been having some things occur that she is afraid to tell anyone about because it just might make her seem "crazy".

There is the "Ex" wife Kim. She has a multitude of issues. Starting with some massive anger issues and what is very apparent - a huge drinking problem.

We then meet the 16 year old best friend of Ethan and Kim's daughter Sophie - Mikalya. It becomes pretty clear pretty fast that there just might be something "off" about this young girl.

Then, to top things off, there is the odd nanny. Orlaith seems to have appeared out of the blue and seems to really love the baby....but is she who she says she is?

To top everything else, this book is set in the small Texas town of Bulverde, Texas. I just happen to live in the same county (Comal County) but right next door in New Braunfels, Texas. It is almost unheard of to read something that is set in my neck of the woods, so I especially loved reading all of the little details.

This book does a great job of building and building the tension and getting the reader to the point where you are going back and forth trying to figure out what the heck is going on.

I will say this - I thought I had everything figured out, and for the most part I did. But...there were a couple of twists that were just casually thrown in there at the end. Those actually just BLEW my mind. It was even more interesting the way they seemed to be just casually thrown in at the end. Crazy.....

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. This book will be out for publication on July 1, 2025.

Party of liars is one of the anticipated mystery and thrillers of July and I was happy to receive the arc. I was intrigued by the premise-a sweet sixteen at a lavish and haunted mansion turns deadly when a body falls out of the third story window. The narrative moves between multiple pov of the suspects/guests-including the birthday girl, her best friend, the stepmother, the nanny, among others. While I wanted to love this as it had all of the elements I would enjoy-a locked room premise-the touch of the gothic supernatural-multiple pov- I admit I couldn’t get into it. I do feel like this was a me problem, but I felt detached from the narrative. Other reviews raved about this one, so I am in the minority and do feel like it will be worth checking out for many others!

Thanks to the publisher for providing the arc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

OMG I absolutely loved Party of Liars!! It was SO suspenseful and thrilling—I couldn't put it down. Kelsey Cox nailed it with the twists, the tension, and the amazing character development. This book completely snapped me out of my reading slump. If you want something that will keep you on the edge of your seat and leave you screaming “just one more chapter,” you NEED to read this!!

📚ARC REVIEW 📚

Party of Liars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Sophie Matthews’s dad throws her a lavish, black tie, sweet sixteenth birthday party. It’s a grand event at their newly renovated mansion, that is also supposedly haunted, as the town folks say but that doesn’t stop them from coming. However, just before the candles on the three-tiered red velvet cake are blown out, a body falls from the balcony onto the starlit dance floor below. Everyone was invited in, but not everyone will get out alive.


I couldn’t put this one down, it hooked me right away. I loved the Texas setting with the southern feel and the drama. This did have a little spooky vibe to it as well which added to the suspense. Told in multiple point of view with a before and after timeline that had me guessing the whole time. Such a great read!

This book is already out so be sure to add to your TBR list! Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my advanced readers copy. This is my honest and voluntary opinion.

A.K.A. the Sweet Sixteen that makes your own awkward birthday at the skating rink look real chill in comparison.

Let’s get one thing straight: if I ever throw a Sweet Sixteen for my child that involves black-tie attire, cliffside views, a three-tiered cake, and the distinct possibility of someone falling to their doom mid–Cha Cha Slide… please assume I’ve been possessed.

Sophie’s dad throws a Texas Hill Country rager at his possibly haunted, definitely cursed, murder-mansion-on-a-cliff for her 16th birthday. There’s cake! There’s drama! There’s someone yeeted off a balcony before the third tier of red velvet even gets cut!

We’ve got a cast of characters straight out of a Real Housewives meets Clue mash-up:
🎂 A stepmom spiraling faster than the party planner’s champagne fountain,
🎂 A nanny who’s basically one vision short of a full-blown horror movie prequel,
🎂 A best friend who’s meek until she’s not (insert dramatic slow clap),
🎂 And an ex-wife with enough simmering rage to power the whole zip code.

This book is Real Housewives of Texas: Murder Edition, and honestly? I ate it up like red velvet cake with murder frosting. There are secrets, superstitions, backstabbing, baby mama drama, a possibly haunted house, and more plot twists than a pretzel factory. It’s a locked-room mystery, but make it bougie.

Verdict: Bring popcorn, suspend disbelief, and RSVP yes to this murder party. You’ll be glad you did—unless you fall off the balcony.

This book was a wild ride! At first, I was just disgusted with all the pettiness of all the characters!. I guess everything IS bigger in Texas including needing to be accepted, correct all the time, the prettiest, the sweetest, and all of the rest!

Told in snippets by many of the characters either before the accident, after the accident, or during the party, you got to see what made each one tick. As I was reading, I didn't like some of the characters, felt compassion for some, didn't know why some were even there, and just icky-ness for others. It all made sense in the end though, and after completing the read I felt like the author used these characters to throw blame where there was none. Brilliant!

The first half was slow for me so that's why it's a 4 star read.

I love short chapters, multiple POVs, and drama throughout, so this book definitely delivered! I cannot believe it's a debut; I thought the story was very well done and the writing was great. 100% recommending to anybody who likes a good psychological thriller. Reel posted to my Instagram page! @thebookedupteacher

3 out of 5 Stars!

Today is Sophie Matthew’s sixteenth birthday party, hosted by Sophie’s dad, at his renovated cliffside mansion. Though it is thought to be haunted, this is the event of the season. No expense has been spared for this exclusive black-tie event. But before the candles are blown out on the birthday cake, a body falls from the balcony onto the dance floor below.

