During a luxury safari in South Africa, a wealthy family's reunion turns deadly when CEO Odelia Babel is murdered hours before her wedding. As secrets surface, her son becomes the prime suspect, but with his twin sister missing and danger lurking, it’s clear the killer is still hunting.

The Safari by @jaclyngoldis
Pub date - 5/20/25

The Safari is hands down one of my favorite thrillers I have read this year. We follow the Babel family as they travel to their Safari compound in order to celebrate the marriage of their mother, Odelia, to Asher, who is young enough to be her own child.

What ensues is murder, lies, secrets and lots of fun safari descriptions. I didn’t see the twist coming in this book at all, and it kept me engaged from page one. I love a thriller that has all the elements of suspense while still being able to delve into character flaws and character development.

I felt very connected to all of these characters and was sad to see them go when the book ended. This was my first Jaclyn Goldis novel and now I need to dive into her back log!

This is such a fun book to pick up for this summer and I highly suggest you do! Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I had a hard time following the story and the writing. I wanted to like it!

Hmm. I don’t know what to say about this one. I mean, I didn’t love it, but take that comment with a grain of salt. I’m wondering if these thriller authors are just grasping at straws trying to come up with ideas that no one‘s done before. Yet even though they come up with new settings and new plots, they all seem to fall back on a few of the same tropes.

This one fell back on the “rich people behaving badly” trope. There are a lot of characters, and they’re all unlikable, and while this book has a lot of twists in it, the twists are pretty outlandish.

While a thriller can be a fun popcorn read once in a while, I think I need to just cool it and not read as money because they all blend together.

If you like rich people be behaving badly, you will probably love this book! If you haven’t tired of the thriller genre yet, you will probably love this book! But if you’re like me and you’ve read enough of these books, this one won’t stand out to you in my opinion.

🦁 T R A G I C T U E S D A Y review 🦁 featuring “The Safari” by Jaclyn Goldis!

MY RATING: 🖤🖤🖤/5

Odelia Babel is about to get married for a second time to someone 25 years her junior. Her three adult children are not thrilled about her upcoming nuptials and it creates tension within the family.

Odelia plans an all expenses paid luxury safari trip to South Africa for those closest to her. This happens to be the Babel family’s favourite vacation spot and now the perfect place to get re-married.

Hours before the wedding Odelia is found murdered and everyone attending the trip becomes a suspect! There are predators lurking around that are not only animals, but humans too. Is the rest of the Babel family in danger of becoming someone’s prey?

The South African setting is one that I have never read before! It is super unique, interesting to read about and thrilling as you navigate through such dangerous terrain. Pay attention to the family tension, acts of manipulation and exposed secrets in order to understand the toxic dynamics of the family and the history they share.

Thank you kindly to @jaclyngoldis @atriabooks @simonschusterca @netgalley for my #gifted advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review. This book releases on May 20, 2025!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

A wealthy businesswoman has found love again, and she decides to marry in South Africa with her family and friends surrounding her. Except that she is the only one who is happy, and when she is discovered dead, all fingers point to those she trusted most.

If you're looking for a hot mess of a dysfunctional family, you will find it here. Pure ruthlessness all the way. This wasn't a book I could read in one sitting because this family was CRAZY!! Usually, I have some empathy for someone in the story, but I cannot find myself an ally of anyone. The last section of the chapters was wild with a lot of twists, but it took a while (50 %+ mark) before I really felt invested in the outcome.

I do want to mention that this book wasn't even on my reading radar until I was sent a marketing email. I loved the location, as it was different than my other thriller settings( North America, Scandinavia or the UK).




Expected Publication Date 20/05/25
Goodreads Review Published 28/05/25

While the setting of this books was very exciting, there were too many points of views to keep track of everything. I wanted to be swept away by the mystery and suspense. But I just didn't.

Wealthy Odelia takes her family to their luxury South African retreat, to celebrate her wedding to Asher, the much younger designer who works for her sustainable fashion brand.

The happiness that shows on the surface is quickly overshadowed by the lies, secrets and buried hurt that plagues the family and on then Odelia is murdered. There were lots of brilliant twists but it did take a long time to get there. I didn't enjoy the religious parts of the book and I didn't understand their relevance really, but I found the accusations of green-washing within the business fascinating as this is something that is very relevant in today's world.

Once the truth began to emerge and the twists started to hit, I was gripped! Some very unexpected moments that had me gasping out loud. A good read.

3 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Jaclyn Goldis and Atria for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! For some reason, I never ended up picking up this authors last book, but I might now after reading this one. The atmosphere of the safari was amazing, although the “surprise this is your parent” plot line was a bit overdone, and some unnecessary,

A beautiful setting … an interesting list of characters … and a good start and a good last quarter with a lot of twists . Some I definitely didn’t see coming at all. . But overall I found this story to be too slow, too repetitive and too detailed in a way that just weren’t needed in a thriller . I think the first half of the story could have been edited a bit to reduce the repetition and speed up the story

3.5 ⭐️

The Safari by Jaclyn Goldis delivers what so many books promise: a true Agatha Christie-style mystery. (Her earlier books didn’t quite get there, but this one does.) Set on a safari in South Africa instead of a dig in Egypt, it feels distinct while still hitting the classic beats. Quick warning: it spoils a Christie novel by name, so you may want to skip a couple paragraphs when you see it coming.

