Setting is a coastal town in Maine. Lovely place for this story. The hotel Precipice's owner passed away by the name of George Bishop. The daughters come to hear the reading of the will and there is a Chambermaid by the name of Charley that is in the mix here too. Who is Charley hiding in the hotel? Charley has a few secrets which makes this so interesting, and with a massive storm is the perfect touch.

This makes for such a lovely read; I enjoyed the characters, and the entire story kept me interested so in all I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a nice easy read.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

As much as it pains me to say this I struggled to connect to the story and characters, was very slow going, and I found myself skimming through the majority of it. This just wasn’t the book for me. 2 stars — Pub. 7/16/24

I received an advanced copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book was slow and about 100 pages too long. Not very realistic and honestly quite disappointing. I did enjoy the main character but that was about it.

Not going to give anything away in this one! It starts off with Charley the maid at The Precipice hotel. She is the main maid at the hotel. The manager and Charley s best friend is Rodrigo. She has a grandmother who raised her until she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Unfortunately the place Guiding Way, where her grandmother was staying was raising there prices so now Charley was in a very dire place. She begins pilfering money from the guests. Just so she can get by.

Now they are getting the hotel ready for the Bishop sisters to arrive so they can hear the reading of the will, left by their father George. The three sisters are Vicki, Faith, and Iris. Vicki is married to Todd and Faith is with Hope. Iris is a recovering drug addict. and Todd and Vicki have a son Quinn.

As a storm is baring down on them the will is read. Families are families. In this instance this family is quite dysfunctional in so many ways that I don't have enough room to list them all. Then there is Charley herself that has secrets of her own. Hiding her little stow away in the hotel, where oh where might it be?

So, how many of this family will be checking in and how many will be checking out?

Crazy thrill ride thanks Jaime Day!

Happy Reading

When the owner of the Precipice Hotel suddenly dies, his three adult daughters, Vicki, Iris, and Faith, descend upon the property for the reading of the will. With a hurricane looming off the coast, hotel maid Charley finds herself caught up in the family's chaos, each family member with a secret. As members of the family start disappearing, Charley has to outwit each one simply to survive.

This locked-door thriller was very predictable to me. To be fair, locked-door thrillers are not my cup of tea and had I realized that this book fell into that category, I probably wouldn't have requested it. I thought the pace of the plot was slow and the ending was really flat for me. There really wasn't a big "WHAT?" moment anywhere throughout.

On the positive side, I love when none of the characters are really likable in thrillers and this one hit the nail on the head. You can't say you really are rooting for any of them, which makes the crazy actions all the more enjoyable. The setting was perfect for this plot, too: super atmospheric and isolated.

I'm not sure I'll read anything else by this author, but I'm glad I gave her a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital ARC. My review is honest and voluntary.

"With this cast of characters, I have a strong suspicion that the main course on tonight's menu will be a heaping portion of chaos."

Chaos is the word for the melodramatic One Big Happy Family, about off the wall siblings, by murder mystery author Jamie Day.

Working at the Precipice Hotel seems appropriate for chambermaid Charley. At 19, she's on the precipice of losing everything. Nana's nursing home raised the rent, the owner of the hotel died and his 3 daughters are coming for the reading of the will, leaving her job and her home in jeopardy.

When overbearing, eldest daughter Vicki, still beautiful once famous model Faith, and quiet recovering ex con, ex drug addict Iris show up at the hotel, just as a hurricane is coming, shutting down the hotel on the cliffs from everyone, it's a whirlwind of long kept secrets, long time brewing resentments and a too enticing night for murder.

Poor Charley is trying to wrangle the Bishops sisters to play nice after the reveals of their father's will; while dealing with power outages, powerful winds and...a dead body. Now they are trapped in the hotel and one of them is a killer.

The fact that the abundantly talented voice actress Saskia Maarleveld performed all these very different personalities, at various stages of their lives and their mental stability upped the entertainment value of this locked room family murder mystery.

