This was a really intriguing and original plot (pun intended), and if you've read any thrillers, the ending is not a huge surprise. It was slow-moving but enjoyable the first half of the book, and then I was so bored that I started to skim a lot. The ending was a huge letdown for me. I didn't enjoy any of the characters at all.

Thank you so much to #Netgalley and #atriabooks for this advanced reader's copy for an honest review.

After enjoying this author's last book, Behind the Red Door, I was looking forward to her latest release.

The Lighthouse siblings: Dahlia, her twin Andy, Charlie and sister Tate grew up in a secluded island mansion with most unusual parents. The mother and father were true crime-obsessed and kept a shine of murder victims. The children were kept isolated and home-schooled and, part of their curriculum was true crime research. When Andy disappears on the eve of his sixteenth birthday it is suspected that he ran away. Dahlia, his twin is especially affected by the loss of Andy.

Dahila, now 26, has returned to Blackburn Island following the death of her father and in the process a horrible discovery is made. In her father's burial plot, Andy's skull has been unearthed, he was killed by an axe to the head. Who killed Andy and how did he end up buried in the "family plot?"

This was a somewhat gruesome story told from the POV of Dahlia who came across as rather immature for 26. Well, honestly, the whole family is more than a bit strange in the way they have dealt with what has happened. I found it hard to connect with Dahlia and the others. Actually, everyone in this story seemed a little suspect even though there had been several unsolved murders nearby believed to be the work of a serial killer. This was a very quick read but, IMO it was also rather far-fetched as well.

Rating - 3.5/5 stars

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. The Family Plot has a unique plot as far as mystery-thrillers go. The family was strange and dark and mostly unlikeable. One of the reveal/twists came earlier than I expected but I didn’t guess correctly. I actually didn’t like the ending of the book. Overall, it was entertaining and has a unique, morbid plot so I’d recommend it to those that like creepy families and books with a dark feel.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for this eARC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This family is TOE-UP (anyone else remember GloZell?!)

Not just toe-up, messed up, screwed up and hiding some really messed up secrets.

I mean.... I love reading psychological thrillers, watching murder mystery shows etc., but the Lighthouse family takes an obsession with death a little (a lot) too far.

The mother. Gahhhh no wonder the kids are so messed up. I’m honestly surprised-okay I’m not surprised that they act that way.

I did do the audio for this one and when Emily Tremaine did the voice for the mother I always pictured Moira Rose.

I found this one to be really character driven and none of the characters are like able. I didn’t hate them, but I didn’t love them either.

Megan Collins returns following (The Red Door) with her latest Gothic psychological thriller —THE FAMILY PLOT. Atmospheric, dark, and chilling true crime addicts will find a lot to love here!

Meet the Lighthouse family. Charlie, Tate, Dahlia, and Andy are the children all named after famous murder victims. The eccentric parents honor the dead, and the mom homeschooled the children. The curriculum is also centered around true crimes.

This is one dark, crazy, weird, and dysfunctional family with deadly secrets. The mother required them to write their murder reports. Their creepy family home was located deep in the woods on an isolated Blackburn Island and dubbed the locals' "Murder Mansion."

All the kids cannot wait to leave the island when they were old enough. They have no friends, and everyone thinks the family is psycho as well as the officials.

Dahlia and Andy were twins. They were close, as were Charlie (oldest) and Tate. Their childhood was haunted. Their house was covered with photos of their murdered grandparents and other victims.

Andy disappeared on this sixteenth birthday, and Dahlia has spent her entire life searching for him with the help of her friend, Greta.

Now the grown children are all called home due to the death of their father. However, the gardener has discovered a body in the family plot! It has been seven years since Dahlia has set foot in this house.

The question is who the body is? What happened to Andy? Also, Andy also had a habit of carrying an ax and taking out his frustration on the trees when he was nervous or stressed. What does Andy's ax have to do with the body in the plot?

In addition, the Blackburn Killer (a serial killer) —a decade since he last struck. Has the killer returned? Being his twin, Dahlia would know if something happened to Andy.

THE FAMILY PLOT is one complex, wild, crazy, twisted, and haunted psychological thriller. True crime meets house of horrors.

From dark family secrets, lies, fears, tunnels, creepy setting, strange neighbors, the chilling family, sleuthing, and a decades-old serial killer plus, all the true-crime backdrops, and much more.

Vividly drawn, Collins dives deep into her characters (past and present), their relationships, and their secrets. Character-driven and plot-driven, readers will be glued to the pages to the explosive and shocking finale.

A special thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced reading copy.

#JDCMustReadBooks
@JudithDCollins
My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Pub Date: Aug 17, 2021

What a wild ride. Having twins myself, I cannot imagine what the main character Dahlia experienced when her own twin, Andy, goes missing at 16. Of course, living on an island where a serial killer hunts would also not be my cup of tea... When Andy's body is discovered, where it shouldn't be..., each of the family members begins to process the grief in their own way... and through this, Dahlia begins to realize there is more. There is always more.

This was the perfect book to read in October - the perfect mix of crime meets spooky meets who-dunnit. Anyone who enjoys a good thriller will love these characters and this plot.

I’ve read other books by this author and they’re always either amazing or just ok, and I’m happy to say she blew me away with this one. Her plots are always good but this one was expertly plotted. The writing was also excellent- she paced the story very well and had stronger character development than some of her previous novels. Highly recommend!!!

I was hooked on The Family Plot from the synopsis alone and it did not disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed the family drama/mystery about a dysfunctional and eccentric family raised on true crime. With interesting characters and twists, this is one I highly recommend. So looking forward to reading whatever Megan's next book is, Thank you to Atria books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a solid mystery with a great setting of this house. However, the story and reveals just ended up being okay for me. However, this is a perfect easy thriller to read when you need one.

I have now read 2/3 books that Megan Collins has written, and I am beginning to think she may not be the author for me. Behind the Red Door had characters I absolutely hated which made me not love the book in return, and I don't even know how to feel about The Family Plot. There were a lot of unique aspects to the storyline that I really liked, and Tate's dioramas were perfectly terrifying, but there wasn't as much suspense as I was expecting. I feel like the killer of the women became apparent way too early in the story and there are a couple of big reveals, but only one of them was all that surprising to me. The entire book is narrated solely from Dahlia's viewpoint, and I really think this plot needed some other voices mixed in. I was into it when I first started which continued until about the middle of the book, where things seemed to slow way down, and I started to lose interest. I did however actually like Dahlia, so it was nice to have a character I could sympathize with.

On the plus side, I did really enjoy the audiobook which is narrated by Emily Tremaine. She helped with the slowness of the story and sounded exactly how I would have thought Dahlia would sound which is always a huge plus. Listening to her narrate was probably one of my favorite things about The Family Plot, and she kept me going with things slowed down. I do have to hand it to Collins for her original ideas and I will definitely still be reading The Winter Sister as well. Depending on how that goes I may or may not continue reading her, and I don't want to read an author and give lower ratings when I know they aren't for me. That being said, a lot of people loved this book, and if you are a fan of messed-up families and psychological thrillers I for sure recommend checking it out. I just had a meh feeling throughout the last half which made this one a bit of a dud for me.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I wrote about this on GoodReads, here: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1758756-beth Because of travel and other issues, I didn't review this one on my blog.

Super eerie and perfect for that October spooky read! Loved the twists and turns. Couldn't put it down until I knew what happened!

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. And I think that was part of the point. The mystery was compelling but the underlying sadness and family distress lingered long after finishing. Satisfying but sooner to be sure.

The Family Plot

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and Simon and Schuster, Inc. for sending me an ARC of The Family Plot, in exchange for my honest opinion of the novel. I think The Family Plot certainly fits into the eeriness and scariness of the Halloween season. The story in The Family Plot revolves around a serial killer, known as the Blackburn Killer, who brutally murdered many women over the course of 20 years. The Lighthouse family, father Daniel, mother Lorraine, brothers Charlie and Andy, and sisters Tate and Dahlia (the children are all named after real true-crime victims) live in an old mansion on Blackburn Island (referred to the locals as “Murder Mansion”) and are the main characters in this novel, with an odd array of supporting people who add to the overall creepiness of the story. Oddly enough, there is only never-ending darkness with the Lighthouse family. The home is dark and full of mystery, lies and deceit. The adult children return home for their father’s funeral and a shocking finding is unearthed. The family plot for father Daniel is already occupied. And then the story begins. The novel is filled with many startling and terrifying revelations, which almost destroy the family. I enjoyed reading The Family Plot and give it a sound 3 stars. If I were the author, however; I would have ended the novel in a much darker place, to match the theme of this true-crime thriller.

Thank you so much for this ARC!

This was a great book to start reading for Halloween month! Interesting mystery, albeit some really weird characters. I thought the sibling dynamics were a little strange and "off", but that's just me.

The Family Plot was the perfect book to start off Spooky Season. It is a delightful mix of true crime and horror that's sure to appeal to a wide range of audiences.

The good: creepy secluded mansion on an island! true crime/murder obsessed family! creepy as heck homeschool assignments (I really enjoyed that part)! SO. MANY. POTENTIAL. SUSPECTS!

