"In this stunning and provocative domestic drama about a sweet sixteen birthday party that goes horribly awry, a wealthy family in San Francisco finds themselves entangled in a legal battle, their darkest secrets revealed, and their friends turned to enemies. One invitation. A lifetime of regrets. Sweet sixteen. It's an exciting coming of age, a milestone, and a rite of passage. Jeff and Kim Sanders plan on throwing a party for their daughter, Hannah--a sweet girl with good grades and nice friends. Rather than an extravagant, indulgent affair, they invite four girls over for pizza, cake, movies, and a sleepover. What could possibly go wrong? But things do go wrong, horrifically so. After a tragic accident occurs, Jeff and Kim's picture perfect life in a wealthy San Francisco suburb suddenly begins to unravel. A lawsuit is filed that irrevocably changes their relationship, reveals dark secrets in the Sanders' marriage, and exposes the truth about their perfect daughter, Hannah. Harkening to Herman Koch's The Dinner, Christos Tsiolkas's The Slap, and Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies, The Party takes us behind the façade of the perfect family, exposing the lies, betrayals, and moral lapses that neighbors don't see--and the secrets that children and parents keep from themselves and each other"--
So I randomly downloaded this one from Overdrive after seeing it mentioned over on Lauren's blog, as I was craving an adult thriller. I was excited to see that it was set in the Bay Area, and that it had a very Liane Moriarty-esque vibe from the synopsis- affluent family impacted by improbable scandal unearths disturbing family revelations. While milder than I was initially anticipating, The Party explores how the seemingly "no big deal" choices we make can lead to huge consequences, and will really incite an anger toward irresponsible teenagers (and ignorant parents) in you. The story doesn't carry so much of a "who-dunnit" mystery vibe, but rather shows the complex web of lies that stem from different characters trying to hide the actions they took on the night of the party. I think there was supposed to be a ~shocking revelation~ at the end as well, but I sort of thought it was anticlimactic personally. Also, if you like books full of unlikable, love to hate characters, this one will do the trick.
Overall: I loved the Bay Area setting and the complex family drama, but this book wasn't as big of a "mystery" as I expected.This review was originally posted on Girl in the Pages
Reading updates
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10 March, 2018:
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10 March, 2018:
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Started reading
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Finished reading
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10 March, 2018:
Reviewed