I LOVED this one! The Family Game is the best book written by Catherine Steadman in my opinion! 🥰 I was hooked from the beginning! This was brilliant! 🤩 If you like thrillers that keep you guessing through all the twists and turns, then you must read this one! This is one of my favorites for this year!! 🤓

Harriet, who goes by Harry, is a novelist meeting her Kennedy-rich future in-laws for the first time. Over the holiday season. Having no family of her own, she wants to make the perfect impression on the Holbecks, but is left confused after being handed a dictaphone tape by the patriarch, Robert, during their first meeting.

Harry is floored at the apparent dark confession she hears on the tape, which could lead to the downfall of her husband-to-be’s family. In between the unusual family bonding and twisted games they play, she uses her research skills to attempt to figure out if the tape is fact or fiction — and to see if she has what it takes to be a Holbeck.

The Family Game is a well-paced, intriguing thriller taking place over the course of the holiday season. The ending felt the tiniest bit rushed to me, but with its unique premise and volatile conclusion, this was easily a bingeable 4.5 star read with a similar feel to Ready or Not and Knives Out.

Many thanks to the author and #NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a book you won't see coming.

On the surface, the premise seems simple. Harriet Reed, a woman established in her own right as an upcoming novelist, is going to marry Edward Holbeck, who is the heir to one of the wealthiest and most powerful families.

But the Holbecks are a family that like to play games. So when Harriet receives a tape from the head of the family, Robert Holbeck, with a murder confession on it, she's not sure what to think. But as she's drawn further into the family, and the games amp up in intensity, Harriet is forced to decide what truly matters to her and how far she is willing to go.

The twists in this book are amazing. The book started out a little slow to me, but once it got going, I could not put it down. The ending especially is incredible. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Arc! 3/5 stars. A thriller about a filthy rich family with some weird traditions. As Harriet gets to know her fiancée family more and more, she starts to wonder what is happening and what is going on with this family.
I enjoyed most of this book but figured out the ending early on.

DNF at 20%, couldn't get into it and didn't like the plot. I must not have read the blurb well enough before requesting, this is not a storyline that interests me.

This was my first book by Catherine Steadman. I did enjoy it but I found the ending predictable. I would give it 3.5 out 5 stars. I only knock off stars because I think the ending felt flat. I enjoyed the writing style and the character. I would give some morw of her books a shot.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC. I have read other books by this author, but this one has been my favorite. Family drama, twists and turns kept me reading. A definite page turner!

I really enjoyed this thriller from Catherine Steadman - it had a lot of interesting characters and didn't go in quite the direction I was expecting. There were a couple leaps in logic that keep me from rating this a five-star, but it was a fast-paced read and it really kept my attention.

4 stars. This one drew me in right from the start. A page turner as you can’t wait to see what will be uncovered next. Thank you NetGalley. Definitely will read anything Catherine Steadman puts out.

I really enjoyed this book. I kept wondering what was going to happen. It really left me guessing.

The book is about a couple who just got engaged and also found out they were having a baby. The main character is the woman in the relationship and the story is told by her. The family she is marrying into is extremely rich. They are also very strange. They play games at family functions that are scary and dangerous. She is given a tape by her fiance's father that devulges crimes he has committed. He also knows about a secret she has. What happens at the end is surprising and disturbing.

I don’t expect thrillers to be based in reality, but there was little to no logic behind anything that happened in this story, and it was super frustrating. I absolutely loved Something in the Water, but this one just wasn't it for me. Lots of people really enjoyed this book, so I'm definitely in the minority here.

Thank you to the publisher for an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, i did enjoy this story and it is a very good winter thriller for someone that looking for one. I felt the story was pretty predictable throughout and personally wasn’t surprised by the “twist” at the end. Even with that i felt this was a solid thriller and i did end up reading this book in a day while traveling. Good story overall.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5!

Set during the holidays? Check.
Super atmospheric rich people vibes? Check.
Single POV where you trust no one around them? Check.

