I always enjoy a Lucy Foley book—they're twisty, fun page-turners and you never really know what's going to happen next. This tale follows the ultimately deadly opening weekend of The Manor, a luxury retreat off the coast of England. Flipping between the opening weekend and the events that took place on the estate decades prior, the story follows several points of view to reveal how the consequences of actions long ago come back to haunt.

Lucy Foley is the author that got me into thrillers, and therefore she is a must-read for me. I've been excited about the Midnight Feast since she announced it and was pleased to be given a digital galley by William Morrow via NetGalley right before it came out. Thanks!

Unfortunately, for the majority of this book it didn't really have the same magic for me as some of her other reads. While I loved the remote English countryside setting and the switching point of views between four main characters, I felt like the better part of this book was a slog. I need more of an inciting incident to get me hooked. I wasn't really excited to go home and read at the end of the day because it felt like the plot was meandering a bit.

That said, I really enjoyed the diary entries and how things were revealed little by little to us. Additionally, it really picked up in the last 30% or so, and at that point I couldn't put it down until I finished. For the vibes and the way that Foley works to keep us guessing while slowly giving us tastes of the answer, I would consider this a 3.5 star read rounded up.

I really enjoyed this slow burn thriller. There were a lot of characters but I enjoyed all the multiple points of views, even though I really didn’t like most of the characters. This was told across 3 timelines which was confusing at times but worked well to tell the story.

Lucy Foley's books are always enjoyable reads for me and The Midnight Feast was no different. I switched back and forth between my kindle ARC and the audiobook and I would really recommend reading this one via audio if that's your thing - all of her books have fantastic audio productions with full casts and are some of my favorites. I'll be thinking about this midnight feast and the creepy birds for a while to come.

I've always had a complicated relationship with Lucy Foley's thrillers because there are SO MANY characters, sometimes it's hard to keep track of, but this one was just absolutely delightful, despite the number of characters with complicated relationships. The past and the present are so well woven together and added a whole new dimension to this story.

Although this felt like more of a slow burn than her previous books to me, it still kept me turning the pages trying to figure out what was happening and what the connections between past and present were. The spookiness and atmosphere of the woods was eerie but perfect for this story and the folklore element. Altogether, this was a delight to read and I can't wait for Foley's next thriller!

I love a good locked door mystery, but most I've read lately seem like I've 'been there, done that'. This one was definitely not like that. I was fresh and original even for just an old trope. I couldn't put it down!

I read and liked The Guest List and The Hunting Party but I did not like The Paris Apartment so I had hoped to like this one. Unfortunately that wasn’t exactly the case. I don’t necessarily dislike it... it was better than The Paris Apartment but it wasn’t great. Some of it seemed to drag and was a bit tedious but it wasn’t bad just ok. I suppose I’ll have to read the author’s next book to decide whether I’m a fan or not.

The Midnight Feast was among my top 2024 anticipated reads from my auto-buy author, Lucy Foley. So to say I was excited to receive an e-arc copy in exchange for my honest review is putting it light.

In true Lucy Foley fashion, The Midnight Feast is a "locked-in" murder mystery set in a luxury resort on the English coast with a bit of a supernatural vibe. The story unfolds at the opening weekend of a high-end wellness retreat in a stretch of land in Dorset with beautiful ocean views on one side and dark (haunted?) woods on the other. The locals, including a mysterious ancient group called the Birds, are not enthusiastic about the hotel and its wealthy aristocratic clientele.

The story is told through multiple POVs:
- the resort founder, Francesca
- her husband and architect, Owen
- the mystery guest, Bella
- the kitchen help, Eddie
- a narrative of Detective Investigator (DI) Walker
-Timeline jumps between opening weekend 2025 and a summer journal from 2009 written by a middle-class teen (Alison) on vacation recounting her time with a beautiful, posh, and manipulative girl from the nearby estate.

During the summer solstice in 2025, Francesca opens "The Manor" as a high-end, luxury wellness retreat with lavish activities that have a bit of a pagan mystic. Her husband & architect, Owen, accompanies her to join in the festivities as well as oversee expansion construction on the property. We also follow the mysterious Bella who seems to be "up to something" and Eddie who is a local from the nearby farm working in the kitchens, but hoping to move up the ladder to bartender. When a body is found the morning after the solstice, DI Walker is called to the scene to investigate. Along the way, the past is brought into the present, and skeletons are let out of the proverbial closets of each character.

Overall, The Midnight Feast was entertaining. I did struggle through the first few chapters, but once over that hump, I was on the edge of my seat trying to figure out who the body belonged to and what happened during the crazy night of festivities. It was fun to see how each character's plotline intersected with one another. The downfalls were that the characters lacked depth and the ending was a bit of a stretch.

I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a quick mystery beach read. Thank you to NetGalley & the publishers for providing an e-arc copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to William Morrow for the free ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is out now!

It’s the opening weekend of The Manor - a new, extremely posh hotel for the elite. A Midnight Feast (think Midsommar) is set to welcome the guests and no expense is spared. But one guest, Bella, has come for the weekend to confront the beautiful and Mew-Age hippy owner, Francesca Meadows, about a terrible night that happened 15 years ago. The locals are also staunchly against The Manor and all it stands for, as well as The Birds - a local legend of vigilantes that serve justice in the community. The night spins out of control, and someone is found dead…and it’s anyone’s guess to who’s responsible.

