Book Review: The Block Party 🌸

⁉️: Do you like to host parties or gatherings?

I definitely do and can’t wait to have the next party, which will be having a party for Mike’s birthday! We are already planning the menu. I wish our neighborhood was more lively, but most neighbors remain insulated in their lives. And, how about a thriller that focuses on this dynamic?!

What it’s about?

This summer, meet your neighbors.

The residents of the exclusive cul-de-sac on Alton Road are entangled in a web of secrets and scandal utterly unknown to the outside world, and even to each other.

On the night of the annual Summer block party, there has been a murder.

But, who did it and why takes readers back one year earlier, as rivalries and betrayals unfold—discovering that the real danger lies within their own block and nothing—and no one—is ever as it seems.

My thoughts:

I have been watching Sweet Magnolias recently, which is also focused on the small town dramas that take place. In this novel, too, we follow the drama that takes place after a block party when someone found is murdered after Memorial Day. The neighbors are involved in cheating, relentless drama, and is told by two narrators, Alex and Letti who is in the final year of high school! Being an entertaining read, the author also explores the role of social media platforms in playing a role in further instigating the drama in the novel! A solid 5 star 🌟 from me!

Thank you @stmartinspress and @getredprboojs for the gifted copy of the novel!

#theblockparty #memorialday #thriller #suspense.

Reading The Block Party is like a peek through the windows of an upper middle class neighborhood and learning all of their sordid secrets. The story is told through several of the character’s viewpoints.

Alex, the woman who plans the block parties, has gotten to the point where her family and friends are noticing that she is hitting the wine pretty hard. Alex feels her marriage is a bit off track and worries about her daughter who is soon to leave for college.

Lettie, Alex’s daughter, is an environmentally conscious young girl who is trying to find her way in the world after being snubbed by her childhood best friend and neighbor.

To round out the neighborhood roster, we have a housewife who poses for provocative pictures to post online, a drug-addicted dad who stalks the housewife, a troubled teenage boy who has been dumped by Riley, Lettie’s former best friend and the new neighbors who are a family of three that seem very secretive.

I could not figure out how the story would play out. I had several scenarios in my mind, but what ended up happening was a surprise. This is one of those slow-burn mysteries with an explosive ending.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to offer my honest review.

This book was billed for fans of Desperate Housewives, so I was intrigued right away. Unfortunately, the charm that the show had was majorly lacking in this novel. The writing seemed juvenile, and switched from an adult drama to YA with each chapter of the alternating perspectives of mother/daughter. The plot was overly drawn out, but also contained too much at the same time. It felt like 3 seasons of a soap opera were all smushed into one chaotic episode that was somehow still boring. I probably would have given it 3 stars had it not been for so many aspects of this book that just made me feel icky, like how the rich white women instantly targeted the minority character that moves to the neighborhood. Overall this was a huge letdown for me.

I just did not like this book. I know I'm in the minority with this and that is wonderful for the author. To me it seemed more like a kind of reality show. Sorta.
It had twists and turns and things readers enjoy. It was just not for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this ARC.

The Block Party is a juicy, page turning book about a neighborhood filled with explosive secrets, and characters ready to reveal them. The gossipy and revenge seeking characters on the block are ironically created beautifully, adding authenticity to their real life flaws. This is a book that keeps on getting better as you read. Told in alternating chapters between Lettie and her mother Alex, the story deals with issues such as drug addiction, family relationships, domestic abuse, suicide and alcoholism. Whew! These hot topics were handled with sensitivity. Day's writing is seemless right up to the ending that was unexpected and worked perfectly. I love surprises and this read was a big one. Five stars for the suspense, uniquely flawed characters and a creative and engaging plot. Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for the ARC of The Block Party.

Alton Lane is hosting its exclusive yearly block party. While always rife with drama this year, one of their own will die. The cul-de-sac spirals out of control as their neighbors' secrets and lies come to light.

Domestic thrillers and I have a tenuous relationship. I enjoy parts of the drama and mystery but am always disappointed by over-the-top twists. While Block Party had a few twists and turns, they were not eye-roll-inducing, nor super predictable.

Overall, I had fun. I enjoyed the drama. I was intrigued by what was going on. However, it was a little long and unevenly paced. Several parts felt repetitive. My other issue was there were far too many characters. If my friend hadn't done a fan casting during our buddy read, I would have lost track of half of them. Block Party also contained two tropes that I do not care for: rich people behaving badly and my most hated domestic thriller trope - the drunk woman.

I do think a lot of people will enjoy this. It is the perfect summer read.

