The Block Party by Jamie Day is a domestic suspense that draws you in immediately, perfect for a lazy summer afternoon. It opens with a murder at the annual Memorial Day block party. While that’s interesting, it’s the messy relationships between these characters that grabs you. Who are these people, what led to this level of dysfunction, and tipped one over the edge to murder another? I could not look away!

Told from multiple points of view, the story jumps back a year where we immediately see how much has changed. A lot is going on, with neighborhood queen bee’s, gossip, affairs, and stalking. The large cast of characters worked well for me, mirroring the chaotic web and unrest of the neighborhood. The author does a good job of grabbing our attention, and bringing the story home, lagging just a little mid way.

This is a great book for fans of Desperate Housewives, messy neighborhood dynamics, and people behaving badly. It is Jamie Day’s debut book!

Thank you to St Martin’s Press for the advanced copy via Netgalley.

The Block Party - Jamie Day
On Alton Road, there is an exclusive cul-de-sac, where from the outside, everything looks perfect, but behind closed doors, people's secrets are catching up to them.
Alex is a divorce mediator, who is struggling to keep her drinking under wraps, failing to admit she has a problem. This problem, and their activist daughter, has been causing tensions to rise.
While playing the role of the perfect wife, Alex steps up to the plate once again to put together the Memorial Day Party, and it's one that no one will ever forget.
Outsiders speculate on what's happened. Was there one murder or two? Was it the bug guy? We know he's been causing an uproar in that neighborhood. Or was it Ken with his rage issues? Or was it the new folks that moved in?

The Block Party was told by two different pov's, Alex and her daughter Lettie but involved an array of "main players" that were crucial to the story. It was a slow burn of a book, slowly building up, not giving much away until the last bit of the book. You knew something bad had happened but wasn't given much of an inkling as to what. For me, the slow build was a bit too slow. I felt like I was almost done and still no action, and then it all came at once. That drama that unfolded was mind blowing, and never could've expected such a mess.
I ended up giving this book ⭐⭐⭐/3, only because of how long it took to get some action beyond peddly domestic drama.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

This was a fun and quick read and listen. The voice actress did a wonderful job jumping between characters. The twists and turns we surprising and the biggest and the end was a huge surprise. I enjoyed it.

I love a domestic thriller. This one had me hooked from the first page! The unreliability of Alex's narration compared with Lettie's made me constantly question how the book was going to go!

The Alton Road block party is to die for!

At first, I was unsure about this book. It was difficult to keep track of all the people and drama. There were a couple turns, but the big one at the end had my jaw drop!

Alton Road families assemble for their yearly block celebration. What begins as a nice night turns tragic when one of the partygoers is murdered. We don't know who it is or why it happened. Everyone is a potential suspect. The residents find that no one is who they thought they were as the night progresses and secrets are uncovered.

This one started off slow for me, but as it kept going I started putting all the pieces together. Highly recommend!

3.5 STARS

Surprisingly, suburbia hosts a multitude of secrets in this enthralling book that strikes a balance between entertainment and poignancy. The virtual discussions surrounding the exclusive block party in the affluent neighborhood provide a modern and relatable element. Centered around Alton Road in Meadowbrooke, the story unveils lives that appear flawless on the surface but are laden with concealed complexities. Characters like Alex and Nick, Emily and Ken, Willow and Evan, Riley, and Brooke are enmeshed in a world of substance abuse, infidelity, and closely guarded revelations. As Memorial Day unfolds, the well-preserved secrets of the residents burst forth, setting the stage for an explosive atmosphere at the annual block party, even drawing the attention of law enforcement. The narrative's engaging structure, commencing in the present and then delving into the past, adds an extra layer of suspense, keeping readers engaged until the heart-pounding climax of the event. Overall, a riveting and thought-provoking tale that skillfully navigates through a labyrinth of hidden truths.

⚠️ TW: alcoholism, murder, alcohol, rape, bullying

The Block Party is a debut thriller from author Jamie Day. As a debut, I think it’s pretty good, I suspect that the author will just get better and better.

At first I kept thinking that I had read it before, I’m pretty sure I recently read another novel with a similar plot of murders at a block party. A plot where we know a murder has been committed and we are just working our way through all the drama to figure out who is dead and who is the murderer.

