This author writes books that are delicious and juicy tales of human nature. I loved the setting of this one being on a yacht heading over to Catalina Island. Being from So Cal there were a lot of good references. The characters on this one were a little too hideous for me. She is a master at creating over the top characters and situations, but this time they were just ugly people. There was no one to root for. The book was definitely entertaining and I can't wait to see what she writes next.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of Beneath the Surface by Kaira Rouda.

I haven't seen all of Succession yet, but I would imagine that this has a lot of those qualities. A bunch of family members cutting each other's throats in order to be named primary heir to the family fortune. But in this story they're all on a giant boat, with an unexpected visitor.

Ugh, okay. Even though most of the story took place in the ocean, instead I felt more like I was in a sludgy swamp of unlikable leeches the whole time. Just arguing, backbiting, whining, the lot of them. So gross. And I'm not one who would turn her nose up at a story like this when there is some sort of protagonist, or hopeful arch to hold on to. In this story? Nope, that boat could have straight up sunk at any point, and I would have felt nothing except for a bit of guilty relief.

3.5 ⭐️’s
When Ted and Paige Kingsley received the invitation to sail on Ted’s father’s luxurious yacht for the weekend, they were led to believe they would be the only ones on board. Excited at the prospect, Ted is sure that Richard is going to hand over the reins of his mega wealthy company to Ted. BUT…when they arrived they were greeted by Ted’s half brother, John, and his wife, Rachel. They, too, thought they would be the only ones onboard. The two men have always tried to one up the other and each will do almost anything to win the prize. When their wild younger half sister makes an appearance, things heat up. Pitted against each other, they all vie for Richard’s attention. Even his newest young wife wants in on the action. As the journey from Newport to the Catalina Islands commence, a storm brews, but it’s not just in the ocean, there’s plenty of storm filled moments aboard the yacht as well. Little by little, Richard shares his surprises, as the storm wanes someone will walk away with the prize, while someone else will lose everything. A story of greed, dysfunction and family drama, this book was a bit predictable, but fun nevertheless. Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Another great story from Kiara Rouda! This story of a corrupt family on a mega yacht and how they were trying to gain control over the family business was intriguing and I really enjoyed this unique setting. I thought the different chapters coming from different points of view added so much to the depth of the story since everybody had a different aim in the story. I think my favourite character was Paige and I loved how things happened for her in the end. I’ll be looking forward to the next entry in the Kingsley series.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the chance to read this book. It was a great story!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. This was an easy addictive read. The characters were all just terrible people from a mega rich family. The multiple POVs made this a quick fun read

Obscenely rich family gathers for some good family time on the new yacht. The problem is there isn’t a likable one in the bunch. Each one is more conniving than the last. Money certainly doesn’t buy happiness here. It feels like the last one standing will win control of the family business… or will they? I felt the storyline was outrageous but also that was the intent, and I felt the writing could have been a bit more polished. Thanks to NetGalley for the read!

Rich people family drama... am I right?! This read was fun and easy to binge. The story is
multiple POV and usually that distracts me and confuses me! But it worked for this story. There was a plethora of unenjoyable characters. but the family drama kept me turning the page.

I did not finish this one, it was not for me, I couldn't relate to the characters, and just did not care for the story.

🌟🌟🌟🌟.5
<b>Beneath The Surface</b> has no shortage of characters you’ll love to hate! The Kingsleys are a clan of wealthy family members who will stab anyone in the back to get what they want. Anyone on this short yacht voyage is capable of anything and is not to be trusted.

Kaira Rouda’s writing is riveting. This soap-operaish domestic thriller is no different. It’s fun to watch this dysfunctional family try to destroy each other. The children despise each other and their father has encouraged the hostility. I’m excited to find out what happens next with this wild bunch!

Sincere thanks to Thomas and Mercer for providing this complimentary ARC through NetGalley. As always, all opinions are my own and left voluntarily.

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This read like a season of Dallas or Dynasty and I am here for it!

A family full of unlikeable characters and so.much.drama!

Richard Kingsley, billionaire, has invited his children and their significant others to join him on his yacht for a weekend in Catalina Island. His sons and their wives, and his daughter and her problematic boyfriend all show up.

Everyone on the yacht is keeping secrets. They all lie. Behave horribly. And no one trusts anyone.

Great read!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Have you ever been in a boat on the ocean? I haven’t but after reading Beneath the Sea I’m not sure I can I’ll ever want to (and no fiancé I do not want to ever go on a cruise😂)

The Kingsleys family is getting together for the weekend so the families very rich patriarch Richard can share who will be taking over their multi national family business. His sons John, Ted and their wives Paige and Rachel are invited on to his yacht by Richard much younger wife Serena. Richard likes to play games with his family and this weekend will no different!

I sped through this book! It was under 300 pages and just what I needed after my last read. This is a family drama with yes a bunch of drama between all members of the family! I also love rich people drama and problems so this kinda put a lot of my favourite topics to read about together.

The authors writing style is compulsively readable and engaging. I loved the short chapters and the multiple POVs. Richard was a very riveting character and I really enjoyed his POV chapters.

Most of the little twists were pretty interesting as well and well I could guess some I found they worked with the characters and the story!

One thing I didn’t find necessary to the story was the little gossip column pages that appeared a few times but they definitely didn’t detract from the story either!

If you want a fast paced, family drama with no characters really to route for (ok maybe there could be one) I would recommend this for a read!

A rich family going on a weekend yacht trip to find out about the future of the father’s company. This reminded me so much of Succession! I wondered throughout about everybody’s motives and actions. With multiple points of view I was wondering who was a reliable narrator and who was unreliable. There were surprises along the way, and one of the chapters was shocking! I will definitely be reading this author again.

