The four Fox siblings are finally gathered together once again at an event to celebrate their mother when suddenly their father suffers a massive heart attack and stroke - landing him the hospital, completely incapacitated. This activates The Den - his secret inheritance plan, which, like all of the Fox patriarch's plans turns into a game. But with millions of dollars at stake, this game turns deadly quickly, and the remaining siblings must figure out what's going on before they become the killer's next targets.

The story is told from various POVs, including several of the Fox siblings and their nanny/family maid, Marian.

This was a great Knives Out-style mystery, with rich people all competing to figure out who was behind everything, all while stabbing each other in the back at every turn. I mean, there are absolutely no loyalties in this families, that's for sure! And that's part of the fun, really. You have a family that is so dysfunctional its story is just filled with problem after problem, and secret after secret, and each adds a new twist to the storyline that shifts the perspective.

And wow are there some twists and turns until you arrive at that doozy of an ending. I really can't give anything away, but there are some things you can maybe guess, but there are some things that really were just - BAM! TWIST! I loved it! All the layers the author worked to put together in the story up to that point paid off with that ending.

This was just an action-packed, fast-paced mystery from start to finish. Things happened fast and furious, right from the beginning. And each new chapter brought about a new element to the story, there was no wasted space here.

I highly recommend this novel and would absolutely read more from this author.

This is the third book, written by Cara Reinard, that I've read here on NetGalley and as with her other stories, this is also thrilling, suspenseful and thick with family issues. Highly recommend!

I was very nicely surprised how good this book turned out to be. It was suspenseful and interesting all the way to the end. I really enjoyed learning about each individual sibling, their story and family dynamics but I wish the author gave us a little more details of their past and childhood.
I would recommend it to anyone that likes well written family drama.

Thank you Netgalley, Thomas & Mercer and the author for free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Den by Cara Reinard was described as a thrilling novel of psychological suspense. When their father suffers a heart attack the four Fox siblings try to put their differences aside, but the question of a large inheritance and how it is to be divided soon has them at each other's throats. Soon it appears that one of them is keen to keep that inheritance for themselves even if it means killing off their siblings.
Unfortunately I found that this book was neither thrilling nor suspenseful, I didn't care about any of the characters and had little interest in seeing how the story played out, though I did stick it out to the end, and my suspicions about the killer were confirmed. This one just wasn't for me.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This book was amazing. Such a gripping read from beginning to end. I loved having the view points from each sibling that shows the differences in how they viewed certain situations. This was my first read by this author and definitely will not be my last I rated it 4 stars only because they were a couple of moments where I wasn't as engaged with the story, but there were also moments where I absolutely could not put it down. I believe that this is definitely a quick, fast paced read that will keep the reader hooked from start to finish.

An interesting who done it story that kept me guessing until the end. Great characters and the multi POV worked well for the story.

In the Prologue, we meet an unnamed person, a woman, whose life is in danger. By the next morning, the omniscient narrator tells us, she will be dead.

The wealthy Fox family have all gathered together at a party to raise funds for a dementia charity in honour of Simone Fox, the matriarch, who is in an advanced stage. The four grown-up children, greedy Christian, responsible Valerie, drug addicted Jeremy and irresponsible and wayward Lucinda, are all in attendance.

When their father, Stefan Fox, collapse at the party and ends up in a critical condition, the children are told about the terms of the trust, called the Den, which is supposed to kick into effect in the event of Stefan’s demise. These terms offer a sum of over $10 million to be divided equally among the children. Should one of the children predecease their father, the share of the dead child is to be divided among the surviving siblings.

The siblings have been raised by their detestable, philandering father to be fiercely competitive. What might such a mouth-wateringly tempting legacy do to the relationship of the already embattled siblings? Would one of them be prepared to kill for more money?

The story in written in the 3rd person limited past tense PoVs of Valerie, Lucinda and Marian, three major female characters.

The action takes place over four days. Right in Chapter 1, the omniscient narrator introduces us to all the major players.

The book held my attention. It was paced right, and all the characters had a role to play in the action. The story moved on to the denouement in a manner that was both consistent and believable.

Reading the book, I had a certain impression of how the plot might turn out, but that’s not how things rolled. The mystery isn’t that airtight. It’s not hard to figure out who might be responsible.

What I found more interesting were the family dynamics, the memories of the past which are fed to us in small nuggets of flashbacks.

