Unfortunately I could not get in to this one. I think my reading tastes are changing. I will update my review if I try and read again.

They are the Washington elite, politicians, businessmen and diplomats. Some are old money while others are new to the upper monied class. Their children attend elite private schools and are guaranteed places at the Ivy League universities their parents are alumni of. They have the perfect life or do they? When one of the families experiences a break-in, murder and their house burned to the ground, the other families start to question their lives.

We see this world through the lives of several of the families and their children. There is Bunny, only child of one of the richest families, a family that made their billions on the backs of their workers and who are about to be embroiled in multiple wrongful death lawsuits for the illnesses their chemical plants have caused. Bunny is bored with her life and suspicious that she doesn't deserve it. After the murder, she visits the man arrested in prison and tries to bridge the gap between them. She is dating Billy, whose father has just been nominated for Secretary of Defense. His father could care less that Billy is a talented musician; he is determined that Billy will continue the family tradition of military service. Mackensie's father is a new Senator who champions women's rights in public and has affairs in private. She is dating Marty, the only African American in their group and whose parents are both lawyers. Then there is the son of the Russian ambassador who the rest of the group call Putin.

All of these families are poised on the brink of disaster and some of them will tip over. Along the way, their social climbing, lack of interest in others and determination to have their own way in life is exposed. This is a debut novel and the author is a bit heavy-handed. Every character in this social circle is totally corrupt and unlikeable. The point she is making, that wealth and privilege is often based on corruption is valid but would be more compelling if her characters were more well rounded. Very few people are totally one way or the other; most of us have good and bad characteristics and we are judged by which ones we allow to rule our lives. This book is recommended for readers of literary fiction.

I wanted to love this book but found it too meandering. The characters didn’t have enough depth and there was not enough focus on what initially appears to be the plot line - the murders. The premise was interesting but execution was poor.

Cave Dwellers is chock full of spoiled entitlement corrupt acts, and is an eye opening glimpse into the Washington elite. The rich kid shenanigans and political coverups are interesting, especially as the crisscrossing arcs lends to jagged excitement. However, there are so many elements that leave too many unanswered questions. The author incorporates many worthwhile contemporary topics (teen angst, drug use, family dysfunction, injustice, corporate greed, political corruption, murder) worthy of a deep dive, but the arcs are surface-level bries. The conclusion is unsatisfying as it feels incomplete. However, the author notes and acknowledgements are top shelf and a worthy read.
Too many loose ends 3/5
Author notes 5/5

This is a classic story of rich people behaving badly. It felt like an accident - you can't help but look. The DC elite, adult and teens, make some really poor decisions with lasting consequences. I liked the sneak peek into this world but found everyone within the world grossly self absorbed.

I was not a fan of this book. I understand the idea and I think maybe I was supposed to love to hate the characters but I just ended up hating them. I found the whole book exhausting and didn’t really care to finish it.

I get what Christina McDowell was trying to do, but I still didn't enjoy the ride. Lots (and lots) of characters and most are unlikable. plus the execution and writing just wasnt very strong IMO.

I admit, I didn't particularly enjoy this book despite thinking it would be right up my alley. I found the character's voices to be quite annoying, which definitely could have been deliberate given the story, but it was to the point where I couldn't enjoy the book much. I wanted to like this a lot more than I did, unfortunately.

I know this will be entertaining for many, but for me it made my skin crawl. I am over priviledged people stories with no redeeming value.

A delicious gossipy romp into the world of the uber rich and powerful in Washington, DC. Kids all go to an exclusive private school - where drugs and alcohol and racism run rampant. Difficult for outsiders to break into the women are vicious and the men are distant and spend more time with mistresses than families. Designer clothes, expensive jewelry and social status is everything. Well written and holds the same sort of fascination as not being able to look away from flashing lights at an accident site.

I really enjoyed this story! It is a "smart" read that you have to take slowly or you will miss half of the genius of it! There is a lot going on and there are MANY characters, but it is extremely well written and so funny if you don't try to make it something it's not. This is NOT a beach book....it is not even a light read. It is an allegory that is very strategically crafted. I do recommend it for sure!

This book checked lots of boxes for what would normally be a book I would love but it fell short for a few reasons. The biggest reason that pushed me away from loving this book was the amount of characters. There were SO many characters and although their storylines all intersected sometimes it was just too much to keep up with. I think there is a basis for a good story here but it gets lost in all of the extra

It always breaks my heart to leave negative feedback, but I found nothing in this novel that I enjoyed. I thought the story was cliched and the entire premise was trite. This is the literary equivalent of black licorice: I'm sure it's for someone, but I don't want it anywhere near me.

Living so close to DC but not being one of the rich elite I was so interested in the premise of this novel! The characters fell a bit flat for me but I enjoyed the pace and would recommend it to others.

I should have read the Afterword first before reading this book. I found the author's own personal connections as well as her stated purpose for writing the book very interesting and admirable. I felt that I understood where she was coming from and what she hoped to accomplish with this writing.

That said, the book was a very difficult read--not because of the subject matter, but because there were too many individual stories to follow.. I found myself having to go back and trace the various characters and make sure I kept their individual stories straight. At first I thought the profiles of the characters and their behavior must be exaggerated; however, by the end of the book I thought perhaps they were not so much exaggerated as there were simply too many stories grouped within one small cluster of characters. "Thinning out" to fewer individual stories and reducing the complexity of the plot would have helped----and the reader was left guessing as to who was guilty of the crime committed in the first chapter. Strong hints were there but no real resolution....

“The Cave Dwellers” by Christina McDowell

A Modern Classic! Literary, Fast-Paced, On Target & On Trend! Brilliant! A Must Read!

