I had high hopes for this thriller as it was a apocalyptic setting and the topic sounded intriguing. Unfortunately, the story was underwhelming for me. The story went more domestic drama then dystopian. I did like the author’s writing though and would definitely try out another book with a different premise.

Suburban Drama Meets Dystopia

With Regrets by Lee Kelly is a gripping suburban drama infused with elements of dystopia and survival. The story follows Liz Brinkley, who, alongside her husband, attends an exclusive dinner party hosted by their neighbour, Britta Harris-Che. As the evening progresses, an unexpected catastrophe traps the guests in a wine cellar, forcing them to confront their secrets and true selves over the next 24 hours.

With Regrets by Lee Kelly is a masterful blend of drama, suspense, and dystopia. It offers a deep dive into human nature and societal dynamics in the face of catastrophe. With its well-crafted characters and gripping plot, this novel is a must-read for fans of both domestic drama and speculative fiction.

Unfortunately, this was not for me. I loved the set up- a group of frienemies are together for a dinner party no one wants to be at when the world starts to end. There were too many characters for me and they felt fairly one note- I couldn't take the petty arguing, particularly from the influencer character. Cool concept, but this was a pass.

We had a play in our English textbook that really intrigued me. We later went on to enact the play in a cultural program in my apartment complex (this latter part did not go so well because it was a dialogue-heavy play, and not that many people had the patience to try and parse through the dialogues in such an open space, we stuck to dances the next few years). It was called 'The Broadcast' - I do not remember anything more about the author or where it originally was from. It was a contained scene with a bunch of kids who are told that something has happened and they are not to leave the room they are in. What ensues is chaos and reveals the true nature as the situation demands it. This book reminded me very strongly of the same kind of scenario with a few significant differences that I will not reveal in order to not spoil either plot.
Things are not fine in the host home that is hosting a high-end party. We are not given an inside look at all the character's thoughts, just enough to keep things interesting as we see things from different perspectives. As the uncomfortable dinner struggles along, things outside start to get complicated. There is an outbreak of sorts, and things are going literally haywire. Everyone has a different outlook on what they must do and what takes precedence.
I like books with character juxtapositions involving different situations, how we think people will react and how things actually turn out. This story was, therefore, one I enjoyed (even though it is not an appropriate word given the trauma the characters end up going through). Alliances are made and broken, and there is a finality to everything. Not everything is explained by the time the book comes to a close, but the people are all dealt with, which is more in keeping with the tone of the rest of the book.
I would recommend this to fans of the drama/people-watching genre who do not mind a bit of Sci-fi in the background that never actually takes the forefront.
I would like to try more books by the author.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

With Regrets was a fantastic post-apocalyptic sci-if / domestic drama. It is reminiscent of Josh Malerman’s Bird Box but it has copious amounts of suburban drama that places it in a category of it’s own.

The Mom Guilt and Insta-Perfection themes are relatable and perfect as side stories to the terrifying and unbelievable circumstance that the characters find themselves in. I felt myself in that position - the angst of trying to get to your children, the grief of your current situation, the anger at information revealed as tensions rise, and the absolute terror as you try to protect yourself while scrambling to get back home.

I have posted this review on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzZLzRNLEv_/?igshid=MW5sMGphaXZkODJiZg==

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5815646108

And Amazon

Ever since The Stepford Wives was published in 1972, readers have known that wealthy white suburbs are a horror of plastic people and their perfect children. Behind the façade hides adultery, gambling, addiction and more. The genre is so popular and persistent that it’s often crossed with other genres—romance, comedy, domestic suspense. Now author Lee Kelly has matched it with sci-fi in her latest novel, With Regrets. In it, a neighborhood dinner party traps snarky suburbanites together as the end of the world arrives. Luckily, one of them is sharing everything on Instagram!

It's a post-COVID world, and Liz Brinkley has just moved from NYC to the upper middle-class suburb, The Falls. Her husband Tom is eager to make friends with his new neighbors, but Liz finds them pretentious, especially “lifestyle influencer” Britta Harris-Che. When Britta sends them a last-minute dinner party invitation, Tom insists that they go—even though it means leaving their grade-school children, Reid and Callie, in the hands of an 11-year-old babysitter.

The dinner party is miserable—Britta only cares about her Instagram account, and she and her husband keep fighting—and Liz has almost convinced Tom to leave when the unimaginable happens: A “glimmer” in the sky that electrocutes everyone it touches. It isn’t safe to go outside; no one knows exactly how the glimmer is transmitted, and now the ten dinner party guests (plus the chef and sommelier) are trapped, along with Britta’s children. Desperate to get home to her own children, Liz is ready to do almost anything to escape.

Kelly does a fantastic job of taking an extraordinary premise and moving it from the world of science fiction/horror and plopping it right in suburbia. Her descriptions were so vivid, I found myself afraid to go outside while I was reading it.

Still, I did have some issues with the book. Kelly starts off with Google alerts, a newspaper article, and emails, which made me think the novel would be completely in this form. I was relieved it wasn’t—I almost put down the book after the series of emails.

It was also difficult to keep track of all the characters, especially since many of them are (third person) point of view characters. And Britta, in particular, seems almost like a caricature with her obsession with posting and hashtags. She makes the first few chapters seem like a satire.

Once Kelly kills off a few people and the stakes go sky high, the book hits its stride and doesn’t give up. The crisis sharpens the characters into their true selves, good and bad. There are surprising twists, character development, and an emotionally satisfying ending. The only thing missing was an explanation for the glimmer, but since this book isn’t sci-fi, that made sense.

With Regrets starts with a rough few chapters, but I encourage readers to stick with it. Like good fiction, everything pays off in the end.

Thanks to BookSparks for the book in exchange for an honest review.

What happens when a world-ending apocolypic event happens when you are at a dinner party with your frienemies? TBH, the multiple points of view were a bit hard to follow, but they did add to all sides of the story. This read like a very intense sci-fi series on Netflix. I would definately watch it if that came to be. I would read another one by Lee Kelly. Recommended.

With Regrets by Lee Kelly takes place in a mansion in the New York suburbs during a dinner party.

Leading into the dinner party, tensions are high all around. Each couple has secrets, from the others and from each other. During the first course, phones starts to beep with emergency news alerts about a glimmering cloud that is fast-moving and destroying everything in it's wake. Local, state-wide and national announcements state that all should stay inside and as low as possible.

While the crowd rushes into the wine cellar, truths come out and people's character starts to really show. Everyone but the hostess is separated from their children who are all at home with babysitters. There is a battle about exposure, a battle for control and a battle for their lives and getting back to their children. I did like this part and the tactics the moms are trying to create to get to their kids!

I have not read anything by Lee Kelly previously to With Regrets, but I love the snarky tone of her prose and it is very clear that Liz is written as something of a stand-in for us as readers. She despises the suburban neighborhoods that are so preoccupied with appearances and finds it hard to believe her husband agrees with the farce. Based on how they hold themselves, the other women each have their own perceptions of the others. The characters aren't particularly likeable, especially early on. Even Liz can occasionally be aggravating, but as the tension in "Glimmer" builds, it becomes clearer why they are so amped up. The characters are all sympathetic in some manner due to the excellent character development. Kelly adresses issues related to parenthood, marriage, aspiration, and identity via them. The characters' reactions to the crisis sounded realistic, especially the desperate desire to use any means necessary to get home to your kids. But as we learn from each of their points of view, their personalities and objectives gradually become more apparent. With Regrets' final third or so is like a rollercoaster ride as the suspense builds and I'm waiting to see how everything turns out—or doesn't.

The post-apocalyptic setting intensifies and makes fun of the horrors that so many families experience on a daily basis. All in all, a quick read that will appeal to many mothers.

Solidly engaging book. Domestic drama paired with mild dystopian events.

