First off, thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own.

The Family Game sounded like the ultimate thriller with every trigger imaginable. Sadly it fell short for me. I tried twice to get into this one not knowing if It was a NRN (not right now) book or a DNF. Ultimately I DNF at 25%. As I do have the kindle version I plan to try and pick it up again in the future and see if it grabs me different.

This book had me on the edge of my seat. I loved that I couldn't trust anyone and that Steadman even had me questioning the narrator.

There were so many red flags about Edward's family and the fact that Harriet was marrying Edward without ever having met them was mind blowing to me. It was also a bit odd to me how imposing they were once they did meet Harriet. The barrage of calls and social gatherings all at once felt a little overwhelming and not entirely realistic but I suppose it worked since Steadman planned everything around the holidays.

I loved that even though Edward was wealthy beyond anyone's wildest dreams, Harriet was successful in her own right. As an acclaimed novelist, I was intrigued by how her mind worked and what she chose to see as mysterious versus what she brushed off.

The Holbeck family was wild and while part of me was fascinated by their dark and totally bizarre family traditions, another part of me was totally horrified! I will say I was wildly impressed with Steadman for coming up with them!

The "book within a book" was an interesting plot twist and added quite the layer to the story. I couldn't put my finger on Robert or really figure out what his motive was. I had to suspend a bit of believability in the dirt he was able to dig up on Harriet, but it was worth it.

The way everything unfolds was very exciting and movie-esque. I could envision Harriet down in the well or running through the maze and could definitely see this book translating well to the big screen.

I listened to this novel on audio and thought the narrator did a great job. Her voices were unique enough for each character to keep things straight though I probably would have preferred a male narrator for Robert's tapes.

Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the copy.

As many before me have stated, this book is very reminiscent of the film Ready or Not: a rich, selective family, lack of familial boundaries, and a deadly game.

While I found The Family Game to be a quick read, the plot had a very slow buildup. Many of Harriet's choices in the beginning of the novel were odd and went into too much detail. However, the pace certainly picks up at Krampusnacht and the events after Harriet's second meeting with her soon-to-be in-laws.

Similar to Steadman's Something in the Water, some of the reader's pre-existing beliefs had to have been suspended in order to thoroughly enjoy the plot. I would not say, however, that the story went truly off the deep end the way other thrillers I've read recently have.

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

A juicy "horrible rich people"-esque thriller with Ready or Not vibes, though only at a glance. I was mildly surprised more of the book didn't take place at the manor house, but did like the investigation/twists and turns up to that point, regardless. The cast of characters was richly drawn and sparks the imagination--so much so, one of my mild disappointments in the twists/ending is that there wasn't even *more* of their awfulness. I was all in!

My main note for audio: that's not how you pronounce "Krampusnacht" :P I chuckled the first time it noted a character said it with "perfect pronunciation"... while saying it wrong, and every time hereafter, I shouted to no one (listening alone in my apartment, don't worry) "that's not how you say it!" So if anyone else listened to audio and is curious, no you don't say nacht as "naackt." It's more like "nawkt". Also when I lived in Germany there was nothing Krampus related on Nikolaus, and we put our shoes out and everything! So while thoroughly amused by that part of the novel, I was also perplexed because it's very much *not* a thing lollll.

Catherine Steadman is the queen of starting out a thriller/mystery on the slower side and building the story slowly until you reach the end at a fevered pitch! By the end of this book, I not only felt that I was one of the characters in the story but I could not turn the pages fast enough to finish! The characters are well fleshed out and interesting. I felt very invested in all of them and wanted to know what was going to happen. I never felt that there was information or characters just thrown in as filler. This book takes place in December so it is a perfect book to cuddle up with a blanket and snack and get ready for a thrilling ride you wont want to put down!
I very much enjoyed this book and will definitely read more books by this author.

Harry (Harriet) Reed is a bestselling author and newly engaged to super wealthy Edward Holbeck. However, after a year of dating, she has never met his family. She finally meets them at Thanksgiving, where his father, Robert, gives her a tape for her to listen to in private. The tape details some interesting history and also reveals information about Harry's past.
Harry worries that if the tape comes to light, Edward will look at her differently. On Christmas, they go to the Hydes, the family estate in NY, and everyone is told to play a special family game. What Harry doesn't know at the start of the game is how she will have to fight to survive, and how everything will change if she loses the game.
Another good thriller from Catherine Steadman.

I loved this book. Initially I had numerous theories over who was the killer, but in the end did figure it out. I was surprised that the confession really the correct person on the tape, but relaying stories regarding another character. I’m sad that one of the other characters died. This book kept me entertained from start to finish. I will be recommending to others.

