First book by this author and will not be my last. Currently trying to get my hands on other books by her. This was such a fun read and i just didn’t want to put it down.

What a fun book! It had a slow start. However, I kept wanting to read it! She had no idea what kind of family she was getting herself into...

It seemed to me that this thriller had a very slow start. There were certainly unsettling moments throughout but I was slightly worried this would end up being a 3 star read until we reached the last few chapters. Definitely a great ending IMO and one I didn’t see coming until it was almost upon me.

“Damaged people are dangerous. They know they can survive.” Josephine Hart

In "The Family Game" by Catherine Steadman, readers are treated to a gripping narrative that transcends the conventional boundaries of a thriller. Steadman's masterful storytelling unfolds with precision, creating a tapestry of suspense interwoven with the intricate dynamics of family relationships.

The novel introduces a cast of characters whose complexities and hidden motives add layers to the storyline. As the plot unravels, Steadman skillfully navigates the fine line between trust and betrayal, keeping readers guessing at every turn. The narrative's pacing is immaculate, allowing tension to build gradually, ensuring a constant sense of anticipation.

What sets "The Family Game" apart is Steadman's ability to delve into the psychological nuances of her characters. Their vulnerabilities, fears, and desires are laid bare, creating a rich emotional landscape that resonates with authenticity. The author paints a vivid picture of the intricate web of familial connections, exploring the impact of secrets and the consequences of choices made in the name of love.

The unexpected twists and turns within the plot are executed with finesse, leaving readers captivated and eager to unravel the next layer of the mystery. Steadman masterfully crafts an atmosphere of suspense that lingers long after the final page is turned.

In essence, "The Family Game" is a tour de force in the genre, a literary achievement that seamlessly blends psychological depth with edge-of-your-seat tension. Catherine Steadman has created a five-star work of fiction that not only entertains but also invites readers to contemplate the intricacies of family bonds and the unforeseen consequences that can arise when secrets come to light.

A woman meets her soon-to-be in-laws, and gets involved in a dark and mysterious game.

The Family Game is told using the single point of view of Harriet, aka Harry. Soon after meeting her fiancé’s eccentric family, the family patriarch gives her a cassette tape. On the tape is a confession, which puts a dark game into motion.

The Family Game is a slow burning psychological thriller. Atmospheric, creepy, and twisted.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I picked up the Family Game mostly because it was a shorter book, but I found that it mostly took place around the holidays. The book is about this British author, Harriet Reed, who has recently moved to NYC to be with her fiancé and work on her second book with her publisher. She hasn’t met her fiancé’s family and she knows they are well off. She doesn’t quite realize they are as wealthy and famous in NYC as the Rockefellers or the Astors. Because of this, they are also very private. Harriet tries to research, but doesn’t find much beyond surface items.

They are invited to several events for the holidays and Harriet is excited for the chance to get to know her new in-laws. But everyone has their quirks and Edward’s father, Robert even hands a recording of a book idea over to Harriet. She takes it home and that’s when things get really weird. The book is a confession of a murder. Is it real? Is it fiction?

The book is called the Family Game because they literally play a few games including a truly terrifying game called Krampus, but also is Robert toying with Harriet? She uses some of her book contacts to help see if there’s any truth to the recordings.

There were several errors in the details about life in NYC that were distracting. Anyone in NYC knows the Rockefeller tree isn’t lit until the Wednesday after Thanksgiving. This was a huge plot error right up front in the book. I also found that the pacing of the book was off and the plot was so far fetched. I love the premise of super rich family with secrets galore, but it just fell flat for me. I would read others by this author though.

I'm quite behind when it comes to reading and reviewing this book, but due to its setting, this time of year is the perfect time to read this one. Admittedly, I saw the twist at the end coming, but that in no way diminished the intensity or enjoyment I got from reading it. The darkness in both the Holbeck family and in Harriet was intriguing, and I was on the edge of my seat to see how this book would be wrapped up. I wasn't disappointed. This was the first book I've read by Catherine Steadman, but I hope to read many more by her in the future! That said, if you've yet to pick this one up, do it this week/Christmas weekend! You won't regret it.

