I love Sarah Ward's series featuring DC Connie Childs and also the novels she has written under the name Rhiannon Ward so was looking forward to reading The Birthday Girl.
It's set in a hotel called The Cloister, on Eldey island, off the Pembrokeshire coast. Mallory Dawson arrives as the new night manager just as a storm is approaching the island and a staff member dies from suspected food poisoning. We learn early on that a convicted killer called The Birthday Girl is one of the guests and this sets up the suspense from the beginning.
It's a beautifully atmospheric novel and the hotel and island setting is well drawn. I liked the characterisation, although working out who individual characters were was initially confusing. I did find it a little too simply written and I'm not overly keen on locked room mysteries, so for me this was not hugely original or as compelling as the author's previous work.
Many thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

I enjoyed this atmospheric mystery. Everything from the characters to the setting were really well done and kept me guessing the whole time.

Okay, my friends, this one was interesting.

It was definitely the first of a series as Ward took time to help us get to know the main character, Mallory Dawson in a way you might not of if it were simply a stand alone mystery.

Mallory is a detective who has been newly relieved of duty due to medical reasons. As the story goes on, we get bird crumbs of her back story, her character, the way she thinks and how she processes what's going on around her. As you can imagine, once a detective, always a detective.

She takes a new job on Eldey island providing security and night management for an elite hotel. It doesn't take long for things to go really wrong. What ensues is a dangerous locked door mystery. If that's your jam, then I think you'll enjoy this book.

The only thing that felt a little off was how quickly Dawson's character made the connection between the murders (spoiler, there are murders at the hotel) and a recently released from prison serial killer known by the moniker of the Birthday Girl. Otherwise, I felt like the story was crafted quite well. Everyone at the hotel felt like a potential victim and the potential criminal. Even once Dawson had narrowed it down to three suspects, I had a hard time deciding whodunnit, so to speak.

The island setting was atmospheric and spooky and lent a perfect backdrop to the locked door nature of it all. While there were multiple characters - and multiple POV for the story - it never felt overwhelming or convoluted. I can't say I liked the characters, as some were really unlikeable, but they each added something to the story. There is one supporting character I especially liked and I hope we get to see some. more of him in subsequent novels in the series.

This is my first novel by Sarah Ward but likely won't be my last. If you like an Agatha Christie type feel to your mysteries, I'd suggest you give this one a go because it has that in spades.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my e arc in exchange for my honest review.

The Birthday Girl encapsulates everything that I love about Sarah's books.
It's fast paced, twisty and nail biting. It's a locked room mystery that you won't want to put down!

** ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

An entertaining suspenseful triller. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the remote island setting, which added an extra layer of tension to the story. It reminded me of "And Then There Were None" by Agatha Christie. The twists and turns kept me guessing until the end. If you're a fan of psychological mystery thrillers, definitely give this one a go. This is the first book in the Mallory Dawson series and i am looking forward to the second book.

I got this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Having loved every book that Sarah Ward has written so far, I was so excited when I heard that not only was her latest novel a twisty locked-room (well, locked-island!) mystery but that she was also setting it in Wales AND it would be the first in a new series featuring former police detective Mallory Dawson.

Like it’s real-life counterpart Caldey Island, Eldey is a former religious community situated just off the Pembrokeshire coast. Although the convent has long-since gone, traces of the island’s heritage remain amidst the luxurious surroundings of The Cloister: the boutique hotel that has arisen in the convent’s place. The small chapel and mausoleum in the grounds add a gothic chill to The Cloister’s otherwise carefully crafted opulence, and owner Alex is more than happy to allow his staff to indulge curious guests and day-trippers alike with rumours of ghostly nuns and their past crimes.

When a real-life criminal makes their way to The Cloister, however, the outcome is more than just shadows and rumours. With a dead body in one of the bedrooms and a raging storm isolating the hotel from the mainland, it’s up to the hotel’s night manager, former police detective Mallory Dawson, to keep the remaining guests safe and hunt down a killer. But this murderer has killed before, and she has more than a little in common with the darker side of Eldey’s past. The Birthday Girl killed four of her friends at her own eleventh birthday party. Poison is her speciality so, with no way of bringing in fresh food or water, how many guests will she get to before the storm abates?

