I was excited to start this one as I really liked the authors last book. Unfortunately this one fell flat for me. No likeable characters and the twists weren’t wowing me. Looking forward to seeing what the authors come out with next.

Thanks to netgalley for my advanced audio copy

SO MUCH DRAMA.
I understand some people may enjoy this, but the fact that the drama outweighs the suspense was a real bummer for me.
Family secrets with a mixture of murder and not to mention a hurricane lurking by was exciting! Perhaps my hopes were too high on this one. The characters are interesting and all oh so different. The "thrills" were predictable and just drug out.
Overall, it felt less thrilling and more dramatic than anything. It was like watching a soap opera slowly unfold. Not terrible but again, really lacked any thrill or suspense.

The narration however was top notch. I enjoyed the delivery of the story by Saskia Maarleveld.

Thank you, Macmillan Audio, Jamie Day, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a suspenseful, atmospheric read set on the coast of Maine. A family reunites after the death of their father. Differing personalities and the aftermath of past events cause tension and descension. I loved the setting and stormy atmosphere. Lots of twists cap this off. The narrator dies an excellent job of keeping pace and creating suspense.

This was an incredibly atmospheric locked-room mystery! I loved the ominous feeling and the brooding sense of being stranded and trapped by a hurricane.

Though it was quite slow-paced, it was packed with entertaining and tense family drama, secrets, and lies!

While I enjoyed Day’s debut, The Block Party a bit more than this one, I’m still curious to see what he does next!

I was hoping this would be a lot more suspenseful than it ended up being. It seemed to drag on, be improbable and none of the characters were particularly likeable. I would give it 2.5 stars but rounded up to 3.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC. After Jamie Day’s last book, I was really excited for this. Unfortunately it did not live up to my expectations. It was kind of slow, and the big reveal was literally just someone explaining how they had done everything and why. Which felt very unrealistic and cheap. Not great.

Family drama? Check!
Isolated location? Check!
Inability to leave because of bad weather? Check!

So many things I love it a thriller!

Jamie Day is back at it with another drama filled, easy to binge thrill ride! I listened to this one on audio and it was the perfect companion to my work commute. I was entertained from start to finish as I tried to guess the secrets each character is clearly hiding. There’s tension for days as secrets come to light and I was 100% there for the drama!

If you’re looking for a fun, fast-paced read for the beach or poolside this summer, this is definitely one I would recommend!

I was excited to read another Jamie Day book after reading The Block Party. This book took a lot of turns that I was not expecting. I enjoyed reading about all the characters and their complicated relationships with each other. When the next Jamie Day book comes out, I will definitely read it!

I’m always down for a thriller to break up my romance/fantasy reads and I was really looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, this one just fell a little short for me.

The build up was slower than anticipated and the characters’ actions were just a little too predictable for me.

It was a good premise, hence me requesting this, and I love a story about sisters in any capacity, so there were definite parts and the setting was *chefs kiss*. I really liked how the weather was almost like a character in it’s own right, foreshadowing a lot of the events.

It really had all the makings of a knockout, I just wish I couldn’t have predicted a few of the twists.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

This started out strong, mysteries slowing unraveling, multitude of storylines merging. But about half way through I lost interest in the story.

An eccentric, wealthy family gathers at their father's hotel to hear the reading of his will following his demise, only to find more death waiting for them. With a hurricane knocking at the hotel door, who will survive? What family secrets will be revealed as the maid and a stowaway guest look on?

This book had real potential. I thought it was a fun mix of Agatha Christie and family drama. But it was too all over the place for me with a lot of sections that dragged on too long. Not terrible, but definitely not my favorite. I lost interest and had trouble keeping up by about 80% through the audiobook. The narration was OK, nothing special.

This title fell a little short of her book "The Block Party." It was still a worthwhile read. Maybe I'm just a little tired of the Hotel/Maid trope which I wasn't expecting to be such a big part of this book.

