You Are Fatally Invited is a twisted who dunnit (or who is it?) about a group of writer’s on a fatal retreat. The concept is intriguing, but I found the book to start up rather slowly as there are many characters to build. I wanted to love it, but the large cast of characters was overwhelming causing me to take several reading breaks. There are so many characters that for the majority of the book I didn’t have a clear picture of who was who and mixed them up frequently. About midway through the pace picked up. The end had some twists and interesting wrap ups, but overall the confusion of the cast of characters outweighed the story line for me.

Slow and convoluted locked room type mystery.

A famous author, J.R. Alastor, who wants to remain anonymous, hires an event coordinator, Mila del Angel, to set up a special week of trope-themed activities for a special group of authors invited to Wolf Harbor Estate in Casco Bay. The mansion on the private island is well-appointed and luxurious. A chef and housekeeper are also in residence for the undertaking. Almost immediately things start to go wrong. It's soon obvious that perhaps none of them will make it back to the mainland.

I kept waiting for suspense and action that would make this move faster and be more exciting. There were a lot of characters to keep straight and they were not that well-developed. In fact, so little about them was revealed that I struggled to find any empathy or regard for any. The premise, a clue style game on a retreat with famous authors, was so intriguing but the book didn't live up to all its promise or my expectations. The writing seemed cumbersome and I found it difficult to keep track of who was who and doing what to whom and why. I didn't care much for the ending either. It was sort of a disappointment altogether.

I started listening to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC provided by the publisher. It should have been amazing with the large production cast, but some of the narrator's voices got on my last nerve and I had to skip those sections on audio until I finally had enough and just stopped listening altogether. Let's just say that this format did nothing to enhance my enjoyment of the book.

This book does not live up to the hype. It almost seems over-written. All of the prose is overly-descriptive, flowery, full of metaphor, and over the top. So much so that nothing really happens--there's little to no action. It is obvious that there are big secrets, and information is being withheld from the reader to be coy and set up big reveals, but it order to do that successfully in a way that keeps the reader engaged, you have to have a compelling plot that mades the reader want to come back for more. That necessary element was sorely lacking in the book. I did not care about the two-dimensional characters and I did not care about what happened to them. And I did not care about any of the secrets or "big mysteries" that they were involved in. The author really should have focused more on plot and organic characterization and less on crafting sentences that used a lot of overblown imagery instead of actually SAYING anything.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for providing me with an eARC of You Are Fatally Invited in exchange for my honest review!

I'm always up for a good old locked-room murder mystery, so it's nice to dive into something like You Are Fatally Invited, which succeeds at getting me invested in this ensemble of mysterious individuals who seem to belong on varying levels of moral ambiguity—even if that investment arrives at a slower, more meticulously constructed pace than I would have preferred. This tale does weave together its dark and silky atmosphere quite effectively, feeling like just the thick air we need hanging over the private island retreat on which everyone is trapped. But as the first act unfolds, it struggles to fully pull me into these numerous characters and their POVs, so it takes some time for me to keep them distinct from each other. Once the first kill occurs, though, that's when the suspense amps up and makes it easier to plunge myself into the characters. And that kill, by the way, is an excellent one, delivering the necessary amount of chills to heighten the stakes.

From that point onward, I'm able to ride along with the narrative and its increasing tension, even as the plot shows off a few developments that can cause the structure to feel a little too intricate for its own good. The third act is able to wrap up the book on a compelling note, though, and I'm ultimately happy to have given this a shot despite the issues I had with it. Overall, I'm rating You Are Fatally Invited 3.5 out of 5 stars, which I'm rounding down to 3 stars. I'll keep an eye out for more of Ande Pliego's writing in the future.

If Knives Out, Clue, and your favorite campus murder podcast had a very bookish baby, it would be You Are Fatally Invited. It's clever, twisty, and honestly just a ridiculously fun read for anyone who loves a mystery that knows exactly what it’s doing.

It follows a former writer who’s been given the perfect opportunity to get revenge... or so she thinks. She’s invited to co-host a writing retreat at the ultra-secretive estate of the famously anonymous J. R. Alastor. The catch? The guest list is a who’s who of bestselling thriller authors... and Mila has history with one of them.