As you may have guessed from that summary, The Birthday Girl is a page-turning crime thriller where the question is more than just whodunnit. Mallory knows that Bryony, the eponymous Birthday Girl, is responsible for the deaths on Eldey. But there are three women staying at the hotel who all fit the profile. Because Bryony was only a child herself when she committed her first crimes, no images exist of her and her new identity is subject to a protection order. So how does Mallory go about protecting her guests whilst also investigating them? With the storm providing additional complications – and Mallory’s own health worsening – suspense is the name of the game in this tightly plotted and claustrophobic read.

Sarah Ward has perfectly captured the duality of isolated places such as Eldey. On a summer’s day, there’s no place more tranquil or idyllic than a remote luxury hotel. But add in some late-summer storms and cut the island off from the mainland, and it becomes a much more frightening prospect. I also loved how a slight element of Gothic chill was bought into proceedings by the connections between Bryony’s modus operandi – poison – and this history of the religious community that formerly made The Cloister their home.

Mallory is a likeable and engaging protagonist. Retired from the police on medical grounds, she’s overcoming her own challenges when she takes the role at Eldey. The other characters are also very interesting and we get occasional forays into the perspectives of the three ‘suspects’: Mona, Charlotte, and Beth, as well as into the thoughts of the infamous Birthday Girl herself. Although I found the eventual motivation for this fresh round of killings a little insubstantial, I was so caught up in the characters and the action, that I didn’t really mind!

Page-turning is an adjective often applied to crime thrillers but, in the case of The Birthday Girl, I really couldn’t fly through the pages fast enough. This is the perfect novel to settle down with over a weekend or whilst on holiday (especially if you’re headed out to somewhere remote!) and another fantastic read from Sarah Ward. I’m delighted that this is the first in a new series featuring Mallory and set in and around Pembrokeshire. It will be interesting to see whether any other characters return for book two – there’s definitely one or two that I’d like to spend more time with – and where life will take Mallory after the events on Eldey.

A locked room (well, locked-island) mystery set on a remote Welsh island, in a hotel full of guests. The hotel's night manager is ex-police inspector Mallory, who has changed career after medical injury. When a storm hits the island with all forms of communication cut off , and one of the guests and then another, is found dead in mysterious circumstances, Mallory has her work cut out to try and find out what has been going on. Lots of classic elements of locked-room mystery, well handled

I’m an old hand at reading thrillers but this was the first time I have ever felt “considered”. The author sets out the characters from the start and this was lovely.

Twisty, clever and enjoyable.

A great read for old and new alike.

The Birthday Girl by Sarah Ward is the first book in the new Mallory Dawson series and what a great start this was. I was hooked and looking forward reading the next instalment of this series.

So, welcome to Eldey, it's an island which has some deadly secrets.

Meet Mona...... who is a carefree artist, staying at The Cloister to work on her illustrations.

Now, meet Beth...... who is the harried mother of a toddler, on the remote Welsh island for a weekend escape with her family.

And now meet Charlotte, all she wants is a romantic getaway with her husband, but not a trip with his troubled teenage stepdaughter.

However, one of them is a serial killer who has poisoned three of her friends at her eleventh birthday party.

Then, one of the hotel guests is found dead, it becomes clear to Mallory Dawson, who is the night manager of the boutique island hotel and was a former police detective. that The Birthday Girl is among them.

But, who are they?

Will they kill again?

Three guests who fit the profile, but which of them would risk everything to kill again? WoW!!!!!

This book was a lovely quick read that was full of great twists and turns that just will have you gripped!

I highly recommend this book. I loved it.

Big thank both Netgalley and Canelo for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This is a solid mystery/thriller. I loved the "Guest List." Whenever I'm reading a book with a lot of characters, I use a "character cheat sheet," where I write down the characters and then add to them as we learn more about them. This helps me greatly, especially when it comes to writing reviews, so when an author does this ahead of time and it's part of the book - I give extra points for that! So thanks, it helped in keeping the story a little more straighter character wise.

This book has it all when it comes to looking for a good thriller. I would recommend it to everyone and can't wait for book 2. I love the character of Mallory Dawson.

I received an ARC of this book and leave this review of my own accord. I just reviewed The Birthday Girl by Sarah Ward. #TheBirthdayGirl #NetGalley

I just reviewed The Birthday Girl by Sarah Ward. #TheBirthdayGirl #NetGalley

As a Jones, I loved the idea of a book set in Wales so I asked to read this and actually enjoyed it.

