3.5 stars!

Desperate Housewives in book form. Memorial Day calls for the annual block party on this pretentious street. We start on the current Memorial Day, but then head back to a year ago, where the new neighbors move in. What happens throughout year that the police are called this Memorial Day?

Secrets unfold and you don't know what to expect with the couples on this street. Controlling husbands, cheating partners, stalkers, divorces, alcoholics, and more. Told between Lettie and her mom Alex's POV, you get two sides to this story to piece together. What will happen? Who was killed?

This book had twists and turns that I wasn't expected. It was a slow burn and I don't love those stories, but I did somewhat enjoy this one. I could picture it being told the way that Desperate Housewives was.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of those stories where you're going to hate every character. It's purposeful. But if you can't get over that, this isn't for you. I was a bit irked by it, but what didn't work for me truly was that I found the twists a bit predictable and the pacing too slow.

Neighbors in a cul-de-sac are caught up in each others secrets. On the night of their annual summer party there is a murder. But who did it and why? A fun summer mystery!

Boom! That's the sound of my brain exploding, which happened multiple times during Jamie Day's book, The Block Party. I loved it!!

The story follows the families who live on Alton Road, where every family has a secret. Throughout the book, these secrets are revealed as giant bombs, some of which I did not see coming (thus the exploding brain). I especially loved that there was not just one big reveal or twist at the end; but rather, all throughout the book, there were giant reveals. And while the story does highlight events that happen at the block party (thrown annually to celebrate Memorial Day), there are also crucial events as we move through the year from one year's block party to the next.

Told from the perspective of Alex and her daughter Lettie, the narration flows smoothly. Lettie is an absolute delight: 17 and 18 years old during this story's telling, she is wholeheartedly dedicated to her causes, completely sold out to following her dreams, and is the epitome of teenage internal conflict between family loyalty, friendships, and growing up.

Another fabulous feature of The Block Party is the "online community page" that pops up a few times between sections of the book. On the community page, neighbors are weighing in on what may have happened on Alton Road. True to every community social page, there are neighbors who gossip, ones who criticize, those who share positivity, and some who talk about completely unrelated issues on the community page. It is really funny, and also so true of social media platforms.

Because this is the story of several families and their interactions, there are a lot of characters to keep track of. Additionally, Alex's sister also lives on Alton Road, so there are family relationships to remember (cousins, aunt, and uncle when Lettie is narrating; nephews, sister, and brother-in-law when Alex is narrating). There are character connections everywhere, so be ready to learn who's who; it is so worth it!

Can we also take just a moment to pause and admire how absolutely gorgeous this book cover is?! The perfect summer read, The Block Party launches July 18, 2023. I think it's going to be one of the best books of the summer. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

The Block Party was my first book by Jamie Day but won't be my last. One thing that always strikes me as being a good writer is when the author can make you anxious while reading. In this case, my anxiety came by Jamie's description of Alex's drinking throughout the book -- it truly made me cringe reading at certain times because you want to root for her and you know she's going down a dark hole. This was the ultimate neighborhood/domestic drama -- perfect for a day at the beach! A great read for 2023!!

This novel about secrets, revenge, various forms of abuse, and difficult family relationships absorbed me more and more the further I got into it. The relationships in the marriages of the close neighbors, those between the parents and children, and those among young adults in their teens and twenties are explored and developed throughout the story in an intricate and gripping way. The time frame shifts back and forth as well; all this is a lot to keep track of, and the dramatic revelations keep coming to a degree that may make it difficult for some readers to suspend their disbelief--the number of dramatic secrets that are revealed about a few people on one street in a small neighborhood approach soap opera proportions, but I found the story absorbing enough and bought into the characters enough that I could set that aside. The connections between the seemingly random neighbors also make the story more compelling. There is also some comic relief in the device of an online neighborhood forum that appears at intervals throughout the story, where townspeople not living on the street give their opinions and speculations on the unfolding drama. All in all, I found the novel well worth reading and would recommend it to fans of psychological suspense.

Sometimes living in the fancy neighborhood isn’t the best option, especially when one of the neighbors ends up dead. A suspenseful book told through the viewpoints of mother and daughter living in a neighborhood where secrets are running rampant.

A yearly block party turns deadly. In alternating chapters between Alex and her daughter, Lettie, the events that lead up to the fatalities unfold.

