The Family Game was a wild ride. Harriet "Harry" is newly engaged to Edward. But Edward isn't your average person. Edward comes from astronomical wealth and is part of one of the most influential families in the country. When his family gets news of their engagement, they try to bring Edward back into the fold of the family with Harry by his side. Harry, who is an orphan with a past she wants to stay hidden, agrees that it would be nice to have family again. Harry begins meeting Edward's family, and is skeptical of his father, Robert. Robert takes a liking to Harry, and gives her a tape which he says contains a book idea. Harry begins to listen, and realizes the tape is a confession and that someone has died. Harry is instantly on edge, but can't got to the police or tell Edward because Robert has made it clear that he knows Harry's secret.

The plot of this book is great, but I felt as though the execution was slightly chaotic. The story felt so rushed, and I had no time to connect to any characters, which makes it hard to resonate with whats happening. The addition of the bizarre games also seemed unrealistic, to the point where it took away slightly. The tension between Harry and Robert was also a plot point that I was unsure the point of. I really enjoyed the twist, and thought that it was refreshing. Overall, I just felt like this was too unrealistic and I needed more details (especially about those murdered).

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the copy of The Family Game. I read Ms. Steadman’s book The Disappearing Act and Interestingly enough, my review for this book is similar. The book started out great and I loved the sense of doom I felt! Then the story started to become far-fetched, and the family games were so outlandish they were unbelievable and distracted from the story. The end was fast-paced and even though I already knew what Robert was up to I didn’t expect it would play out the way it did. I liked Harry and that she was a writer. I loved the writing, as I knew I would, so I will round up my review to four stars.

I literally cannot stress enough how amazing this book was!!! I read 3/4 of it in one sitting and had to go to bed and immediately read the rest when I woke up. This is definitely a stay up all night thriller! The plotting was perfect and I didn’t see the twists coming. I wish it was 100 pages longer because I wanted more!

I was so excited to be granted an early copy of The family game by Catherine Steadman. This book was crazy and not what I expected. This is a high stakes inheritance games style book, but the stakes were even higher. All within the Christmas season, you'll never be ready for the twists and turns you are about to embark on. Overall, I really enjoyed my time with the book, very consistent for me and this author.

Harriet is a best-selling mystery author newly engaged to Edward, the heir to a Rockefeller style family with a long history of power and wealth. Edward has kept her away from his family until the holidays roll around and as Harry begins to meet his family, she learns they have a penchant for playing twisted and dangerous games. Unsure of who to trust but also willing to play in because she loves Edward, Harry must win their family games (ah-ha!).
The only other book of Steadman’s that I had read was Something In The Water, and I found that to be too far fetched. This one, however, was very well paced and enjoyable. I love books about rich people behaving badly and this checked that box for sure. There were some plot points I wish would be have been explored more (Harry’s new book) and some that I found unbelievable (the well) but overall this was a fun, fast paced thriller.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

What the bloody hell?
There are things I really liked about this book and things I hated.
I liked Harriet, a writer who is marrying into a filthy rich family. I liked the mysterious introduction to the parents, siblings, and children, but then it just went off the rails. I mean it goes from a mystery to horror to I don’t know. It’s like the author didn’t know what kind of story she wanted to write. That being said it wasn’t boring. Tough one to rate.

This is a story of one messed-up family, all the members are so strange.
This family plays really weird holiday games. I mean like weird. Dangerous weird.
The story was interesting as a thriller, but so unrealistic that I just couldn’t rap my head around the motivation of anyone. No family would just go along with what happens at these holiday gatherings.

Someone in the family is holding something over Harriet and she needs to prove her loyalty by completing this crazy quest. But there’s no way in hell that any sane person would say oh okay I’ll play along.

If the book had stayed a thriller or horror I could have gone along with it, but it did not.
The last part of the book is intense and I figured out what was going to happen quickly. I just wanted it to stay on one road or the other. Really strange.

Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for a digital review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This may be my favorite book of 2022 dare I say. The twists and the turns, I was hooked immediately from the first chapter! Thank you so much to the publisher & NetGalley for the ARC!

“People can get away with almost anything if they’re likable.”

What a book full of unlikeable characters we loved to like. Throughout this whole thriller, I wanted to compare it to Knives Out and Hide and Seek, but it was truly a unique story in its own right. It was a fast-paced, nail-biting adventure, and I truly could not guess where it would end up. I want to see this as a movie. I have been a huge fan of Catherine Steadman’s books, but this is my favorite, hands down. Read this as soon as you can, because it is so clever.

I am not always surprised by thrillers, but this one had me on the edge of my seat!

Harriet is a author engaged to mega rich Edward. His weather family is know for their games. As harry gets to know the family more, the games get more intense.

Reading this I had no idea what was coming next. The best thrillers are the ones you cant put down, with ending you dont see coming.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC In exchange for an honest review.

Fan-freaking-tastic! I was hooked from the beginning. Catherine Steadman kept me on my toes for sure with this ultimate cat and mouse game going on here. Highly recommend for all Mystery/Thriller fans.

This was a fun read that I enjoyed! I appreciated how well-written the characters were and I couldn’t put this book down.

Was not expecting much when I started this book, I am so thankful I was wrong. Great story that you get sucked into immediately. I could not put this down and yet I did not want it to end. And of course I thought I knew what was going to happen, and again I am glad I was dead wrong. This is one of those stories that I wish would just keep going and going. Great story that I will be recommending to many people.

This was a fast paced, intense book that I could not put down! It was filled with family secrets and revenge. I always enjoy an unreliable narrator and a book filled with characters where they all seem a little suspicious. I loved the authors writing style and the clever plot. I was on the edge of my seat with this book and didn’t figure out the ending on my own! I highly recommend this book to other readers. This was the first book I read by this author, looking forward to seeing more from her in the future !
Thank you to NetGalley and to Ballantine for the ARC.

