Old friends are having dinner. The hosting couple’s teenage daughter is going out for the evening, but not before she is enticed to show her wonderful piano skills. Skills extolled by her mother and not only her ability to play well, but also smart and beautiful. But the beautiful, smart daughter, unbeknownst to some at the party, is also a keeper of secrets, manipulative, a treacherous blackmailer and by the end of the evening, very dead. The pace is good to find the murderer and there are enough suspects and twists to keep the reader engaged.
Thank you #NetGalley, #Bookouture and author #AnnaLouWeatherly for an early copy of this book. The above comments are my opinion.

The Night of the Party by Anna-Lou Weatherley is a highly recommended mystery/psychological thriller.

Evie and Tom Drayton are having their best friends, Una and Jim Hemmings, over for a dinner party. Doting mother Evie begs seventeen-year-old Libby Drayon to play the piano for the group before going out for a couple hours with a friend. Tom's son, Brandon, shows up the night of the dinner too. It's just another normal, pleasant evening among friends at Millbank House, until Libby doesn't text her mom as promised and Evie begins to worry. Evie becomes frantic when Libby doesn't return home. The police are called and DI Daniel Riley and his team begin to investigate. When they retrace the path Libby would take through Windmill Woods, they find a body and the murder investigation begins.

In this well-written mystery/procedural/thriller, everyone is hiding some major secrets, perhaps with the exception of Evie. Libby is hiding the most secrets of all and is not the perfect, dutiful daughter she portrays to her mother. The narrative follows the current investigation and reactions of Evie, with other chapters covering Libby's past actions. All the characters are portrayed as unique individuals with flaws (many, many flaws) and are kept track of easily in the plot.

The suspects are plentiful and Weatherley provides multiple characters that could have a motive. Riley and his team begin to uncover all the secrets and in the process move from one suspect to another. The investigation follows a logical path and clues are provided for those of us who like to try to solve the case while we read. As the new revelations are disclosed, the information will keep you absorbed in the plot. There is plenty of secrets, deception, and scheming to hold your attention throughout. I didn't guess whodunit until I suspect I was supposed to and the final denouement was very satisfying.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Bookouture.
The review will be published on Barnes & Noble, Google Books, and Amazon.

I was given a copy of The Night of the Party by Anna-Lou Weatherly in return for an honest review. What I like most about this novel is the unexpected way the story develops. At first sight it appears to be a conventional suburban whodunnit, but as one shocking piece of information after another is revealed, it becomes horribly clear that this is far from the case. The personalities of Evie and Tom Drayton and their children and friends are well drawn in the first chapter, so the reader can experience the dramatic events through their eyes. Evie in particular is a character with whom it is easy to identify. Her world crumbles a little more with every piece of evidence that the people she loves are not, and never have been, what they seem. The twist at the end is the natural outcome of the way the characters interact, but this does not make it any easier to predict. I did not see it coming.

Wow – I loved this book. I enjoy thrillers, but sometimes I grow frustrated with writing that doesn’t engage me, or characters that feel paper thin, or each and every chapter ending with a cliff-hanger, whether it makes sense or not. This novel, however, was pitch perfect and I loved the multi-layered characters and the careful peeling of the onion that revealed the complex facets of the lives of the main characters and secondary characters.

In a quiet London suburb, beautiful, talented seventeen-year-old Libby Drayton is found brutally murdered and DI Dan Riley is assigned the case. The story unfolds through alternating perspectives – from Detective Riley, Libby’s doting mother, Evie, her stepbrother, Brandon, her Godfather, Jim, and finally, through flashbacks from Libby.

As the investigation begins, it quickly becomes apparent that the image of the perfect daughter Evie is clinging to is far from the truth. I enjoyed the structure and pacing of the novel and the slow reveals that provide us with a full picture of Libby’s life in the lead-up to her murder. Although I guessed the killer, that in no way took away from my enjoyment of the story and wanting to learn all the details of the mystery.

A fast-paced story that will keep you turning pages. I look forward to reading other novels by Weatherley.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this novel, in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! I loved this gripping, absolutely brilliantly plotted book and literally could not put it down until I'd finished.

