The Guest List by Lucy Foley #bookreview

On my blog today I’m sharing my thoughts on the brilliant new novel by Lucy Foley, The Guest List.

BLURB

On an island off the windswept Irish coast, guests gather for the wedding of the year – the marriage of Jules Keegan and Will Slater.
 
Old friends.
Past grudges.
 
Happy families.
Hidden jealousies.
 
Thirteen guests.
One body.
 
The wedding cake has barely been cut when one of the guests is found dead. And as a storm unleashes its fury on the island, everyone is trapped.

All have a secret. All have a motive.
One guest won’t leave this wedding alive . . .

MY THOUGHTS

I loved The Guest List by Lucy Foley. It’s dark, and there is suspense and tension on every page right from the opening chapter.

There are so many devious characters, and I didn’t know who I could trust as I was reading. The setting certainly sets the scene, and it makes it feel very atmospheric. I loved the idea of a wedding taking place on a barely inhabited island, cutting them off from the mainland. Also, Lucy Foley made the setting feel very creepy, particularly with the mention of the dead on the island outnumbering the living. Even some of the characters are perturbed about the area around them being a mass graveyard.

Lucy Foley has created some really unlikeable characters in her book, although I did find myself feeling sorry for Jules, the bride to be. A lot of the characters come from a very privileged background, but Jules’s fiancé, Will, has gone a step above after making it big on television. It seems he is admired by everyone who comes across him, men and women, but that also makes some people who know him jealous. He also seemed like a person who liked to be in control, but what happens when someone holds a secret over him?

I think right from the start I felt as though Jules was making a mistake in marrying Will. Just a day before the wedding, Jules starts receiving anonymous notes asking her not to marry him. But why would someone want to split them up? This creates tension very early on in the book. I wanted to know why the letters were being sent and would Jules take any notice of them. Would she confront Will about them before the wedding?

There seemed to be a lot of tension between Will and his friends. He has known them since his school days. It made me wonder what secret they held over him and how and if it was going to come out before the wedding. I thought it was very clever how Lucy Foley kept flicking back in time, to a few hours before the horrific event takes place. I never once felt lost or confused as I was reading it. I also enjoyed the different points of view from which the story was told.

Lucy Foley kept the pace flying forward, and it was only on very rare occasions did I put the book down at the end of a chapter. She is a writer who knows how to reel her readers into her characters’ lives. I couldn’t get enough of this book. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for what Lucy Foley writes next.

Publisher: Harper Collins

Publication date: 20th February 2020 (kindle & hardcover) 3rd September 2020 (paperback)

Print length: 384 pages

The Guest List is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones