I found this book got more and more stupider as it went on. The initial premise was interesting and i was really invested but it went down hill rapidly at the 50% mark. The characters were initially believable but seemed to become shells of themselves the more you learnt about them. This had so much promise but it failed to deliver on the outcome. I finished this book but really wish i hadn't as my hope it got better never happened.

Fantastic book. Great plot. Great back stories and tying it all in. Kept my attention throughout and did not see the ending coming at all

The traitors is a fantastic locked room mystrey thriller.

I absolutely loved this book

Stay overnight in a run down house and get the chance win part of a milion dollars.

Oh this was so good. Thrilling book with great characters.

Woah!!! A chilling and suspenseful read that will leave you questioning the motives of everyone involved. This thriller is a must-read for anyone that loves being on the edge of their seat….

I thought this sounded really intriguing, but unfortunately I didn't like anything about it once I was reading. All the characters are completely horrible and one-dimensional. I don't mind unlikeable characters, actually I often enjoy them, but it was every single character and they were all just awful and that was all there was to them. I didn't see the reveal of who the murderer was coming, because it was completely unbelievable. I think this could have been really good, but I just don't think it was written or developed well.

Six people are invited to stay the night in a well known house that once had a horrible tragedy. An eclectic group have to survive the night in order to win a cash prize. One person invited was someone who survived that horrible tragedy decades ago. The real question is, who invited them and why? This book was decent. I think locked room horror can be a lot of fun! The downside is that none of the characters are very likable and I didn't really root for any of them. I thought the author did a good job switching around to all the different points of views in each chapter. Also, I liked the build up of the story right until the ending. I did not care for the ending.

I do like a ‘locked room mystery’ so was happy to be offered this to review. It was a shortish read at 270 pages and with that, and how it piqued my interest, I flew through it in a couple of sittings.

The setting of an old and crumbling manor (which was also the site of brutal murders) was very atmospheric. I know this is quite a cliche setting but didn’t detract from me enjoying the story. The story was mysterious, dark and medium paced and didn’t have unnecessary filler or lulls in the story.

I don’t ever try and guess endings. I just go with the flow and see what happens as I’m reading. I wouldn’t have guessed the ending of this one. As I was reading I would flit between characters as to who was the killer. I will say that it did take me by surprise when I got to the end.

If you like Freida McFaddens work then you will enjoy this.

I enjoyed the book's slasher style set up and plot but overall it felt a bit shallow and simplistic. I didn't guess the ending, which was good, but I'm still confused as to why they were all labelled as Traitors.

I thought I would like this book, but I didn't.

All the characters are unlikeable and rather flat. The real plot of the story only starts after the background to all six characters has been presented, which took up nearly half the page-count.

It felt like I was reading a boring account of a game of Among Us - Haunted Mansion version.

I could also maybe have gotten it all wrong and the predictable plot and the flat caricature-like characters are supposed to be a feature and not a bug.

Great book about 6 people invited to spend the night in a house where a brutal murder took place. All are said to be traitors and one an imposter. GREAT who done it that keeps you guessing until the very end, with some awesome twists. I enjoyed and have read other books by this Author.
Thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and the Author Carisa A Lynch for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A super quick read that held my attention until the final pages. The character were all unlikeable and the storyline had a few holes but overall a good read.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc

Enjoyed this book, read it over a couple of days. No likeable characters but I think that was the point. I also didn’t quite get the imposter and traitors thing. I can’t quite figure out who betrayed who to make them traitors, but never mind. Good read nevertheless.

Beechwood “castle” is a mansion which is crumbling. Twenty-seven years ago, three teenagers were brutally murdered. One survived. Twenty-seven years on a cream envelope land through the doors of six people inviting them to stay the night at the “castle” If they make it through the night, they will receive a substantial award.
The six people were all very different from one another young and older, with different careers and walks of life. All of them are traitors, and one of them is an imposter.
I felt that the author did a great job of letting us get to know each character and it switched from different characters' POV, building them into real people. The setting was well described making it easy to imagine it.
Each person had their issues and could have been the imposter. Could I guess who the murderer from both incidents was? Absolutely not, this had me guessing the whole time.
This was like watching a scary movie, I didn’t know what would happen next and was on the edge of my seat.
It was a fast-paced, well-written book, I thought it was great!

**3.5-stars**

💙💛😱💛💙😱💙💛😱💛💙😱💙💛😱💛💙

Over 25-years ago, Beechwood Castle was the site of a grisly axe murder. Three teens lost their lives on that gruesome night, while one teen survived. A final girl. In the aftermath of the killing, the local community was left reeling. In an effort to catch the person responsible, a local cop ended up killing a boy he suspected was the murderer, but as it turns out, he was most likely innocent.

The castle has had a rocky history every since, the grounds falling into ruin. Now six people have received invitations for an overnight stay at the infamous castle. The selling point, the chance to win a portion of a million dollar cash payout. All they need to do, make it a full 24-hours on the property.