After sitting on this ARC for a few months due to hearing that it was set during winter and over the course of the holidays, I am now SO glad that I waited and highly recommend picking this one up during the holiday season for an added atmospheric element. Also, knowing only bits and pieces of the Krampusnacht celebration I think brought those scenes to an even creepier level for me, and I was on the edge of my seat during both "scavenger hunt" situations. Their family was extremely rich and even more fucked up and I was completely here for all of it.

I had begun to have some suspicions about what the final reveal ended up being, but I really think Catherine Steadman's main objective was to create that suspenseful feeling of dread throughout in her readers-and she DEFINITELY accomplished that in my opinion. This book was extremely fast-paced and I completely binged it in a little over a day because I really could not stop reading. After back to back books with multiple POV's and timelines, this single POV with a linear timeline was extremely refreshing and very easy to follow.

If you enjoy books about high stakes cat and mouse games and/or previously enjoyed Good Rich People by Eliza Jane Brazier with just a little more murder, definitely pick this one up. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my review copy!

I was initially so excited to read this one based on the premise because it sounded so mysterious and intriguing. However, as the book went on, I found myself losing interest. The characters initially really drew me in because they were so enigmatic and intriguing, but as this got darker and more confusing, I lost interest.

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

Dreading holiday dinner with the family? As bad as it might be, it has got to be better than Harriet "Harry" Reed's. This newly minted British writer moves to New York after falling for American scion Edward Holbeck,

Harry is thrust into the Holbeck family gatherings on the holidays where family game night is on the menu.

As it turns out, so are twists, turns, secrets, and intrigue, with undertones of "Get Out." It takes a bit of patience to get in to, but The Family Game is worth the slow burn. When it takes off - boom!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this book! It was dark, twisty, and easy to get engrossed in. Although aspects of it require you to suspend your disbelief and there were a couple plot points that I felt could have been further explored, I liked the premise overall and thought the setup was generally well-done. The plot centers around British author Harriet preparing to marry into a rich, old-money American household and uncovering secrets as she vies for their complete acceptance. It does build up rather slowly compared to some other thrillers I've read, but I liked that it gave us time to learn about the characters (especially Harriet) before we really dove into the action-heavy parts. Overall, I would recommend this if you're looking for a slightly slower-paced thriller that explores family dynamics and isn't as gory as many of its contemporaries in the genre.

Trigger Warnings: death, murder, mentions of suicide

The Family Game by Catherine Steadman is a psychological thriller about Harriet, who is invited to be a part of the Holbecks's Christmas tradition after her engagement to Edward Holbeck. And their traditional Christmas game is even crazier and even more savage than you might think. This book was pretty unique and certainly kept me entertained, but it was pretty dark. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

I thought my family was a bit out there and twisted. The Holbeck family takes the cake! This book is filled with wild rides upon wild rides. The prologue is what gets you. Right off the bat. Then it’s a slow burn from there at the present. The writing is beautiful. The elements within the story are executed with care and precision throughout. Harry is such a strong character who you are rooting for on every page. The amount of secrets within this book is INTENSE. Mind numbing at times when with another turn of the page you go, “again?!” All in all, this book was fantastic in all aspects. The twists. The secrets. The GAME! Well done!

This was the perfect holiday thriller! The Holbeck family were a crazy and sinister bunch! Once I started reading, I could not put this book down. I had to know what made this family tick! The Family Games played were beyond F'd up and it was disturbing how each family member accepted them as normal. The cassette tape chapters were my favorite and each one made the hair on my arms stand up. I love books about messed up rich families with history and this one was no exception. I was on the edge of my seat until the final conclusion reading into the late-night hours. I was both shocked and satisfied with the ending. I highly recommend this bingeable, dark, creepy thriller!

If you like dark and twisty, this one is for you. Quick read with some very dark and messed up wealthy family dynamics. Entertaining and fun.