After reading the synopsis for this book, and viewing the title (which I found enticing), I decided to give this book a shot- and I am so glad that I did. It was fast read with short chapters (yay for that!), and there were twists galore!

The Wasp Trap is a story about six friends who meet up after 25 years to celebrate the life of Sebastian Marlowe, their former professor. These six friends meet up at Theo & Georgina’s beautiful house, and realize they have a bit of catching up to do since they haven’t seen each other since 1999. It was in 1999, that the six friends were creating a dating website together (with their late professor), and it was with this website that they also created a test to identify psychopaths. Between Will (who the story is narrated by), Sophie, Rohan, Theo, Georgina, and Lily- is there a psychopath amongst the group?

At Georgina & Theo’s dinner party to celebrate the life of Sebastian Marlowe, they are locked in their dining room and held at gunpoint. No one is leaving this room until someone reveals a secret they’ve been keeping since the summer of 1999. Who holds the secret? And will each member leave alive?

I enjoyed the flashbacks to 1999, and then back to present day in this story. There were also several twists that I didn’t see coming. However, if I’m being honest, I’m not real crazy how this book ended. I also think I missed a paragraph (or page), because I have no idea what happened to two of the characters in this story (Amber and Callum) 🤷🏻‍♀️ So for that I’ve dropped my rating down a bit. All in all this is still an enjoyable story in which I recommend!
(3.5 stars)

Many thanks to NetGalley, Atria Books, and the author for a DRC copy of this book in which I had the pleasure of reading. All opinions are my own.
Publication date: September 16, 2025
Genre~ Mystery & Thrillers, General Fiction (adult)

The Wasp Trap has a captivating premise: a group of old friends reunited under mysterious circumstances, dark secrets from their past, and a psychological experiment that may have gone too far. It sets the stage for a tense and twisty thriller, but for me, it never quite took off.
While the concept behind the story is clever, especially the idea of a dating questionnaire used to identify psychopaths, the execution felt flat. The pacing dragged in places, and I often found myself waiting for the suspense to build, only to be left underwhelmed. The alternating timelines between the late '90s and the present day didn’t always flow smoothly, and at times, they disrupted rather than enhanced the tension.
The characters, although varied, lacked depth and didn’t quite pull me in emotionally, which made it harder to care about the unfolding drama. The twists didn’t land with the impact I expected, and overall, the story felt more drawn out than thrilling.
It’s a book with potential, and fans of slow-burn mysteries might appreciate the layered setup—but personally, I found it a bit too slow and not as gripping as I’d hoped.
Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publishing house for the chance to read this book in advance, in exchange of my honest review.

After a slow start, the story picks up speed and had me guessing and wondering.Most of the characters are unlikable and not especially intriguing. But the twists and revelations made up for it. Thanks to netgalley.com for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards is a masterclass in psychological suspense. The narrative alternates between the summer of 1999 and the present day, weaving a tale of six friends reunited under ominous circumstances. Their past involvement in developing a dating website with a hidden test to identify psychopaths—dubbed "The Wasp Trap"—resurfaces in deadly ways.​


The protagonist, Will, is particularly compelling, his instincts and observations driving the tension as the story unfolds. The dual timelines are seamlessly integrated, each revelation peeling back layers of secrets and betrayals. The locked-room setting of the dinner party amplifies the claustrophobia and paranoia, making it impossible to put the book down.​

Edwards' writing is sharp and evocative, with twists that are both surprising and satisfying. The exploration of human behavior, the consequences of past actions, and the thin veneer of civility among friends are themes that resonate deeply. While some characters could have been more fleshed out, the overall narrative is compelling and thought-provoking.​

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My first book by this author! I absolutely loved it!! Keep you wanting to read more !! Highly suggest reading this one !! Five stars !!

Loved this book! New author to me, Mark Edwards. Wonderfully paced thriller. Impossible to put down. Fabulous twists. Good character development. Highly recommend.

I FLEW through this novel, it was a page turner that kept me on the edge of my seat and wanting more the entire time. It’s a puzzle box of secrets with dual timelines, psychological suspense, and enough red herrings to make your head spin. The tension never lets up, and the pacing is perfect, gradually tightening the noose around each character until there’s no escape.

The suspense, creepiness, and mystery that is weaved throughout this story is pretty incredible. Everything was done SO WELL. There are twists upon twists and if you tell me you saw them coming, I wouldn't believe you! The characters were developed well for the length of the novel, and the end of the story leaves you wanting more. I highly recommend you grab this book once it hits the shelves!

This certainly didn't turn out as I expected, I thought I had it all figured out, but boy was I ever wrong, but in a very good way, this is a great book, one I would highly recommend. The story is told in two time frames, in 1999 a professor assembles a number of people to help him develop a dating website, they are tasked to create a site that asks people looking for a partner a series of questions then based on their answer pair them with someone with similar answers. Along the way, the professor realizes those questions could also be used to develop a program to identify people that are psychopaths, and his and the lead technical person develop it and use the others as a test group to analyze the results. 25 years later in 2024, two people from the group Georgina and Theo invite the group for a dinner party and to reminisce about their time together. Things start off well, until the two people hired to cater the dinner, turn on the group and tell them that unless they each divulge a secret from 25 years ago, they will be killed off. The two people don't realize that there is another person in the house, someone that no one knows is there. Another person from their past shows up as well and they find out just what he's looking for. It's a very twisting ending and I really enjoyed it, this is the first book I have read by this author, I will have to go back and read another. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Atria Books for the ARC.