Holy smokes this was so good!! It was pretty slow the first third of the book but the last two thirds had me flying through! I could not put it down and never ever saw that ending coming! Phenomenal book from Steadman! I’ve read her others, Something In the Water and Mr. Nobody, but this was nailed it for me!

I've read all of Catherine Steadman's books and this one is full of thrills and twists just like the others. The amount of research that Catherine would have done to write this novel is clearly shown in the detail in the plot and characters.

Harriet "Harry" Reed is an up-and-coming novelist who has just relocated from her native Britain to New York with her wealthy American fiancé, Edward. He's been estranged from his family, but this homecoming seems to be leading to a reuniting. After Harry is tricked into attending the family Thanksgiving, she finds herself trapped in their web. With both literal and figurative games afoot, will Harry survive this initiation into an elite family or will the secrets of her past and the family's lead to something much more sinister?

I thought the premise of the book was intriguing, but unfortunately, I found it on the whole to be absolutely absurd, over-the-top, and unrealistic. I never understood Harry and Edward's relationship, probably because he has no personality to speak of. It's a quick read, but I didn't find much substance to the plot.

Thank you for the copy of The Family Game. I thought this book was super interesting and was intrigued from page one. Definitely very entertaining and suspenseful esp if youre looking for a good thriller!

This was the first of Catherine Steadman’s books I’ve actually read. The mystery of the family kept me guessing and flying through the pages. I will have to pick up her other books.

A good read that I haven’t had in awhile. Knives out meets succession. It was a great and twisty read. The ending had me screaming "WHAT???"

Entering into a high society family can be the chance of a life time. But would you risk your life to win their acceptance? Harry has just received her big break with her new book but could the lies she has buried destroy her chance at love. The family game takes the Family secrets a step forward. Where other books and movies that have done the game to the death only for one night The Family game expands the timeline. Which allows the characters to become more than flat and interchangeable. As well as the reader to feel attached to Harry and have a steak in the mystery.

The Family Game was a decent book. I really enjoyed getting to know the characters. I thought the plot was different. What made me like the book was the ending. I had it figured out wrong it was a great plot twist that made me like the book.

Harriet Reed, bestselling author, is so close to living the life dreams are made of. She is newly engaged to Edward Holbeck, heir of the Holbeck fortune. She has recently moved to New York, leaving (she hopes) all traces of her past mistakes behind her. But Harriet isn’t the only one trying to escape her past. In a fast-paced game of cat and mouse, Catherine Steadman’s latest thriller is a page turner to the end!

I liked the book. The main character was mostly likeable, only partially annoying. I figured out the real “bad guy” pretty quickly, but it was a fun story. As is typical with these kind of thrillers, the end was a quick mash-up of conveniently tied up loose ends - even when they don’t make any sense. Big questions left unanswered. Gaping holes. But - unlike the usual, I actually want to know the answers to these questions. That’s Catherine Steadman, though. Maybe it’s not always as prettily packaged as I’d like it to be, but she always makes it interesting.

Spring break is coming up and if thrillers are your type of beach read, this one’s a great choice!

Thanks to the author, Ballantine Books and Netgalley for this ARC in return for my honest review.

In The Family Game Harry is an author, working on her next book, when her boyfriend, Edward, proposes. Edward is a Holbeck, a very wealthy and well-connected family. While most of them seem to welcome Harry once they meet her, Robert, the family patriarch, is a different story. He gives Harry a cassette tape in which he reveals a confession. This sets off the Holbeck family’s weird holiday traditions and Harry has no choice but to play, if she really loves Edward and wants a future with him.

This family drama suspense story set during the holiday season held my interest from the start. It was entertaining though the family’s “games” were definitely disturbing. I had to see how things would play out. While I didn’t love the ending of this story, I enjoyed the book overall (think sinister Succession vibes) and found it worth reading.

This was weird. I definitely did not see the big twist coming! I liked it for sure, just wasn’t my favorite thriller. Definitely kept my interest though.

Although I had to suspend my disbelief a bit (e.g. that Harry's secret could be vetted, that the family did the crazy, scary games), this was an overall entertaining, easy, quick read. I would recommend it to anyone who likes psychological thrillers.

I really wanted to like this book, but everything was predictable from the beginning. Several of the aspects of the book were copied from other mystery/horror books. For example, the maze was very similar to the Shinning.

It was really hard to connect to the main character from the beginning because you knew everything was going to fall apart from the first meeting with the family.

Several of the more interesting aspects of the novel were never followed through.