loved this romance and her mom wants her to date this guy she has these amazing friends who are all dealing with different relationship issues . loved that she found her way in the job and found love

I enjoy these one location, can’t leave, kind of scenarios. Though I couldn’t connect to the narrator at all or the choices she made.

Kind of thought most of it was pretty obvious, including the conclusion of a small subplot at the end. But I’m glad it wrapped up neatly and it kept me interested while I was reading it.

📚: One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day
⭐️: 3/5

The gist: The Precipice — a family-owned, infamous (if not also quirky) hotel on the coast of Maine. When its patriarch owner, George Bishop, passes away, his three daughters and their families come to hear his will, claim what’s theirs, while keeping their secrets airtight. As the Bishop sisters arrive, chambermaid Charley has a few secrets of her own.

The good: I love a locked door thriller in a New England setting. This read flew by with a fairly quick pace - and part 2 that’s set in the past was particularly well written and gripping. (And oh-so much family dysfunction.)

The eh: Overall, I found this book to be a solid 3 star read. With a bit of predictability, and characters that fell flat (why didn’t I root for Charley more?), and an ending that didn’t completely stick, I enjoyed this read enough but not enough to love.

Thanks to @stmartinspress via @netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. One Big Happy Family is out this week!

Big thanks to both NetGalley, St. Martin's Press & Macmillan audio for the advanced copies!
This one is out now and ready for you!!!

I absolutely ate up Jamie Day's first novel, The Block Party. Unfortunately, this one fell just a little flat for me. Part One was quite slow, making it difficult to get sucked into this story. Once we moved into part two, I was starting to feel like I was in a completely different book and had to stop to make sure I was still in the same one.

While the drama, secrets & mysteries were all fun, I found them to ber very predicatble. I knew which character was the culprit and it was easy to see how this would play out for the most part.

As far as the audio portion goes, it was done well. My only downside was that the narrator seemed to be quite nasally, which I found to be distracting. That is absolutely a personal thing though and nothing against the book itself!

I do think I'd give Jamie Day another go, being as I loved her first novel. This one just didn't work for me as well as I hoped!

One big happy family? Nope. Too many secrets, resentments, bad memories. Too much fear and greed and suspicion. Were they ever one big happy family? Maybe when their mother was still alive, but none of the Bishop sisters wanted to spend time with their father. They are only back at The Precipice, the family-owned hotel, because he has died and they want to know who gets what from the will. They are a very unpleasant group when the descend on The Precipice: sisters, spouses, partners, children, all unique and a little off-putting in their own way and they never do become endearing.

Charley Kelley is the nineteen-year-old chambermaid who greets them. Life has dropped some hard knocks on Charley, so she’s had to be smart and resilient, but because she’s also in desperate straits financially she regularly steals from the guests. Her Nana is the only family she has left and Charley has promised herself that Nana will be able to stay at the nursing home, no matter Charley she has to sacrifice.

One Big Happy Family makes you uneasy from the start. There’s the sniping among the sisters, Bree, the young woman hiding from an abusive boyfriend that Charley has agreed to hide in the hotel resulting in a game of musical rooms to ensure she doesn’t get caught, the cook’s angry blow up and departure, and the odd comings and goings of the Bishops. The big storm brewing adds to the electric atmosphere and isolation, and when desk clerk Rodrigo goes home for the weekend Charley is left alone with the weird Bishop family and their weird behavior. Author Jamie Day ramps up the excitement and menace until you can’t stop turning pages to find out what happens next, but at the same time you are afraid to turn them because what’s next might be terrifying.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Publishing Group for providing an advance copy of One Big Happy Family via NetGalley. It is a book you can’t put down, with so many surprises and twists and turns that you are on edge until the final page. I am happy to recommend it. I voluntarily leave this review; all opinions are my own.

This was a great thriller that had me spinning trying to figure out who to blame. If you like Alice Fenney’s Daisy Darker or anything by Lucy Foley, this is a must read for you! I definitely recommend adding to you list!