I was entertained by this book. A group of couples attends a dinner party. During dinner, there are emergency announcements that very few people take seriously. As the evening progresses, though, things get more and more strange and as some of them decide to leave to go home to their children. A "glimmer" comes out of the sky and people and animals who are hit by it are killed. They take shelter in the wine cellar and as time passes, nervousness and fear turn into suspicion and chaos as secrets are revealed.

This is a combination of end of the world dramatic events and juicy neighborhood drama. The hysteria felt real and the frantic nature of the people wanting to have control over a situation in which they had no control seemed pretty realistic. I liked the way the book ended and was suitably impressed by the story. There are a few things that could have been improved, but overall I enjoyed this unique twist on this type of plot.

I've read a fair share of thrillers and I find something to enjoy about literally almost all of them. Few, however, knock me for a loop and keep me guessing the way With Regrets did by blending the thriller and suspense genre with Sci-Fi or the potentially paranormal! Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

With Regrets presents a situation that is horrifying, because we have all already kind of experienced it and can imagine how much worse it could get. COVID-19 hit everyone in a different way, yet we all experienced being locked down with others or on our lonesome. Being alone had its own horrors, but being locked down with others revealed all kinds of things we never suspected before. I loved my housemates, but being with each other 24/7 was a whole new challenge. Fortunately, none of us had quite as much to hide as the characters in With Regrets and we also didn't feel the need to compete with each other in the way they do. But because the situation feels sort of familiar, it brought out a new appreciation for the urgency and the drama with which the book is infused. And add to that the Sci-Fi element of the "Glimmer", which remains just vague enough to be threatening. But just like COVID, what it really does, is bring out the worst in all of us. Whether it is conspiracy thinking or grabs for power, the "Glimmer" proves to be a fascinating challenge for a suspense novel.

The worst possible thing has happened: Tom has accepted a dinner invite to the Harris-Che's and now Liz is forced to socialise with the people of the 'burbs. But actually it is going to get worse, because weird news is coming from the UK, which has gone into complete contact lockdown. As everyone struggles through the first wine, however, a message comes through. The airport where Liz' sister is meant to land has been locked down and a weird "glimmer" is in the sky which may or may not be an attack, or aliens, or something weird. As they try to race home to their children, it becomes clear leaving is not an option and so the guests become forced lockdown mates down in the cellar of the Harris-Che's, where inevitable tensions come to the surface. Aside from Liz, we also get the perspective of some of the other women, including out lifestyle guru, who is the worst for much of the novel, a new mom who isn't sure motherhood is actually for her, and a mother and wife hiding plenty of secrets. (Yes, I'm keeping it vague on purpose!) The novel is told through the perspectives of these four women and as the world unravels, so do they! Will they kill each other, or will the "Glimmer" get them first?

While I haven't read anything by Lee Kelly before, I loved the slightly snarky tone of her writing straightaway and it is very clear that Liz is something of a stand-in for us as the reader. She does not like the façade-obsessed suburbs and she can't believe her husband is buying into it. Meanwhile the other women all have their own assumptions about the others, based on how they carry themselves. The characters aren't very likeable, especially at the beginning. Even Liz can be a little grating, but once the tension of the "Glimmer" ramps up, it becomes more understandable why they're so amped up. But as we get all of their perspectives, their motivations and characters also become more clearer. The last third or so of With Regrets is like a rollercoaster ride as the tension rises and I was on the edge of my seat to see how things work out, or don't. I'll definitely keep an eye out for more books by Lee Kelly.

With Regrets is a great suspense novel with a Sci-Fi twist which kept me hooked throughout. The characters have just the right blend between annoying and understandable that you'll be curious to find out more about them.

Parents are at a posh dinner party when they learn of mysterious clouds killing people. Everyone there has children at home and they scramble to leave. However, they are prevented from leaving by one of the clouds. As they shelter in place, Liz, the protagonist, realizes someone there is very desperate and she is in danger.

I think this one was a little slow. I think it could’ve started at the dinner party and there could’ve been flashbacks to some of the set-up. As is, I never super connected with it.

If an apocalyptic event were to happen during the filming of an episode of Real Housewives, the results may look a lot like Lee Kelly's novel With Regrets.