This family drama was a gripping and fun thriller. I will say it took me a little bit of time to get into the story since all of the characters were pretty unlivable (by the end I liked Paige, but even she was hard to take in the beginning). That’s not to say the characters weren’t well developed or written because they were but they were awful people. It was fun to watch the secrets and betrayals between them come to light and to watch them all squirm as it happened. Richard has three children by three different wives. As he is getting older he knows he needs to make a decision about who he will leave his huge and lucrative business to so while telling them each he was inviting only them on a trip on his yacht he invite them all to get some true family time together. All families have secrets and sometimes to move past them you need to first dig them up. Overall I gave this one 3.5 stars rounded up because it was very well written.

I firmly believe that wealthy families should steer clear of boating together. It seems that in these opulent yacht scenarios, bad weather, tragic accidents, or being marooned are just the tip of the iceberg. Surprisingly, the most treacherous waters are often those of sibling rivalry, avarice, and deceit.

Prepare to harbour a strong dislike for the Kingsley family, a clan of conniving, money-hungry, and entitled millionaires. When the family patriarch begins the search for his successor, the atmosphere becomes as tense as circling sharks. It’s exasperating and unfolds with all the drama of a reality TV show, set against the backdrop of a weekend trapped together on a boat.

While the story unveils numerous secrets and even murder, it doesn’t quite fit the thriller mould. Yet, you’ll find it impossible to stop reading because you know these characters will keep digging their own graves, and you’re eager to discover just how deep they’ll go.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

From my blog: Always With a Book

I have long been a fan of Kaira Rouda’s books. Not only does she do crazy well, but this is the first book in her new series and I for one am super excited about that! This is going to be one wild ride with the Kingsleys and I’ll gladly take a front row seat!

One thing I’ve come to love about Kaira’s books is that her books usually have one or two unlikeable characters. This time around, we have a whole slew of them and I’m not even sure which one I could pinpoint as the worst. I think maybe there was one who I liked, but even she had her quirks. The family dynamics here were so dysfunctional, it was bordering on ridiculous, but given the backstory we are given for each character, it all makes a weird kind of sense they act the way they do.

This book is full of secrets, lies, drama, manipulation, sibling rivalry, power struggles and so much more. I loved that it took some unexpected twists that I did not seeing coming and kept me guessing as to where the story was ultimately heading. It’s a clever play on the title, but you never know what really lies beneath the surface when it comes to anything and that is so true when it comes to all the characters we meet here. No one is above reproach and I loved how ever so slowly we see their true selves revealed.

I really enjoyed this book and am super curious to see where this series goes next.

Another hit from Kaira Rouda that made my top 5 list of new reads for the month of August. Make sure to catch Kaira's episode on the Killer Author Club -- links to watch at https://killerauthorclub.com/killer-episodes.

BENEATH THE SURFACE is the first instalment in Kaira Rouda’s contemporary, adult THE KINGSLEYS dramatic, thriller series focusing on the dysfunctional Kingsley family.

Told from five different perspectives (Paige, John, Serena, Sibley and Richard) as well as intermittent gossip site reporting, BENEATH THE SURFACE focuses on the bitter reunion, sibling fighting and the naming of a new CEO at Kingsley Enterprises. Billionaire CEO Richard Kingsley, the patriarch of the Kingsley family, has invited all of his children and their spouses aboard his new yacht, the Splendid Seas. Along with his much younger wife Serena, Richard has set a plan into motion to ferret out who would be best suited to take the reins at the top but each sibling is determined to win their father’s approval, forgetting that Richard Kingsley knows all, and more than anyone could have imagined. A weekend cruise, a storm on the seas, and the revelation of secrets and lies, proves that Richard is unable to trust those vying for the top prize.

BENEATH THE SURFACE is reminiscent of televisions’ SUCCESSION™ and the maladjusted Roy family. From the top, Richard Kingsley has pitted his own children against one another, in an effort to see who was worthy of the job. All of his children and some of their spouses keep hidden the secrets that could destroy them all but Richard is well aware of everything, including the biggest secret of them all. Murder and mayhem, theft and destruction, drugs, gambling, adultery and blackmail are but a few of the sins uncovered by the man at the top.

We are introduced to the Kingsley siblings: John and Rachel, Ted and Paige, only daughter Sibley, as well as Richard’s fourth (or fifth) wife Serena.

BENEATH THE SURFACE is a story of betrayal and vengeance, power and control, dysfunctional family values, greed and murder. The premise is intriguing, captivating and dramatic; the characters are pathological, desperate, jealous and lost. BENEATH THE SURFACE is only the beginning as the new CEO is about to have their hands full when betrayal continues to push at the wounds.



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This book was all about family drama and unlikable characters! It was a fast read at 268 pages, and I was curious to see what the outcome of this weekend yacht trip was going to be!

I thought this was a fun read, although I wouldn't really consider it a mystery/thriller. There was one part that I didn't expect to happen, so I did like that twist to the story.

Goodreads has this listed as "The Kingsleys No. 1" so another book will be coming, and I'll be looking forward to picking it up!

Thank you @netgalley @amazonpublishing, Thomas and Mercer and the author, for the gifted e-arc of this book.
3.5 stars rounded

Love Rouda's books! They are always twisty! This is like Succession in a novel and I was here for it!

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy!

Sorry to say this didn’t work at all. Connected to zero characters, slow paced, and nothing actually happened plot-wise until the 80% mark. Huge disappointment.