A murder occurs at a neighborhood block party. The story begins exactly a year before and progresses until the murder occurs, with multiple reveals of all the secrets people have been keeping. I especially loved the neighborhood group chat!

For about the first 90% of the book, I thought it was going to be a surefire 5 star read, the build-up to the main event was on point. But upon reaching the murder situation, the plot weakened significantly, and the entire ending was wrapped up in a too convenient way. But 4 stars for a page turner!!

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
Publishing: July 18, 2023
Series: N/A
Pages: 384

“Block Party” is a first time read by Jamie Day, new author to this reader. Wow, what an enjoyable debut novel. I love a good mystery/thriller and especially when neighborhood folks get together, and the drama starts. The story begins with a murder, block party and the residents being introduced into the fray. This was a quick read for me as it thoroughly kept me engrossed until the very end. At times though, it was hard to follow with all the family nuances involved but that’s what makes it a very nice read.

There are secrets within the families who are financially well-off in their quaint community. You have Alex and Nick with their daughter, Lettie a high schooler; Emily and Ken with their two sons; Willow and Evan and their daughter Riley who is dating one of Emily’s sons, Dylan; Bailey the widow; and the newbies, Samir and Manda with their son, Jay. A host of characters entangled in lying, cheating, drugs and alcohol abuse…a host of secrets as I’ve mentioned that could destroy families and long friendships.

The story grabs your attention from the start and continues until the end. There is alternating narratives between character points of views that are so convincing in their storytelling. Character development is key to this well-written story. There are twists, turns, and rising tensions among the so-called neighbors. Just when you think you know your neighbors and the neighborhood…surprise…think again. Wonderful story with a heartfelt ending. A must read for yourself.

This is one neighborhood that has a lot of secrets! The character development was great and I was really invested in all of the plot lines. It was an interesting twist on a murder mystery, as the murder victim was only revealed in the final pages.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Great premise: annual Memorial Day block party ends with murder and anyone could be the deceased, anyone from the block could be the guilty party. Told in two different years-the year before and the present year, so many actions by the players may be nefarious. Or, maybe it is just gossip fueled suggestions. Action slows at times, never seeming to connect and only adding more perpetrators.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The residents of Alton Rd throw a huge block party every year. When a new family moves in the day of the block party, it sets off an event that lasts until the next year’s party where crisis unfolds. These neighbors are all overly involved and enmeshed in each others’ lives. The secrets that they’re all keeping from each other go even deeper than you think…
💭Thoughts💭
I love a domestic thriller, especially when you have no idea where it’s taking you. I could only see half of the twists coming and was open mouth shocked towards the end. The writer did a great job of tying it all up nicely too.
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⌛️Favorite Moment⌛️
My favorite moments were always when all the ladies of the neighborhood got together. They really all each others backs and were such badasses.
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🎉 Theme Ideas 🎉
Have your own book club block party! Plastic tablecloths, grilled meats, party sides, and lots of wine!

The Block Party by Jamie Day is a new thriller set to publish this summer. The premise of this book sounded so promising when I read the synopsis, but honestly it just sort of fell short for me. The beginning of the book was interesting, as it started out with the block party itself but then it went back a full year and went through every single detail of everyone’s lives that lead up to the events that happened at the block party for the current year. I didn’t think this book was all that thrilling, it was honestly pretty predictable, and if it takes over 85% of the way to get to the point, it’s not a very good thriller in my opinion.

Well-written story with lots of twists.
A neighborhood party is being held when there is a shooting. The author then takes us back to a year ago to build the story that led to the shooting. The story is told from the perspective of two characters. It seems like everyone in the neighborhood has family secrets that affect the relationships with their friends and neighbors.
Looking forward to more from author Jamie Day.

This book caught me way off guard!! I did not expect to be so immediately sucked in to the story, I read it in one sitting. Highly recommend for folks that like tense books that are complicated as hell.

Well, that was just AMAZING! I was hooked on this fast-paced, soapy saga from the opening sentence.

Alexandra Fox meant to have only a couple of drinks at the party. Three, tops. Spoiler alert: She failed to keep this resolution.

Behind every door on Alton lane, the affluent cul-de-sac where The Block Party of the title happens each Memorial Day, there is some kind of secret. While that setup is not terribly original, what makes this a standout for me is the care that went into constructing this fictional neighborhood. There are many characters, but each is well-drawn, memorable, and sympathetic to varying degrees - even the snotty, entitled teenagers. I never had that issue where I can’t keep track and think, okay, who the hell is THAT again?