But when someone else winds up dead (not the one Mila had in mind), things spiral quickly from “literary bonding” to full-blown locked-room whodunit, with an actual storm cutting the group off from the outside world.

What really sets this book apart is how it leans into all the tropes we know and love... only to twist them into something sharper. It’s funny, self-aware, and constantly one step ahead of the reader in the best way. The plot feels like a game you almost know how to play, but every time you think you’ve figured it out, it flips the board.

The setting is to die for... literally. A remote manor off the coast of Maine, surrounded by crashing waves and secrets... it’s pure dark academia meets murder mystery aesthetic. I wanted to light a candle and read it under a blanket with a thunderstorm soundtrack playing in the background.

RSVP yes for stormy-island-core-writer's-camp. Just maybe don’t unpack your bags.

If you like a great whodunnit set on an atmospheric island this is the book for you

This is one of the books that you can’t put down till you finish it. So many times, are you read you think you know the answers, but this keeps your guessing till the very end.

I always like a book with different POV’s, and this worked very well. The characters were well developed, and you could feel like you know them. The reveal tied everything together, but you were able to still feel surprised and satisfied with the end.

Great mystery full of twists and turns!

Thank you, NetGalley,, and Ballantine & Random House Publishing for the eARC.

I’m not sure where things went so wrong, but while this story had quite the intriguing premise, the writing style was so odd that it was impossible to folllow. Will not be recommending this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantem for the advanced reader copy of You are Fatally Invited.

Mystery/Thriller was a gateway into adult fiction way back in the 1990s, which I got away from in the early 2000s. I have had major pull back to the genre as of late and thought this would be a fun read back to my "roots".

I enjoyed the writing and the multi POV. The plot of a writer's retreat to a private island was a nice touch. When I put it down, I definitely continued to think about the plot, however I just never connected with any of the characters and by the end, I was ready for it to end.

If you are a die hard thriller person, you may enjoy this.

Loved it! It’s witty, full of twists and turns, and refreshingly different. I finished it in two days and kept thinking about it even when I put it down. I thought I had it figured out so many times, but it kept me guessing right until the end. The different POVs worked really well, and the characters were so well developed, I felt like I knew every single one of them. I also loved how the reveal tied everything together while still managing to surprise me.

If you enjoy mysteries set on an island or a Clue-like whodunit, you’re in for a treat!

Thank you, NetGalley, Ande Pliego, and Ballantine & Random House Publishing for the eARC.

I received an advance ebook copy of You are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego from netgalley.

This book was great! I was proven wrong multiple times when I thought I had it all figured out.

I would have rated a full 5 stars, but it took me a few tries to actually start the book. It didn't keep my interest until almost 20% in. After that, I was hooked and couldn't finish fast enough.

Also, there are so many characters and back stories. I kept getting confused. Even by the end I don't think I had each character figured out.

Even with the slow start and confusing multiple characters, this was worth my time. Honestly, I'll likely read it again.

Thank you to Ballantine & Random House Publishing through Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

An infamous anonymous author invites six thriller authors to a special writers’ retreat at his private manor, hosted by the skilled event planner Mila del Angeль. The week-long event promises to be filled with games, trope-filled riddles, and perhaps even a jump scare or two. The objective is simple: confess your crimes and survive the tropes. But will they all make it home alive?

This book was truly exceptional. I thoroughly enjoyed the clue-based narrative and the way it unfolded. It kept me guessing about the identities of the characters, making me question whether one person was actually another. Since the main host remains anonymous, I found myself trying to discern if one of the guests was actually the enigmatic figure. Overall, it was an excellent read, and I was particularly impressed by the character development.

If you’re a fan of murder mystery books, clues, puzzles, and other intriguing elements, then this book is definitely worth checking out.

DNF. I tried three times but could just not get established in this book to keep reading. Nothing in particular stood out to me as an issue, perhaps it just wasn’t meant to be for me. I wish it the best of luck finding its audience!

I DNFed this one. I couldn’t get into the story from the jump, unfortunately. It seemed like all the other locked room mysteries I’ve read.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC. This was sooo promising- and hit the mark sometimes, but not all the time. I love how it essentially poked fun at every thriller trope while simultaneously using most of them effectively. I really enjoyed so much about this book.