Taking place over the course of one nightmarish 24-hour period, this is a story about wealthy suburbanites who get stuck together at an exclusive dinner party none of them really wanted to attend, while an apocalyptic phenomenon known as the "Glimmer" torments the outside world, leaving chaos and death in its wake. Oh, and did I mention several of the women at this dinner party have children waiting for them at home?

With Regrets will definitely be one of my sleeper hits of the year. It's the domestic drama/survival thriller/dystopian fiction mash-up that I didn't know I always needed. Kelly takes the best elements of these genres -- the juicy, explosive secrets, the terror of the unknown, the need to adapt to a constantly-changing environment -- to create something completely unique. There's a perfect balance in the narrative between propulsive plotting and thoughtful character development, and I was completely riveted the entire time.

The characters are well-crafted and, although none of them are really likable, they are all sympathetic in some way. Through them, Kelly explores themes surrounding motherhood, marriage, ambition, and identity. The characters' responses to the crisis felt authentic -- especially the driving need to get home to your children by any means necessary.

I thoroughly enjoyed this genre-jumping, compulsively readable novel. And while the "Glimmer" seems like too lovely name for something so horrifying, I'm guessing there's a metaphor there about how sometimes the most beautiful things can be the deadliest. And that seems fitting for a book like With Regrets. Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the early reading opportunity.

WITH REGRETS
Lee Kelly

Liz Brinkley has regrets. She’s been invited to an elaborate seven-course dinner with neighbor and social media influencer, Britta Harris-Che. She’s just left her kids with an undesirably inexperienced babysitter; her sister is due to arrive any hour and Liz really wishes she would not have RSVP’d for this dinner. She wishes she could be at home with her children, waiting for her sister to arrive.

Merely a sip or two into the first course of the dinner party the guests receive an emergency alert that something is happening in the sky and seek shelter immediately. All the dinner guests retreat to the wine cellar. Liz is now trapped in the cellar with six “friends” as an apocalyptic event happens just outside their door. As deadly as it is outside it’s even more dangerous inside.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

As the story unravels, we watch as each guest deals with the perilous situation in their own way and in conspiring ways together. Who will be left to tell the story? Who will not survive the night?

The set-up is the perfect playground for my imagination to run wild. However, the plot was more than disappointing. There just wasn’t much that happened. The stakes didn’t feel high enough, and I didn’t feel pulled towards the characters and the situation they were in.

I struggled to stay invested. I struggled to be horrified. I struggled to care.

The writing itself was a big part of the downfall for me in WITH REGRETS. It felt undecided and disjointed. Often splitting hairs within one sentence, saying two things ineffectively instead of expressing one with clarity. It had no rhythm, and the sentences were rambling, kinky and jarring. It was neither flowery nor succinct, lazily laying somewhere confusingly in between.

I gave WITH REGRETS three stars and that feels generous. WITH REGRETS is out today everywhere books are sold. If you pick this one up, let me know what you think in the comments.

Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the advanced copy and the opportunity to provide feedback!

WITH REGRETS…⭐️⭐️⭐️

Two things! First, wow did I fall in love with this story! I had a feeling I would enjoy it, but I devoured it. Second, I don't want to live in the swanky suburbs. Never, ever, I won't do it. Anyway, these unfortunate souls had the bad luck to not only live in the 'burbs, but to be in them during a global catastrophe, and during the worst dinner party of all time? Yeah, hard pass. Guess who else doesn't want to be there? Liz, who we meet whilst getting ready for Britta's dinner party. She doesn't want to go in any way, but she acquiesces to her husband who I guess hates himself enough to want to go? Hard to tell.

Anyway, the aforementioned host, Britta, is an "influencer", which is obviously cringe-worthy. And don't worry, everyone knows this is cringe-worthy, but because of whatever weird unspoken suburbs rules require it, people go anyway. Liz is quasi-likable at times, mostly because she was a writer for an apocalypse show that should be a real thing, and also because she is so concerned about her kids. Padma is the only truly likable and relatable character, but the rest are really well developed to the point where you kind of can't help but care about them in some sick twisted way? Let's just say, the author does a phenomenal job of making their flaws humanize them.

