This is part of my Summer Reads series where I’ll be sharing book recommendations – a series of “not just cookbooks”.
Today’s #summerreads pick is another I got from my local library because I couldn’t get my hands on Shari Lapena’s latest, Everyone Here is Lying. I figured I’d bide my time on the waitlist by reading some of her other thrillers, always good choices for the summer!
From the publisher:
In this family, everyone is keeping secrets—even the dead.
Brecken Hill in upstate New York is an expensive place to live. You have to be rich to have a house there, and Fred and Sheila Merton certainly are rich. But even all their money can’t protect them when a killer comes to call. The Mertons are brutally murdered after a fraught Easter dinner with their three adult kids. Who, of course, are devastated.
Or are they? They each stand to inherit millions. They were never a happy family, thanks to their vindictive father and neglectful mother, but perhaps one of the siblings is more disturbed than anyone knew. Did someone snap after that dreadful evening? Or did another person appear later that night with the worst of intentions? That must be what happened. After all, if one of the family were capable of something as gruesome as this, you’d know.
Wouldn’t you?
This is your classic #summerreads book – I finished it in less than 24 hours and I was kept guessing until the killer was revealed!
In her bio, Lapena states:
She doesn’t want you to be able to put her books down
And well, with this one, she succeeds!
None of the characters are particularly likeable which makes most of them potential suspects in the murders.They are not SO unlikeable that you don’t want to read the book though – their personalities contribute to the plot. Most of the characters are deeply unhappy in their personal and/ or professional lives and there are SO MANY lies to keep track of! Written in the third person, each of the (many) main characters gets some airtime but it was easy to follow. The ending slightly underwhelmed me, I found myself thinking “Oh, really?!” but I had not figured out who the killer was at all until this moment.
I’d never heard of this author before this summer (and she lives in Ontario and had written loads of books!) but now I’ll be looking at her other books for when I’m in the mood for a well-written thriller that I can finish fast!
Buy Not a Happy Family on Amazon (this affiliate link should bring you to the Amazon store in, or closest to, your country).
For free worldwide shipping, find Not a Happy Family on Blackwell’s.
Please note: This post contains affiliate links. I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. This post also contains a Blackwell’s affiliate link. This means that if you click over and purchase something, I will receive a very small percentage of the purchase price (at no extra cost to you). Thank you in advance!
_________
Buy my books! In the French kitchen with kids and French Food for Everyone: le goûter (after school snacks), le dîner (dinner) and le petit déjeuner (breakfast) are out now! Click here for details and how to order!
_________
Like this post? Get blog posts delivered to your inbox! Sign up here!