What a family! The book was a little slow getting me interested, but oooh boy did it have a few twists. I felt lucky to not be part of the Bishop family. The book had lots of secrets and each one left me feeling a bit shocked. The storm set the story up for a perfect location for the reading of the will. I did turn pages more quickly as I got deeper into the story. It was definitely full of surprises. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would by the time I got to the end. I look forward to more from this author. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Does a book describing an old family hotel filled with all sorts of curiosities on top of a high hill in Maine overlooking the ocean set in the depths of a terrible windy rainstorm fill you with trepidation? Let’s add the element that three sisters and families have gathered for the reading of the will of their recently deceased father/owner of the hotel. Factor in that everyone involved are harboring deep secrets from the past. Left to keep the hotel working is the maid who has some secrets of her own the least of which is hiding a gal who has befriended her because she is trying to hide from her boyfriend. Let the fun begin with hints of an Agatha Christie murder as one tries to untangle the mystery of murder, deceit. Thanks to #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for an ARC of this book; this is my honest opinion.

Charley Kelley is only 19, but she’s already been through some tough years. The only family she has left is her grandmother, and she’s struggling with memory issues. She’s in a local nursing home, so Charly works very hard to afford her room and care. They live in a small town in Maine, but there is a high end hotel named Precipice. Charley works as the maid there, and with that job, she gets to live onsite, in a small room, rent-free. She doesn’t love the job, or how the owner hits on her from time to time, but she doesn’t know of another job in town where she can live and still afford her grandmother’s care.

But when the owner of the Precipice dies suddenly, his three daughters are planning on returning to the hotel for the reading of the will. Iris, Vicki, and Faith will be there soon, along with the attorney who is the executor of the will, so Charley is in charge of getting the rooms cleaned before they show up. But she has a problem. She had recently met a woman named Bree in town, and Bree was trying to get away from her abusive boyfriend. Bree shows up at the hotel, desperate and asking Charley to hide her for a few days. Charley is reluctant, but she doesn’t feel like she can leave this woman in danger, so she agrees to hide her in one of the hotel rooms for a few days.

Then there’s the problem of Larry. Larry is the hurricane heading for them. While some of the locals are writing off the storm, thinking the bark will be worse than the bite, several of the coming tourists have canceled their reservations at the hotel. Soon it becomes clear that the sisters and the lawyer will be the only guests, hurricane be damned.

This is the first chance Charley has had to meet the sisters. There is Iris, the recovering addict. Vicki and her husband own a jewelry store in Boston, and their son is in college studying philosophy. Faith and her wife Hope have a teenaged son also, a quiet boy who speaks in rhyme when he does talk. Vicki immediately starts making demands of Charley, but the more things go wrong at the Precipice, the less that matters.

Olga, the longtime cook, quits suddenly. Larry hits with a vengeance, bringing down a tree on the drive, so no one can leave. Cell service goes out. And inside the hotel, strange threats add a sense of foreboding to the gathering. The will is read, and with all their father’s rules and stipulations, none of the sisters are happy with the outcome. They thought they were getting the hotel outright, and that is not how their father set up the inheritance.

And then the first person is killed.

As the storm rages outside and the wi-fi goes down, those stranded at the Precipice have to figure out a way to survive the storm, and each other. It turns out that each of the sisters has a secret to keep, and some of those secrets are worth killing to keep.

Charley isn’t a part of the family, and she got nothing in the will. In fact, Vicki fires her, so she also has no job, no home, no way to take care of her grandmother. She has literally nothing left to lose. Except her life. Will she be able to stay alive until the storm passes and they can get help to the hotel, or is this the end for the young maid?

One Big Happy Family is a secret-fueled thriller that asks what it is that makes a family. As the long-held lies are exposed and the truths come out, the danger amps up, until everyone is fighting for their own survival. This novel is a series of dangerous events, escalating and escalating, to a nail-biting conclusion.

