Where I found it: Netgalley, many years ago (2012)

Why I picked it up: I honestly do not remember, it was that long ago. This time around I read it to clear my backlog, and because it seemed like a quick fun book to read between Christmas and New Year's. 

What’s It All About? Cass is the most popular girl in school, and certainly the richest, living in a mansion on the hill that the whole town can see. Every year she throws a huge party for her friends while her parents are out of town, even using it as a way to send a message to certain peers. New teens make the list, others get knocked off, but (almost) everyone is on the lookout to see if they have made the cut this year. Sarah and her friends (Maggie, Ellie, Donald, and new girl Shane) have never gotten an invitation, nor do they expect one. Cass doesn't even know who they are. Or so they thought. Until their invitations arrive. Persuaded by her friends' enthusiasm, Sarah joins them at the party, but she has nothing but a bad feeling about these invitations. When they arrive at the party, they are pulled into a game of musical chairs designed to separate them from the rest of the party and from each other. Cass's plan is cruel. The rest of the party will use clues to find the five guests, they will be on a people hunt! However, there is someone at the party that has taken this too seriously. When Sarah's friends start to disappear, new clues left in the places Cass put them, will Sarah and Riley (the cute popular boy is also nice) find her friends in time? Will they be able to figure out who is doing all of this?

My thoughts: This was a super fast read, perfect for the time between two holidays. This book was wholly plot driven, which is expected in something so short (just not much time for character development AND plot). The characters are somewhat cliché, as is the plot. The description of the book made me think it would be a Carrie retelling with an updated setting. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was partially wrong. The popular girl absolutely set up the unpopular group, but she was not the ultimate villain. I agree with a few other reviews I saw that the ending came out of left field. While there was plenty of foreshadowing that Shane had a shady past, it was not until the very end that the story comes out. There was really no way to try to guess who the attempted killer was as there was no mention of them until they showed up. (Which is sad, because a few chapters from their point of view would have added to the suspense and allowed readers to try to guess who they were). As I was reading this, it felt like one of the many teen horror books I read as a kid. I loved Goosebumps, Fear Street, and anything by Christopher Pike. I tore through them so fast, the plots often blended together after a time. The Invitation was so reminiscent of these books because... it was originally published in the early 1990's as part of the Pointe Horror series started by R. L. Stine! Knowing that, and knowing that it is intended to be a quick, exciting read for tweens and young adults, put the decisions into perspective. I think that the book accomplished what it intended to do, but I may have outgrown these types of books (at almost 40!). 

Genre: Horror
Themes: Friends, secrets, popularity
Recommended For:  Fans of R. L. Stine and Christopher Pike, quick horror. Especially love these books for reluctant readers, or readers who want/need simpler text without the plot being too young for them. 

Will be posted at https://tichwi.ninja/2023/01/23/book-review-36-the-invitation/ on January 23, 2023

A well crafted and well paced read, however it was not one I was able to connect with fully. Am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to read and review this story.

I felt a bit underwhelmed by this book. The idea in the blurb sounded so fun, but the execution left something to be desired. The writing was a bit dull. I also felt like the characters were one-sided, and I didn't really care what happened to them. It was a great idea, but not my cup of tea.

Honestly, maybe Point Horror isn’t for me (you wouldn’t think it looking at my TBR, would you?) Maybe there’s a reason I didn’t gel with these books as a kid - because they’re pretty dull.

I was intrigued by this one because it had a concept I usually enjoy: deadly games. But the characters were all a bit pathetic and the main ‘scandal’ wasn’t something I can really envision anyone being upset about, much less an entire town of people going out of their way to make a teenager’s life hell.

And the end? The poor girl just gets tossed off a balcony and nobody gives a crap.

Also, Cass’s game honestly wasn’t even that mean.