Oh, did I mention Charley is also hiding a woman in one of the rooms from the Bishops?! There are so many secrets and twists, old and new, some I figured out but others were quite a surprise. This writer created a dysFUNctional family but, "...at the end of the day, blood is blood, and that bond is sacred." Well, until there's a murder...or two.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own

Unfortunately I was not able to make it through One Big Happy Family, and stopped about a quarter of the way in. There was nothing inherently wrong with the story, but nothing that felt original or compelling to keep me reading. Charley Kelley is a maid at The Precipice- a legendary, family-owned hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. The owner, Mr. Bishop has recently passed and his three daughters are coming up for the weekend for his service and to take their claim of the hotel. The sisters aren't the only thing arriving this weekend as a Hurricane is also approaching the coast of Maine. The first quarter of the book went quickly enough but again, I just wasn't really drawn in and some things seemed a little too farfetched, so I chose to stop reading. I definitely think this is a book that thriller lovers would like!

Jamie Day does it again. She has a way with bringing family drama and secrecy to the page.

The Bishop sisters and their family reunite at The Precipice, a family-owned hotel on the coast of Maine, for the reading of their fathers will. But with a hurricane approaching, the family along with some of the hotel’s staff, find themselves stranded at the hotel while the storm blows over. Like most families, the sisters have their secrets. Secrets from each other and secrets they intend to keep amongst the three of them. But when a body is discovered, there is risk of their secrets coming to light.

One Big Happy Family is a fast paced, locked-door, mystery thriller that will keep you guessing. Some parts I was able to predict, but there were aspects I did not see coming. The story is told both present day and with flashbacks to the sister’s past. Jamie Day has turned into an auto-read author for me.

I was expecting to love this story because I really enjoyed her first story but I just couldn’t get into it. The story dragged and the twists weren’t jaw dropping. I wish I had more good things to say about this story besides I liked Bree and liked Oliver’s rhyming ability to communicate but that’s about all. Thank you NetGalley for an early copy of this story even though it wasn’t a winner for me!

One Big Happy Family is a great suspense book for the summer that will keep you on the edge of your adirondack. The three Bishop sisters, Iris, Vicki, and Faith, have come to The Precipice Hotel to claim an inheritance after their father passed away. However, a hurricane is approaching, and all the sisters are all keeping dangerous and deadly secrets. This leaves a sense of mystery about the whole weekend. With all the danger surrounding the hotel, you have to wonder if everyone will make it out? Even with all the family drama, we meet Charley Kelley, a maid at the Precipice, who has huge secrets of her own. This book is filled with so many twists and turns that it will keep you guessing and trying to uncover just what all these people's secrets are and how deadly they are. Jamie Day writes the best suspense books and just in time to be a summer time favorite!

ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY by Jamie Day is a fast-paced and entertaining murder mystery with an atmospheric setting and plenty of family drama, suspense, and twists I didn’t see coming. The Precipice is a well-known hotel on the coast of Maine that has been owned by the Bishop family for decades. After the passing of the current owner, George Bishop, his daughters, Iris, Vicki and Faith have come to Maine with their families to hear a reading of will and claim their inheritances, despite the news that the hotel is directly in the path of a oncoming hurricane. Nineteen-year-old Charley Kelley is the hotel’s chambermaid. She also lives in the hotel in a converted closet where she tries to avoid George Bishop’s unwanted advances. Charley needs her job and the free rent so she can pay for her grandmother’s care. As the dysfunctional family convenes and the will is read, chaos soon ensues. All of the sisters and even Charley, have secrets they are desperate to keep hidden. And then someone dies. As the storm rages outside and everyone is trapped in the hotel, they must determine if the death was natural or there is a murderer in their midst. The story is told in four parts and from several points of view, giving insight into the backstories of the characters. All in all, this was a clever locked room mystery that kept me engaged right up until the final twist. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read and review an early copy.

'One Big Happy Family’ by Jamie Day
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication: July 16, 2024
Special thanks to Goodreads and St. Martin's Press for the Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

Very solid 3 star read for me.
Charlie, our main character, is a young maid at The Precipice Hotel struggling to take care of herself as well as her elderly grandmother. When the owner of The Precipice, George Bishop, passes away, Charlie prepares herself to impress the Bishop sisters coming into to town to claim their inheritance.
Enter the Bishop sisters: Vicki, Iris, and Faith. What an interesting and completely dysfunctional group this family is. As a storm rages outside we quickly see the nasty side to these sisters come out as they begin to turn on one another following a murder in the house.

