Cover Image: The Club

The Club

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Member Reviews

"From the author of People Like Her comes a smart and sinister murder mystery set in the secretive world of exclusive celebrity clubs"
Unfortunately this was slow and predictable

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Ooh what a book, I loved it!
Another holiday read this week and what a story.
I initially requested it having been hooked by the cover and the blurb and it had slipped my mind, after a bit of a slow start trying to get to grips with so many characters and the aftermath media storyline I was totally gripped and read it in a couple of days.
It had it all, glamour, murder, mystery, death and many twists and turns along the way. I enjoyed that none of the characters were particularly likeable and that each chapter was told from a different person's point of view, also learning about all their shady motives.
The dark side of celebrity indeed, how the other half live.
My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for my eARC in return for my honest review.

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‘The Club’ has everything you could want in a good thriller; a cast of secretive characters, a secluded island setting and of course a murder. The writing is extremely well crafted, something I enjoyed from Ellery Llyod’s first novel, however for me the plot was a bit slow to unfold. Although the story as a whole has a brilliant tautness and builds tension, personally I found the second half much better than the first. The second half has so many twists that I didn’t see coming, so in the end it was a refreshing take on a murder thriller.
In the two books I have read from Llyod I have noticed their knack for taking a setting or a group of characters and completely flipping expectations on their head. I expected a wealthy cast who were used to getting their own way, regardless of consequences, but instead were given individuals who are full of unexpected motives and back stories.
An intriguing mystery that places wealth and power, at the very center of its story.

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The club by Ellery Lloyd.
The Home Group is a collection of ultra-exclusive private members' clubs and a global phenomenon, and the opening of its most ambitious project yet – Island Home, a forgotten island transformed into the height of luxury – is billed as the celebrity event of the decade.But as the first guests arrive, the weekend soon proves deadly – because it turns out that even the most beautiful people can keep the ugliest secrets and, in a world where reputation is everything, they'll do anything to keep it.
This had me hooked. Couldn't put it down. I was engrossed until the last page. 5*.

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Just when you think it's a typical book about entitled idiots who inhabit the world of celebrity and rules and laws don't apply to them, it twists and i began to feel empathy for the other characters.
I hope this is not a one off and a follow is in the works.

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4.5 stars
Home is a global exclusive club; the rich and famous can party and also relax hidden away from prying eyes. The newest location to the home group is an entire island just off the English coast. However, from the start of the grand opening weekend tensions appear to be running high and slowly secrets are revealed and tension starts to rise and not everyone will leave the island alive.

This was a gripping thriller; the whole idea of a peek behind the celebrity curtain is fascinating and the exclusive Home club as more information was revealed kept me on the edge of my seat. A locked room mystery with a look at society's obsession with celebrity; thrilling and entertaining.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review

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Everyone’s Dying to Join . . .
The Home Group is a glamorous collection of celebrity members’ clubs dotted across the globe, where the rich and famous can party hard and then crash out in its five-star suites, far from the prying eyes of fans and the media.
The most spectacular of all is Island Home—a closely-guarded, ultraluxurious resort, just off the English coast—and its three-day launch party is easily the most coveted A-list invite of the decade.
But behind the scenes, tensions are at breaking point: the ambitious and expensive project has pushed the Home Group’s CEO and his long-suffering team to their absolute limits. All of them have something to hide—and that’s before the beautiful people with their own ugly secrets even set foot on the island.
As tempers fray and behavior worsens, as things get more sinister by the hour and the body count piles up, some of Island Home’s members will begin to wish they’d never made the guest list.
Because at this club, if your name’s on the list, you’re not getting out.

This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher. This is my own hone\st voluntary review.

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This was a brilliant read. Trying to work out who the characters are based on was fun…….so it’s set on an island which is part of a chain of super exclusive hotels. Only the mega rich and famous are members. The characters are vaguely recognisable but a mixture of famous people. I’ve just bought the first book. Look forward to more from this clever writing duo!

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Very very mixed feelings about this book. I was drawn in by the cover and the blurb. Sadly I don't think it lived up to it.

It was a very slow burner, really escalating around 40% when it got interesting, telling lots of secrets. However, around 70% I was just desperate to reach the end. I actually skipped over the last 5% skim reading it.

Had such potential, could be really interesting, but had a lot (too much) filler.

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A very good thriller, good but not quite great...but still entertaining.

Playground for the most famous elite stars in the world, Home is a collection of world wide exclusive opulent resorts where everyone wants to be, especially for the opening of the new resort off the coast of England..... But whats meant to be a weekend to remember will be just that ..but for all the wrong reasons.

What I enjoyed about this story was it was a very rapid read, I read it in a few sittings, plenty of twists and action.....
...However I think the problem was there was too much going on. Told from numerous POV every character had a twist to their story ....but it all felt too much, too many ingredients, too many colliding storylines and coincidences.
This could have been such an amazing book if the story had been stripped right back. One murder, one twisted backstory ...but instead it was all a bit OTT .... It was hard not to compare this to other recent thrillers I've read such as The Castaways, Stranded and Reckless girls which for me where much better.