Part psychological thriller, part police procedural, a combination I felt worked really well, the story begins with a young girl, Libby, disappearing during a dinner party. Libby's parents, Evie and Tom, are obviously completely distraught. How could their beautiful, well behaved, intelligent daughter suddenly go missing?

What sounds like a simple plot, begins to build and build, secrets and lies are all of a sudden exposed and Evie and Tom are forced to face the devastating truth that Libby may not be the sweet, obedient, perfect daughter she appeared to be.

I felt the characters were cleverly written and whilst they weren't all likeable, they all had real depth and believability. I especially felt for Evie and her desperate longing to discover the truth about what happened to Libby. I also really warmed to the police characters, especially Dan and Lucy, and look forward to continue following their stories in the author's future novels.

The twists and turns in this book kept coming and just as you think you have it figured out, the author throws in another curveball! I did guess the final twist here, but it took nothing away from the story for me.

All I can say is, you have to read this book! Most definitely highly recommended. I can't wait for Anna-Lou's next book.

Thanks to author, Anna-Lou Weatherley, publishers Bookouture and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A friendly dinner turns into the nightmare of every parent. But what secrets is everybody hiding in the meantime? 🤔

So, this book... 🤨
I quite liked it in the beginning. The intrigue, the drama, the secrets, all of it. 😏
There were some things that I predicted, others I absolutely did not. It was delicious and I was eating it up. 😎

But the book lost me towards the end. 😞
I had predicted the twist chapters and chapters before it happened, and I was really hoping it would not go down that path... But what a shame that it did. 😒
It uses a twist of which I really thought we were beyond it in 2022, but oh well. 😬

The pacing was really good, because I did just want to keep reading until I got to the end. So it is great for a fast thriller read. 😄
I did not like the twist in this one, but definitely liked the writing style, so I might check out other works by this author.

I totally loved this book, the characters were amazing and you really connected with there life’s and felt you were living along with them and there nightmares they were living as it was so well written. Each chapter of the book revealed bit by bit of all the characters life’s and the story which you couldn’t leave down as the story kept you in such suspense and had full of suspicions. I would really recommend this very addictive read.

The Night of the Party drops the reader into an unfolding dinner party at Evie and Tom’s place. Evie begs her talented seventeen-year-old daughter Libby to play piano for their guests Una and Jim before she rushes off to a concert with a friend.

Libby’s night out doesn’t go as planned. Evie knows something is amiss when Libby doesn’t text or return when she’s supposed to. The story spirals into a murder mystery while exposing a very different side of Libby.

Often with mysteries, authors use several writing devices to cleverly hide and reveal twists and turns. In this book, a certain character was pointed out over and over as being creepy. The heavy-handiness here didn’t leave any room for surprises. So all along, you knew what was right around the corner.

However, what happens when the detective discovered the real killer just isn’t reasonable at all. If someone is capable of that much violence then that person should be handled according. Therefore, the detective—and half of the story—instantly loses all credibility for giving the reader a fulfilling and just ending to a wild story the author just pulled the reader along for.

With the protective nod the author gives to the killer, I wish this book took a hard turn towards Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. The building blocks were all there and it would’ve been a much richer story. The story provides the head trauma motive for a character’s shocking narcissistic and sociopathic behavior, yet the story wraps up just when the meaty plot point is introduced. The actual killer’s motive was completely expected, making the book fall flat.

Be prepared to be instantly hooked on this book just as I was from start to finish. Evie and her husband Tom were hosting a dinner party with their 2 closest friends Una and Jim. After listening to Libby (Evie and toms 17 year old daughter) play piano Evie says she is off out with a friend and will be home by 10.30pm at the latest.

When Libby fails to keep in contact with her mother why she is out doubt about her daughters welfare soon creeps in and when 10.30 comes and no one has seen or heard from Libby since Evie decides it’s time to call the police and report her daughter missing.

Soon detective Dan Riley and his team start searching for Libby and it takes next to no time for the team to discover her body. As a missing persons investigation turns into a murder inquiry Dan begins to question everyone at the dinner party starting with Tom and Evie, followed by Una and Jim then finally Toms son (Evie’s stepson) Brandon.