I keep hoping for the propulsiveness of Foley’s novel The Guest List and this unfortunately fell a little flat for me. The story really dragged and was repetitive for the first 75% of the book. The last 25% was quicker and had a few decent twists. I could not STAND Francesca’s POV - the new-age stuff was laid on way too thick and it made me cringe how she called everyone “lovelies” and her husband “my beloved”. No one talks like that and it the use of both were way overboard. Also - what 30 something woman is hanging out with 16 year olds?! IN WHAT WORLD?!

I had a really hard time liking this book until the very end. I keep wanting to like Foley's books, they have great covers, the premises are interesting and they get a lot of buzz. But I continue to be dismayed. This one just didn't hold my attention at all, there was no deep hook and I spent way too much time on it as a reviewer. But I just wanted to like it and ultimately I'm glad I pushed through because I did really like the ending. I just wish I would have gotten there sooner.

I just couldn’t get into this. There were a lot of characters with changing POVs and timelines so I found it hard to follow and a little dull.

While a highly anticipated ARC read for me, this book was a miss for me. The setting was written with such beautiful detail.. a woodsy forest that overlooks a stunning seaside. The small town, island manor vibe provided such a spooky vibe for the supernatural premise of the story. While some characters were absolutely obnoxious, they were majorly well written . Unfortunately, the story pace and constant changing POVs left me more frustrated than enthralled. This could have been such a suspenseful, enjoyable story but fell short.

Thank you to Net Galley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read an E-ARC of The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley in exchange for my honest review.

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐝𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐅𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭
𝐋𝐮𝐜𝐲 𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐲
𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬
𝐀𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐰
𝟓⭐️


I’ve never been disappointed with a Lucy Foley book and this time was no different! When the story first started there was a lot going on and we are given ALOT of characters, but within a few chapters it all comes together!

The chapters are so short, literally no more than two pages and this allowed me to fly through the book! The author did a great job incorporating twists right at the perfect timings- also the twists were not unrealistic and actually very unpredictable!

This was such a well written, full of character development, fun, book and I 100% reccomend! This book is 𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐀𝐕𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄, a perfect summer read. Thank you to @williammorrowbooks for the gifted copy of this amazing book🖤!

𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒: “ It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense, small or large, has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles; crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches; the “Manor Mule” cocktail (grapefruit, ginger, vodka, and a dash of CBD oil) is being poured with a heavy hand. Everyone is wearing linen.

But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. Something’s not right with the guests. There’s been a fire. A body’s been discovered.”
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#themidnightfeast#lucyfoley
#williammorrowbooks#bookreview
#williammorrowpublishing
#netgalley#2024releases
#5starreads#bookfeature

Thank you, Netgalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this work more than the previous work of this author. It has a bit of creepy magic involved that adds a twist of magic.

The twists in the story are plentiful and an enjoyable pace. The author does a fantastic job of writing a villain with no redeeming qualities. A villain you love to hate.

The story is told in multiple POVs, and the characters are interesting. There wasn’t a character that was dull.

The cult aspect adds a creepy element. Crows now have a new meaning in this reader's eyes.

What an interesting ride this one was. It was quite different than I was expecting. I have read this author before and have had mixed feelings, but overall liked them. This one is no exception to that.

I luxury vacation destination combined with folklore, secrets from the past and well, birds.

I liked the dual timelines and finding out what happened in the past and what the big secret was. I found the first half quite slow but the pace picked up after that and got much more interesting. Full of characters you love to hate. I really didn't know who to pull for in this one. In the end it was a good book. I just wasn't too sure about that at the beginning.

3 1/2

Thanks to netgalley and William Morrow for the arc.

Lucy Foley's books are always either super stunners or major misses for me (for some reason there seems to be no in between with her) and I'm so glad this one was in the stunner category! By like page 20 I was hooked and read the entire thing in a day. All of the characters were fully developed with their own set of secrets and a private Big Reveal for each that was so worth it (and I few that I was REALLY not expecting). There was also just enough dropped about The Birds that I couldn't help but wonder if we were going to get some supernatural elements in this book of if it really was just local superstition. The way everything came together near the end was fantastic, without being too clean and wrapped up. Truly amazing work!

A new favorite locked in thriller. The setting and cast of characters were perfect, I felt like I was amongst the guests and workers holding on to a secret of my own. At times it can be a bit overwhelming with all the povs, diary entries, etc but I was still able to keep up with the drama.

Great read…Lucy Foley always tells an entertaining story that keeps me guessing. Great first person narrative and character depth.

This was a pretty different thriller than what you would typically see. The premise of building a hotel on like native land was interesting. A lot of the secrets and twists and turns but nothing truly like jaw dropping. It was overall a good read and like refreshing bc it was different. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Where to start? For fans of White Lotus and Midsommar or anyone looking for the perfect summer thriller. The vibes were immaculate. I was enjoying my time with the characters so much that I didn't even attempt to make guesses because the ride was so fun. This is Lucy Foley at her best!