This book takes place over Christmas so is a perfect choice this time of year! It is an imperfect thriller (need to suspend a little belief at times and there were some loose ends) but fast paced and genuinely surprised me in the end.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This one started out strong, but then fell very quickly apart at the end for me. The premise was interesting—average woman, Harriet falls in love with Edward, the eldest son of a very wealthy and influential family, the Holbecks. But he, also, seems on the surface, pretty average. He is somewhat estranged from his family and lives mostly like a regular guy, albeit a somewhat privileged one. When he and Harriet become engaged, he tells her it is high time she meets his family. Not only are they all slightly mysterious—his two brothers, his sister, mother and most of all his inscrutable father—they have a slew of family traditions, "games" that toe the line between amusing and, well, cruel.

The lead up to Harriet's becoming inducted into the Holbeck family is a fun read, watching as she learns more about each family member and the curious habits of the uber-wealthly. The suspense builds as secrets are uncovered leading up to one final family game, from which Harriet may not emerge unscathed, or even alive.

This read like a great premise which the author eventually was unable to fully actualize, and finally abandoned. The last several chapters only work if you are able to forget the painstaking way in which she crafted the characters and their relationships to each other. You will have to forget, for instance, that Harriet harbored a strange sexual attraction for her father-in-law which never gets fully explained; and that when one of her new prospective family members absolutely alters their personality for the sake of their being a fresh kill as part of the story's climax; and finally, you'll have to accept the ultimate unmasking of the villain without having been given a single breadcrumb to make you feel that person's villainy was either marginally foreshadowed or commonsensical. The leap to get to where the book ended up was just a bridge too far for me.

One other tiny thing. With a good-sized American readership, it is probably worth it in future for one of this author's editors to make sure that the American characters don't use British axioms. For instance, where a Brit might say, 'it is down to me' to get something done, Americans say, "it is up to me" to get something done. Small inaccuracies like those, if there are enough of them, can add up and make a book seem shoddily researched, or casually edited.

And finally, I felt like the plot exposed too much of the author's process. By this I mean, she is clearly a "pantser" (flies by the seat of her pants when writing) rather than a "plotter". The holes were just too big that it's difficult to believe she wouldn't have spotted them had she plotted the final outcome. Having said that, I didn't dislike this book at all. The slow build of suspense and creeping dread of the next bad thing to happen was just done too well for me not to have enjoyed most of this read. And that's not inconsequential.

Will definitely read future offerings from this author.

Every year, the holiday season offers up a slew of cute and cozy romance novels designed to make your Christmas merry and bright. Catherine Steadman’s The Family Game is not that. If you are not looking for a holly jolly holiday read, but rather something more sinister yet still Christmas-centric, this is your book. Steadman has written an utterly captivating suspense thriller situated around a prominent and wealthy family’s unusual holiday traditions.

Harry, an up-and-coming novelist has recently become engaged to Edward of Holbeck family fame. The Holbecks are an insanely wealthy family, and Harry isn’t so sure how she will fit in among their old money ways and traditions. Nonetheless, she is about to find out because she and Edward have been invited to the Holbeck family home for the holidays. Harry soon finds herself spending the holiday season with her future in-laws, and surprisingly, being accepted, despite not having power, privilege, or a pedigree.

That is, until patriarch Robert pulls Harry aside one evening alluding to mentions of trust and secrets. He slips Harry a cassette tape, informing her that she must tell no one about it. Harry does not understand why Robert has chosen her to give the cassette to until she listens to it and discovers that Robert not only is hiding secrets of his own, but that he knows her deepest and darkest. As the days pass, propelling Harry and the Holbecks toward Christmas, she must figure out what she should do about the contents of the tape, while also finding away to protect all that matters to her most.

Catherine Steadman can apparently do no wrong in my book because I loved both this novel and its predecessor, The Disappearing Act. She has once again crafted a finely tuned tale of masterful suspense and intrigue. I am obsessed with how intimately Steadman writes her stories, drawing you into these worlds that she has developed and investing you in the fates of her characters.

I especially loved how Steadman played on the “game” aspect of The Family Game in a variety of ways. The Holbecks are a family who love their games, and within the realm of the larger game that Robert and Harry are secretly playing, there are also traditional family games sprinkled in, including Krampusnacht and a Christmas Eve scavenger hunt. While the Holbecks are not your typical American family, everyone can relate to the fact that every family has their own holiday traditions. I have to admit that I found it truly fascinating to uncover the Holbecks’!

The Family Game is recommended to readers who are looking for an atmospheric, ominous holiday read. This novel is perfect for reading during that transition period between Halloween and Thanksgiving when you may not quite be ready to let go of everything sinister and spooky for another year.