So to set the scene, at first, everyone is just kind of begrudgingly at Britta's stupid dinner party, counting the minutes until they can feel they've done their neighborly duty and leave. Britta and her husband are not getting along, Mabel's husband is a Grade A Jerk, Liz's husband left their kids home with a literal child babysitter without telling her, and Padma's husband (who is the only decent dude in the bunch) is at home with their infant. There's what seems to be a slightly older couple involved, too. Then suddenly, there are warnings going off all over the place- something is wrong, very wrong, and it is heading for their town next.

Well, everyone wants to bail immediately to go to their kids, of course. Problem is, the Event has other plans. Want to go outside? Good luck, you're probably getting vaporized. Now, Liz is more desperate than ever to get out of there, as her kids are alone with a different kid. So it becomes a survival and escape all in one. Throw in a character expose, and you basically have the bones of this story. And I could not put it down. I won't say much more, because there are all kinds of secrets to unravel, and excitement to be had, just know that you should read this book, and also, never ever move to the swanky 'burbs. Or go to an "influencer's" dinner party, but I trust that you already knew that.

Bottom Line: Dinner party from hell meets the apocalypse? Um, yes please!

This book was a mixed bag of personal and relationship drama, with a dinner soirée and the end of the world thrown in to boot!

I was almost sure I wouldn’t love this story, the characters I mostly despised at first.

Then, it grew on me, and as secrets were spilled, the power went out. and alliances formed, I came to love it.

The end was *chef’s kiss* and despite the subject matter, I could walk away from this tale with warmth in my heart for the characters I’d spent so much time with.

Don’t listen if people tell you the suburbs can’t be bloodthirsty and cutthroat.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author & Crooked Lane Books for a copy.

This is the type of book that’s exactly in my niche: a weird book that doesn’t fit into any sort of box that I just couldn’t put down. Imagine you’re a mom living in the suburbs and you hate it (I can sympathize. I hate the suburbs). Your husband wants you to go with him to a dinner “soiree” (the amount of time and emphasis the cast of characters put on this word throughout the book is infinitely enjoyable) two of the most influential members of the neighborhood (and the influential is literal, seeing as the wife has an Instagram following of nearly 100K followers) are putting on and you don’t want to go. You have stuff to do and you don’t even like these people! The sitter that was recommended to you turns out to only be 11, but your husband is basically guilting you into going to this dinner party because he’s feeling like you’re not even trying to fit into the life you’ve built together. So you go.

It’s awkward as soon as you get in the door, but as you’re sitting down and contemplating the first course and your cell phone at the same time, the news gets weirder and weirder. No one can get through to the UK. Airports in the northeast are closing. What’s happening?

Imagine if the Glow Cloud from Welcome to Nightvale (all hail the Glow Cloud) became some kind of evil Eldritch horror that somehow targets technology? Or…at least that’s maybe, possibly the working theory? And now you’re trapped at the dinner soiree from hell with people you can’t stand while your kids are at home with only an 11 year old to care for them and you don’t know when or if you’ll get back to them.

This is what I love about writing, creativity, and about innovative writers: the ability to pick up pieces of inspiration from different genres and then throw them together into a plot blender and come out with a book like With Regrets, where technothriller meets domestic thriller meets post-apocalyptic science fiction meets suspense. Heck, you can even chuck in a touch of horror if you want. Just a smidge, though.

This book was engaging from the start and had an interesting plot, but the book as whole is definitely character-driven. For the most part, that’s great. For the majority of the book the characters are intriguing and you want to know more about them. You want to find out what makes them tick and ferret out their secrets. Sadly, somewhere around the beginning of the third act some of the characters start to break down into caricatures or even stereotypes, and the book falls flat for just long enough to lose some of the momentum. It’s not long enough to ruin the book, but it is long enough to affect the overall enjoyment level a little. Otherwise, this is a great read that’s a little out of the box.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: Domestic Thriller/Science Fiction/Speculative Fiction/Suspense Thriller/Post-Apocalyptic

This story is told in third person from four women in attendance at a dinner party including Liz, Britta, Padma and Mabel and interspersed with various online news alerts, email and text messages and Instagram posts. I’m sure all that attended this soiree wished they had sent their regrets instead. It was filled with flawed characters, but there was also character growth, female power and the story of mothers just trying to get back to their children and keep them safe.

