This book was a twisty blend of domestic drama in an upscale suburban neighborhood with plenty of teen along with mystery and plenty of deceit. Each family seems to have something to hide no matter how squeaky clean their exterior appears.

This book chronicles the events in the neighborhood as seen from the viewpoint of Alex and her daughter, Lettie over the course of a year. It is told in flashbacks and present day. You are giving some extreme information in the beginning and then the book takes you back to the events that led up the it over the past year.

It became quite frustrating at times to watch the deterioration of some of the characters. I just wanted to reach into the story and chastise them. I wanted to see them each make better decisions and just be all around better people. Even though I figured out most of the twists before they happened, I still really enjoyed this tale of friendship, families and everything that can go wrong in between.

AUDIOBOOK:: The narration was really good and kept my attention from start to finish. I thought it matched the feel of the book well which ensured it didn't detract from it. 4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for early copies of both the ebook and audiobook. I voluntarily chose to review both of them and the opinions contained within are my own.

Memorial Day, a time for friendship, parties and murder. After setting the scene for the events to come, Jamie Day takes you back one year to the previous block party. It was the day the Kumars bought their house on Alton Road. Emily, their realtor and a resident of the cul-de-sac, introduces Mandy and Samir Kumar to her husband Ken and her sister Alex. Emily and Ken have had trouble in their marriage and she detects an immediate attraction between Ken and Mandy, triggering suspicion. As you meet each of the Alton Road residents they are all hiding secrets. Emily is a divorce mediator who is hiding a drinking problem. Brooke is dealing with a stalker. Willow and Evan, who are heading for a divorce, are oblivious to their daughter’s affair and drug problem and Mandy Kumar has chosen this location for a specific reason that will affect everyone. As the year progresses, Day uses the local community page as a Greek chorus, hinting at things to come. Day throws in twist after twist leading to the block party where not everyone will survive. It is a story of the changes that families face, secrets and revenge that will keep you turning the pages to the end. I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this book or my review.

I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were great, there were a ton of characters in this book but different voices for each made it easier for me to remember who was who. I loved the way the book was written with different timelines and different POVs. Lots of intrigue and all around good story telling. I will definitely recommend this one and will read more by this author!

So I have to admit, I was a little bit torn about my rating, I found Alex the Mom to be very repetitive and at one point thought if I have to hear this woman talk about drinking wine one more time I’m going to throw the book. As well as her daughter Letty, talk about global warming, and just stupid nonsense about the earth that doesn’t even matter. So, obviously, some of the characters are annoying. The book alternates between Alex and Letty’s perspective, and most of the adults in this book could definitely benefit from a therapist, each one has secrets, and they are all slowly revealed throughout the story. I have to say, though the last 15% blew my mind! I really enjoyed it! Obviously, I didn’t hate it that much or I wouldn’t have made it that far! Overall I’m not sorry that I read it and I definitely probably would recommend it but maybe with a little bit of preparation for some of the annoying issues and the triggers that are contained inside.

Triggers: rape, suicide.

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martins press for my electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

The Block Party is a captivating blend of suspense, fast-paced action, and humor. This enthralling tale takes readers on a journey to the seemingly idyllic leafy suburbs, where appearances can be deceiving. With its intricately woven plot and unforgettable characters, this novel showcases the remarkable storytelling skills infused with wit and style.

The Block Party by Jamie Day

Rumors, jealousy, cheating, gossip, lies, and more. All these things make for an interesting community chat page and you can tell that those who don't live on the Alton Road cul-de-sac think that those who do live on the Alton Road cul-de-sac are the cool ones, the movers and shakers of the neighborhood. So throughout the book we get to read messages on the chat page, those looking in at the happenings on the Alton Road cul-de-sac taking joy in those living on the Alton Road cul-de-sac being brought down to mere normal people status. Afterall, the Alton Road cul-de-sac cool adults won't let just anyone into their block party so the only way for the others to enjoy it is to find out what's happening on the chat page (not that you can believe what you hear or read).

Nosiness is the name of the game here. Alex, wife of Nick, and mother of Lettie is very nosy. She excuses this with saying she just wants to help people, to fix things, to make things right. She is a divorce mediator so she has the skills, right? But she is also an alcoholic who won't admit it and she's getting close to imploding when it comes to her constant drinking. Still, she thinks she can fix the ills of the cul-de-sac and nothing is going to stop her from trying (and drinking).