Razor-sharp satirical wit infused with heart-wrenching pathos sets the stage for Christina McDowell’s modern-day classical Greek comedy/drama, “The Cave Dwellers,” a fiercely allegorical literary fiction set in Washington, D.C. and…possibly worthy of the notable genius of Aristophanes.

McDowell’s novel focuses on the movers and shakers of D.C.—those legacy, prime property owners, with the old-money lineages tracing to the original Jamestown and Mayflower settlers (and subsequent Revolutionary War heroes)—these McDowell calls, the cave dwellers, because of their wealth, exclusivity, privilege and extreme privacy.

The metaphor of the “cave dwellers” is borrowed from Greek philosopher, Plato. In his masterwork on Stoicism, “The Republic,” Plato depicts the allegory of the cave as a symbolic mental prison for individuals who base their thinking on ideologies, perceptions and personal opinions, rather than on research, knowledge and analytical reasoning because such base human responses can only result in ignorance, and not in understanding.

In the “Cave Dwellers,” the symbolism of the cave dwellers is multi-pronged, representing not only some of the closed-minded beliefs and perceptions held by many of the characters, but also of the impregnable enclave the group represents.

When a home invasion leads to a horrific murderous rampage within the sanctuary of one D.C.’s elite neighborhoods, none of the other exclusive residents feel safe. How could this have happened there? Why? Could they be next?

As cave dweller parents and their children grieve the losses of these friends and acquaintances, this gruesome and ghastly tragedy sets off a chain reaction of emotions and consequences—spiraling to unforeseen epiphanies, chaos and a dramatic conclusion.

I found the “The Cave Dwellers,” brilliant, on-trend, on-topic, and a thoroughly non-stop read. I consumed the pages—just could not put it down!

As I noted initially, this is a comedy/drama. Aspects of the book are acerbic and hilariously funny. The novel is totally absorbing, and definitely must be considered one of the best books of the year. Beautifully written, it is literary, engaging, poignant and educational. Brava!

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The Book Maven’s Journal—Reviews for Word Connoisseurs

REVIEWER: J.Hunt
STAR RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Now Available…
“The Cave Dwellers” By Christina McDowell
General Fiction / Literary Fiction
Publication Date: 25 May 2021

My Sincere Appreciation Goes to NetGalley, Author Christina McDowell, and Publishers Gallery Books/Scout Press and Simon & Schuster for Making Available this Advance Reader Copy for Review

Book Reviews
by TheBookMavenJoy
are also on Goodreads.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I just couldn't get into the book. I think a lot of it had to do with the writing style. I may try again in the future.

Thank you to @netgalley and @scoutpressbooks for this #gifted e-arc in exchange for my honest review.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Well, I have to say I did not really enjoy this one... I think I need to learn that while I like books with more relational drama, I prefer it be somewhat tame rather than the really sad, life-altering type of political/familial drama that this book depicts.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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The Cave Dwellers are the privileged Washington, DC elite who run the political show and feel they hold all the power. But when a family within their circle is brutally murdered, the wealthy DC neighborhood begins doubting the security they feel within not only their community, but their overall place in society. The children are spoiled, the parents possess a toxic sense of entitlement that is then passed down as a legacy to be picked up and carried on by the next generation. Yet, the world is changing, and these social climbers begin to realize the way they've existed in this life won't work the same way forever.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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So the author note at the end lets you know that Christina McDowell lived in this elitist DC world. This fictionalized story was definitely given a little more weight, as McDowell could speak quite directly to the racism, classism, elitism, etc. that takes place in this corner of society. I think this reality just added to how sad and painful all the drama in this book turned out to be for me.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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I went in expecting more escapism and came out with more social commentary. More than anything this book felt a bit disheartening and I don't know if I walked away having learned much or having improved my mindset.⠀

The ample comparisons to Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities are an accurate description of The Cave Dwellers. There are elite circles throughout many large cities - subpopulations with their own sub-economies and unique ways of interacting - and this novel explores Washington, DC, always a center of power in the country but with increased focused in recent years.

As the distance has grown between the have and have nots in the US, McDowell's novel shines a light on just how privileged, disconnected, unappreciative, and unaware DC's elite are of life outside of their bubble. Perhaps the worst are the offspring of these families because while their parents have likely some awareness of the outside world (albeit limited), the children have grown up completely isolated from their peers living very different lives.

In The Cave Dwellers, a brutal murder of a couple and their daughter creates a platform for the local high schoolers to pause and reflect on their life and world...or not. Many continue with their parties and drugs and are happy to let an unknown black man, only a few years older than themselves, be accused and jailed. But some are growing consciences and starting to question the racial and economic inequities in their midst. Some are embarrassed by the systemic racism emanating out of their parents.

McDowell herself was raised in such a world in DC, and her life was disrupted when her own father was jailed for financial crimes. I very much got the sense that this novel is both McDowell's way of processing her youth and using her unique lens into the world as an opportunity to shine a light on what she sees as wrong. Painting an unpleasant picture of the people she grew up with and her own parents is not an easy decision for novelists and so this novel also feels courageous. McDowell seems to say through her characters' actions that the only way for any of this dynamic to change is for the next generations of these families to take notice, question, and decide not to participate.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and found the story engaging. I did - at times - find it difficult to differentiate some of the multitude of characters and am not sure the ending was the best option for settling the novel.

The Cave Dwellers by Christina McDowell was an addicting read once it got going. At first, it was difficult to follow and keep track of so many characters and separate but loosely connected storylines but once those connections started to strengthen and characters began to become more developed. I couldn't seem to put it down. It is always interesting to dive into the lives of the most elite. This book explores the privileges that elitism brings and what can happen when it all goes terribly wrong. Things at the end felt a bit unfinished and I am not sure if that was intentional or happenstance but otherwise a recommended read.