Without giving too much away the main areas where this one fell apart for me were pacing and predictability. The beginning of the story was very slow, giving us a lot of backstory on the sisters and their relationships. Toward the end this started to pick up, but by that point I had a pretty decent guess regarding the ending. The epilogue also felt really unbelievable and unnecessary to me.

Overall, I would still read more by this author, but this one wasn't a stand-out favorite.

Meet Charley, a house keeper at the Precipice Hotel in Maine. She lives and works at the hotel, which grants her the opportunity to keep her grandmother, her only family member alive, in an assisted living home. When her boss dies and the home raises her grandmother's rent, Charley finds herself between a rock and a hard place.

The Bishop sisters, daughters of the man who owned the hotel, arrive to read his will and decide what to do with the property. Before they arrive, Bree stumbles in, trying to escape her abusive ex-boyfriend. Charley sees a money making opportunity and agrees to let Bree stay, hidden and out of sight, in exchange for cash (that Bree promises she'll get her as soon as she can). Mind you, everyone is arriving as Hurricane Larry makes landfall and batters the area.

The story is told from mostly Charley's point of view and in four parts. We do get glimpses of the sisters' lives, which is important for the storyline. The book starts off slow, but the burn is there. By the time you hit the final part of the book you cannot put it down, so much is happening.

The will is read and the sisters are upset. Somehow, the son-in-law receives the hotel, with the lawyer also having some control. Will family stick together or will they be torn apart? Death & murder is surrounding the hotel and people start to drop like flies. This is written almost in a one room manner, but they have an entire hotel at their disposal. Poems are scattered around, threatening more bad will happen unless secrets get exposed...and boy do the Bishop sisters have a LOT!

3.5 stars.  I thought this was alright. Nothing stood out to make this spectacular, even though it is a solid thriller with twists I did not see coming, especially at the end. I think the pacing at the beginning took away from the book for me, but I can see this easily being the favorite tale of MANY people, so don't let my rating deter you! The writing is solid and again, the twists are TWISTY! Plus, we have a very happy ending at the end. Overall, go for it, I'm not mad I read it and when you round 3.5 up, you get 4! Happy Reading!

A twisty locked room thriller told mainly from the POV of the maid, that takes place at a hotel as the recently deceased owner's family reunites for the reading of his will only to find themselves trapped by a hurricane with no cell service and one of them is out for revenge.

Full of secrets, lies, misdirection, dead bodies and all kinds of family drama, this was great on audio narrated by Saskia Maarleveld and recommended for fans of The maid by Nita Prouse, The nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney's and movies like Knives out.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review! This would make a great beach read for those looking for a fast-paced, entertaining story.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for the gifted ARC and thank you Macmillan Audio for the #gifted listening copy of One Big Happy Family! #MacAudio2024 #stmartinspress #OneBigHappyFamily #jamieday

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐠 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐲
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: 𝐒𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐝
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟔, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

3.5★

If you are a fan of locked room mysteries, this is one you will want to check out. I loved The Block Party, the debut novel by the author, so I had high hopes for this one, but I felt like this novel had a completely different vibe and was a little harder for me to get into. With that said, I did enjoy the premise of this book and loved the locked room mystery aspect. While the pacing was a little slow at times, there were a lot of twists and turns that made up for it and kept my attention. I was able to figure out a lot of the mystery, but I think this was a really good family drama and definitely worth the read!

🌩️Locked Room Mystery
🌩️Family Drama
🌩️Lots of Twists
🌩️Atmospheric
🌩️Lots of Secrets

🎧I mostly listened to the audiobook, narrated by Saskia Maarleveld. Saskia is a favorite of mine, and I thought she did a great job. I thought she did such a phenomenal job with this audiobook, and would highly recommend this one on audio if you have that option!

