quippe | Entries tagged with lucy foley

The Blurb On The Back:

In a beautiful old apartment block, deep in the backstreets of Paris, secrets are stirring behind every resident’s door.
The lonely wife.
The party animal.
The curtain-twitcher.
The secret lover.
The watchful caretaker.
The unwanted guest.

There was a murder here last night. Who holds the key to the mystery of apartment three?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Lucy Foley’s standalone thriller starts off strong by showing what’s happened to Ben but ultimately fails to make good on its promise through a combination of unconvincing characters and a plot that doesn’t quite hold together. For me there’s just too much going on and when the revelations come they feel contrived rather than intriguing. It is a pacy read and I kept turning the pages but I did not enjoy this as much as I have her other thrillers.

The Blurb On The Back:

Each has a secret.
Each has a motive.

Off the windswept Irish coast, guests gather for the wedding of the year.

Old friends.
Past grudges.
Happy families.
Hidden jealousies.
Thirteen guests.
One body.

One guest won’t leave this wedding alive …

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Lucy Foley’s mystery thriller is a slickly constructed, fast-paced double mystery that effortlessly switches between 5 narrators to draw out the insecurities and privilege of the wealthy while concealing the identity of both victim and killer until the end. Although I did guess both killer and victim very early on and I felt that the ending was a bit too neat, it’s still an engaging and smart read that kept me turning the pages until the end.

The Blurb On The Back:

In a remote hunting lodge, deep in the Scottish wilderness, old friends gather for New Year.

The beautiful one.
The golden couple.
The volatile one.
The new parents.
The quiet one.
The city boy.
The outsider.

THE VICTIM.

Not an accident A MURDER among friends.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Lucy Foley’s crime novel is a smartly plotted mystery that focuses on who-got-done-in and why as much as whodunit, using 5 different points of view to maintain tension. The relationship between the characters is well drawn (although some side characters are thinly drawn) and I enjoyed the slow reveal of secrets while empathising with some of the insecurities some of which come from the characters’ unprivileged backgrounds and imposter syndrome.