I listened to One Big Happy Family on audio, and narrator Saskia Maarleveld, who brought this twisted tale to life. There was a lot of tension, which I thought she handled beautifully. However, there are also a lot of characters who all show up about the same time, so I did have some trouble keeping everyone straight in my head for a bit, especially the sisters. But it was a fun book to listen to, and anyone who loves a story filled with danger, tension, and family secrets should consider adding this one to their shelf.

A copy of the audio book for One Big Happy Family was provided by Macmillan Audio, and egalleys were provided by St. Martin’s Press, both through NetGalley, with many thanks.

Wow, this story is quite a ride! I was hooked from the start. Chapter one starts things off as quite a page-turner, & it gets better from there.
I like the author’s writing style, & think the pace, character development, & setting are all perfect for the story. The twists & turns, family histories, & each character’s recollections of the past come to light @ just the right times. There’s a lot of wit & humor, especially considering the subject matter.
I enjoy it when almost everyone is a suspect @ one time or another during the story.
I’m glad Charley wasn’t drawn as a perfect angel, but just a sweet kid that’s been through way too much in an unfair world. It was easy to root for her to figure things out.
I found myself working on the puzzles of this story, even when I was doing things other than reading. That always seems to be a good test of how much I’m invested while reading a mystery or a thriller. The surprises & secrets just kept coming, as did the dirty deeds & possible motives. You can’t choose your family…
Thanks to the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy via NetGalley. I’ve already added another book by the author to my kindle.

“One Big Happy Family” by Jamie Day
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: 7/16
Genre: thriller

If you like the “locked room” thriller you’ll love this! The book is set instead a seaside hotel in a small town in Maine. I found the premise really interesting and the book kept my interest the entire time. There was a whodunnit aspect along with multiple twists!

Charley is the maid at the Precipe Hotel. She is trying to stay afloat paying for her Nana’s care, so she lives on site and works hard. When the owner George passed his three daughters Vicki, Iris, and Faith come to the hotel to read the will. Everything quickly escalates when one family member turns up dead and they are all pointing fingers. The one thing the killer wants is for all three of their secrets to come out. How does it all connect?
The crazy thing is this all happens during a hurricane. You never known when you’ll have a blackout and who you can trust.

I thought this novel started off slow and slightly unrealistic . However, the middle did speed up and grab my attention. Once I got toward the end I was hooked and unable to put it down. However, I didn’t love it.

This was a gripping locked room mystery from the that brought us Block Party, Jaime Day, last summer!

Synopsis:
Charlie Kelley, a resilient, smart and older than her years is employed at the PRecipice, a legendary family owned hotel in Maine. The unscrupulous owner, has just passed away and his three adult daughters, Vicki, Faith and Iris Bishop are on their way to stake their claim to his estate. Charley fears for the safety of her job that she desperately needs to keep her grandmother, the only family she has left, in an assisted living care. She is also hiding a woman on the run and fears that might jeopardize her job even further.

The reading of the will leaves much unrest amongst the sisters. . Meanwhile in the backdrop their is a large storm, Larry, that is hitting the town creating a lot of natural havoc. Before the night is over, secrets will be revealed and someone will die. Who will make it to the next morning?

My thoughts:
I really enjoyed Block Party last year and was looking forward to another summer thriller filled with deception and betrayal from Day.I really enjoyed learning about the BIship’s sisters past and how their current lives came about. I also enjoyed the character development of Charlie the only truly redeemable character in the book with the exception of the grandma. . This one truly delivered and was very different with the locked room mystery aspect. Although I preferred Block Party this was still a solid thriller from Day!

Very well written mystery book with some humor and good characters with excellent family dynamics. I can never see twists and turns happening when I read so there was just enough surprise for me to keep me on the edge of my seat! I finished the book with all my questions answered and felt satisfied!