I spent a lot of time trying to immerse myself in the world of this book. I expected family intrigue. And there was some. It was interrupted by a lot of ridiculousness. Gee, I think there is somewhere here killing people. But look how cute that guy is! Is my uniform making me look like a maid?
The main character worried about a lot of ridiculous things, which was weird when you consider the real problems she had to worry about. The three sisters at the center of it all had some backstory told but not enough to have gotten themselves into the position they are all in now. I found them all to be unlikeable and boring.

"One Big Happy Family" is a sarcastic title for this family drama and thriller novel by Jamie Day.

The Precipice is a quirky old hotel on the coast of Maine. The patriarch of the Bishop family has recently passed away, and his estranged adult daughters are coming together there for the reading of his will. At the same time, Hurricane Larry is bearing down upon them. The sisters all have secrets they would rather not discuss.

The main character is Charley, a young woman who has been the maid at the hotel for several years. She is mentally mature far beyond her years. I liked this character.

The plot was complicated, and the book seemed very slow to me. There is a death (or is it a murder?) not too long into the visit of the sisters and their families. Then, the hurricane strands them all at the hotel. The suspense increases.

Characters - 4/5
Writing - 3/5
Plot - 3/5
Pacing - 2/5
Unputdownability - 1/5
Enjoyment - 2/5
Narration - 3/5 by Saski Maarleveld
Cover - 3/5
Overall - 21/8 = 2 5/8, rounded up to 3 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, MacMillan Audio, and Jamie Day for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I struggled to think where I wanted to rate this one. On one hand it is twisty and kept my attention (mostly), on the other hand sometimes I just found myself shaking my head so hard. Who would do or say these things? BUT that said, it is fiction and if you can suspend your disbelief it could be really enjoyable!

The characters are mostly so unlikable. Even our narrator, Charley, has her faults. This is all about each character's secrets and there are definitely enough secrets to go around! So many twists! Some were easier to figure out early on than others. A couple times my jaw dropped.

Overall, this was a quick and entertaining read.

I thought the narrator did a good job. The voice and inflections were great.

Entertaining but overall not as gripping as The Block party. I really appreciate the author’s talent as weaving the narrative, building suspense, and landing the plane. Overall this novel wasn’t surprising or really standout to me, just because I loved their previous book I was a bit nonplussed. I’m eager for the next one.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

<b>TW/CW:Language, drug addiction, sexual abuse, domestic abuse, drug overdose, death of parent, dementia, classism, eating disorder, bullying, family drama, toxic family relationships, abusive relationships, drinking, smoking, cheating, depression, anxiety, infertility, death by suicide, cancer, physical abuse </b>

<b><big>*****SPOILERS*****</b></big>
<b>About the book:</b>
The Precipice is a legendary, family-owned hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. With the recent passing of their father, the Bishop sisters—Iris, Vicki, and Faith—have come for the weekend to claim it. But with a hurricane looming and each of the Bishop sisters harboring dangerous secrets, there's murder in the air—and not everyone who checks into the Precipice will be checking out.

Each sister wants what is rightfully hers, and in the mix is the Precipe's nineteen-year-old chambermaid Charley Kelley: smart, resilient, older than her years, and in desperate straits.

The arrival of the Bishop sisters could spell disaster for Charley. Will they close the hotel? Fire her? Discover her habit of pilfering from guests? Or even worse, learn that she's using a guest room to hide a woman on the run.
<b>Release Date:</b> July 16th, 2024
<b>Genre:</b> Thriller
<b>Pages:</b> 368
<b>Rating:</b> ⭐

<b>What I Liked:</b>
1. Writing was good
2. Love the plot of a cut off hotel from society during a storm

<b>What I Didn't Like:</b>
1. Felt slow
2. Predictable
3. Boring boring boring
4. Basic thriller
5. Unnecessary romance
6. The rhyming 14 year old

<b>Overall Thoughts:</b>
<b><i><small>{{Disclaimer: I write my review as I read}}</small></i></b>

Seriously I would not trust Janice. Why wouldn't she tell Charley about Medicare. Or get her on Medicaid some kind of financial aid so that she isn't paying this rent on her own and they could help. Maybe it doesn't exist in this world.

I don't know how the guests wouldn't know it was the maid stealing from them. No one has complained in the years she's worked there about missing money?

Honestly I'm just really annoyed at how much she complains about being a maid. She acts like it's the hardest job and yes there are hard days (I was also a maid at a hotel so I know that some days are hard), but she makes out like she never gets days off and she never gets time to herself. We are in the middle of the storm and she's even complaining about no guests so you go from her complaining about too much work to not enough.

Her stealing from guests and I'm over here wondering why she doesn't get a second job at night. She could pick up a second part time job and that would help a lot rather than banking on people having cash and losing her job. Maids usually work 8am to 4/5pm, so she could get another job.

This random woman that she met at a location I can't remember and don't care to look up shows up at the hotel promising the she'll give her $1,000 if she will hide her for the week at the hotel. And I'm just like no that makes zero sense and you might get screwed over in this deal. You have no proof that this person is really even going to give you the money once the week is over. You have no idea how dangerous this boyfriend is of hers and you're putting yourself in the crosshairs of their fight. Charley asks her why doesn't she just call the police and she shows the text messages that Jake has sent her that are on the edge of threatening but not really and says that that's not enough for the place. And I mean that is true. But how does she have no one else to call to get home to even help her? Why wouldn't she go to the police sit with the police and call somebody to come and get her or someone to send her the money to go home. I don't know... Thrillers just make me even more suspicious but I just don't feel like I want to help people when they have this weird scenario happening.

Charley mentions a photo that's in the hallway of some of Georgia's favorite workers and she mentions that she was just very nicely next to a nice car but didn't know how she managed to have that much money on a maids pay. 100% says that this girl that showed up is George's daughter and she's here to contend the will. That the woman in the photo is her more that was;
• Paid to leave town when he assaulted her and she was pregnant

There were sometimes when George was described as an okay guy to he was sexually assaulting women. It was always switching by Charley

They act like this hotel is so tiny that they have no where to put Bree. It's 3 stories. I'd be putting this woman in the basement/attic if my job was at risk.

Of course Quinn is hot and Charley is all about that so hoping this doesn't turn into a romance.

Oh no I am so shocked that Todd was killed. Who could have seen that happening!?

Seriously now we are saying the kid is a psychic.

I don't like jumping back into the past. It feels like it slowed down the momentum of the book and the mystery. Now we are reading about the sisters as they have went their own ways. I loved the isolation but now it's just in the background of this story.

Todd sleeping with Faith before going out with Vicki. Ewww. Not sure how they never knew that Faith and Todd were living together.

I had a laugh because in this flashback of Todd they just paint him like this typical villain. Vicky is adopting Iris' son because she's went back to using drugs and is incapable of taking care of him. The whole time during the court thing Todd is mad because they're losing out on money for being foster parents.
<i><b>"So we lose the money from the state for being foster parents and get all the burden of Quinn’s ongoing expenses . Great deal, Vic! You really crushed this one.”</b></i>
Not happy about Vicki adopting Quinn when she says to Iris that she's now his mother and Iris will only be known as his aunt. Heartless.

Can't forget that Todd had competition removed from Faith's modeling career. And when Faith approaches him about it, that she had ended her life he says good riddance. But even Faith was questioning whether he had sexually assaulted that girl when he had drugged her so she'd miss her modeling appointment.

It's just crazy how many conversations Charley is privy to with this family. It seems like she's always just right where everything is happening. Whenever they're having heated conversations that pertain to family affairs there's Charley hanging out in the wings. I'm really trying to understand what Charley does if the whole time she's just standing with the family. Why would she have to sit here while they do a three card spread? It's just crazy. There's zero reason to have the maid there.

It also doesn't make any sense why would this family that Todd died hang around the house? I get that it's a hurricane but what is the point of hanging out the house? Just because the detective said to wait around which is silly it makes zero sense. Because one of them is still a murderer why would the police have them all still in the house in case someone else ends up getting killed?

Love that Charley is jealous of Bree and she's questioning whether Quinn is more attracted to her than Charley? There is a murderer on the loose someone was killed in this house and you're worried about Bree looking more attractive to another man. What are you doing?? Who would react like this? Does no one care about the safety of themselves?