From the publisher:

'Six people walk into the house. One of them is an imposter, all of them are traitors, which of them will survive the night?'

The Traitors is a hoot! It definitely reads like a B-Horror film, but y'all know that I have no problem with that. It gets categorized as a Locked-Room Mystery, and while I guess I can understand that comp, to me it's the classic set-up for a blood bath of a Horror Thriller.

Sure, there's some mystery as to who is killing people, but to me the blood and brutal slayings sort of take center stage. It is a And Then There Were None format, but with much more of a heavy-handed Horror slant. That's all semantics though, either way, it's a fun time.

I enjoyed the initial character set-up. Getting to meet each of the six people who received a Willy Wonka-esque Golden Ticket invite for the overnight stay at Beechwood. I was instantly reaching for the popcorn as the drama of this cast of unlikable characters began. They each had their own motivations for being there, but who wasn't supposed to be there at all? That was the question.

It seems someone has infiltrated and they begin picking off the competition one-by-one. Is it as simple as that though, or is something else going on?

I had a lot of theories as to what was going on. It's all a bit chaotic, but there's never a lack of action. Lynch keeps the pace going at a nice steady speed throughout. The twists and turns were surprising and they kept me engaged. I wasn't just eating the popcorn, I was throwing it at some of these characters.

This is the third novel I have read by Carissa Ann Lynch and I've had fun with them all. They don't take themselves too seriously. We're all just here for a good time. I would recommend this to anyone who just wants a fun, quick-paced, intense, OTT-dramatic weekend read. If you enjoy multiple kills, unlikable characters and an ominous setting, you absolutely need to check this out. I enjoy all of those things and feel like this novel checks all those boxes.

Thank you to the publisher, One More Chapter, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I had fun with this and am definitely planning to pick up more from Carissa Ann Lynch!

A huge, old mansion is the setting for The Traitors by C.A. Lynch. It’s a locked-room thriller that involves six people receiving invitations to spend a full day in this creepy manor. Whoever lasts the full 24 hours can win a portion of one million dollars. That doesn’t sound bad until you hear that this mansion was the site of a terrible murder years ago. Could you do it? I have heard of people moving into the homes where murders have taken place and that’s just not something I could do.

In this book, we get the points of view from the different characters. There is an impostor among the group – who is it? It could be any one of them. I liked this novel, it kept me interested, but I didn’t love the murders that took place. You’ll see! I won’t give anything else away.

Synopsis:

Six people find a thick cream envelope on their doorstep. Inside is an invitation to spend 24 hours in a crumbling manor house and be in with the chance to win a portion of one million dollars. The catch: Beechwood Castle was the site of one of the most horrific murders in modern history.

The smell of blood, decay and death still hangs heavy in the air.

Six people walk into the house. One of them is an imposter, all of them are traitors, which of them will survive the night?

This is out now!

An excellent story line that contains elements of all of your favorite horror/thriller/mystery books wrapped up in a very creepy house where nothing is what it seems. Setting the scene....six people are invited to participate in a contest of wills. The rules.....they must spend a full night together in a "haunted" house. The winners.....anyone still standing when the sun comes up. Obviously these people were chosen for a reason and the "haunted" part of the house may or may not be ghosts. CA Lynch gives readers numerous clues, but it's up to us to figure out which ones will tell us why we were invited to witness THE TRAITORS.

Arc from netgalley

This book was a solid 3.5 stars.
I liked the story line, I think I just lacked feeling anything for the characters. So when they started to die I just was unbothered. I think more back story on them would’ve helped.

Just goes to show you shouldn’t accept an invite to every party. Great book. Quite spooky and atmospheric but really really good.

A great whodunnit book, I enjoyed getting to know the different characters, none who are particularly likeable and I liked Beechwood Castle as a setting to the story. I didn't guess who the killer was which was a bonus!

The Traitor is a fast-paced mystery I read in a few hours. It sounds like a plot you’ve heard before, 6 people get an invite to stay overnight in a crumbling mansion deep within the Indiana woods with a chance to win their share of a million dollars. The catch? Gruesome murders took place there years ago and they are still whispered about to this day.

These murders have never been solved and teens dare each other to go there at times. We meet the characters getting the invite and get a bit of a background on each of them. Atmospheric and creepy. “Six people walk into the house. One of them is an imposter, all of them are traitors, which of them will survive the night?”


You can vividly picture the mansion as you’re reading, from the bloodstained floors to the musty smell in the closed off rooms. As the characters try to figure out who the imposter is the tension builds.


The setting is creepy and gothic. When things start to happen, the characters start to blame each other, and it causes friction and chaos setting the frenzied pace as we continue further into the book.


Absolutely action packed and that ending, I would have never seen that coming. An author now that I’ll be looking out for more of her books.

Pub Date: 01 Feb 2024
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.