The Dinner Party by Nina Manning is a thrilling psychological drama that grabs you by the heart and keeps you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. The story revolves around Lily Leonard, who books a special anniversary dinner at an exclusive restaurant run by the charismatic celebrity chef Hector Bolson-Woods. What should have been a romantic evening to rekindle her strained marriage to Stig turns into something far darker.

When Hector invites the couple to dine privately, Lily is initially thrilled, hoping it will bring them closer together. Hector, with his charm and attention, becomes everything Stig is not, and Lily finds herself increasingly drawn to him. But after the dinner, Stig’s reaction is less than ideal, leaving Lily with the unsettling feeling that he’s hiding something—something linked to Hector that she can’t yet understand.

As the story unfolds, the suspense builds with each new twist, particularly when another dinner invitation arrives, and this time Hector’s proposal is something neither Lily nor Stig can refuse. The tension between the characters intensifies, and Lily’s search for the truth becomes all-consuming.

Nina Manning masterfully weaves suspense, intrigue, and a sense of growing unease throughout the novel. The characters are deeply complex, and the chemistry between them is palpable, which makes for a gripping read. The Dinner Party is perfect for fans of psychological thrillers who enjoy fast-paced, twisty plots with shocking revelations. This book will keep you hooked until the very end and is an excellent choice for anyone who loves a story with a dark, unexpected edge.

I really hate to give a one star review when I've received an ARC, but unfortunately I really couldn't justify more that...

None of the characters behaved with any kind of logic at all and the "big reveal" fell kind of flat.

Lily is not a very likeable main character at all, neither is her husband. They both behave ridiculously immaturely for grown adults: If your big aversion to having a kid with a man is that you know NOTHING about his past and he refuses to give any answers then why in the world did you marry him? Also, why not just say that that is the reason? Same goes for Stig: why not just communicate with your wife? And I still don't understand how he rationalises all of Hector's behaviour and responds in the most bizarre way imaginable. None of their logic makes any sense so it's completely not relatable or believable. Don't even get me started on Ruby... 🙄🙄 like OK Miss I have nothing and no choice.. but enough money to buy myself a house and never have to work ever... 🙄🙄 OK.

The end was rushed and came to a very anticlimactic conclusion.. I turned the page and when the next chapter read epilogue I was like "wait, that's it??"

Needless to say, this was my first and last book by this author.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

#TheDinnerParty #NetGalley
Ending was 🔥
To celebrate their wedding aniversay, Lily Leonard books a table at the exclusive restaurant of Hector Bolson-Woods renowned celebrity chef. It should be the perfect evening for Lily and husband, Stig, but not even a perfect menu can heal the cracks in their marriage. So when Hector invites them to dine with him privately, Lily is thrilled. Surely this will please Stig? Hector is charming and attentive – everything Stig is not – and she finds herself more and more drawn to the enigmatic Hector. After the dinner, Stig makes it clear the entire evening was a mistake, something he never wants to repeat again. Hurt and confused, Lily’s certain Stig is hiding something from her. Something linked to Hector…she just doesn’t know what. And then another dinner invitation from Hector arrives. This time with a proposal neither Lily or Stig can refuse.
Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for giving me an advance copy.

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy!

When Lily surprises her husband, Stig, for their anniversary at a fancy well known restaurant she is elated for the experience. When they arrive for their reservation they are introduced to the chef who invites them into the kitchen to celebrate their anniversary dinner. However, Stig, immediately becomes distant during the experience while Lily is jumping for joy and savoring every moment. This unique dinner spurred the chef reaching out to them to invite them to a special dinner he was hosting. As the relationships form, Stig, continues to shut down making Lily question what is going on. A few twists and turns lead us to learn the background of the characters and how it is affecting them today.

I was constantly wondering who was trustworthy and what was really going on. Twists were twisting and kept me hooked!!

Lily Leonard surprises her husband, Stig, for their fifth anniversary with a fancy dinner at an exclusive restaurant owned by a famous celebrity chef, Hector Bolson-Woods in a psychological thriller, The Dinner Party, by Nina Manning. Lily and Stig’s marriage is in trouble – her not wanting to have kids because he won’t communicate with her about his upbringing, and him not wanting to communicate with her about his childhood, being the main issues, as well as money. Lily hopes the dinner helps, but when the chef invites them to dine with him, and then issues invitations to his many homes, the marriage seems to get worse. It’s fairly evident that something bad is going to happen as Lily and Stig attend these dinner parties, but most readers won’t know what until the very end.

Manning has done a good job of developing her characters. Lily, the protagonist, is a selfish person, and is fairly unlikeable. Stig isn’t much better, and is uncommunicative and cold. The supporting characters are also dark and although they support the story and carry it along, are not people most readers would like to meet.

While the story flows, it is a bit boring, especially at first while it is told through Lily. Later, there is prose in third person about Stig and Hector. Readers will keep reading because they think something exciting or suspenseful will happen anytime. However, by the time something does happen, most readers will already have it figured out. There really isn’t that much suspense, and by the dénouement, most readers will just want to get it over with.