The guest list includes Dani, Orlaith, Mikalya, and Kim. Dani is Sophie’s new stepmother, who has just given birth to a baby girl. Orlaith is the Irish nanny, who senses danger in the house. Mikayla is the birthday girl’s best friend who isn’t very popular. And Kim is the ex-wife that has a grudge she cannot let go of.

When I saw the killer guest list of “Party of Liars” by Kelsey Cox, I was so excited to read this book. I am a SUCKER for multiple perspectives in a mystery/thriller. I think if done right, the reader feels compelled to continue reading, trying to figure out new clues and discover new twists. I liked the multiple perspectives in this story, but I cannot say that I love it. Yes, it did keep the story going at a good clip but lacked the urge to want to keep reading. I never really felt the urge to pick this story up to find out the ending, and I thought it was longer than it needed to be.

One big issue I had with this book was the plot itself. Sophie is having a black-tie sweet sixteenth birthday party that seems to last hours and hours. At one point, the baby is put down for a nap and then wakes up from the said nap to go be with the nanny. And this party is not just for Sophie’s friends; all of these adults are invited to celebrate and drink large quantities of booze. To me, this just seems all very far-fetched. Normally, I would just let this stuff go. But I just kept being amazed at how this party was still going. I think the author could have broken up the plot better. Maybe having more of the story being setting the party up?

I will say, I was shocked by the ending of “Party of Liars”. I did see some minor things coming, but was surprised at how the ending played out. I also did like the characters, and all of their personal drama and internal conflict. It was interesting learning all of their stories. Overall, I would like to read more books by Kelsey Cox!

“Party of Liars” by Kelsey Cox came out July 1st, 2025! So, go purchase your copy at your nearest bookstore today!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, Kelsey Cox, and Netgalley for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Big thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and Author Kelsey Cox for advanced copy for honest review.

An Aardvark Book Club pick for July 2025!

You just renovated the infamous house on the hill. The one all the stories are about. Wall to ceiling windows makes for the good, the bad, and the vengeful to see it all. Now you helped renovate, but it wasn’t all your doing, it was the previous wife. Also you just had a baby, do you have baby brain? A lot is going on in getting ready for your step daughter’s big sweet 16. Are you losing your mind you wonder? Not possible when the threats keep coming in. Before and during the party, the notes are everywhere. Someone at the party is trying to harm you and your new family. Murder and revenge is a dish best served cold. 4 stars, fun, whodunnit read, recommend!

Party of Liars was such a wild ride! Kelsey Cox has crafted the ultimate page-turner here. A Sweet Sixteen that’s all glitz, secrets, and murder. From the moment I stepped into that lavish Texas mansion perched on the cliffs, I was completely hooked. The vibe is perfectly eerie: an old house with a haunted reputation, a night sky full of stars, and a glamorous black-tie party that quickly goes off the rails when someone falls from the balcony. Talk about a party to remember!

I loved the mix of characters. There’s Dani, the insecure new stepmom trying to find her place; Órlaith, the nanny with a sixth sense for danger; Mikayla, the supposedly meek best friend with a backbone of steel; and Kim, the ex-wife who just can’t let go. Every one of them has secrets and baggage, and Kelsey Cox does an amazing job making you suspect each of them at some point. I kept changing my mind about who I thought did it until the very end.

The book reads like a fresh take on a locked-room mystery but with the high-stakes drama of a reality TV show. The tension builds well. Every chapter peels back another layer of these messy relationships, and the setting practically becomes its own character with the creaky old mansion and dark corners. My only wish was that the ending felt a little less rushed, but it still packed a punch and left me satisfied.

If you’re into twisty thrillers like The Guest List or One by One with a big helping of southern gothic atmosphere, you’ll absolutely fly through this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the DRC of this novel.

Thank you to SMP/Minotaur and MacMillan audio for review copies of Party of Liars! A perfect read for fans of multi POV locked room mysteries and twisty compelling plots... The audiobook is particularly great with the different voice actors, excellent option for this book!

Read if you like:
✔ Locked-room mysteries with a modern twist
✔ Big Little Lies–style slow reveals (you won’t know who died until the end!)
✔ Creepy nannies and stunning, secret-filled homes
✔ Messy high school friendships, bitter exes, and unsettling online fans
✔ Over-the-top Hill Country parties with wine cellars in literal caves
✔ Fast-paced plots that entertain and spark book club discussion

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy Party of Liars as much as I did—locked-room whodunnits aren’t usually my go-to—but this one completely surprised me. It’s a lot more layered than it first appears. The multiple POVs are seamless and easy to follow, and each chapter added more questions, more drama, and more suspects. It had me hooked from the first few pages (my notes: “a scream and a thud 😳”) and the tension only ramps up from there. The characters are messy, suspicious, and endlessly entertaining—from the bitter ex-wife to the eerie nanny and the ever-watchful "Mother" embedded in a beautifully renovated home. I especially loved the audiobook—the full cast of narrators nailed it and made keeping track of the shifting perspectives a breeze. If you’re looking for a juicy, bingeable thriller perfect for the poolside or your next book club, Party of Liars is it

3.25 Stars I liked the premise and the multiple POVs. Jumping from person to person as you slowly get to the twist makes for good suspense. I also didn’t see the twist coming, but I did feel like the book was slower paced overall. An entertaining read, but I prefer a fast paced thriller/mystery over a slower suspense novel.