When this started, I’ll be honest, I just wanted to smack-a-bitch. In the beginning, Britta the Instagram influencer and later Liz who runs rough shod over everyone in her way. Britta is one of the lifestyle types that expertly crafts every moment of her life online to look impossibly perfect with the motto that women really can have it all but at the expense of her relationships and family. Padma and Mabel often brought stability and calm to the pair until their own issues got in the way.

Once the phenomenon started happening, it was all a train wreck and I couldn’t look away or stop reading. There’s actually not much science fiction here so don’t let the genre label spook you. It’s just an unexplained apocalyptic event that provides the catalyst for thrilling panic and clashes of character bringing out the bad side of some and others instincts for leadership and survival.

Read if you enjoy watching unlikeable suburbanites go from seeming perfection to utter chaos.

Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for a copy provided for an honest review.

With Regrets by Lee Kelly is a very highly recommended domestic horror mixed with a science fiction locked room drama.

Liz Brinkley and her husband are invited to an exclusive soiree by Britta Harris-Che, an influencer and self-named lifestyle guru (#Brittasays). Liz, a writer absolutely does not want to go but her hand is forced by her husband. Their too-young sitter shows up and they leave for the dinner party. Seven guests show up, four wives, three husbands. At the beginning of the dinner a red alert comes through everyone's phones. Something strange is happening. An atmospheric phenomena that looks like 'glimmering clouds,' has been spreading through major cities and kills anyone they encounter. "Authorities have just one clear Find shelter. Immediately."

Guests are desperate to get home to their children, but after trying it is clear that they all are forced to shelter at the Harris-Che home. Since leaving is not an option, they must all gather supplies and take shelter in the wine cellar and family room/safe room. It is in the safe room that the atmosphere takes a decidedly different turn from a festive Soiree as tensions and suspicions quickly rise.

The narrative is told through the four viewpoints of Liz, Britta, Padme and Mable. Don't expect to truly like any of these characters, although some are more appealing than others. Certainly Britta is going to raise the ire of most readers. The men are basically all flawed side characters. None of the characters are deeply developed, but that is expected in a disaster/end of the world novel. The foe and the struggle is the point.

The beginning dinner party is the stuff of nightmares but once the red alert comes through the plot gets very interesting. The idea of some strange glimmering atmospheric phenomena where clouds of thread-like shiny things are attacking and killing every living thing is certainly a worthy horrific adversary, but the glimmer is not the only antagonist. Humans can also become a hostile party.

The writing was excellent. I was full-in once the glimmer started and the subsequent action held my full attention right up to the end. I will admit feeling slightly let down by the ending but I really enjoyed the journey getting there. 4.5 rounded up.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley.
The review will be published on Barnes & Noble, Edleweiss, X, and Amazon.

Thank you to the author, Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This tale of a suburbanite dinner party with extremely diverse characters, each with their own agenda, is a gripping, compulsive read. The author gives us atmospheric, dark and sci-fi/horror-adjacent, which works surprisingly well. (I can't believe I'm saying this, who doesn't care for horror). Seeing the wheels come off in the face of an undefined but deadly threat was mesmerizing, and the author does a great job of keeping the various strands running, and ending with a bit of a surprise, but in a good way. I will be on the lookout for more from this author.

This book had me on the absolute edge of my seat, wondering what was going on outside the house! Luckily, Lee Kelly does such a lovely job crafting compelling tension within the bunker that I cared just a bit less what caused this mass event in the world. I would have liked a bit more information from a sci-fi perspective since this was such a cool premise that leaves more questions than it answers, but if you’re in it for the interpersonal drama with an apocalyptic backdrop, look no further.