Like mother, like daughter, Lettie is so much like her mother although you could never get her to admit such a thing. She's in her rebellious stage and has just gotten in trouble at school. She's really a good kid, makes good grades, and has big plans for college and a career and the sooner she can graduate high school and get away from her home and lame parents, the better. But while she is stuck here she is going to try to fix things. Except her meddling makes things worse and then she has more to fix and things just pile up. Alex and Lettie do not know when to quit.

The story is mostly sandwiched between last year's block party and this year's block party and a lot goes on. Rumors run rampant, nothing is as it seems to the outside world, everyone has secrets and no one will say what needs to be said. Life just keeps stumbling on until on the night of the present day block party there is a murder. Who could be the victim and who could be the murderer. Take your pick, there are a lot of people who would like to murder a lot of other people. This group is a mess so it was bound to happen. I enjoyed looking in on this mess and wondering who did what. I'm so glad I live in the country and never go to block parties!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

This was a twisty domestic suspense novel told in dual timelines with two narrators, a mother and daughter. The book starts out at a block party on Memorial Day and goes back a year in time to the previous years block party and fills in with several events throughout the year.

The story has secrets, gossip, deceit, betrayal, cruelty and revenge. I read it in one day as I was invested in seeing how the two timelines were woven together and what exactly happened at the block party. I liked having the perspective of two narrators. I was sympathetic to some characters but found others very unlikeable. There was definitely a lot of secrets in that neighborhood! If you are looking for a domestic suspense read for your summer TBR, give this one a try.

This was a wickedly fun read with lots of surprises and drama. The residents of Alton Road each have their shocking secrets to hide. Chapters alternate between mother, Alex, and her daughter, Letty, with very distinctive voices. I enjoyed the Nextdoor type posts with the residents gossiping about what went down that fateful Memorial Day. A twisty suspense I highly recommend for a fun summer read!

Told from mother/daughter dual POV’s this mystery thriller was a perfect weekend summer read.

I enjoyed the story and all the goings on that was happening in their posh neighborhood. Some of the characters felt a little forced and most were very unlikable but it helped to move everything along and like life we aren’t all perfect.

The back and forth of the POV was very interesting and I liked that the tone changed with the characters as well.

This is definitely more mystery than thriller and for me at least was a very slow burn. I will be recommending this to anyone who enjoys a good domestic mystery.

Thank you to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

DNF at 20%

Sadly, I knew almost immediately that I wasn't going to get into this book. The narrative structure was all telling with little showing. I didn't like any of the characters -which can ok - unlikable characters can be intriguing in a well-written story, but that didn't apply here. I pushed to read to 20%, and then asked myself, do I care what happens (no), am I at all interested in who was murdered (first chapter, someone at the block party is murdered, but it is not revealed who) (also no). Is this a struggle to read (yes), and am I bored (yes). Time to bow out.

Stars entered only b/c Netgalley makes you leave stars. I don't like to rate DNF ARC's. No rating on the Goodreads review.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press via Netgalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

The Block Party alternates POVs between Lettie, a feisty high school student, and her alcoholic mother Alex who is apparently the unofficial therapist for all of the neighbors that live in the Alton Road cul-de-sac because well… apparently they’re all crazy and I’m here for it.
The timeline alternates between a current day Block Party and events that occurred a year prior leading up to the party. There’s a rumor that there’s been a murder at the current day block party so pay close attention to the past events!
The Block Party has a lot of different players involved, but the writer does an excellent job of building characters, so I had no problem keeping up with all of the names of said crazy neighbors. I love that I got to be a fly on the wall and watch from a distance as these well-to-do families go through drama until everything just implodes. Just goes to show you never really know what people have going on behind closed doors! The book seemed kind of long, but everything makes sense in the end of the book. It all comes together beautifully with the author leaving no loose ends. And let’s talk about the ending! I NEVER saw that ending coming. I wanted to throw my Kindle across the room I was so surprised! For this being what appears to be this authors debut novel Jamie Day did FANTASTIC. I don’t know how to categorize this book in terms of thriller or mystery but whatever it is I want MORE! Very reminiscent of Liane Moriarty. FIVE WELL EARNED STARS.

Thank you for gifted early ARC st. martins press and to getredprbooks for including me on your book tour and the fun promo box, too!

The Block Party by Jamie Day is one hot debut. Not only do we have a ton of neighborhood drama, but there's also a lot of family drama too. Trust me, it will keep you on your toes. It will turn you into a nosy neighbor wanting to get into everyone's personal business while the pages turn and turn.