It’s a crime thriller who-dunnit about an age-old murder when four girls were 11 years old.

It’s really good and keeps you engaged throughout although I must admit to not knowing this author prior to this.

This book has everything- suspense- mystery- excitement, and a collection of interesting characters.
I found it fast paced and very easy to read. The characters are all staying together in a small hotel on a remote island and one of them is slowly murdering the others, but who it is is not easy to discover. Each character can be the guilty party but yet the individual description of each makes you think twice.

It’s a cat and mouse game with many unexpected twists along the way. I loved the protagonist’s level headed personality and how she dealt with everything thrown her way, I can’t wait to read future novels that will hopefully follow this one.

Definitely worth reading. Don’t miss this easy read.

A good. Yesteryear kind of reminiscent of And Then There Were Nome by Agatha Christie…people are isolated on an island and turning up dead with a retired police officer now working as hotel. I gut manager to help figure it out. It was easy to get into, and I enjoyed it .

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

The subject of this book really intrigued me before I started and held my attention throughout! The characters and locations are well built with great backstories and I just couldn’t wait to find out what the outcome would be! The story is about a small island off the coast of England that gets cut off from the mainland because of a storm and there’s a killer in their midst. It was reminiscent of an Agatha Christie novel and if you like those type of books, you should definitely check this one out!

I would recommend this story to all thriller lovers. This book took me by surprise. It kept me interested throughout the story and I needed to see what was going to happen.

I’m so glad this is the first book in a series! Mallory is a medically retired police officer who starts to work on a remote island just as the bodies start to pile up. It’s a closed island mystery because a storm prevents anyone from coming or going from the island. I enjoyed the book and can’t wait to see what case Mallory works on next!

I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher.
Mallory is trying to figure out what to do with her life now that she has been medically retired from police work. As she does that she is going to work as a night clerk at a hotel on an island, Eldey. One problem with her new job is that a murderer has started to kill the guests.
Because the story is set on an island, it works as a locked room mystery. There are a few chapters from the various suspects view, all designed to make them look guilty, with the rest of the book being from Mallory's view. The mystery isn't too difficult, but still good. Overall, the book works as a good setup for a series.

I really enjoyed this Agatha Christie esque book.
Mallory was a fantastic well drawn character, the players in this were equally brilliant. I confess I had no idea who the Birthday Girl was until it was revealed.
I hope to read more of Mallory and her adventures in wales

The Birthday Girl’ is a brilliant ‘locked room’ mystery that keeps the readers guessing! It reminds me of a few other books which have come out recently like the ‘The Guest List’ by Lucy Foley and ‘The Retreat’ by Sarah Pearse and of course the OG ‘And Then There Were None’ by Agatha Christie. But Sarah manages to stand tall among them with her book and I loved reading about Mallory and I am certainly going to be making a note of when the follow-up is coming out! This is the first time I have read anything by this author and I was impressed, so I will definitely be looking into reading her other crime series set in Derbyshire.

Retired police detective Mallory Dawson is the new night manager at a luxury hotel on Eldey Island, just off the Pembrokeshire coast at Tenby. When one of the guests is found dead Mallory suspects that they have been poisoned and that the infamous Birthday Girl is on the island. The Birthday Girl poisoned four of her friends at her 11th birthday party. There are three suspects also staying at the hotel and Mallory needs to deduce who the killer is before they strike again!

I really enjoyed this book and devoured it in one afternoon! It is a very compelling story and I was gripped straight away. The ‘locked room’ aspect is more of a locked island but it worked very well. The setting of Eldey Island was very atmospheric and the inclusion of the historical aspect of the nuns added an extra element to the story.

Even though you know the killer is one of three people I keep going back and forth between them as I couldn't guess who it was going to be! Mallory was a brilliant character - strong, determined and quick thinking in a crisis. This book is the start of a new series that features Mallory and I'm excited to read what happens next in her life.

Let me know if you pick this one up!

Mallory has moved to a small island to start a new job in security at a hotel. A big storm hits and Mallory is left to take over the hotel. There is one problem, guests are dropping dead like flies.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC and to the publisher Canelocrime.