I loved this book! The pace was great, I loved the different perspectives, and it provided just the right amount of detail. It gave desperate house wives vibes and kept me guessing throughout the read. I loved how many characters the story involved and the way the writer intertwined them all together.

Story grabbed me in the beginning but character development for me was too abstract. All in all the storyline was okay but I like faster paced books. If you are looking for a rainy day read this will pass the afternoon for you. First time reading this author so perhaps other books storylines would be more appealing to me

This one took me a few days to get into. We follow a group of neighbors, starting off the story with a tragedy occurring at their annual block party. Backtrack a year to unpack everything that’s been going on with the various families and how they’ve been getting along. I didn’t find it super suspenseful, it was a bit more “housewife drama” vibes for me. If you like that sort of thing, you’d like this one!

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book in exchange for an honest review.
I'm still not sure what I thought of this book. The backward and forward in time and changing narrators took a little getting used to, and I was going to give up, but then the characters began to draw me in. I think these multifaceted characters and their intersecting stories are what made the book-which was otherwise just your typical whodunnit. I found the whys fascinating, as well as the layers and the realization that some of these parties' lives had intersected long before they moved to Meadowbrook. I also appreciated the underdog characters, or more precisely the misunderstood.
As I write this I realize ... I like the characters very much I just didn't care as much for the story itself. Too many distractions, like Bug Man, that could have been used to flesh out the story. Overall a good poolside read.

The Block Party by Jamie Day.

Downloaded ARC off @netgalley
Publisher: @macmillanusa

⭐⭐⭐⭐.25

Plot: Residents of a well-off cul-de-sac are involved in secrets and scandals many of them don't even know about, let alone the rest of the neighborhood.

There is a murder on the evening of the annual summer block party.

Who did it and why?

There are flashbacks to a year prior where we uncover rivalries and betrayals. It is proven that nothing and nobody are as they seem!

Review: I did not want to put this mystery thriller book down! It kept me intrigued. The characters are diverse. No person or situation is black and white. There's so much gray area. I loved some characters. The others - I loved to hate. The twists in the book were totally unpredictable. The only reason this book did not achieve ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ is because I feel the editors dropped the ball here and there in terms of catching typos and various grammatical errors.

Trigger warnings: Rape, substance abuse, spousal abuse and murder

#netgalley #arc #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #macmillanpublishers #jamieday #bookreview #mystery #thriller

What a delicious web of characters from Jamie Day! I have not read this author before but very much enjoyed the intertwined stories of the exclusive neighborhood as they solve a murder. Highly recommend!

The Block Party by Jamie Day was written extremely well. This book kept my interest the whole time I was reading; to the point that I did not want to put it down. I really enjoyed the dual POVs with Alex, the mom, and Lettie, the daughter. I think this style of POVs really allowed the reader to see the plot lines from many different angles. The only part of the book I was a bit iffy about was the many different sub plots going on. At times, I found it hard to follow and remember all the different pockets of drama going on in the neighborhood. Although this book is definitely in the thriller category, I would personally classify this as more of a cozy thriller since the majority of the "crazy" parts happened at the end of the book and the middle was more "fluffy" even with the heavy topics it covers. Overall, a great book to read!

Every Memorial Day, the neighbors on the well-to-do Alton Road throw a very exclusive block party. Along with the usual booze, fireworks, and a hefty dollop of gossip, this year’s bash features something new to the cul-de-sac—murder.

This soapy whodunnit may be a good summer pick for readers who enjoy dual timelines, mother/daughter relationships, and multiple POVs. This book has a similar vibe to Liane Moriarty books.

I do not think this is the book for me. The main characters were not likable and, apart from digging into other people’s business, didn’t really do anything. The plot was about their neighbors’ drama, which made me question why Alex and Letty’s POVs were being used in the first place. One of the major plot points was not fully resolved (at least to my taste), and the end of the book seemed a bit too saccharine. As I read, The Block Party kept reminding me of Big Little Lies and The Husband’s Secret, and unfortunately, I kept thinking that this book paled in comparison.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

Decadent neighborhood drama full of secrets and a murder. It doesn't get much better than this for mystery lovers. Highly recommended! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I received an Advanced Reader copy from Netgalley. This author is new to me. I will read others written by her. Set on a cul-de-sac in a wealthy neighborhood, the neighbors each have a secret. As the layers are peeled away, the secrets become deadly. You will be shocked, sympathetic, and then accepting as the stories merge together. Worth your time! Treat yourself and see if you can figure out what is going on behind closed doors.