I think there could’ve been more suspense besides just the community posts from the present day, as those didn’t have too much suspense. I also don’t understand why Lettie’s chapters were first person and Alex’s were third person. Especially since Lettie’s had her name at the start. That could’ve been done for Alex’s. I do think there were some good twists toward the end, but before that, it was more family drama than suspense and thriller.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love a domestic thriller this was a suspenseful mystery that certainly delivered in the I cannot put this novel down department for me. I loved the writing style the multiple POV, the timeline that the story took place over. It's a perfect summer time read which I'll be recommending all summer long. The Block Party would be a great read to get into anytime of year. You won't be disappointed figuring out what went down on Alton Rd. I'm looking forward to reading more from Jamie Day.

What an excitable suspense novel. The cast of characters that live I this little cul-de-sac are perfect and diverse enough to keep you guessing. There were many times I wanted to read the last chapter just so I could know. You see the beginning starts with a death, we don’t know whose death and then the story unfolds starting from a year prior. As you read, you find the underbelly of this idyllic neighborhood that perhaps is only surface level. Everything slowly unravels until we get to the end (which was the beginning).

As someone who does not read a lot of thrillers, I found this book the perfect length with the right amount of intrigue to keep me guessing. And the ending was definitely not one I saw coming. While this does tackle some heavier subject matter, it wasn’t a turn off and naturally/organically progressed the storyline along. You should definitely one-click this now, you will not be disappointed.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I requested this one on a whim even though I'm not a big fan of suspense/mystery-type books but I couldn't seem to put this one down! The book is told from two POV's, Alex Fox and her teenage daughter Lettie. The book starts at Memorial Day (present) and then rewinds one year. Then you spend the book finding out the secrets of the families of Alton Road. By the end, you'll surely have your favorites and who you're rooting against. I know I did!

In one word : underwhelming 😕

This one is probably labeled as a domestic thriller, but I was more bored than thrilled... I don't like to write negative reviews, but I think it's important to be honest. I had no problem with the writing, but I didn't care for any character and wasn't invested in the story. I wasn't even curious to know the identity of the victim and the culprit! 🤷‍♀️😬

Looking at the other reviews, I'm sure that plenty of readers will enjoy this book more than I did.

Many thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

Pub Date: 18 Jul 2023

Centered around Memorial Day, The Block Party highlights the good, the bad, and the ugly of the Alton Road families. Spicing up this hot summer read, Jamie Day mixes cocktails and pills with a splash of death in The Block Party.

Alton Road is in a premier neighborhood and one that people remember for the epic Memorial Day bashes that are thrown. But this year, the festivities get way out of hand as the community social media forum acts like every other in the county, allowing speculation and embellishment to rule the day. Alex Fox and her husband Nick live on the block with their daughter Lettie, and boy is there an alcohol problem there. Alex’s sister Emily, and her husband Ken Adair, live just a few houses away with their son Dylan but boy is there a deep dark secret that one of them is harboring. Emily is a well-respected real estate agent who just happens to sell a home on the street to Samir and Mandy Kumar, along with their troubled college aged son Jay.

Day throws it back to the previous year’s Memorial Day bash, to when the Kumar family was touring a home for sale on the street and things were better left unsaid. There is a whole other host of characters that come in to make a statement, including the Only Fans model who was recently widowed. As the neighborhood races towards another extraordinary summer kickoff blowout, the tempers come to lare at a boiling hot pace. Not knowing who has secrets and who doesn’t blood spills as everyone in this tight knit community is tied into something that they really didn’t even know they were.

Jamie Day gets this summer blockbuster cooking with real housewife vibes tossed into an episode of big Brother. There is no shortage of carnage and backstabbing in this mind-twisting journey. Love is stolen and given free of charge as “get out of here” and “nuh-uh'' become your favorite phrases while bebopping your way through this neighborhood trainwreck. Comical at times, downright scary at others, Day highlights the do’s and do nots of the classical neighborhood mixer while attempting to throw you off her tail at every opportunity. This is a bit of a step out of my normal military action thriller, but it went fast and crazy and had me so jumbled up, I didn’t know what she was going to do next. I believe the phrase the kids use these days is “never let them know your next move” and Day took this to heart and absolutely will keep you guessing until the end.

The book cover is beautiful for this book! It’s what truly drew me to requesting an advanced copy. I had never heard of the author or the book. I went into this book blindly, but I’m so glad I took the plunge! I requested the ebook originally, but started to really enjoy it, so I requested the audiobook too- it’s helpful to go back and forth between both copies.

I loved the community Facebook inserts, they truly made me laugh out loud! I could totally picture people in the community where I live saying the same ridiculous things.

I enjoyed the books perspective bouncing back and forth between the mother and daughter. It was a nice insight in the kid and adult perspective of the book. It was cool to start with the present day and then build back from a year or so earlier to get the backstory and understand how everything got to be so intertwined and messy!