The Family game was a wild ride for sure. One filled with secrets and a huge twist in the end. The first few pages gripped me right from the beginning. Most of the characters are detailed and very complex. I enjoyed how the author wrote Harriet’s character. She had many layers and it truly showed through out the story line. The parts about Krampus Night where totally fantastic and just the beginning of this families dangerous games. With an ending I never saw coming, The Family Game is a book I would definitely recommend to anyone who loves big mansions and the secrets the people hold inside them.

This was so different than anything I've read before. I really loved it, and it took me a long time to really figure out the twists.

WTF did I just read?!

Each holiday, this family plays a rather disturbing game. And no, this isn't like other families... or other holiday games. This game has real world consequences, danger, and maybe a lil familial espionage.

This is one of those psychological thrillers that feels TRULY unique and full of mind f*ckery. AKA 5/5 stars. Can't stop raving about it!

*Gifted from Netgalley & Ballantine Books - thank you! All opinions are my own.

This was an interesting read. I am a sucker for anything family / inheritance related and you add a game to it and I'm intrigued. However, I felt the beginning of this book to be a little slow and hard to hold my interest. I thought it was weird how long it took her to listen to the tape in the book, although after I finishing I understand why it was dragged out.

About half way through things the book really picked up for me. I found myself being more invested. I missed the twist although it was right under my nose the entire time.

I'd for sure read another book by Catherine Steadman.

Thank you Random House - Ballantine Books for the opportunity to read this one!

This story is about Harriet who is in a relationship with a man named Edward. They go to visit Edwards family who have games that they play. You don’t know who to trust! I felt so nervous for Harriet especially during the family’s games! The story held my interest throughout the book and I enjoyed the author’s writing.

Thriller author Harriet Reed is hiding a dark secret about the day her parents died when she was eleven years old. She has been lonely most of her life since their accident, but when she meets handsome, rich American heir Edward Holbeck, she thinks life might be finally turning around. When Edward proposes and his family arrange a meeting and their subsequent entanglement with the family, Harriet wonders if she's in too deep, especially when she finds out she's pregnant and then her future father-in-law gives her a mysterious cassette tape that sounds a lot like a murder confession. As Harriet tries to find the truth while protecting herself and her unborn child, she discovers that there is a lot she doesn't know about the Holbecks.

This book was very twisty and kept me guessing until the very end! There were a lot of games in this story - both real and mental - that kept me intrigued and wanting to keep reading to see what happened next. The concept felt really fresh and the fact that Harriet was a writer really tied in nicely to the plot and her ability to unpack all of the evidence she uncovered and try to get to the bottom of things. This was definitely an over-the-top story about a group of extremely affluent people, but it was really enjoyable.


Thank you to NetGalley and Random House/Balletine for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Oh my goodness, I absolutely LOVED this book! What a phenomenal thriller, full of twists and turns and the perfect atmosphere. The creepy setting of a huge remote manor house, set at Christmas, with a powerful family who likes to play games is the perfect backdrop for a mystery that kept me on my toes the whole time!

I wasn't too fond of this one. For some reason every time I put it down, I found it hard to get back into or care about the plot. The twist at the end felt underwhelming. I'm not sure if this author's writing style is for me. I mostly found Harriet annoying and felt like she did so many things for invalid reasons. Like I think I would have cut and run from the first signs that the family gave, instead of sticking around and risking my neck. I felt she thought very little about herself or <spoiler> her unborn child. </spoiler> I will probably try another book by Catherine Steadman because I already own it to give her another shot, but if I don't enjoy it, I might not pick anymore of her stuff up.

Well, helllooo effed up family -- you are always welcomed here! I had no clue where "The Family Game" was going to take me, but I absolutely loved the ride.

Harriet is newly engaged to fiancé Edward. She hasn’t met Edward’s wealthy family yet, and as the holidays approach, she’s thrown into their family’s bizarre Christmas tradition of Krampusnacht. Which, BTW, is absolutely horrifying and not all the “Happy Saint Nick” or “jolly!” most folks are used to. Meeting the family, especially Edward’s father Robert, sends Harriet on a wild ride with a murderous confession and the need for answers. To add drama and suspense, we get multiple characters that add red herrings and half truths, sending readers on a wild ride that just may prove to be deadly for all involved.

Catherine Steadman knows how to pen a twisty thriller. This is a fun and interesting ride with a slightly predictable twist, but the writing holds it together throughout.