As the investigation proceeds it soon becomes clear that Libby wasn’t the good as gold golden girl her mother believed her to be. With her hand in just about everything from drugs, teenage pregnancy, manipulation, lies, deceit there was so much more to Libby that met the eye.

Libby wasn’t the only one who had secrets. As DI Riley talks to anyone who could be involved with Libby’s murder it soon becomes clear that everyone close to her had hidden secrets and a motive behind possibly wanting to hurt her making Dans investigation dam near impossible.

This thriller was a great who dun it throughout the whole book it could have been anyones game. When I found out who the murderer was I was quite shocked and did pick up and work out the final twist in the book however I didn’t feel that it took anything away from it. I also didn’t realise that there are other DI Dan Riley books and this is part of a series however I had absolutely no problem reading it as a stand alone thriller and will certainly be going back to the previous books in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for an advance copy of this book in exchange for this review. It was a great read and I cannot wait to read some more of the DI Riley series!

It seems as if you can almost see the trainwreck coming, the precociously smart and beautiful daughter who meets a horrible fate. How could this happen? In figuring that out, many nasty secrets are revealed and stories upended. Family dynamics are always so twisted and this is no different, but on a bigger scale.
Its a ok mystery, the characters aren't too wonderful, and you will be able to see how things unfold after a while.

Tom & Evie Drayton are hosting a dinner party with their lifelong friends Jim and Una, the drinks are flowing and when seventeen year old Libby Drayton tells her mum she's going to meet her best friend Katie to go to a gig at the local church, her mum insists she play the piano for their friends before she goes out, Evie can't help showcasing her daughters talent at every opportunity, Libby is reluctant but does it anyway, then she's off into the night with her usual promise of 'I'll be home by 10.30, I promise'. When 10.30 rolls round and there's no sign of Libby, not even a text, Evie begins to panic, this isn't like Libby and she eventually calls the police, what they discover blows the Draytons world apart and that's only the start of it, because Evie is about to discover that her daughter isn't the angel she has always thought she was. Dan Riley and his team are drafted into solve the murder, but what he uncovers affects more than just the Draytons and will have far reaching consequences for all involved.

The Night of the Party, narrated by Dan, Evie and Libby, is a fast paced thriller, so many of the characters had a secret to hide, which gave most of them a motive for her murder. It's a great plot with so many unreliable characters, I had each of them banged to rights at some point in the proceedings, the twists when they come are unexpected although, I have to admit, I did guess the last one, but it didn't, in any way, spoil the story for me, in fact the reason behind it made it all the more poignant. This story highlights that, however much you think you know someone that is close to you, you probably don't actually know them at all. This is the fifth in the Dan Riley series, and the second one I've read, but they are easily read as standalone, if the others are as good as these two I will definitely read them at some point. Weatherley is a very talented author and if you like a book that keeps you guessing throughout, this is one for you.

I'd like to thank Bookouture and Netgalley for the auto approval, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

This was a fast paced suspenseful novel that will keep you reading until the very end. There's so much deceipt & manipulation that it will keep your head spinning.

This starts off as an innocent dinner party that ends in devastation. I do not want to spoil this, so I will just say that someone disappeared. Who will it be? Why? What happened to them? Who did it? Read this to find all of this out.

Once you get to know these characters, you will see that there's definitely more than meets the eye. A person can completely deceive all those around them. I definitely recommend this book. My heart goes out to Evie.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So many despicable people! Honestly there’s not a character, apart from the detective Dan Riley, that you could like. When the body of the seemingly perfect daughter Libby is found not far from her house no one can believe what as happened. But is Libby really the perfect daughter, perfect best friend, innocent teenager everyone thinks she is? Everyone here has secrets and as they untwine they rip each other apart.
This is a part of the Dan Riley series but the book works so well as a standalone that I’d forgotten that it was as it’s very much character rather than subplot driven.
A great read

“WOW, What a book. Unexpected twists, memorable people, and secrets that make families unravel. How well do we know our friends and family? Highly recommended!”
-Books and Pens on Green Gables
The Night of the Party by Anna-Lou Weatherley

A dinner party among friends. Great friends, nearly life-long. Since college anyway. Now established in careers, established socially, comfortable in their positions in life. Dining, drinking, One couple with children, and one without. One child a musical prodigy, perfect in her mother’s eyes. They are best friends. She tells her mother everything…except. Her step-brother knows things, and two of the adults at the party know things. Is she really who her mother thinks she is? Or is she the manipulator as some of the others know her?