A summer on an estate building an online dating site in 1999, what could go wrong? Find out 25 years after the professor dies and everyone is reunited at a dinner party.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

3.5/5
This one took a while to gain momentum but I flew through the last half of the book. Twists were made more fun with the dual timelines and multiple POVs.

I wanted to love it found it to be a bit slow and the characters not the most likeable. It did hook me and have me finish it quickly.

Six friends meet up over 20 years after they develop an internet dating website formulated around psychological profiles. The friends return to Notting Hill after the professor responsible for introducing the peers and guiding them through website development passes away, and are immediately assaulted by memories. The reunion is meant to evoke nostalgia- let's all get together and discuss our esteemed and beloved professor, sharing anecdotes of the Sebastian we knew and etc. As per the thriller book formula, this is not to be- and instead we are confronted with an individual who knows a secret. Yes, that is precisely as vague as it sounds- the participants do not know the secret, and not even the perpetrator seems aware of who or what said secret entails. This one moved pretty quickly, sucking me in from the beginning and making me curious to see which of the friends are bad and which are good guys. I LOVE books set in the 90s, and this one certainly scratched that itch for me. After a while, the plot and pacing both slow down. When that happens, it takes me out of what is happening and I don't seem to care as much what the final climax may be. I enjoyed this one as a whole, but think it could have been even better. Locked room thrillers tend to be stale if paced improperly, but I really do think this book was good! Thanks so much to the publisher and author for the eARC.

Sometimes things don't go the way you planned. One day, you're on top of the world with an imminent website launch that is sure to make you and your friends a part of the dot com boom of the early 2000s. The next, your boss has shelved the project and scattered you all to the winds. Those friends are reuniting now, over two decades later, to sort out what really happened at a dinner honoring their recently deceased boss. The evening goes from awkward to terrifying as each person is forced to cough up their biggest secret lest they be killed for holding back. This book is a twisty delight with flashbacks, unrealized love, and 90s hits throughout the narrative.

OH the anxiety I felt reading this one!


Can you ever escape your past? Seems not. At least for these six old friends who have been invited to reunite at a dinner party in Notting Hill.


But this is Edwards. It won’t be your typical dinner party.


AS they guests are forced to share their deepest, darkest secrets…or die.
What do these friends have in common? They all worked with a professor to create a dating app. Oh, and it also tells if you are a psychopath! And trust me, one of them is.


WE get to read the story in the past and currently so we have a sense of what went on, but no sense of who!


Always a thrill ride!


NetGalley/ Atria/ September 16, 2025

INSANE 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

First, thank you so much to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Mark Edwards for this advanced reader’s copy of The Wasp Trap.

I already know this is going to be a book I won’t be able to stop thinking about for days, and a book I’ll often think of for years to come. Honestly I have to say this is one of my favorite mystery/thriller books I’ve ever read and it might just be my favorite read so far this year!

I really enjoyed the different timelines going from the present then back to 1999, and there were a few different POVs at times which made things really interesting. The thing that made this book my favorite and put it over the top of the others is that I did not predict anything. Normally with this genre I get at least one thing right, and often predict the endings. But with this book? Not a SINGLE THING!!!! I was kept guessing until the very end and I would have never predicted that ending in a million years.

This was my first Mark Edwards book but it certainly won’t be my last. I cannot wait for The Wasp Trap to be released and I am definitely purchasing a physical copy to add to my shelf! Highly highly recommend this one, you won’t be able to put it down!!

I already want to reread this 🫣 Without a doubt this book deserves all 5 stars!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5/5. This was an enjoyable thriller - some of the twists you can see coming, but others offer a different take that doesn’t feel quite so overdone within this genre.

...𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒑𝒔𝒚𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒔 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚'𝒓𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒍 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎.

A locked room thriller with dual timelines, one of which was a 90s settting, AND by one of my favorite authors? Sold! I mulled over my thoughts for awhile, and I ended up liking this one but not loving it.

Six friends reunite in London to celebrate the life of their recently deceased ex-employer, a professor who brought them together in 1999 to help build a dating website based on psychological testing. However, what was meant to be a melancholy reunion becomes a tense showdown as the old friends find themselves held at gunpoint. They are given an ultimatum: reveal their darkest secrets to the group or be picked off one at a time. The group soon realizes that their situation is related to another development that came out when the dating site was being developed, and that was The Wasp Trap, a tool for detecting psychopaths.

The characters never really came to life for me, and that meant I couldn't get fully invested in the story. The writing seemed completely different, and I think if I had read this without seeing the author's name on the cover, I never would have guessed him to be the author. That's not a bad thing; it was just different. The plot was clever, and the pacing was more on track for a domestic suspense rather than a thriller. I wanted to love this one so very much, but it's still a memorable addition to this author's oeuvre. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Publishing for this early copy. This title is expected to publish September 16, 2025.

Slow but intriguing. Well written story with a surprising ending. I enjoyed the back and forth between past and present.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

Mark Edwards is the author that got me into reading in my adult life, so he will forever be an auto buy for me. I was so excited to receive a copy of this book. I will always enjoy a fast paced thriller and recommend to all!

Thank you to the publisher for an ARC of this book!

Absolutely LOVED this book. I couldn't put it down. I kept thinking I had certain things figured out and then I'd find myself left in shock (time and time again). Great work, Edwards!