This was a fast paced book that really keeps you on your toes. Wondering what the next big event will be, and there are a lot of them! It paints the scene with the descriptive detailed plot and setting. It feels as if you’re actually there with the characters. There’s nothing like reading about a dysfunctional family, this book takes you into the thick of the family drama! It’s twisty and a fun read! Loved the thrill of it.

I had a hard time getting into this book. I got almost to 50% of the audiobook before it started picking up and the thrill aspect was introduced in the book. The author provided great back stories for each of the characters to help know who each person was as the book continued. I did struggle with how fast some of the storyline progressed in the last half of the book and trying to follow along with the plot.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc audiobook!
Wow! I read another book by Jamie Day and loved it, so was so excited to see this! The same here! I wasn’t sure what to expect, so many different things happening that I never had a solid idea of “who did it”. I finished this very quickly, in a day - and was sucked in the whole time! Very fast paced and so many surprises. I loved it! 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was one of those thrillers that I didn't feel any real emotions towards it. It wasn't bad but it also wasn't super mind blowing, unique either. It was entertaining to listen to and a little over the time. It passed the time. Felt a little long after a bit. I figured out some of the big twists but some I didn't see coming. Overall, it was enjoyable enough to listen to!

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for access to this audiobook for review purposes.

For me thrillers are better when I listen to them! There is something about the genre that lends itself to being a good audiobook experience. The remained true for One Big Happy Family- the narrator was very engaging and had me hooked early on in setting the creepy vibe of an isolated beachfront hotel on the eve of an incoming hurricane.
Sadly, the story itself did not live up to the expectations set in the first part. Despite the delivery, there is a marked shift in the point of view in part two that is supposed to flashback to help us understand the motivations of the characters and increase the tension in the present. This didn't work well though, as it moved the attention from the locked room to past events, so there was no big reveal when things came out in the present. It felt repetitive and by the time all the characters understand what is happening, the reader has known for a while. For me this undermined the suspense and made an interesting concept a fairly boring experience.

I liked this one more than I thought I would. The cast of characters/locked room setting, etc. I thought there were parts that were not believable, but with some mysteries there needs to be a time when you set aside your disbelief. Overall, kept me interested!

Listen, I am going to be for real with you. I am straight up not having a good time. This book has way too many characters, who are virtually indistinguishable from one another. These people are full of self inflated importance, and why should I care about them? The main character is somewhat sympathetic, but I just found her to be excruciatingly annoying.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC. Saskia Maarleveld was a great narrator as always, but this book just was not for me.

In One Big Happy Family, the heirs to the owner of a hotel have all returned to the hotel during a massive storm to read their father’s/grandfather’s will and chaos ensues. Secrets, lies, and deceptions all come to light when the family is back together. It was bonkers. So twisted, so intense and also so bananas. It went a bit off the rails towards the end after so much build up and I did some gasping and scoffing when it veered off in a crazy (and a bit of an absurd) direction. But overall, once I suspended reality, it was a fun rollercoaster.

I really enjoyed this book! It definitely makes true the statement "theres no more messed up institution than family". SO many twists and turns that beg the question....how close are sibling bonds, actually?

Thanks, netgalley for the arc/audio book!

This was a great read. I was constantly left guessing what would happen next. The Bishop sisters are intriguing, each in their own way. Charlie is such a likable character and I found myself rooting for her, no matter the cost. Hurricane Larry added a nice background to all that was happening. I can’t wait to read another book from this author!

🪨Book Review🪨
*
Summary:
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.
*
Rating- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
*
My thoughts- this one releases in August and I was super hyped to receive an advanced audiobook for it. While it was beautifully narrated and super atmospheric , think gothic hotel in the middle of an intense hurricane with crazy family drama, it ultimately fell short. I saw the twist coming a mile away and I did not like any of the characters, which was my main problem. I should have connected with Charley, but I found her super disloyal and quick to throw away people who actually cared about her because she thought the nephew was hot. All in all, it was very atmospheric and has some juicy toxic family drama, it just fell short.
*
QOTD- what did you do this weekend ?!
*

Great narrator. Lots of family drama but this book didn’t meet my expectations. Heard a lot about this author but was slightly disappointed. Would definitely give Jamie Day another try.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this early! However, this book wasn't it for me. I liked the author's debut, the Block Party, but this one felt equal parts slow, eye rolly, convenient, formulaic and over the top. This book is about a young girl named Charley who is a housekeeper at a hotel owned by the Bishop family. The handsy, wealthy owner dies and now his 3 daughters are coming to the hotel to stake their claims. A huge hurricane is also on its way, so the whole crew quickly gets stuck at the hotel, just as other people start dying. The only people at the hotel are Charley, the sisters and their spouses/kids, a random woman who is secretly hiding out there to get away from her abusive boyfriend, and a cop and lawyer. There are a couple other employees that are a minor part of the story as well. The set up of this book takes a long time and honestly did nothing for me. The sisters all blended together, there wasn't much tension and overall I just didn't care. Then we get a flashback section about the girls in their teen/early adult years and it helped us to know more motives and relationship dynamics but instead of making me care more about the characters, it just felt like I was being spoon fed motives and a reason to be suspicious of everyone. Because the cast of characters was all a dysfunctional family, I never really felt concern for Charley. Clearly they were just working out their drama with each other in murderous ways, and since we were getting this from Charley's perspective, it felt more like we were watching a homicidal soap opera instead of something thrilling and intense. The creepy kid aspect was really off putting for me. One of the women have a 14 year old boy who is strange and talks in riddles. There is a scene with tarot cards and potential possession that I really didn't like. The conclusion to the whole thing is so convenient its laughable and it wasn't shocking. Overall, this book just had me rolling my eyes, replaying parts to try to regain interest and sort of feeling like I wasted my time. It was fine enough, but not something Id recommend.

