My mind went into overdrive trying to work out who did it and what were the secrets. So much so I nearly missed my son’s 21st birthday party to read it. An absolute top read.
Thank you so much to Netgalley and Chris Brookmyre for this wonderful book. It’s a 4 and 3/4 stars from me.

When I read the first few chapters of this book I began to wonder if Chris Brookmyre had branched out from his usual genre to the more summery chick lit, but soon we swap the matching tshirts for murder and suspicion.

Jen has arranged her Hen party on what sounds like an idillyic getaway, if you dont want sun and have famous bestie who is avoiding the spotlight right now. The group sort of know each other but not really which perfectly sets up the mistrust and self doubt. scenarios.

This book does not disappoint, it moves along quickly as we get to know the girls and casts each of them in a positive and negative light. There are points where even looking back and knowing what I now know I dont think I would have guessed the outcome!

The only warning that this book needs to come with is to clear your schedule as its a total binge read!

Chris Brookmyre has fantastically updated Agatha Christies' scenario from 'And then there were none' and placed the action on a Scottish Island with a modern hen group twist. Old friends and new are brought together in splendid isolation, bringing with them old resentments and new secrets. Then a body is found....
A brilliant twisty plot and a lot of fun.

Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown Book group for my advanced digital proof copy of The Cliff House.

I loved the premise of this book and it didn’t disappoint. I have enjoyed several books written by Chris Brookmyre and have enjoyed all his stand alone thrillers immensely. The plot moved along with pace and all the characters (all women) drawn very well. The only thing I missed ( greatly) was the trademark dark humour - no chuckles to be had. I hope this lack of the author’s twisted wit & humour doesn’t mark a trend for his upcoming work. Saying that, the book was very well written and all loose ends tied together very nicely at the end. I certainly recommend this book.

A fantastic story that is so twisted, you can't put it down! This keeps you hooked in from start to finish and has you doubting if anyone is who they say they are!

I have to say, I found the beginning of The Cliff House a tad confusing, (it also has a slightly ‘chick-lit’ feel - airport selfies and matching t-shirts etc). The first segment of the book is an introduction to the characters, who are all female - so lots of names, jobs, and relationships to absorb and remember. This is a prerequisite, as we need to know about the lives, associations, and resentments of the various characters. I also found that none of the characters are particularly likeable, all being self-obsessed in their own ways.

When one of the party goes missing the others receive a message stating that her life depends on one of the women ‘confessing their sin’. We then find out that all the women are protecting secrets they’d rather keep hidden, some of the secrets are more shocking than others, some cover contemporary issues such as trolling and others moral issues such as murder and extra-marital affairs. I found I worked out the weak link in the group, but with the many red herrings we are thrown, I never even considered the conclusion.

All in all, a good read - a solid 4* from me.

Loved this latest thriller by Chris Brookmyre and couldn't put it down! Jen arranges a hen party for her second marriage on a secluded Scottish island, but one of their party is kidnapped and held to ransom. They receive a message telling them that unless someone confesses her terrible secret to the others, their missing friend will be killed. But they all have a dark secret! Brilliant storyteller

Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown Book group for my advanced digital proof copy of The Cliff House.

What a bloody (pardon the pun) entertaining thriller! Read it in one day as I couldn't put the damn thing down! I was proper intrigued and I literally had plot endings lined up but never could I have guessed what actually did happen! Holy crap!!!

The anticipation Mr Brookmyre built up throughout the different narratives really gave an edge to the story and that was a winner for me for sure!!!! The story being
Told from different perspectives really added depth and tension gripping myself the reader further!

This is the first novel I've read by Chris Brookmyre but I will definitely be looking out for more! Kudos to the Author!

Gosh this book is good. The characters are really interesting and it takes a bit of time for them to come to life before your eyes. Then the story really gets going. A really good book that I don’t want to spoil by telling you the story in a review. Please read it!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for an advance copy of The Cliff House, a stand-alone psychological thriller set on a small, remote Scottish island.

Jen has invited six women from her past and present to her hen party in a luxury house on the island of Clachan Gael. The women all have different life stories, long festering resentments and secrets they’d rather keep hidden, so when one of them goes missing and a message is received saying that the price of her life is a confession of their sins, they’re still unwilling to comply, but with no way off the island and no means of communication compliance might be their only option.

I enjoyed Cliff House once it got going. The first 25% of the novel is an introduction to the characters, giving them a voice, outlining their lives and hinting at the friction between various characters. It’s slow and a bit of a slog as none of them is particularly likeable, all being self obsessed in different ways, but necessary as it prepares the reader for when things kick off. It doesn’t make their ensuing actions and reactions unrealistic or improbable because the reader has an idea of their character by then. I won’t say knows because there is much to reveal over the course of the novel.