The story is told through two viewpoints, a mother and her daughter. In addition, there is a chat line where people are talking about the murder.

The story basically takes place over two different Memorial Day parties. One of the people at the first party does not make it alive during the second party.

Lots of characters, lots of secrets, lots of drama. I was sometimes lost as to who was who, but still gobbled up all their secrets, not really caring who they were.

A light thriller, a good summer read.

This was a domestic suspense novel about a murder during an annual Memorial Day block party in a fancy neighborhood told by Alex, a mediator and very nosy neighbor, and Lettie, her teenage daughter. It was also told in 2 timelines; current day along with last years party and the months leading up to this years party.

Overall I liked this book enough to finish it & find out who the victim was but thats about it. There were a lot of characters to keep track of, a lot of drama & an online community board gossip board full of theories. With so much going on though the plot moved along slow for me & I really found most of the characters unlikeable.

This was fun! Great for fans of Big Little Lies! Very easy to read and become invested in the character's lives, Good suspense. Even though the plot twists were a bit predictable it wasn't in a bad way and they were still interesting. Family drama, secrets, only fans, marriage troubles, stalkers, teenage angst, substance abuse, and murder! Had a really good time reading this, very addictive. Be sure to check TW /CW.

THE BLOCK PARTY by Jamie Day is a quick read that will keep you guessing until the end. It’s Desperate Housewives meets Big Little Lies. Also perfect for Elin Hilderbrand fans. It’s the perfect read for when you want some neighborhood drama, scandals, and some mystery.

There’s a murder at the beginning, but the reader is brought back to the previous year to work out who was killed and what events led up to it. I really enjoyed the format and how it kept me guessing.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you for the early eARC @stmartinspress and ALC @macmillan.audio!

The Block Party is author Jamie Day’s first published novel, and what a novel it is! Ms. Day leads her readers into a climate of interpersonal intrigue and social drama in the exclusive Alton Road cul-de-sac. With five homes in this elite neighborhood, the melodrama, the secrets, the betrayal is more than enough for an entire community. Residents include the Fox family, Alex, Nick, and Letty; the Adairs, Alex’s sister Emily, Ken, Logan, and Dylan; the Thompsons, Willow, Evan, and Riley; young widow Brooke Bailey; and the newcomers Mandy, Samir, and Jay Kumar.

The book begins with the annual neighborhood Memorial Day party, but the description is partial, leaving breadcrumbs to what happens but all the reader knows for sure is that someone dies. The story then rewinds to the prior Memorial Day party and slowly introduces all the players and their secrets through the eyes of Alex and her daughter Letty as it moves through the year, coming full circle as the clues are scattered along the way.

This story is so well plotted, the characters well described, and the clues buried, then revealed. However, every time the reader thinks they have a handle on the outcome, the next page will prove them wrong. In fact, it isn’t until the very end that the story fully comes together and the reader is able to take a deep breath!

Hard to believe this is a premiere novel! It is so well crafted, more like the work of someone more seasoned. If this is the beginning, I am anxious to see what else Ms.Day has in store for her readers. I very much enjoyed this book and I do recommend it!

3.5 stars.

Jamie Day's "The Block Party" is a well-done, twisty mystery with a massive dose of drama. It did manage to (mostly) keep me guessing from start to finish, but I felt like the book was far too long and dragging to hold my attention consistently. It didn't need to be as long as it was, and I think it loses the plot around the halfway mark. This story is full of awful, wealthy, entitled, privileged people doing increasingly awful things to their neighbors, their friends, and their family members. The dialogue can be pretty cringe at times, but it all adds to the mounting *~drama,~* so if you enjoy that type of story, chances are, you're going to love this book. I personally enjoy this kind of book when it doesn't feel sluggish and soap opera-y. It's certainly a juicy summer poolside read, but it's not without its flaws. Luckily, Megan Tusing and Suzy Jackson's audiobook narration are excellent, and the various voices helped me keep the characters straight in my brain.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jamie Day, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary ARC/ALC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