I wanted to enjoy this but overall found the story, characters, and plot to be something not what I was longing for or one that I would pick back up.

I had the pleasure of getting an advance copy of The Block Party and now I can not wait for the release so everyone can enjoy this new exciting thriller!

What a ride! The story jumps between two points of view Alex and her daughter Lettie. I’m a big fan of dual perspectives but before you know it you’re getting thrown into MANY story lines. I was a little nervous about this at first because I thought there was just no way this many story lines could be wrapped up nicely but damn Jamie did an amazing job bringing everything together.

The only reason I rated this 4 stars instead of 5 was some of the characters personalities seemed to jump a little all over the place. At one point Alex seems to be the lenient parent where as her husband is the strict one, but in the next breath the roles seemed reversed out of nowhere.
Also a few of the twist are a bit predictable but definitely not all of them! There were many times I gasped out loud.

Overall this is an amazing wild ride that’ll leave you guessing till the end! Definitely pick this up when it releases July 2023.

Great read. Different perspectives on events. Character insight is deep enough for reader to relate to and connect with. Mysterious without fear.

This book really captured my attention and had me wanting to turn the page to see what was going to happen next in the neighborhood. Each of these families had different sets of problems but I loved the way the author weaved them all together. This book was full of suspense and drama. A great read for the summer.

Wow...just wow. This was like chilling and bingeing on every episode of Desperate Housewives and Housewives of (fill in whatever city you like). Such a guilty pleasure!! Drama and people behaving badly around every corner. Secrets, lies, dirty laundry - just ^&%$ flying everywhere and me gobbling it up like it was sustaining my life. Yeah, I loved it...and you secretly will too!!!

Wow I was expecting a debut mystery novel and I don’t know what hit me instead. Something well written, fast-paced, with a plot superbly drafted and a panoply of intriguing characters, not all likable but not lacking a sense of humor, either. As the story goes, you can actually FEEL it reaching its point where something’s going to end really badly—and yet you have no idea who will do what. Sure, you have a guess or two, but the flawed characters casted in this book have so many secrets, it’s unbelievable that it’s so believable! At one point, I found myself wondering how long it would take for Netflix to buy the rights, and then I pushed the thought aside because it’s just so good. And the fact that it’s penned by a debut author makes it all the more astounding. I absolutely loved it and I’ll for sure follow your future novels, Jamie Day. Huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the eARC and opportunity of discovering this new author.

This book reminded me so much of Desperate Housewives - the first season. Everyone has a secret and a little dysfunction and so many characters are linked together somehow. The beginning really moves along as the foundation is established, then the middle gets a little slow, but the last few chapters are great. The ending is satisfying, but also a little sad - which of course you could totally see coming. This is a quick read and I recommend it for fans of Liane Moriarty or authors in that genre. I received an eARC from the publisher through NetGalley, however; this did not influence my opinions. I appreciate the opportunity to read this book.

It’s Memorial Day and Alex is ready for the annual block party in her affluent Massachusetts neighborhood. What she didn’t expect is for someone to get murdered, but who died and who was the killer? Diving into the past, we learn about the not so perfect families on Alton Road and the secrets everyone is hiding.

This was an addictive read and strong debut that grasped my attention from page one! I loved the slow burn suspense, all the neighborhood drama, the well-drawn characters, and shocking conclusion. I do not want to give spoilers, but there were a few sub plots that I didn’t think was necessary, but it did not take away from my overall enjoyment!

Read if you like:
-Mother/ daughter POVs
-Neighborhood gossip and drama
-MDW parties
-Desperate Housewives

Thank you SMP for the ARC! Pub date: 7/18

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC! This really isn’t my normal type of book to read but requested it anyway and I’m glad I did! It was pretty good, suspenseful, and full of twists and turns.

Triggers for infidelity, statutory rape, substance abuse, mental health challenges, suicide, gun violence, physical violence, blackmail & stalking

Rich people drama, teenage angst - well, adult angst too really.

I'm not one to normally read "rich people" drama nor do I watch any of the housewives' shows, but this was very gripping and almost remorselessly intriguing. Told from the POV of a mother, Alex and her daughter, Lettie, the story has many parts that twist and turn not just you but the characters as well. There's a lot of strong, ugly currents running through the Alton Road neighborhood and despite the town's whimsical name of Meadowbrook, the secrets hiding behind closed doors resemble more of a raging river. And it seems the arrival of a new family may be the breaking of the dam that just can't hold back the lies anymore. Do not be fooled by the title. I highly recommend this as a spring/summer read if you're a seasonal reader but if you're a mood reader, this domestic thriller will definitely take you for a ride!