This was a pretty middle of the road thriller for me. I enjoy locked room mysteries and this kept me decently entertained. It felt like the story was being set up for a long time. Even 75% in, I didn't think there was much action. I enjoyed the main character Charley, but the 3 sisters were pretty obnoxious, which I guess was the point. This would be good for a newbie to mysteries.

I listened to this on audio. Saskia Maarleveld did a great job narrating.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC!

Charley is a chambermaid at a hotel. When her boss dies, the three Bishop sisters and their families come to the hotel to hear a reading of the will. The book offers an exciting premise complete with a hurricane on the way, revealed secrets, and murder. Unfortunately, the book fell flat for me. I didn’t connect with the characters and I found it to be repetitive.

Nineteen year old hotel housemaid, Charley, has experienced a lot at her young age. She works tirelessly at the Previpice hotel on the coast of Maine to afford her living expenses and still save e bough to pay for the care of her grandmother, whose memory is fading quickly. When the hotel patriarch dies his family, the Bishop sisters, descend upon the hotel to get what they think they deserve. With a storm raging outside and egos soaring inside, no one can be trusted. After 2 people end up dead, no o e feels safe and no one is above suspicion. With the WiFi knocked out, and some residents injured, how can they get help and will they stay alive long enough to do so? Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for the ARC. This is my honest review.

ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY by Jamie Day and narrated by Saskia Maarleveld was the crazy family suspense that was a perfect, popcorn, summer read out July 16th by @stmartinspress & @macmillan.audio

Charley is the maid at the Precipice, a family owned hotel on the coast of Maine. The patriarch has died and the family has gathered to have the will read, and no one seems happy to see each other. When one of the party ends up dead, it is revealed that everyone had a motive. Charlie is stuck with this dismal family reunion until the approaching hurricane passes, but tries to keep out of their crosshairs!

This was a soap-operatic family with few redeeming qualities. To have the viewpoint of the proverbial fly-on-the-wall was a fun choice, as the maid is often invisible. I did guess a major reveal pretty early, but still had fun watching it all unfold, grateful for my family!

I thoroughly enjoyed having both digital and audio options in which to enjoy. I am a fan of Maarleveld, and will probably listen to just about anything if she is narrating. She captured the story so well and I am grateful to the publishers for access via @netgalley.

What I keep seeing is that when in Maine, beware of being caught in a storm in a creepy old house.

I really enjoyed this Jamie Day novel, and found it held my attention throughout with all its twists and turns.

This is the story of one messed up, twisted family that’s lifelong secrets are ones they desperately want to take to the grave with them. But someone is bound & determined to make sure their secrets are revealed.

A great thriller that had me guessing until the end!

Oh my, all families are crazy, but insanity doesn't run in the Bishop family, it gallops. This is an Agatha Christie type who-done-it with lots of twists and turns and a cast of fascinating characters. I always love a Maine setting and the old inn during a hurricane is an especially intriguing claustrophobic setting. Our heroine, Charley, is engaging and wise beyond her years. Couple of minor plot flaws, but One Big Happy Family kept me intrigues and interested throughout. This is for the audio version and while I generally love this VoiceOver artist, her voice is a bit mature for a teenage character. I had to keep reminding myself how young Charley is.

Charley is a maid. A maid who has been secretly skimming money from hotel guests while she cleans their rooms. But one can’t blame her too harshly, she is trying the best she can while being underpaid and having the responsibility of taking care of her grandmother’s nursing home bills. She is willing to do whatever it takes to provide for her nanna, even if she has to put up with her sexually harassing boss. But when he suddenly dies Charley hopes that the family who has chosen to stay at the hotel when the will is read will be more charitable.
As the family proceed to arrive they seem to have brought more than just a hurricane with them. When prophecies and ominous writing appear, jealousy, revenge and secrets cloud the families judgment that eventually result in murder. But who is to blame, what are the family's secrets? Charley must find out before she is the next to die.
Overall rating 4/5
Written in an Agatha Christie “whodunit” plot line I half expected Charley to gather the family around the sitting room to reveal the killer … or maybe she does. I would have loved more romantic tension or dramatic irony between the characters to give the characters more grit. If you love cozy mystery with a slightly more thriller vibe this book is for you. I was, however, a bit thrown off by the narrator who sounded stuffed up.

*Thank you to Jamie Day, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for the ARC copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.