It’s Christie-like from start to finish, but Goldis pushes past where Aggie would have ended, giving us more wrap-up and extra reveals that made the ending more satisfying. If you’re looking for a modern mystery that captures the old-school magic, this is it. 4.5 stars.

I love a locked room mystery AND stunning settings, so I thought this one would be perfect for me. I did enjoy the setting and the idea but there were just too many characters and I didn't really like any of them. Too many of the characters felt like stereotypes of rich people and I felt like Odelia's character especially was trying really hard to seem young (which made sense to a certain extent with the young fiancée) but just didn't work for me it just seemed disingenuous. I definitely struggled pretty hard for the first half, maybe even more than that, to keep all the characters straight and figure out what their motivations might be. The back half was faster and had some good twists but the characters in this one just didn't do it for me.

I have never been on safari but this book was a definite ride in the jungle. This story starts off a bit slow and has many points of view (many unreliable) but, it is an action packed thriller. There were so many twists and turns my neck hurt. The family the story revolves around is full of drama, secrets, betrayal and so much more. The setting of the story, a posh resort in Africa, was a welcomed departure from most other books that I read regularly. If you are looking for family drama, lots of action and a beautiful backdrop then this is the perfect summer read for you.

Thank you Net Galley, Jaclyn Goldis and Atria Books for the opportunity to preview this title. The opinions shared are my own.
The Safari is expected to be released May 20, 2025.

I have yet to be disappointed by Jaclyn Goldis’s writing. And she did it yet again with The Safari. I loved the safari bush setting in South Africa. It added an extra level of danger that was palpable.

After opening with a banger of a prologue, I was expecting a fast paced mystery. Unfortunately, the first half felt very slow. I kept asking myself, “When is the action gonna start?” But once the action starts, it goes. The second half of the book was filled with so many twists and turns! It felt like every chapter revealed another secret about one of the main characters. I enjoyed reading from all of the different characters’ POVs. The lifestyles of the rich and the famous! Every character had secrets that could easily be motives for murder. It made it tough to know who the murderer was, which I like. I like when it the “whodunnit” isn’t so in your face and Goldis delivered in that aspect. And the ending…quite the shocker.

One of my favorite things about her writing is all of the Jewish references and inclusion that she puts in her books. And all of the South Florida references in this one was especially cool, being a SoFlo girl myself.

Wow! This is definitely my favorite of Jaclyn Goldis' three thrillers. You could feel the tension as the expertly crafted plot unfolded amongst the beautiful but deadly South African backdrop. I couldn't get enough of this family's drama and secrets. If you love multiple juicy twists, then this is a book you cannot miss. The hits just kept coming and they were so good!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for access to this arc!

Traditional format 📕 (digital).

This was my first book by this author so I didn’t know what to expect going in. The book is claimed to be a thriller but I personally thought of it as more of a family drama with murder mystery elements. Regardless it was an enjoyable read for me. It was a little slow the first 50% but then the action and non stop plot twists began. Some of the twists were predicable for me but did not take away from my engagement.

What I liked:
🦓 great safari backdrop and South African culture throughout
🦏 while the first part of the book was slow it did develop the characters very well
🐊 interesting backstory

I give this book a solid 4/5.

Thank you Net Galley and Atria Books | Atria/Emily Bestler Books for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a great way to weave together the dangers of Africa and those of equally dramatic action within a family. A widow plans to remarry a much younger man. Her three adult children aren't thrilled. One's a quiet girl who tries to keep everyone calm. Another son is wildly inappropriate and bluntly repeats his anger of it. The third seems to be the prodigal son but has several flaws. Toss in all the staff at the safari, a best friend who came along on the trip and the wife of one son. When the matriarch is found dead, things go from disaster to last-call to stay alive. More murders. Secrets revealed. Anger rises to the surface in interesting places. The last 1/3 of the book was unputdownable for me. Great experience where the author truly immersed us in the setting.

This book has a lot going for it. A ultra rich family - a bit dysfunctional - but all together to celebrate the wedding of the matriarch. So many lies - so much to discover!

Good - but not likeable characters. Even Bailey - the easier one to like - turns out to have serious issues!

Lots of twists - lots of murders!

The Safari took me on a wilder ride than I was expecting! This book follows the stories of a deliciously dysfunctional family on a trip to celebrate the Odelia’s upcoming wedding—the matriarch of the Babel family. Things don’t quite go as planned, and not everyone is as they originally seem…

Things this book does well:
- Everything! Character development, plot twists, drama, every twist and turn.
- Multiple POVs with juicy, family drama!
- Agatha Christie level story
- Did I mention plot twists?! 🤪

I absolutely loved this one! Jaclyn Goldis is the Agatha Christie of our time! I definitely recommend this to anyone who loves thrillers, mysteries, and a well thought out story.

I love a good story with rich people behaving badly in exotic locales, but unfortunately the characters in this book were so flat and unlikeable that it detracted completely from the story and my interest kept wandering. Some may really enjoy this one, but it just wasn’t for me. Thanks to NetGalley for a chance to read and review this book!