Perfect for fans of:

Rich people behaving badly
Neighbor drama
Family drama
Desperate Housewives vibes
Dual POVs

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I couldn’t read fast enough! Such a fun, fast, read. Nothing says summer fun like suburban rich people behaving badly! A sure hit with anybody who loved Desperate Housewives or Pretty Little Lies. Well developed characters and a great ending. Highly recommended!

-favorite read this month-July
-couldn’t put it down- great writing
-great descriptions of the characters and their surroundings
-all characters had tragic backstories to keep it interesting
-surprise ending
-Audiobook ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️highly recommend- the narrator has a great voice, used lots of inflection, and used different voices for each character.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and MacMillan Audio for the ARC/audiobook in exchange for my honest review!

3.5 stars. I enjoyed reading this book, the story was overall enjoyable with a good ending twist but it was slower at times.

Let’s meet the Housewives of Meadowbrooks. If you’re up for a slow murder mystery with a ton of gossip and wine, that’s the novel for you!

Alton Road is the place to live in Meadowbrooks. The neighbourhood is close knit and infamous for its yearly block party. Only this year… there is a murder!

The novel takes us back a year and we get the POV of Alex and her daughter Lettie. Lettie is not exactly a troubled teen, but a rebel at core and an outsider. After her suspension she befriends the son of their new neighbours. Jay helps her with her revenge plan on her former best friend, turned bully. Meanwhile Alex discovers secrets of her own. She suspects her neighbour to abuse his wife. There is so much more to this novel. Secrets, cheating, stalking… but it’s set up in a classy and sophisticated way.

All this is the perfect setup to destroy friendships and families.

The writing took me a while to get used to and the daughter got on my nerve with all that environmental talk. Don’t get me wrong, important topic, but none I want to read about. In general I am getting more annoyed by teenagers in books. So entitled. Maybe I am getting old…

All in all this was a pleasant read. It did not blow me away, but kept me entertained.

Jamie Day envisions a neighborhood where virtually everyone is hiding a secret and no one knows how to mind their own business. From Alex, an alcoholic who hasn’t realized it yet, to her daughter Lettie, an outcast with a sweet soul who can’t keep her eye off of Jay, the new hunky guy neighbor.
Sprinkled throughout the story are colorful characters: the voluptuous widow maker, the weird controlling dad, the picture perfect dad, Alex’s sister and her family, and various other forceful personalities. Jamie also uses references from a community page to tell us what things look like from the outside, and this is hilarious!
A murder happens, and we’re flashed back a year to untangle the tales. Jamie well describes each character. Some you’ll like, some you won’t. And you’ll probably change your mind about them as the story unfolds. This is a story about a neighborhood you would never want to live in, but it’s so fun pulling back the curtain and being nosy!
Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is July 18, 2023.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. This book at the starting gave me a "what am I reading?" feeling and I almost put it down. The book stayed that way right through and provided a great deal of eye rolls and neighborhood drama but I had a good time reading it.

🎉Book Review🎉
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Summary: This summer, meet your neighbors.

The residents of the exclusive cul-de-sac on Alton Road are entangled in a web of secrets and scandal utterly unknown to the outside world, and even to each other.

On the night of the annual Summer block party, there has been a murder.

But, who did it and why takes readers back one year earlier, as rivalries and betrayals unfold―discovering that the real danger lies within their own block and nothing―and no one―is ever as it seems.
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Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
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My thoughts: I know this is an unpopular opinion but this one was just kind of fine. It was a quick and fun light thriller that reminded me of a Bravo Show. However I couldn’t connect to a single character. I liked the premise and the way it was told. It started with the block party and went back in time. There were a ton of characters but it wasn’t tough at all to keep track of who’s who. I liked learning how the stories were interwoven but the main issue is that they were all just super unlikable so I didn’t care to find out who was the victim. Very cool idea and concept, but I’ve read too many good thrillers this summer to love this one 🤷🏼‍♀️ thank you so much @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the advanced copy !
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QOTD- do you enjoy going to block parties, BBQs, or cook outs ?! I personally love them 😍
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#blockparty #jamieday #bookreview #bookrecommendation #bookreviewer #bookstagram #booksofinstagram #booksofig #booksofinsta #bibliophile #bookobsessed #booklover #bookaddict #bookaesthetic #bookish #readersofinstagram #readersgonnaread #readmorebooks #readersofig

If you loved the neighborhood drama of Desperate Housewives this book is for you. I loved the interconnected drama between the families who call Alton Road home. The dual narration by the main character Alex and her daughter Lettie gives the story the depth needed for the drama to unfold across all generations.