Please note, this book is marketed as a thriller but I have to respectfully disagree. It has all of the elements of a mystery.
Even so, its a great summer read that will keep you guessing and guessing.

The block party is told in two POV’s by Alex and her daughter, Lettie.
What secrets do they know about????
There is so much going on within their little community.
Alcoholism
Infidelity
Spousal Abuse
Drug Use
And along with all this….just so many lies, secrets and revengeful things going on make for a very suspenseful read.
A slow burn story with lots of family drama going on.
All in all, a suspenseful domestic mystery thriller.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Block Party

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Block Party starts out on Memorial Day, the night of the annual summer party held on Alton Road. All we know is there has been a murder, but we don’t know who did it, or who is dead.

Then we go back 1 year, and see the lives of the residents of this block over the course of that time.

I found there to be more neighbourhood drama rather than thriller/mystery elements. I enjoyed it, but I definitely wasn’t nervous or even that curious who did it/who was dead. There were plenty of people who deserved to be!

It was interesting to have the story told in 2 POVs, a mother and teenage daughter. We go to see different parts of the story come together from different lenses - a teenager, Lettie, young but smart, and her mother Alex, who is helpful to her neighbours but also has a drinking problem.

There were a LOT of characters in this book, and it took me some time to figure out who was who, and how they were connected.
I did enjoy it, and was intrigued to keep reading!
I tandem read but mostly listened to the audiobook, which I thought was well done.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan audio for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

The tea is piping hot on Alton Road … Cheating spouse, controlling husband, troubled teens, a drunk, suspicious death, & murder, Alton Road has it all!

The only reason this is considered a mystery is because we start with a present-day murder at the annual block party, then we go back a year earlier to work our way up to the killing. The beginning and end had the thrill factor but 80% of the book is a domestic drama focusing on a rich neighborhood of family & friends in which everyone has secrets.

Told from the dual POVs of (Mother) Alex & (Daughter) Lettie.
Alex’s POV was frustrating at times because she was a closet alcoholic that kept saying she would quit. Lettie’s POV felt very YA so it didn’t resonate with me, & the community chat logs sprinkled throughout added nothing to the story for me – it was more unrealated gossip.

There were times while reading that I felt like this was all just petty drama with no real substance. The suspense fell flat for me. I was never quite on the edge of my seat like I hoped I would be. I will be honest this one took a long time for me to get into. It gets more interesting towards the end but seemed to take a little too long to get there. I thought way too many aspects were glossed over or the opposite, they were small things that were made to be a huge deal.

The ending was a good wrap up and connected all the different storylines. There were some things that surprised me, but nothing really jaw dropping. I think if I had gone in under the impression it was a domestic drama not a thriller it would not have fell so flat for me. I kept waiting to be thrilled.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sharing this advanced reader copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

It looks like lots of readers really liked and even loved THE BLOCK PARTY, but it didn't speak to me. After the first few pages I realized that it wasn't what I wanted to be reading. I will not be reviewing this book.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for letting me read this one early. This publishes tomorrow, July 18.

I didn't enjoy this book at all. I hated all the characters and honestly, it felt really pointless. If you like a hot mess and unlikable characters, then you should check this one out.

This novel is about a small high-end enclave neighborhood full of secrets and intrigue – one small neighborhood holds a lot of suspense and it all peaks at the annual block party. The novel starts out at the block party and all of a sudden there is a murder. The reader is then taken through the prior year by multiple narrators (although mainly Alex and her daughter Lettie) for the many perspectives to learn what led to the crime (or crimes, we just don’t know).

The Block Party is supposed to be a thriller/suspense – I saw it more as a tongue-in-cheek thriller, that being said – for what it was it should have read faster than it did. The story and writing didn’t seem to be congruent in that it should have been a fast-moving story and for some reason it was a just a slower read than I expected. I enjoyed the story but it did feel like it could have been a tighter book and I would have enjoyed it more.

This was a 3.5 star read for me

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to review

You have been invited to a block party, one of which you won't believe!!

Told from a couple pov's, the residents, Altonites, are under suspicion of murder, but is it one or two?? And which one could be the killer? Everyone has secrets, motives, and you will enjoy trying to figure it out!! Nice palette cleanser, as there is little sex and cussing, but a well told story that will keep you hooked!

Thank you to St. Martins Press for an arc copy of this book. This was my first time reading this author. This book was a good read for the summer since it begins on Memorial Day. This book was a twisty mystery I found the beginning good but, the middle mediocre and the ending was good. I am glad that I kept reading this book in order to see the ending.