The extent of the dysfunction in the Fox family hits us hard, and convicts us to think about how we might have behaved in similar circumstances. It forces us to think about how love and pain are so inextricably linked in families, The nature of families is such that resentments and grievances fester and grow. And yet, sometimes the most tragic circumstances show that love never truly dies.

The Fox siblings have always been forced to compete with each other, so they don’t get along. Now that they know the details of their father’s will, the competition may deepen as one of the siblings experiences an accident.

If you love deep family mysteries with lots of secrets, here’s a book for you. I loved the siblings and how they were all so different. I also loved their bickering and fighting with each other. They were so mean but I had to admit, it cracked me up.

“You should give up your hunt. They’re foxes after all, and we’re all the chickens, ya see. They’ll always win.”

The Den comes out 12/13.

The Fox siblings weren’t what anyone would call close to each other, but the time has come to find out if they actually hate each other enough to kill for a bigger inheritance.

The book opens with someone being dragged, already beaten and bloodied, through the woods. Before the reader finds out who it might be, the author flashes back to the family home, where all four siblings have reunited with their parents—and all of the family business’s clients. None of the siblings seem happy to be there, but they all accept it as one of the responsibilities in the wealthy family to which they belong.

The catastrophes follow quickly—a heart attack, a car accident, and then suspicions of murder! An announcement at the attorney’s office of a new distribution of the family wealth in case the patriarch dies has everyone looking over their shoulder and wondering who the next victim might be.

The story moved quickly with lots of unexpected twists before the end. The book deserved 4 out of 5 stars as a thrilling family drama. It could be recommended to those who enjoy rich family stories with mysteries and complicated relationships and histories.

The only way I can describe this book would be Succession the tv show and you throw in murder!!
The story opens with the Fox siblings: Christian, Valerie, Jeremy and Lucinda reuniting. The siblings are being forced to attend a party for their ailing mother whose suffering from dementia.
Lucy is the main character of the story, she’s the youngest of the Fox siblings and bit of a troublemaker. Valerie is older and seemingly more stable, she is currently dealing with a divorce. Jeremy is the younger of the two brothers, he’s had some drug problems , while Christian is a copy of his father, he’s distant and works for his father
While attending the party their father Stefan suffers a heart attack he’s rushed to the hospital, at the hospital their told he may have suffered brain damage. The next stop is the lawyers office they learn about the Den, a special trust fund set up by their father, and they are to be the beneficiaries of their fathers fortune, however if any of them die before their father, that trust is then split among the remaining living siblings, so it’s obvious fewer siblings means a bigger share. Immediately Christian wants to contest it, but when he winds up in the fatal car accident, things quickly change. It’s obvious someone is targeting them, one by one, until they were wiped out to claim the money but who? Lucinda and Valerie are trying to figure out who before it’s too late! The ending will shock you! The book is told in Lucinda, Valeria and Marian the former housekeeper, and I couldn’t read this book fast enough!

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer as well as NetGalley for allowing me this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This novel had so much potential to be great but for me, personally, the writing held it back.

With promises of being the murder mystery novel version of HBO’s ‘Succession’, Cara Reinard’s ‘The Den’ had a lot to live up to.

It did not deliver.

This was really unfortunate for me as I was really looking forward to stepping out of my comfort zone in terms of genre but the whole thing fell short.

The story begins with a wealthy but wholly problematic family gathering for a once every blue moon dinner celebration when the patriarch of the family dies via poison. The entire family is a potential suspect with years of reasons why they would want to kill their father.

It was near impossible for me to like or feel attached to any of the characters and their perspectives despite following all four of the grown children’s POV. They were all underdeveloped and juvenile in nature and extremely unlikeable. Unreliable and imperfect narrators are usually something I am all for when it comes to novels but Fox siblings felt flat and one dimensional.

It sucked to DNF this book at less than 50% but it was not something I could see myself finishing or enjoying.

Overall, I give this novel 1 out of 5 stars.

I tried. I tried to like this story and failed. And others did so it can be done. But I couldn't do it. I didn't like a single character. I couldn't find anyway to connect with them, their situation, anything. While I don't generally have a problem with unlikeable characters, I need to at least be interested in them. None of these characters had anything that interested me and that includes the characters outside the family. I realized pretty quickly that I didn't care who died, if they all died, and I didn't care who did it or why. The final nail in the coffin was the ending. Sure I am a fan of messy endings, but this one was it's own crime scene. Since I didn't care about who had done it, I was able to just read and shake my head "no" as it unfolded.

