Daniel’s family own and run a wine company and live what looks like a perfect life in a chateau protected by a twelve foot wall. Daniel brings the woman he plans to marry to meet the family and plan their future together. Is this the perfect situation or the most dangerous family in existence?

Very well written and well narrated novel (I list3ned to the audiobook). Excellent characters in a well paced, suspenseful novel. Just so many twists and turns right up to the last page. The lake has had people drown in it but who will be next and why? Very exciting.

Welcome to the Family by Cathryn Grant
Publication Date August 29, 2026

Claudia is at Daniel’s family’s winery estate to meet her fiance’s family. Daniel’s sister and brother are clearly hiding something. Daniel’s mom is openly hostile. Claudia knows she’s being gaslighted, but she loves Daniel.

There was an abrupt ending at Part I, but when you start reading Part II it will totally make sense. Fast paced, great twist (not what I was expecting) and I listened to this in one day!

RECOMMEND

Thank you #NetGalley for the complimentary copy of #welcometothefamily in exchange for an honest review. Thank you @bookouture for approving my request.

#psychologicalthrillerbook #thrillerbook #bookstagram

DNF at 35%

The dialogue in this book is unbearable. The word “drama” is used in every other sentence. The MMC is a disgusting gaslighter and I can’t with that right now.

I’ve never not finished a book because of the characters but there’s always a first.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture Audio, and Cathryn Grant for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book had me guessing who did it the entire time only to be completely shocked at the end. Finished this book in less than 48 hours. If you’re looking for a great suspenseful book, this is definitely a must read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Four enthusiastic stars!

Welcome to the Family is a domestic thriller that really leans into the idea of what happens when you marry into the wrong family. The setup was easy to follow, the pacing kept me hooked, and I thought the characters were written in a way that made me want to keep peeling back their layers. This is definitely the family from Hades—if you think your in-laws are tough, this book takes it to another level.

I listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed it. Lauryn Allman, Madine Pell, and Christopher Ragland did a great job with the narration. Each brought a lot of personality to the characters, and the production overall was very smooth and professional. It made the story even more addictive.

All in all, this was a fun, bingeable thriller with plenty of tension and drama. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for more from Cathryn Grant.

Thanks to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for the ARC!

So I liked the idea of this book and it started off really great with Claudia’s story. But then it started to get kind of repetitive and predictable. Ultimately for me, this book ended up being ok. Decent narration. Just didn’t love how repetitive the story became.

I liked the concept of the story - creepy family who may be killing off girlfriends. However, I find the story itself dragging and frustrating. All the characters were generally annoying. The girlfriends annoyed me and I felt they were a tad stupid. I liked the multiple narrators, though. The near end answered a few of my questions in quite a good way (I almost took back the being annoyed by the girlfriends statement) but found the very end annoying again. All that being said. I made it to the end and I don't always give books such a big chance.

Talk about the family from hell! When Daniel brings home his fiancée to meet his mother and siblings, what should be a fun occasion turns into a massive gaslighting festival that ends up revealing multiple murders. Though predictable at times, there are some decent twists throughout the story and the ending whispers at a potential sequel. Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook and shoutout to the narrator for a job well done.

Welcome to the Family keeps you thoroughly invested from page one! A book you wont be able to step away from.

This story takes being gaslit by a wealthy family to a whole new level! The emotions felt, as you want to scream at the characters, will have you on the edge of your seat. Twists and turns right up until the final page!

Fully casted audio by Lauryn Allman, Madeline Pell, Christopher Ragland done perfectly! Well performed, clear and paced perfectly.

This audiobook was ok.

Con’s:
- very much over explaining & telling instead of showing
- characters that acted odd and weird dialogue
- horrible characters/family
- the story drug on for the first 75%

Pros:
- great narrators
- twist end that was enjoyable!
- the last 25% of the book saved the story and made it 3 stars

This is a book/audiobook I would expect from an author’s debut.

This was rough. The first 60% dragged so badly that I almost DNF’d. The next 30% finally picked up and was decent, and the last 10% was genuinely great. But there was absolutely no reason the setup needed to be that painfully long. If it had been condensed, the story would have flowed better, been more engaging, and actually held my attention.

One thing I’ll say (without spoiling): the reveal from the synopsis is very clear once it happens, and it works. I’ve seen some reviews claim otherwise, but honestly, if you didn’t catch it, that’s more of a reading comprehension issue. The real problem is that it doesn’t happen until about 60% in and by then, the pacing is exhausted and the main characters have overstayed their welcome.

If you’re into popcorn thrillers this one’s for you. You’ll be shocked at the reveal, you’ll be disgusted with this family, and you’ll be turning pages faster than you can blink by the end of the book.

This was my first book by Cathryn Grant and wow… I couldn’t stop. I listened to the audiobook straight through without a break because I had to know what was going to happen next.

Part 1 had me pulling my hair out: this family is the definition of awful. Every interaction had me tense and uncomfortable in the best way, like watching a train wreck you can’t look away from. I thought I had it figured out… but then Part 2 hit and completely flipped everything upside down. Honestly, in my head I imagined the story going in a totally different (almost reversed) direction, so when the twist came, it floored me.

I loved that the pacing kept building, the tension never let up, and the second half especially was fast, shocking, and truly gripping. The label fits, this is one of those psychological thrillers that earns the word.

Unsettling family secrets, unexpected twists, and a plot that kept me glued to my headphones, this one is a winner. Can’t wait to read more from this author!