This was an okay dysfunctional family story of course with a twist at the end, but is was so slow in the beginning. It didn't keep my attention the way I was expecting or needing it to keep me fully invested. I tried in both digital and audio formats. Neither worked for me with this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Our story starts with Charley, working, and living, as a maid at The Precipice. She doesn't make enough money to care for her Nana, who has Alzheimer's and lives in a small apartment. On occasion, she takes $20 here and there from guests to pay for Nana's rent and expenses.

When the owner passes away and his daughters come to town, the hotel is thrown into mayhem. A strange woman shows up, looking for shelter from an abusive boyfriend, the chef quits abruptly, and the family arrives, desperately needing to hear the will read by an attorney, even as a major hurricane is forecast to arrive. Everyone thinks the storm will miss The Precipice but it takes direct aim instead, trapping the mysterious woman, the Bishop sisters and their families, and Charley inside the hotel.

This book felt a bit too obvious for me. I kept thinking that something was a red herring but it wasn't. Other aspects felt unbelievable. One example is Charley helping the mystery woman, Bree (this is at the beginning, so no spoilers here). But Charley has seen a lot, having dealt with a mother who was addicted to drugs and died from an overdose. She's been around sketchy people and has learned to watch out for herself. But then Bree shows up, and Charley is willing to hide her and doesn't question it. Bree offers Charley $1,200 to let her stay at the hotel, the exact amount she needs to cover the rent increase for Nana's apartment. You can understand Charley's naivete to an extent but this felt like too much.

I do think this book is a thriller, but also has a lot of family history, and a tiny bit of romance. For someone who doesn't want to read a hardcore, intense thriller, this would be a great option to pick up. There is some action and mystery, but it never veered into being insanely grotesque or scary.

The book itself is well-written, and the author does a good job of giving closure to the characters. We get to catch up with everyone and see what happened to them, and where they might be going next, and I found that satisfying. If you're looking for a mild thriller, or are new to the genre, this would be the book to read!

Welcome to the Precipice Hotel where it seems everyone has a secret, including the maid. When the owner of the Precipice Hotel dies, his three daughters return to read his will. Charley is hoping that she can impress the Bishop sisters in an attempt to keep her job and living situation. However, with Hurricane Larry devastating the small coastal town, she soon finds herself stuck in the hotel with a family who has more than one secret. Charley hopes to keep her own secret that is hiding in the hotel.

One Big Happy Family was a whirlwind of a mystery. This book was filled with unpredictable characters that all had secretive pasts. I enjoyed listening to the different timelines for each of the sisters and figuring out the secret that each sister held. The narrator did a fantastic job for each of the characters, especially Charley. This mystery kept me on my toes from beginning to end and I recommend this book for people who enjoy locked room mysteries.

One Big Happy Family is out today!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to review One Big Happy Family. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jamie Day did it again with another excellent story about one messed up family. In this “locked-in” thriller Charley is just trying to live her life and save enough money to keep her nana in an assisted living facility. When the owner of the hotel she works at and live in passes away his family all comes to the hotel to mourn their loved one and to read the will. It just so happens it also is one or the biggest storms of the year, trapping the family and Charley in the hotel, with an abundance of secrets and plots of revenge.

This was such a fast paced read that I really enjoyed. The characters were perfectly flawed and the story line was fun. Day did a great job of building up the atmosphere of the book I could picture being at the hotel in the hurricane. If you are a fan of locked in thrillers this one is for you.

Another solid suspense/thriller from Jamie Day!

Giving this one three starts which for me means I liked it but I didn't love it. I think the main thing that held it back was just that it didn't hold my attention well. Not sure if that is the book's fault or mine. Maybe both? Overall, I like the story line, but it did feel a little all over the place to me.

Excited to see what Jamie comes up with next!

This book will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat the whole time you are reading! If you're looking for a book that has twists,and suspense this is the book for you!