I had high hopes for the domestic thriller. Unfortunately, I felt like this one lost me a bit with pacing and characterization. The plot centers around a wealthy Pittsburgh family and a shock accident that reveals new rules about the family’s estate and inheritance. I really enjoyed the mystery aspect, but I struggled figuring out for whom to root. I thought this was going to end up being a story about privilege and comeuppance (and it did seem framed that way); everything was tied up in a neat bow at the end, but only thanks to some suddenly reckless behavior on one character’s part, a supervillain-level monologue, and a thick knot of plot-thread exposition for how all the pieces fit together.

Nothing brings the four Fox siblings together like their detestable father’s heart attack—and a hefty inheritance to be divided equally. At his deathbed is his oldest daughter, Valerie; her irresponsible sister, Lucy; and their two embattled brothers, Christian and Jeremy. Even the former housekeeper, Marisol, who’s been with the family for forty years, is on watch. All Valerie hopes for is an amicable reunion, despite the damages of the past.
By punishing means, Stefan Fox raised his children to be competitors. The cruel lessons now serve them well in a game of life and death. When it comes to the family fortune, the rules are simple: fewer siblings means a bigger share.
After a suspicious accident, Valerie knows the worst is yet to come—and confiding in the wrong person could be the most dangerous thing she’s ever done.

This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher. This is my own honest voluntary review.

#TheDen #NetGalley Weird, but amazing. Check this out! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

This story was a wild ride from the start! The Foxes (I totally get the hidden meaning behind the fictional last name) are a family with secrets. To be honest, I felt for them all at different points in the novel. And what I think the author did masterfully, was to get you to sympathize with each sibling, but not like each one at the same time!?! I enjoyed reading this book because it was a page turner and I was guessing all the way up until the end! I highly recommend this book---it will NOT disappoint!!!

Wow, just finished this book and it was nuts! In a good way! Father has a heart attack and is leaving an inheritance....which means it has to be split among his children. This family is cutthroat and not beyond "getting rid of the competition" even if it's their own siblings/loved ones. The pace was right on and kept me hooked. One of the fastest books I've read in quite awhile! Definitely looking forward to more from Cara Reinard!

The fox siblings, Christian, Valerie, Jeremy and Lucy have been raised by their father, Stefan to be fierce competitors. When their father collapses at an event honoring their mother, the siblings are asked to attend a meeting to go over the family trust called "The Den". A trust which states that if anything happens to one of the siblings the other siblings get their share.

Each of the children have a backstory which comes into play during the book. The book is told through the POV of several characters one of which was Marian, the woman who worked for the family for years. She and her son, lived on the property and know the families’ secrets.

This was an enjoyable whodunit which was entertaining and fun for me. I had an inkling whodunit early on and even came up with a motive. I was right on one level but there was more at play and was shocked at the full reveal.

This had a nighttime soap feel to it. Some things were a little OTT and predictable but was very enjoyable and a fun whodunit. I enjoy escapism reading and this fit the bill. This family had a lot of drama going on which moved things along and kept me invested. Overall, an entertaining family drama/mystery.

3.5 stars

The Den by Cara Reinard is a suspense filled domestic thriller that was hard to put down. Ms. Reinard takes us on a wild ride with this one! It is told in multiple point of views with characters you will love to hate! I have read another book by this author and I love her writing style. She has so many twist and turns it will make you head spin. This is a thrilling tale of family drama, revenge and murder. You will find yourself guessing throughout this one. It is twisted and dark and filled with scandalous secrets. A fast paced thriller the pages will turn very fast. I just wanted to know what was going to happen next. I highly recommend you read this one, Cara Reinard is one who does not disappoint!!

Thank you NetGalley, Thomas and Mercer and the talented Cara Reinard for allowing me to read this one early. My opinions are my own.
#netgalley #thomasandmercer #carareinard
#theden #domesticthriller #arc

Not the family drama I tend to love nor the popcorn thriller that I'd been craving.

I enjoyed the characterization and family dynamics. But while the book tries to paint everyone as a likely suspect with motive, it's very obvious and predictable who the bad guys are. Lucinda was an annoying mess and my least favourite Fox.

This gave me We Are The Brennans (one of my top 2021 reads) vibes, especially the second-chance romance, but had so much less suspense and tension in comparison to a book that isn't even a thriller. The writing was also convoluted at times.

I was prepared to rate this painfully dull novel 2 stars but the last chapter saved it.