Woah! Amazing book alert! This was so twisty and chilling!

When Claudia arrives at her fiance‘s family home to meet his mother and siblings, she doesn’t quite get the reception she was expecting. His mother is cold and dismissive, until Daniel arrives and she turns on the charm in bucketloads. And that’s only the start. Daniel, and his brother Elliott, have bought women back to the house previously; women who have all disappeared.

Cathryn Grant’s writing is superb. I was completely hooked throughout and there was a calmness that was actually creepy as Claudia tried to fit in with her future in-laws, becoming more and more confused as their mysterious behaviour evolved constantly.

Every parent wants the best for their children, but will any woman be good enough for Daniel and Elliott?

I listened to this on audiobook which was fantastically narrated by Lauryn Allman, Madeline Pell and Christopher Ragland, who really brought these characters to life, great job!

5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Cathryn Grant and Bookouture, for an ARC of this book.

I can not bring myself to finish this book. The male main character is absolutely insufferable, which is obviously how he's supposed to act, but four chapters into this book and the amount of gaslighting going on is already too much to handle. They've had sex twice despite her feeling like something is wrong, and I can't look past that. Not to mention they've only been together all of what, six months, and they're getting married? There's just small nitpicky things I can't force myself to look past. This book just irks me the wrong way. And I know it's supposed to be this way, I just can't do it.

There are popcorn thrillers and then there’s this.

Welcome to the Family relies heavily on an FMC being daft and so in love as to overlook some extreme gaslighting.

Quote: I knew he loved me even though he gaslit me.

WTF 🤦‍♀️🏃‍♀️

The conversations are so awkward in places because of too much repetition.

I changed audio from 2x to 2.5x at 26%.
The three narrators are fine quality-wise (Lauryn Allman, Madeline Pell, Christopher Ragland) but the repetition was killing me.

The blurb outshone the book in this instance.

What to expect:
Multi pov
Dual timeline
Twists

Audiobook:
3 narrators
Unique sounding characters

Pacing:
Engaging/Bored

Recommend:
This is a pass from me even though I know there are a group of readers who will eat it up.

With thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the advance listening copy.

Premise - When Claudia heads to her fiancé Daniel’s family estate to meet her future in-laws for the first time, the welcome she receives is anything but warm. Daniel’s mother is openly hostile and his brother, Elliott, blatantly hits on her. Daniel won’t hear a bad word about either of them.

But Claudia didn’t go in blind. The family is hiding a deadly secret, but Claudia has her own - including that she already knows what they’ve done and she’s going to make them regret ever inviting her in.

Claudia was a fun protagonist to spend time with. Daniel was as appealing as moldy bread, without the antibiotic potential, so it was immediately clear she must have some ulterior motive for being in the relationship, but it worked to build intrigue from the start.

Overall, the pacing in this was very strong, and Grant did a great job of building tension right from the start. The tension kept building and building, and when the big twists started hitting in the second half I did *not* see them coming!

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Lauryn Allman, Madeline Pell, and Christopher Ragland. They did a great job with the read and a full cast is always fun, so I definitely recommend this format.

Thanks, NetGalley and Bookouture Audio, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2.75⭐️
I’m a bit torn on this one. The book definitely engaged me, stirred a lot of emotion, and left an impact—but much of that emotion was frustration and even some low-key anger. Still, the fact that I was determined to see it through says something.

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Lauryn Allman, Madeline Pell, and Christopher Ragland. I liked having different voices for the shifting POVs and dual timelines, though I think I might have preferred an immersion read for easier reference. The book has six POVs total, though most of the story is carried by two women—one leading Part One, the other Part Two. Ragland narrates Daniel and Elliot (with only a couple of chapters each), while Janice and Abigail get just a few. It’s a lot to track, but manageable.

All three narrators spoke at such a slow pace that listening on 1x wasn’t possible. Thankfully, the consistency in pace between the three narrators meant it worked well once sped up. Personally, I struggled most with Lauryn Allman’s narration; her vocal lilt was distracting at normal speed, though speeding up to 1.5x or 2x smoothed it out. In addition Pell’s vocals sounded too mature for her main character and Ragland sounded much too young.

Content-wise, I strongly urge readers not to read the description beforehand—it spoils key twists and makes the story predictable. Both parts of the book also felt repetitive, with at least 50 pages that could have been cut. The writing leans heavily on “telling” rather than “showing,” which often made the prose feel spoon-fed and occasionally unrealistic.

That said, if you read more for vibes than for technical execution, this might work better for you. The story has the appearance of big twists that some readers may find entertaining, and the emotional weight is definitely there. For me, the predictability and lack of depth held it back—but I can still appreciate the impact it had while reading.

I was fortunate to receive a complimentary ALC from Bookouture Audio through NetGalley, which gave me the opportunity to share my voluntary thoughts.

How I Rate
Because I mostly read ARCs, I focus on how I think fellow readers with similar tastes will respond. I sometimes round up or down based on pacing, prose, or overall impact, and I try to keep my personal preferences from weighing too heavily.

⭐️ 1 Star – Finished, but not for me; I never DNF ARCs.
⭐️⭐️ 2 Stars – Struggled due to writing, content, or editing issues.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3 Stars – Decent read with untapped potential; recommend with some reservations.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 Stars – Really enjoyed it and would recommend for several reasons.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 Stars – Exceptional; lingers in my mind well after reading. A story I’d gladly revisit.