The less good:I was honestly really feeling book right up until the end. I can't put my finger on exactly why, but I was a tad disappointed with the ending. I guess because it's too realistic? I don't know.

Either way, I definitely think this is a good book and will definitely recommend it to people for Spooky Season and beyond!

This book started out very strong, but toward the end it rally fizzled out. I found the dynamic between the sets of siblings to be very strange, and it seemed they were more lovers than siblings.

The idea behind the book was really cool. I was let down by the climax and ending.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you Netgalley, Atria Books and Megan Collins for free e-ARC in return of my honest review.

Dahlia return to her family home for the funeral of her father. She did not come back in 10 years, spending that time in a fruitless search of her disappeared twin brother. However, this time she might be successful to learn about his whereabouts. The whole story of her family is unravelled and she is lost in all the secrets and lies.

Overall, the story is very engaging and intriguing. I kept turning the pages with the desire to find out who was the killer and who was responsible for Dahlia's twin disappearance. Even with a few inconsistencies, plot-wise the storyline is fine. Characters, on the other hand, felt to rushed and under-developed. None of Dahlia's family were fully described and developed to a multidimensional characters that came to live from the pages of the book.

The Family Plot is a thriller with true crime at its base. It’s a good one, I really enjoyed it but unfortunately the conclusion fell flat. But the blurb & the premise was on point. I just wanted something more from the ending. Still worth reading. 3.5 stars from me.

In The Family Plot by Megan Collins “Our family was unnatural,” a phrase spoken by Andy, one of the four Lighthouse siblings, is a vast understatement. The Lighthouse children, Charlie, Dahlia (our narrator), Andy and Tate, are all named after murder victims, so it’s obvious from page one that all the members of the Lighthouse family are obsessed with the subject of murder. But perhaps that makes sense as their mother’s parents were brutally murdered during a home invasion in Connecticut at the family estate. Following the murder, she moved to Blackburn island, to their summer home, a “drafty, secluded mansion,” where their father, Daniel, “indulged her eccentricities, and did not protest as she turned the mansion into something of a mausoleum.” A mausoleum for murder victims. Add to that the fact that the Lighthouse children are homeschooled, and … the main focus of the curriculum … you guessed it … is murder. Making those murder dioramas must have been so much fun. Let’s pile on that the disturbing fact Blackburn Island has a serial killer of its own, and the killer has never been caught. The Lighthouse home is nicknamed the Murder Mansion by the locals and the family members are considered weird. No wonder these kids are screwed up.

When the novel opens, the children, now adults, understandably are scattered, (I’d have changed my name,) and Dahlia returns to the island after an absence of 7 years. She has returned only because her father died, and this reunion isn’t going to be any fun. Tate is an artist, Charlie is an actor, Dahlia is the narrator, and Andy… well he went missing at age 16, and it was assumed that he ran away (not that anyone could blame him). The loyal family employee, Fritz, is busy digging a grave for Dad (yes, he’s being buried on the island) when he discovers a body in the plot that was saved for dear old dad. As to what happened to missing brother Andy, well the mystery is solved. He’s been lying 6 feet under in the back garden all this time. But who killed him?


The premise of the book sounded interesting with its underlying theme that those touched by murder are never the same, and the internet is full of stories about people who become obsessed with murders and then go off the rails in various interesting ways. But for this reader, the entire setup was hard to swallow. There’s suspension of disbelief and then there’s just plain cuckoo. I stopped many times, put the book down and asked myself whether or not these damaged people, raised in this toxic environment would have kept acting like idiots? It’s understandable that mummy is a nutjob: her parents were murdered and then her whole life became murder, but even with that in mind, I couldn’t accept the plot. Wouldn’t you at least wonder what the hell happened to your twin brother, a teen who was clearly unhappy at home? Wouldn’t you ask yourself why you never heard from him again, and why your parents moan a bit but then quickly move on? The family members are all freaky weird but in the first pages after finding Andy’s body in the grave, there they are all in the kitchen eating cookies. No one is saying WTF, packing their bags and hightailing it off that miserable island.

With many books, willing suspension of disbelief is engaged, albeit this tacit agreement by the reader may be fragile, or challenged, but in The Family Plot the willing suspension of disbelief must be resuscitated repeatedly. I found it impossible to accept the behavior of the characters, so if you are about to embark on this book, be prepared to toss your disbelief out the window and then watch it bounce back. I just went with the plot and then I found myself saying things such as “what sickos,” or “as if,” “oh come off it” and even “wtf.” That said, it’s an easy, quick read that keeps you barreling along to the last page. Some readers loved the book, so perhaps I’m in the minority here.

Review copy.