Alton Road was similar to Wisteria Lane in all the best ways.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

Solid summer time read. Drama, twists, and turns. The book was fuĺl of unlikable, entitled ppl, and I figured out part of the story at the 50% mark. However, it didn't take away from enjoying the read. It could have cut out a couple of chapters and still get to the same conclusion. There were a few times I found myself rereading a few pages because of how it was written. I did both the written and audio and I would say the story is better listening to the audio. Actually, the audio helped me enjoy the story that much better.

#NETGALLEY #THEBLOCKPARTY #JAMIEDAY

Book Review: The Block Party by Jamie Day
Published by St. Martin's Press, July 18, 2023

★★★☆ ☆ (3.25 Stars)
Mixed.

In author Jamie Day's debut novel "The Block Party" (2023), think "Desperate Housewives" with the glamour dialed down. Where "Wisteria Lane's" break from tedium is an annual block party.

Where "Marcia Cross" is an alcoholic divorce lawyer, "Teri Hatcher" is a go-go dancer turned socialite, "Eva Longoria", a realtor, and all three cobbled with an app developer, a photographer, a stalker, a "bug man", among a cornucopia of odd bedfellows, tucked in between an online neighborhood chat group gossiping endlessly page after page throughout the book, with the banter adding absolutely nothing to advance the plot.

But I digress.

There is, inarguably, suspense and thriller value in this debut novel. A decades-old tragedy on a cruise, slow burned but finely crafted by the author into a case of deeply fraught retribution, with all the players subtly embedded in the plot, without them even knowing it.

Much of the book, however, is centered on a black-clad teenager, not described as "gothic", but subtly inferred to as an "Antifa" wannabe, a teenage climate change vandal caught on camera yet esteemed in the narrative, a fully indoctrinated graduating high school senior, who laments to no end that her school should "...care about greenhouse gas emissions, class sizes, mental health counseling, bullying, poverty, child abuse, gender issues, race issues..."

It is at this juncture when you realize this is not a Kathy Reichs or Colleen Coble thriller. When the author begins to lose part of her audience, or at least their positive rating. Proselytizing is so trite.

And sure enough, the novel culminates in premeditated murder, a crime confessed but without a trial, joyous atonement and good cheer with all giddy singing kumbaya in a bonfire, with the finale punctuated by, wait for it, - an egg tossing championship.

// " ...Once an egg tosser, always an egg tosser..."
- from "The Block Party" by Jamie Day //

There may be an audience somewhere out there for this fine novel. But unfortunately, not this reader.

Give this one a pass.

Review based on an advance reading copy courtesy of St. Martin's Press and NetGalley.

“The residents of the exclusive cul-de-sac on Alton Road are entangled in a web of secrets and scandal utterly unknown to the outside world, and even to each other. “

On the night of the annual summer block party, there has been a murder. To find out what happened, we go back a year to see what led up to the dramatic events. The timeline alternates between last year and the present. The story is told from the point of view of two main characters: Alex and her daughter Letty. This book is filled with juicy drama. The neighborhood community forum was entertaining and wonderfully petty. It reminded me so much of one of my local town talks Facebook groups. The narration was perfect and I really enjoyed the way this unraveled. The audiobook kept kept me intrigued and in my opinion this was the perfect summer domestic suspense. I’m looking forward to more from Jamie Day!

This is the perfect summer novel! I flew this one; it is fast paced, has plenty of twists and turns, and is compelling. It starts with a murder, and you are quickly transported back to the year leading up to the block party where the murder seemingly happens. This is one of those stories where nobody is as they seem, and i really enjoyed not only the adult characters, but the teen ones, as well.
Lots of interesting characters and solid plot development. I really enjoyed this one, and I look forward to see what this author does next!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-galley!

If you’re looking for a book filled with drama, secrets and murder…then this one is for you.

It’s Memorial Day and at the annual block party someone is murdered, but who and why?

The book starts with finding out that someone was murdered, but then you are taken back over the past year and find out all the secrets and scandals that have been happening in the neighborhood. Told via multiple POV’s of the neighbors, it was suspenseful and filled with drama. Everyone is unreliable, and I was surprised by the ending. It’s the perfect poolside or beach read.

I really enjoyed this book and the mysterious, interesting, secretive, reckless, and criminal residents that live on Alton Road. All the twists and turns were great and kept my interest. We follow the characters for a year which sets the scene for this year’s block party where all is revealed and believe me it turns into quite the party. This is a character driven novel and there are quite a few characters that all contribute to the story. I loved the community Facebook messages that were interspersed throughout the book. They definitely were an accurate representation of these Facebook groups. I thought the pacing was great and I was engaged from start to finish. I definitely recommend you add this one to your summer reading list.