I still think that it's Bree. She keeps planting people that they are the ones that would be guilty. Plus she had the motive to kill this person. Plus she's the witness who said she heard arguing and shuffle outside her room.

Cool cool we habe so much time in this book to stop what we are doing to look for a painting that was rumored to be worth thousands of dollars. But don't worry because Charley doesn't care that she might be hanging out with a murderer because he's hot. When you're hot you can't be the killer. Duh!

Oliver's stupid rhyming is interesting at first and then gets pretty annoying after a few pages. Oliver might be one of my top most annoying characters.

I skipped a little bit through the book I was so bored.

Oh look at that George is Bree's father//<b>shocked</b>//

So Bree managed to gain George's trust and hang out with him this whole time for like a month and no one saw them together? I just don't understand how that's possible no one in the hotel saw them. Bree also killed George. Christina got pregnant with George. And she knows that the sisters killed Samuel, who was going to be the best stepfather that Bree had. Not sure how she knew that just from her mother's words.

Are you kidding me? Quinn runs out there to go and get the painting from Bree. As though he did not just inherit $220,000. But he needs this painting he needs it back so badly. A painting he didn't even know about till a few days ago.

Omg Bree left the painting to Charley in the event that she didn't come out of this alive. She knew her like 3 days but she wrote this whole note to let Charley know how great she was.

I knew knew knew Janice was ripping off Charley. Seriously though how the hell wouldn't Charley know this fact. It's not like they just out you on Medicaid because you need it. You have to apply for it. Was Janice the one who put her grandma on medicaid? But then I feel like you have to prove who you are to that person you can't just say that they're living in your facility. She's not even the legal guardian of her. This just seems insane.

<b>Final Thoughts:</b>
Basic thriller with nothing thrilling that happens. Predictable with a capital P.

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<b><small>Thanks to Netgalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

There was so much I enjoyed about One Big Happy Family.

When Iris, Vicki and Faith's father passes away, the three sisters come together at their family hotel, The Precipice. Upon arrival, they are greeted by the young chambermaid, Charley Kelley. Unbeknownst to the sister, Charley is hiding a guest in the hotel. Upon reading the will, the sisters are shocked and much drama ensues.

Throughout the book, we learn about Charley and the hidden guest's deep connections to The Precipice. The author does a nice job weaving the pasts of the characters together. The sisters have a whole lot of drama.

I felt after the mid-point of the story, everything became a bit unrealistic. So much drama. So much going on. It seemed a bit far-fetched.

I really enjoyed the narrator,  

One Big Happy Family Saskia Maarleveld. She always does an excellent job, and I often seek out books narrated by her. She did a fantastic job narrating this novel as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillian Audio for this advance listen in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love this story! I finally found a recent beach book that isn’t corny and formula based. Looking forward to more books by this author. It reminds me of an old fashion Whodunit. The characters were very interesting and easy to follow. A Family and the maid trapped in an old hotel during a raging storm. Set in an a desolate part of Maine

If you're a locked-room mystery/thriller lover, run run run to grab Jamie Day's latest - One Big Happy Family.

Charlie works as a maid at a Maine hotel. The owners of the hotel are converging on the area for one weekend to discuss the will and testament of their father - George Bishop. George Bishop was a horrific human being and his three daughters - the Bishop sisters - aren't all that much better. To make the weekend just that much more entertaining, Hurricane Larry is rolling through and he's predicted to be a doozy.

Cue all your best elements of a locked-room thriller: trapped in a creepy hotel with a murderer, eerie clues about who might be next, countless secrets and terrible people, tons and tons of red herrings and layers of drama.

I listened to this novel on audio and enjoyed the narrator though I didn't think she was the best choice for Charlie. Her voice was more mature than I typically associate for a 19 year old so I often forgot how young Charlie was. She did add great elements of theater and drama to the tale though so I appreciated the entertainment value.

Overall, this was an entertaining read. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and MacMillan Audio for the copy.