When the daughter who always texts-doesn’t, and who is always home on time-isn’t, the worry begins. The police are called, and then, a beautiful girl is found dead in the woods.

What will happen as the mysteries and secrets are unraveled? Will the girl’s mother believe what she is told? Will anyone believe what they are told, or will the secrets continue?

Thoughts about The Night of the Party by Anna-Lou Weatherley from Books and Pens on Green Gables-I really enjoyed this book! I couldn’t stop turning the pages. Great character descriptions, great storyline. The ended was not as I had guessed! I figured it out just before the reveal! Add this to your TBR pile! It’s a good one!

AVAILABLE NOW FOR PRE-ORDERS, releasing January 12!

Thank you for the advance copy to read and review!

This was my first book by this author and boy it did not disappoint. This book had everything i love in thrillers and then some. Goodness cant wait to read more from this author.!

An interesting book, full of twists and turns. The characters are well built and complex, and the book keeps you guessing as to who you can trust.

The Night of the Party -Two couples, three secrets, one murder.

The Dayton's are entertaining the Hemmings, life-long friends for a dinner party. Before Evie Dayton will let their daughter go out for the evening, she begs Libby to play the piano for them. She grudgingly plays and finally gets to leave but promises to be home by 10:30. Her half-brother Brandon leaves shortly after her, leaving the adults to enjoy their dinner.

Libby has not returned home and is not answering her phone. Evie calls Katie’s mother only to learn that Katie is spending the weekend with her grandmother and there were no plans to get together. The police are called to report that Libby is missing.

DI Daniel Riley and DS Lucy Davis start to dig into the lives of these families and soon learn that Libby is not the nice girl her parents thought she was. Later, a gruesome discovery is made.

This story has so many secrets revealed, about the characters which made the story all the more interesting. The family is turned inside out being investigated with some lying and defensive and others clueless. Because this was so engrossing this is a very fast read. It is one explosive reveal after another.

This is a really good thriller.
Evie and Tom have invited their friends round for dinner and what starts off as an uneventful night, ends up with murder.
Libby is 17 years old and is hiding many secrets from her parents. Evie thinks her daughter is an angel but she knows nothing about what she is involved in.
When Libby doesn’t come home, Evie knows something has happened but is devastated when her body is found.
As DI Dan Riley starts the investigation more and more of the truth comes out and it’s clear Libby was a troubled teenager.
There’s other characters hiding things too and it’s cleverly written to reveal small bits here and there until everything is out in the open.
A great thriller that I’d recommend.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I read this book not knowing that it was part of a series. Even though I only realized it part-way through the book, the book felt strong enough to be read as a stand-alone. I didn't feel like I was missing out by not having read the previous books in the series.

That being said, this book didn't work for me. I thought the daughter, Libby, was unbelievable as a 17-year old. The author tries to hint at how she might have become so manipulative and full of anger, but I personally didn't buy it. There was also a moment where Evie begins to spiral down into the 'the police aren't looking hard enough to find the killer, maybe I can investigate better' syndrome. Often times the 'unstable woman' character in this type of book always seems to think that they can do better than the detectives can... that they alone can solve the mystery/find the killer/ bring justice to the victims.... Thankfully, the moment is short-lived and Evie decides to let the detectives do their job and solve the crime.

It was slightly predictable - I figured out the suspect long before the reveal, which doesn't always happen for me.

All in all I would personally give this book a pass. Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book - all opinions are my own.

Anna-Lou Weatherley is like a fine wine. Each book gets better and better. I love her character development of returning characters but they never take over the book. Instead she has a way of really developing the introduction of new characters. So each book is also a perfect stand alone.
The night of the party centres around Libby. A girl who is murdered on a night out. Who could want her dead in such a brutal manner! As we delve deeper we soon discover that she is not a particularly likeable person. Upsetting people and lives around her.
The book was gripping and read in under a day. I am certainly looking forward to the next instalment from Anna-Lou.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to see an ARC