The sheer number of secrets could’ve seemed over the top, but the author kept everything from seeming Desperate-Housewives-farcical by the serious nature of what was being hidden: adultery, mental illness, drug abuse, and stalking to name a few. The intricate way the puzzle pieces all came together at the end made for a truly satisfying read. Highly recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy!

Yearly Memorial Day block party. Neighbors, food, alcohol, secrets and a murder.
I liked the characters and found myself laughing at the witty personalities. An enjoyable read that slowly reveals secrets of just who theses people are.

How well do we know our neighbors once they close their doors?

Thank you NetGalley and St Martins Press for the digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was just ok for me. I just can’t get behind the drunk female character trope. When a murder occurs in a picturesque neighborhood, every neighbor appears to have something to hide. It’s a good suspenseful read but the characters were just not doing it for me.

A very engaging drama that looks into the lives of the residents of the high-end neighborhood of Alton Road over the course of a year. The story grabs the reader from the first page and keeps you guessing until the end. The story starts with an incident occurring at the annual Memorial Day block party, then backtracks to the block party the year before to bring the reader up to speed on the drama, secrets, and scandals that lead to the current block party incident, and that makes one wonder how well you really know your neighbors. The online neighborhood chat taking place between residents outside the high-end neighborhood during the current block party incident is spot-on and absolutely in touch with the vibe of real-life online communities.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and author Jamie Day for the ARC of this book.

The Block Party by Jamie Day (Thriller, July 2023) ARC c/o NetGalley – It’s the Alton Road annual Memorial Day Block Party. But this year, someone ends up murdered. Interspersed through the story is gossip and speculation via the Meadowbrook community Facebook group. As we find out more about the families of Alton Road, we learn that there are many secrets being kept. The story had me guessing and was intriguing enough to keep me interested.

Intense and really intimate domestic suspense venturing into the complex underbelly of an elitist, affluent neighborhood. Nothing is as it appears as the facade is pulled back and the greed, lies, substance abuse, infidelity, and privledged boredom rear their ugly heads. Engrossing.

I was a little slow to warm up to this novel - I found the teaser in the beginning and the jumping back a year distracting, and a lot of the conversation and character descriptions rather stilted - but the mystery and tension propelled me through to a satisfying ending. This would make a great beach read.

This book started off a bit slow but I'm glad I stuck with it! I was really satisfied by the ending, and was surprised to find this was her first book.

The characters are all a little shallow, which is strange considering they are dealing with deep subject matter. The tone between adult and teenage narrators doesn't change, making the teenager too adult and the adults too immature. All the voices are a bit one note, but with so many voices there isn't much space to expand.

I found the plot really enjoyable and for me that covers a multitude of sins. It didn't have any pacing issues after the first several chapters, but the unfolding was a little odd. The time jump that started the story was a little unnecessary, a slow burn could have been a lot more fun. The forum conversation that was interspersed felt really forced and unrealistic. There is exactly one flashback told in memory for no reason when it could easily have fit as part of the regular narrative. It was an odd choice when so many other much more important things were not remembered and merely told.

So much of the characters motivations are hard to see. One of the main character struggles with alcoholism that has no real root and no real resolution. She just gets over it as quickly as it comes. Other have some serious traumas thay seem to not effect them in believable ways (child/sibling loss, rape) and they don't become alcoholics, but the lawyer who cares too much does?

Even though I enjoyed the book, I think there were too many stories for the author to spend time fleshing all the characters out, and the overview of each person and their greatest traumas made them feel one dimensional.

I'm pretty excited to see what stories she comes up with next!

I saw some of the other reviews stating this book is Desperate Housewives meets Big Little Lies and I whole heartedly agree with that comparison. My attention was captured immediately. I was constantly trying to keep track of all the neighborhood secrets and coming up with different theories and let me tell you I still didn't see the twists coming!
If you love murder mysteries and drama I highly recommend giving The Block Party a read!

Oo y’all… this one was an amazing thriller/suspense novel! I loved how the author weaved in different storylines throughout. Excellent ending… you won’t see it coming!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. This was a solid thriller with lots of intersecting secrets. None of the characters were particularly likeable, and the jumping in time interspersed with snippets from a Nextdoor type website could be distracting. It was fine but nothing special.

I expected a well-written thriller but ended up with ... an excellent book. One that I simply adored. A book about a street that I was glad to never have lived on as these are some very questionable, nasty neighbours.

Once I Picked the book up, it was hard to put down as it had a wonderfully crafted plot and some dastardly characters to keep you interested and it made me realize how much I miss Desperate Housewives!

Highly recommended...an excellent beach read.