Posted on Goodreads on July 15, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around July 16, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on July 16, 2024
**-will post on designated date

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital ARC of "One Big Happy Family" by Jaime Day, with a publication date of July 16, 2024. "One Big Happy Family" is the first book I have read by this author, and I plan to read more of Ms. Day's books. "One Big Happy Family" revolves around three sisters arriving at the Precipice, a hotel in Maine, their childhood home. Charlie, a nineteen-year-old, works as a chambermaid at the Precipice and lives in one room. She is desperately trying to earn enough money each month to pay for the care of the maternal grandmother who raised her. Charlie earns a miserly salary and has to find creative ways to augment her salary. Right before the Bishop sisters arrive, a mysterious woman comes to the Precipice, tells Charlie she is trying to escape an abusive boyfriend, and asks Charlie if she can stay at the Precipice, promising to pay later. When the sisters, Iris, Vicki, & Faith, along with their spouses and children, gather at the hotel for the reading of their father's will, tensions rise, and old secrets resurface. As the hurricane barrels down on the hotel, the author slowly and methodically reveals each sister's childhood to adulthood and how their secrets intertwine with each other's lives. After the reading of the will, the lights go out, and murder and mayhem ensue. Charley works hard to unravel their secrets before others are killed. There are many twists and turns in "One Big Happy Family." The Bishop family is dysfunctional to the hilt, and there is never a dull moment in this story. 

So, hang on to your seat because you're in for a wild ride. If you enjoyed the novel "The Maid" and the movie "Knives Out," "One Big Happy Family" will not disappoint.

3.5/5 rounded up

Thank you St. Martin's Press for the advanced reading copy!

SYNOPSIS -- 19 year old Charley Kelley has made her living as a maid at The Precipice hotel as best she can. Between the grueling hours and being responsible for her Nan's assisted living bills, she's lucky to have a gig that includes free room and board. When her less-than-kind boss dies, his three daughters come to claim what they believe to be theirs. As the Bishop sisters drag an actual hurricane in with them, Charley somehow has to manage keeping the hotel, her job and a ton of secrets safe.

This was a fun, locked door thriller, with a great twist! While I was suspicious of a few things from the start, I was pleasantly surprised with the way things unfolded and the secrets that were revealed. Charley's character was great to root for, and I loved when we got pieces of her background. I think this book was plotted very well; the pacing felt great and kept me interested the entire time. I especially loved the flashbacks to the sisters' youth. This book was much more of a true thriller than Jamie Day's last book, and I enjoyed the suspense built up throughout. Overall, pretty solid, especially if you like locked-door thrillers with lots of characters to keep track of!

Have you ever had the feeling of relief when a book is over? That is exactly how I feel now that I have finished One Big Happy Family. It pulled me in slightly at close to fifty percent, but never fully hooked me. The plot is very layered with multiple characters. I was extremely thankful to be listening to the audiobook while also reading it. The audiobook helped bring the characters to life while helping me distinguish the various characters. I enjoyed the setting of the isolated hotel while trying to figure out the identity of the murderer. for me, this was just OK. There was nothing extremely memorable or overly interesting. I was satsatisfied with the conclusion and it did add a surprise at the ending that bumped my rating up a point. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my copy.

The Bishop sisters are returning to Maine after their father has passed to lay claim to the Precipice Hotel. Vicki, Iris, and Faith all have different agendas, and all want their fair share. The women fled from their past years ago with a dark secret haunting them, never expecting it to reemerge. And now a hurricane approaching does nothing to lighten the mood.

Charley Kelley is just trying to do her best by her beloved grandmother who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. George Bishop let her have a job cleaning rooms at Precipice, but not without dealing with his unwanted advances. Charley makes do so that she can give her grandmother the best care she can afford. Now with the Bishop sisters arriving, she only hopes she will still have a job at the end of the day, and they don’t find out about her secret guest she is harboring at the hotel.

One Big Happy Family is a locked room mystery filled with family drama. The first half of the book dragged a bit for me, but the last quarter definitely picked up the pace, though I did not find the twists hard to figure out. Overall, this is an easy read that doesn’t require too much focus, maybe best read beachside.

Synopsis: Three sisters return to their family-owned hotel after the death of their father to claim their inheritance all while a hurricane bears down on the coast of Maine.

Thoughts: One Big Happy Family is a locked room mystery that is significantly more family drama than thriller. This wasn’t a bad book, I just don’t think it was something I was in the mood for. I found the first two sections to be a big dragging with the pacing. While the final sections sped up, I was able to mostly solve the mystery ahead of time. That being said, if you like juicy family drama with a slow-burn locked room type mystery plot, you should definitely give this book a try! A note on the audio: this was the first narration by Saskia Maarleveld, and I really enjoyed her work!

Read this if you like:
🏨 family drama
🏨 locked room mysteries
🏨 dual timelines
🏨 slow burn