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The Club was a book I couldn’t wait to start but unfortunately it didn’t live up to my expectations.
The book is based around island home which is the newest celebrity getaway for the owner Ned Broom, there are other places around the world and this is his latest. The book is told from different characters viewpoints, owner Ned, his brother Adam, his pa Nikki, head of memberships Annie and Jess who is head of housekeeping and newly appointed to the role. The book follows the opening and the three day launch event that only the best of the best celebrities have been invited to but what starts off as a normal event turns into something much darker.
At the beginning of this book I very nearly gave up as it was so slow going, I appreciate that time needed to be spent building the characters backgrounds but it could have been done with a bit more excitement, I don’t really like any character and that was disappointing, I also found that there were so many characters that it was hard to keep track of. After the event had started things got better and it turned around a bit into a mystery full of revenge and glamour and I enjoyed that part more.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you to the author, publishers Mantle and NetGalley UK for access to this as an advance reader’s ebook. This is an honest and voluntary review.

I have to applaud the skills of an author (or in this case authors since Ellery Lloyd is the pen name for a husband and wife writing team) who can create a world full of horrible people which is thoroughly enjoyable to read. The Home Clubs are designed for the privileged few. The home away from home where the celebrated and the famous can mingle in comfort free from the gaze of the paparazzi and the demands of fans.

The exclusivity is ramping up with the latest venue for the Home Group set on a private island available exclusively for the use of members. The launch weekend is set to be one no one will ever forget, but not necessarily for the reasons they expect.

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A good second book for this author. A bit slow to start with and confusing getting to know quite a few characters. But I loved how each of them had their own hidden truths which gradually came out in the little twists and turns! If stories about greed, deceit, fame and revenge are your thing then you will enjoy this !

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Step into the world of celebrity hideouts and getaways in this gripping, crazy novel by husband-and-wife writing team Collette Lyons and Paul Vlitos, aka Ellery Lloyd.

The Home Group offers exclusive - VERY exclusive - membership to celebrities and VIPs, allowing them to access and use their many members' clubs all over the world, and their newest offering is Home Island. It's all hands on deck as the team work to get ready for the luxurious launch party (due to last 3 days!) and everyone wants an invite. But then things go terribly wrong...

We find out at the start of the novel that there are some deaths on the Island, and we see news articles and interviews with people who were there. Then we skip back and forwards in time as we learn what happened, with a number of suspects. The characters are all pretty horrible, but don't let that put you off - The Club is still a really entertaining read. I raced through it - it's easy to read and the high drama of it offers a good dose of escapism - it's set in a world so different to most people's usual lives! Some parts felt a bit slower than others but the pace soon picks up again. Definitely fits the bill as a novel that's pure entertainment - nothing too deep here, just a fun and easy read!

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Another winner from Ellery LLoyd! A fun page turner about the perils of celebrity and how one should be kind to people on the way up as revenge can be sweet, and deadly.
Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for an advance copy of this book

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This is a story that completely hooks you from the start. It has all the trappings of a great mystery, an isolated island and plenty of people with hidden pasts and secrets. It’s like a modern day And Then There Were None, but with celebrities.

The structure is clever – the aftermath of the tragedy is told through a news story that we keep returning to throughout the book. It sprinkles just enough intrigue throughout to make you read on and get to the truth of what really happened on that fateful opening night.

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I was drawn to the synopsis of the book and have to say that this is a very fast read. It is told from the POV of 5 characters who are management level employees of Home, a club exclusive to Hollywood's most elite celebrities.

As expected, there is lots of scandal, secrets and plot twists. The first half of this murder/thrillers a compelling page turner I couldn't get enough of.

But unfortunately the second half of the book gets a bit crazy, even for this setting. Some of the scenes seemed forced and I was a bit disappointed by the ending.

All that being said, this is an entertaining book that hooked me from page 1.

Thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the e-arc.

3.5/5

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Uh it was so slow at the begging that I had troubles on concenrate unfortunatelly. I could not connect to any of the carracters, they were becoming more and more mean, all. I do not like revenge and I do not tolerate supoeriority, lies and so on. The sociaety is not always nice, but here was cruel. At the last part of the book there were some twists that made the story more likable. But Unfortunatelly I can not find more postitive points for higher rating.

Thank you Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for this ArC.

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Disappointing! Had great hopes for this book, but it did not live up to all the hype.
Unlikeable characters that I really didn't care about, the Club seems to be vaguely based on he Soho House group which I love and have had some great times at in the different venues. The writing was confusing with all the jumping about in time lines, it was hard to keep track, although plot so loose I managed.
Hard to review due to all these factors, writing not great, plot predictable and annoying, characters that are empty and vacuous.
Not one for me, and won't be recommending.
Thank you to NetGalley for the early read

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Overall, I really liked this book and thought it was a fun read. It was very easy to get into and I finished it very quickly. It's well paced and engaging enough to keep me reading. I didn't feel a huge amount of empathy for any of the characters, however. I think if this had been set in a less glamourous setting, it wouldn't have worked. Overall a fun read.

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