I absolutely loved it. You’d think being led through the chapters and tropes would ruin it but it somehow made it better.

What happens when an anonymous host teams up with an assistant who wants revenge to bring a group of authors to a private island for an exclusive retreat? Deception, games, and murder. All the authors have secrets, which the anonymous host has planned to vengeance on, in time, after they’ve played some realistic and very personal murder mystery games based on the books they’ve written. Our assistant has secrets to keep of her own, including her own murder plot against one of the guests who stole her book and published it under her name!

This book was a fun murder mystery that kept me guessing. I honestly didn’t know who ‘Alastor’ was until the end, and there was one little twist I didn’t see coming. However towards the end, some parts were written in a confusing manner, which I believe was on purpose but ultimately took away from me understanding how plot points were coming together. The book is written in multiple POVs and at one point she doesn’t use the characters names but references them, before we know who those references are referring to. So that was an ineffective writing tool in my opinion that should’ve been explained / written better, without going into too much detail as to spoil things.

Overall it was a fun read!

I love a good locked room mystery!

Throw in a group of mystery authors all hiding a secret and it's so much fun!

"When renowned anonymous author J. R. Alastor hires former aspiring writer Mila del Angél to host a writing retreat at his private manor off the coast of Maine, she jumps at the chance—particularly since she has an axe to grind with one of the invitees. The guest list? Six thriller authors, all masters of deceit, misdirection, and mayhem.

Confess the crimes, survive the tropes."

We meet the cast of authors one by one, all hinting at a dark secret, some prepared to die and some in denial. We also meet the assistant helping plan the event and also a murder.

But twist-- there's part of a plan she doesn't know about and now she's just as at risk as they are.

This book is so fun, the characters are either love them or hate them-- we never get a clear read on anyone-- as is the nature of a good mystery.

I read this in one sitting because it's such a fast paced, fun read.

Welcome to the most unhinged writer’s retreat you’ll ever attend—complete with secret identities, trope-y games, stormy weather, and oh yeah, an actual murderer on the loose. Ande Pliego’s You Are Fatally Invited is like if Clue, Knives Out, and every thriller author’s group chat got trapped together on a remote island and decided to play a deadly round of plot twist roulette.

Our narrator, Mila del Angél, once an aspiring writer herself, is roped into co-hosting this retreat by the mysterious and famously anonymous J. R. Alastor. The guest list? Six wildly successful thriller writers with egos, grudges, and secrets thicker than a hardcover first edition. Mila has her own secret plan—let’s just say it involves a little vengeance—but things go sideways fast when someone else turns up dead…and it’s not the person she had in mind.

The real delight here is the meta-ness of it all. The retreat is built around classic thriller tropes, and the authors know exactly what’s “supposed” to happen—which means they’re constantly trying to outplay both the game and each other. It’s a wickedly clever setup that plays with genre conventions while also delivering plenty of juicy reveals, red herrings, and “wait, WHAT?” moments.

✨ What I loved:
- The layered, trope-filled mystery within a mystery
- Mila’s morally gray voice—equal parts clever and conflicted
- The closed-circle, storm-stranded setting (classic, and it works)
- The insider nods to thriller-writing that any book lover will appreciate

⚠️ What kept it from being a full 5 stars? The pacing dipped slightly in the middle, and with so many characters, it took a while to keep everyone straight. But once the body count picked up, so did my page flipping.

If you like thrillers that know they’re thrillers—and aren’t afraid to poke fun at themselves while still keeping the stakes deadly serious—you’ll be fatally entertained by this one.

📚 Perfect for fans of The Writing Retreat, One by One, and any locked-room mystery with bite.

I love a locked room mystery, so I was excited to read You Are Fatally Invited! This book did not disappoint. I enjoyed the multiple POVs and the alternating chapters with sections of the famous author/character J.R. Alastor's own book. Each twist caught my by surprise, and the pacing of the plot was perfect. I would recommend this book to fans of Lucy Foley and a famous mystery writer who I won't name for fear of major spoilers.

A locked room mystery set on a private island with a full cast of characters will ALWAYS be for me and You Are Fatally Invited was no exception! Super fun and twisty with short chapters and a fast-paced plot. Perfect for fans of And Then There Were None and Knives Out!