All told, the characters aren’t exciting, the story isn’t exciting, and the plot isn’t exciting.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

Wasn’t able to read this one digitally but I did order a copy of the book so will be reviewing it after I’ve read it. I’m really excited for it as I’ve only heard great things about it.

This was not what I expected, but, oh my the twists and turns were amazing. This is a must read for sure!

Good book! Keep me wanting to keep reading! My first by this author and i will read more !! Highly recommend this author !!

This was so much better than I ever expected. I picked up and could not put it down. I have thought about this book so many times after finishing it. Well written.

I really wanted to love this one—the setup had everything I enjoy in a thriller: an exclusive dinner, a mysterious wealthy host, and a couple with plenty of secrets. But while the premise was intriguing, the execution didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

The pacing felt uneven—too slow in the beginning and then way too rushed at the end. I never fully connected with Lily or Stig, and their dynamic felt more like family drama than a high-stakes psychological thriller. There were a few twists, but nothing that truly shocked me.

If you love slow-burn thrillers with messy relationship drama, this might work for you. But if you’re looking for something as fast-paced and gripping as a Freida McFadden novel, this one might leave you wanting more. Not terrible, just not as thrilling as I’d hoped.

I really wanted to like this book . The main storyline was so great. The mysterious rich man and his group of friends welcoming newcomers into their club. The fancy dinners, questionable behavior between them and Stig. The first problem was I absolutely hated Lily. We’re suppose to like her. She works for a charity, turned down a higher paid job to work there. But she is selfish, sneaky, self absorbed and money hungry. It didn’t fit at all with her job that “meant so much” to her. I felt bad for her husband who seemed like a great guy even when things seem sketchy with him. The end was really building up to a dramatic scene and then it just, poof, ended. Hector’s character build up and the ending didn’t make any sense to me. The book overall was a let down.

Wow. This was a fast paced brilliant thriller.
Followed the couple stig and Lily. They are going through a rough patch and Lily has saved money to go an expensive restaurant. The chef invites them to have their meal in the kitchen (the poshest I would get is KFC
) And really shows why you
shouldn't keep secrets.
I was hooked from the start and couldn't put it down. The amount of twists was great. It kept me wanting more

A very addictive read- when I first started reading The Dinner Party by Nina Manning, I wasn’t sure how the storyline would go but I was intrigued nonetheless. The story went in a completely different route to what I was expecting and I’m so glad it did because I absolutely enjoyed this book. The twists and turns just made the book what it was. Five stars from me!

Giving gifts involves lots of thought and consideration for both giver and receiver. She has thought hard about how to make him happy. It seems he is not happy with his surprise. A special dinner, new friends, and a famous chef. What could go wrong?
The tension builds slowly in this story of food, drink, and celebration. Who is hiding something and why?
The pacing of the novel allows the suspense to grow. Money and sophistication add to the mood. Sometimes it is more than just an elegant dinner, that is a once in a lifetime event. it moves slowly in the beginning and builds steadily to a shocking climax. The atmosphere bears lots of weight and depth as we are pulled into this luxurious setting.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a copy of the ARC. All opinions are my own

This was a fun, quick, “popcorn” thriller! I was mislead so many times, thinking I knew what was going to happen, and I was wrong. I knocked this book out in one day because it was such an easy read! Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC! 3.5 ⭐️

People are comparing Nina Manning to Freida McFadden and I honestly didn't get that vibe. This book was just okay, nothing super special!

We follow Lily, after a surprise anniversary dinner for her husband at an exclusive restaurant and an unexpected invite to dine with the famous chef Hector, she becomes friendly with him and she and her husband are invited to more dinners with Hector where things aren't all as they seem.

I really didn't enjoy this book, I hated the characters especially Lily. Lily is so dumb, she believes Hector has a thing for her after he touched her arm during their first meeting.

Now Lily has been married to Stig ( yes Stig as in stig of the dump) for 5 years but she knows nothing about him as he refuses to talk about his past or his family.
Now that is a huge red flag right there but the incredibly dumb Lily has met a famous chef 3 times but 100 % trusts him even tho there are numerous red flags there too.

As well as really irritating characters the story was very dull, nothing happens, there was no big surprises, the whole story was just so slow.

Oh and did I mention Lily is dumb, don't be like Lily.

2.5 stars rounded up.

The premise of this story was immediately engaging. However, I did find this story difficult to get into at first.

I found the female main character to be awful I feel like this genre lately is relying on FMC who is not very bright and I find that annoying. Some of the decisions made by this character were just silly. The MMC was just lacking any spark or personality.

The tension between the 2 characters didn't make sense to me.

The story was not particularly twisty though there was at least one revelation that caught me off guard. The rest I think was predictable. The end moved way too fast and I didn't find it very satisfying and I also feel like it left lots of loose ends.

This wasn't what I was expecting at all. I had certain expectations from the cover design and the description of the book and they all fell flat.

The writing was good and I kept waiting for the big climax, but it didn't come.