The rest of the novel is pure Brookmyre, perhaps a muted one but still Brookmyre. Nobody does mayhem and confusion better. The secrets come out slowly, as if dragged kicking and screaming into the light. Some are more shocking than others and some are more guessable than others, but the overall effect is seismic, especially when the twists kick in and the motive becomes apparent. I guessed a wee bit of it but nowhere near enough not to be jolted when the denouement came.

The unraveling of secrets is part of the novel, but the other part is the characters’ guesses at who is responsible. They reveal thought processes and a certain self absorption, but, I suppose also, the truism that a problem shared brings perspective and realism, if not a halving.

I have given The Cliff House 4*, a compromise between the 3* start and lack of trademark humour and the 5* ending, and have no hesitation in recommending it as a good read.

Jen has arranged a hen weekend in a luxury house on a private Scottish island. Along with 7 women, she is looking to a weekend of fun and reminiscing. However, on the first evening, one of the Hens is taken hostage and they all receive a sinister message about what will happen to her unless one of the party confesses their terrible secret. The trouble is, which Hen and which secret? This is a rollicking, read which grabs and doesn’t let go.

Have read some Chris Brookmyre books before and also enjoyed TV adaptations. This was a good read, another "small number of people stuck with modern communications and a baddie" scenario. Slow going I felt. Tension was raised by gradually revealing the characters back stories but it was a bit too drawn out. The guilty party is revealed very early on which I thought was a shame and did diminish my appreciation of the book. After Agatha did- And Then There Were None all other types of this book have failed to match up. There is , after all, only so many ways it can go but this is a good read.. Some have mentioned formulaic and with this sort of scenario I think it's almost inevitable. Four star read, it was enjoyable and I'm glad I read it so thanks to NetGalley and publisher

First time reading Chris Brookmyre and I would definitely try this author again.

This book was good but I personally think I'd would have enjoyed this more in the audio format as it didn't really move fast enough for me on paper.
Would still recommend it though

I didn't connect with any of the characters in this book and felt like the plot lacked the depth that I enjoy, which is a shame because the description really drew me in.

I struggled to engage with any of the characters in this book, felt the plot twists were too formulaic yet now I can’t remember exactly what happened!

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this eARC!
Wow!! This book had me hooked from the tag line and I couldn’t wait to dive right in, and from the get go I was sucked in!
This book was full of twists and turns and I barely guessed any of them were coming! I even shouted a couple of times because I was so shocked at what was revealed.
You are constantly doubting EVERYONE and questioning what their true intentions are.
After each “chapter” / section was a cliffhanger and just made me want to read more and more!

I haven’t read a book this good in a while and my first 5 star rated book of the year!

I loved this! I am a Chris Brookmyre fan generally anyway, but even by his standards this was a real page-turner. You're left guessing all the way through - you suspect everyone, trust no one. A couple of the characters are less engaging than the others and their 'sins' rather less striking but it would be less believable if they all turned out to have really serious secrets hidden away.

Completely compelling - I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who likes a thriller with a twist (or three!).

Jen and a group of friends have organised her hen weekend in an exclusive retreat on a remote Scottish island. This is second time around for forty-something Jen and her guests including her tennis partners, old school friends and her dead husband’s sister.
They are all settling in for some serious pampering, when one member of the party goes missing. Before long, they are informed that she is being held to ransom and the price for her release is the confession of and reparation for the past misdeeds of an unnamed party member.
As they set out to search for Samira, it becomes clear that there are many dark secrets within the group, but which one is the determining one?
Chris Brookmyre’s The Cliff House is an enormously entertaining read. The characters which could easily become cliched, especially with the number of island mystery scenarios around, are anything but. These well-heeled women, as they are paired off in search parties, renew old relationships, revisit and revise past differences and discover truths previously hidden.
But the real strength with this writer is, as always, the overwhelming flood of red herrings and while there are a limited number of possibilities for answers and the need for a degree of suspension of disbelief, the roller coaster ride is thrilling and the conclusion is deftly reached.
I would guess the Cliff House will be another roaring success.

Thanks to ~NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in return for a fair review.

As a longtime fan of Chris Brookmyre I was excited to read this novel. A bit of a departure, in that it is a standalone novel following group of women on their trip to an isolated and exclusive property on a Scottish island.

The characters are interesting, well described and with intriguing interior voices. Everyone has secrets to hide and although i thought I had worked out the 'twist' in this thriller I was wrong. It's great to read a thriller that keeps you guessing right to the end!

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this title. Something different here from the prolific Chris Brookmyre - the Cliff House is a standalone novel set in a luxury house on a remote Scottish Island. Jen has booked the place for a hen weekend and invited along a bunch of friends, some who know each other and some who don’t. Then one of them goes missing and the remaining six women get a text message on their phones telling them that unless one of them confesses the missing housemate will die. But confess to what? They all have secrets but which is the one that is being referred to? The characters are well-rounded, from the pop star to the tennis pro - the question being who is not what they appear to be. As with all of Brookmyre's books The Cliff House is very well written and builds to a satisfying climax - recommended absolutely.