This book adds many twist and turns it's based on a block party. This block party every year was the height of the season. The man who did this party had a wife who had an alcohol problem, and she had problems letting her daughter go to college. There is so many different complex in this book. But the murder ties it all together eventually.. Everybody have some kind of problem in this book, either. Through domestic violence, drinking cheating on wives, or husbands. It was interesting how we'd go back in time. Beginning the book, you find out the murder. But they go back in time and real why this murder took place.. They also did like a newsreal type two you kind of tied the chapters together. Every chapter had a story about that person and how it was related to the book. It was really interesting how they could tie this together in a book and deal them with the people's past and how it all related together.. I could see this happening because it's a gated community. And they didn't like people outside the sketch community. But they also had problems, and they always posed a cheery disposition.. Everybody has to confront problems but athese people who drugs or alcohol kept going.

This was delish!!

The Block Party starts with a Memorial Day annual block party where a murder is committed. Then we go back a year and meet the neighbors of Alton Road and little by little we discovered their secrets.

Alex Fox lives on Alton Road with her husband Nick and her daughter Lettie.

Alex's sister. Emily Adair lives on the same road with her husband Ken and their son Dylan.

A young and beautiful widow, Brooke Bailey.

A couple in the middle of a divorce, Wilow and Evan Thompson, and their daughter, Riley.

Last but not least are the new neighbors, Samir and Mandy Kumar, and their son, Jay, Lettie immediately has an interest in him.

There is a dual POV. One by Alex and another by her daughter, Lettie. Lettie is smart and snarky. Alex is nice, she tries to help everyone but she might like alcohol a little too much.

Brooke has a reputation. Some people believe that she murdered her husband.

Emily is having some marital issues and she didn't like how interested Ken is in newcomer Mandy.

For a lover of the show Desperate Housewives, I had fun with this one. The Block Party was full of twists and turns making it quite addicting.

I liked Alex's character a lot and I felt bad for her alcoholism. Lettie was great too. Although sometimes she acted like a brat to her parents, especially her mom.

The narrators Megan Tusing and Suzy Jackson did an amazing job of bringing all the characters to life.

The conclusion was quite satisfying since it brings all the answers to the table.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by St. Martin's Press /Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Such a suspenseful summertime read! All the different characters and background stories. Seems like a picture perfect, pleasant family neighborhood… Or is it?! Definitely a binger, suspenseful story. Highly recommended! Thank you NetGalley

This was a solid slow burn thriller! I’m always up for a murder in suburbia and this one delivered.

It’s interesting because I just complained about a thriller not long ago that was mainly neighbourhood drama…but this was also mainly neighbourhood drama and I enjoyed it a lot more. The writing was really well done and there were so many creepy things introduced throughout the book that made me curious about what was going to happen next.

There were also some things that I didn’t see coming, which is always a good thing! I love being surprised and the more thrillers you read, the harder it is to be surprised by a reveal or a twist. But this book did a good job of keeping me guessing.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for my gifted copy!

The Block Party by Jamie Day follows the residents of Alton Road as a murder occurs during their annual block party. The story flash les back to a year prior and follows the events that bring us to this year’s party.

This was a great summer thriller. It was a quick read and you can’t go wrong with a neighborhood full of gossip and secrets for an entertaining story.

This is a fun but dragging sort of Desperate Housewives murder mystery. I didn’t really connect with the characters but it’s an entertaining romp if you like the scandal and gossip genre.

Too many chapters and a bit slow for me. I liked the actual writing but the process of getting to the end was a bit of a struggle.

3.75 stars

Secrets will be revealed at the Alton Road Party; break-ups, make-ups, infidelity, blackmail...the list goes on. There was a lot to unpack in this novel, I appreciate that the story wasn't boring, however I found it a bit over the top when it came to the laundry list of secrets the various residents were keeping. I would have preferred one or two large twists versus every revelation being something major.

I found the book to be well written and a quick read - definitely beach read worthy. Some of the topics mentioned are rather heavy (teen / adult relations, alcoholism, suicide) so if you are sensitive to these topics this may not be the book for you. Overall I enjoyed the book and look forward to what will come next from the author,

Many thanks to St. Martins Press, NetGalley, and the author for the ARC.