Overall, I really loved this book and will be suggesting it to friends and family!

As promised in the blurb, this is a Whodunit. But the reader does not know who “dun” it or who it was done to or why it was done. It starts out present time, then goes back to the previous year, presumably leading to the crime.

The first thing that bothers me about the book is that it pushes the agenda of climate change and environmental breakdown. I know that these are very relevant issues but I don't need that in a book that I am reading for entertainment. I get more than enough of it on the news and on social media.

The next thing that bothers me is that it is a very alcoholic-centric story. While it is not a story about alcoholism, it is constantly mentioned throughout. It is not necessary to the story and could have been left out.

The rest of the story was only ok. There is such a glut of psychological thrillers on the market that it is hard to make one stand out. This one is a cross between Desperate Housewives on Wisteria Lane and something that Liane Moriarty might have written.

There is a cul-de-sac. Each home has its problems. There is addiction, mental health, abuse, stalking and strangely enough, there is a weird and aggressive exterminator hanging around that no one likes. And, any one of these problems could lead to the murder that is going to happen.

My problem is that the further I get into the book, the more convoluted it becomes and also unbelievable. I read for entertainment so I don't necessarily need everything to be realistic. But, this became totally off-the-wall unbelievable by the last half of the book. But, of course, I needed to finish it. Quite the conundrum!

This is a great story for anyone who wants a quick read and who doen't mind the very twisted, convoluted and unrealistic tale of The Block Party.

I'm giving it 3 stars because I forged my way through it and came out unscathed.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers copy.

This was so not for me. This style of writing really borders on YA to me and it just kept completely pulling me out of - what was supposed to be - an adult thriller. The premise and conclusion are pretty good but I just found it so dry.

Every Memorial Day the residents of Alton Road have a block party. The neighbors around all know it’s a tradition. The neighbors in this cul-de-sac are all very close, a couple are even related. When a new family moves in things start to become tense. The adults are fighting and the kids who were close are beginning to doubt each other. So many families and so many problems.
Jamie Day is able to write a very interesting story about a small community and all of their struggles. His characters are very interesting and captivating. You will enjoy this story.

This appears from the outside the neighborhood that everybody would love to move to, but the real secrets and drama lie behind closed doors. Sounds like the perfect neighborhood Memorial Day block party until the cops are involved after a murder happens. The story goes between present day to reliving the last year through the eyes of a mother and her teenage daughter getting ready to graduate. What animosity in that time frame and scandals happened to cause the argument and murder that occured in the present day. This was a really great read and one that I'll definitely be recommending to friends.

☀️📚 #4 (and an eARC from Net Galley)

First of all, this book would make a great movie because that's exactly how it read for me! Secondly, from a personal stand point, the bits that were the online community group transcripts felt 💯% like I was reading my own community's FB news page; the array of characters and the comments they made felt WAY too familiar 👀🤣

I enjoyed the way the book was laid out, getting the preview of the current timeline at the beginning and then backtracking to go through the past year leading up to that day's events. It's clear that someone has died/ been potentially murdered. But as the reader you have no idea who. As the story unfolds from the previous year and you get to know the neighbors, it becomes clear that the victim(s) (and potential murderer) could be ANYBODY for a slew of reasons. I thought Jamie did a particularly great job at fleshing this plot out because the further you get into the book and to finding out what actually happens and to who, you can't easily predict who it will be or why. This is because there are so many little mysteries going on between the characters, and there's also several instances shown where multiple characters have a gun or access to a gun. As for the motives, there are PLENTY in the mix! I LOVED not being able to predict what was going to happen. It kept me turning the pages quicker!

The little community post interactions that I mentioned earlier have a nice way of tying in and keeping in focus that something has happened in the present day. It's a nice refresher with a bit of humor every so often to have that slipped within as a reminder that something is coming once we make it back to present day. I'm also glad that Jamie only gave Lettie and Alex the main primary narratives as opposed to switching through viewpoints of ALL the main players at the block party/ neighborhood because too many characters and constant switching always gives me a bit of a headache. This was easy to follow and flowed more smoothly to me.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and will definitely check out more from Jamie in the future!

*As always, thank you to Net Galley, St. Martin's Press, and Jamie Day for this eARC.
*Block Party will be released July 18th, 2023!

I was excited to read this book after seeing all the 5-star reviews, but I came away a bit disappointed. There are so many characters and convoluted plot points to keep track of, and it all felt a little confusing at times. None of the secrets were particularly surprising, and the basic story of a neighborhood full of people with things to hide is one I've read many times. I'll admit that it did keep me reading until the end, so it had some entertaining elements. So, for me, this one gets three stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.