Not too many books blindside me, but The Family Game by Catherine Steadman did just that. I have read her books before, and enjoyed them, but The Family Game has placed her right up there with the best. Catherine Steadman nailed it!

Our protagonist Harriet Reed, Harry for short, has a seemingly perfect boyfriend/fiancee, a career that is exploding in all the right directions, a longing and quest for family that is being realized. Her fiancée's reluctance to rejoin the family fold raises questions that must be answered, but getting answers to those questions become more pressing and more questions arise as Harry starts to integrate into the family and their strange holiday traditions. As her paranoia rises, so does ours as things clearly are not as peaceful and loving as they seem. Some very strange and conflicting encounters with family ratchet up the tension level as this novel moves at breakneck speed toward the conclusion. There are obviously unreliable narrators and characters, but which ones are they?

This one will be a bestseller, for sure. I will be recommending this to my friends who enjoy a good thriller. It kept me highly entertained and engaged to the very end. Thank you to Netgalley, Random House - Ballantine Books and the author for an advanced reader's copy of this book.

I breezed through this book! It was so engaging and had me wondering what was going on the whole time. The family dynamic was evident, and it had me rooting for the main character, as well as some other characters who you later learn maybe you shouldn't be rooting for! One of my favorite summer reads, but would be a great Christmas-time spooky read.

Things I liked:
•The holiday setting
•The wealth
•Fantastic twists

Things I did not like:
•The ending felt a tiny bit rushed

If you are looking for a Christmas book that is anti hallmark, this is the one for you! This was such a fun read. The Family Game really kept me guessing all the way to the very end. I also love a book with an opulent lifestyle at the center. It just always makes things more interesting. I thought the pacing was really great except the end felt a bit rushed. If you are looking for a quick read over your Christmas vacation, this one is for you!

Review will be posted to my instagram 10/25

This was a quick and fun read. It centers on Harriet, who is engaged to marry Edward, part of a super rich and intimidating family. She wants to make a good impression, but some of the things that they do are kind of weird, and to make it even weirder, her future father-in-law gives her a tape that seems to be confessing some serious crimes. Harrett is a writer so wastes no time in investigating what she hears and trying to find out as much as she can about the family that will soon be her own.

It was an interesting premise and there were a lot of surprises. I thought the ending was great and truly unexpected. There were a couple times where I thought Harriett was overly hysterical about something that didn't seem all THAT crazy, and I also had trouble getting behind the fact that she didn't listen to the tape in one sitting (I always have this problem when people find diaries that uncover big secrets but they read over a period of days; NOTHING would stop me from reading that diary or in this case listening to that tape immediately and all in one sitting!). Those small nits didn't take away from my overall enjoyment of the book though.

Overall, I thought this was fun and I am excited to pick up some other books by this author. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"We're going to survive this, you and I. They say you can't choose your family but they're wrong. You can. It just takes way more effort than most people are willing to put in."

Catherine Steadman had me hooked from the first chapter in this "Knives Out" reminiscent cat and mouse psychological thriller about a young woman who is preparing to marry into an extremely wealthy and influential family. Harriet "Harry" Reed finally has it all. She is on the brink of writing her second book after her first success, and she is happily engaged to the love of her life, Edward, a man who just happens to be the eldest son of the Holbeck family, an "old money" dynasty. After they become engaged, Edward decides it is finally time to introduce Harry to the family he has been estranged from. As Harry is welcomed into this new world, everything she thought she knew about the Holbeck family, and Edward begins to disintegrate. Sinister family "games" and a tape containing dark secrets propel Harriet on a quest to discover the truth behind this family, before it is too late.

And remember, nothing is quite as it seems.

This psychological thriller will have you gripped from the beginning as you work alongside Harry to try and figure out the secret behind the family. Caution, if you pick this book up, you will have to finish it immediately.

Holy hannah - this was a ride of a read. It's been a hot minute since I've been kept guessing the way The Family Game did. Picture our happy couple Harriet Reed and Edward Holbeck - soon to be married! Edward finally brings Harry in to meet his wealthy family. With wealth comes drama - twisted games in the name of tradition, sinister connections to protect its own interests, and let's not forget the staple... murder.

My literal only 'complaint' (if it can be called that) is that the tape is broken into chunks with no real reason as to why - if I were in Harriet's shoes, I'd be listening to the whole thing nonstop.

Harriett aka Harry, a British author that has recently found love with Edward—dreamy, romantic, smart, rich, handsome Edward. It all seems perfect until Harry meets Edward’s family, the Holbecks.
After the opening chapter, it was a bit slow for me. However, I kept reading and when I say it picked up, I mean it REALLY picked up. I couldn’t put it down. I sat, unmoving except for the occasional shift, and consumed this book
As Harriet is drawn into the Holbecks lavish world, they seem perfectly welcoming. And when Edward’s father hands Harriet a tape of a book he’s been working on, she is desperate to listen.
But as she presses play, it’s clear that this isn’t just a novel. It’s a confession.
A confession to a crime. A murder. And suddenly, the game is in motion.
Feeling isolated and confused, Harriet must work out if this is part of a plan to test her loyalty. Or something far darker. What is it that he sees in her? Why give her the power to destroy everything?
This might be a game to the Holbeck family—but losing games can still be deadly.
The last 25% of the book had me holding my breath. I don’t want to say any spoilers so I can’t indulge on more reasons why I enjoyed this book. But if you are a fan of thrillers then please read this! You will not be disappointed! I
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley Catherine Steadman and Ballantine Books for this edition and hearing my honest review.