Personally, I love a mystery/thriller set on an island or any similar isolated place. That's why I was curious to read this one.
It has a retreat on an island, rich shady people and a lot of mystery. I should have loved it.
I didn't.
Honestly, I don't have any strong criticism or reservations. I simply didn't care about the protagonist, who is someone who lies about who they are in order to be at that place among famous and rich people, or the rest of the cast of characters.
I did enjoy the ambience but other than that, I thought it was all just fine. I wasn't impressed by the twists or the conclusion.
Maybe I've already read too many books on that genre and with that trope?
I'm sure readers with a little less experience with that trope might enjoy this book a lot more.
Nothing essentialy wrong with it. Just not one of my favourites.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read a free eARC of this book.

What the heck did I just read? Sure, this was obviously going to be a locked room mystery. Sure, after the first murder, everyone became a suspect. But then it turned to something even more of a widespread panic, as if there was a mad gunman or terrorist group attacking anyone and everyone. The witty and cleverness that made a locked room mystery so much fun to read became less and less entertaining, it became more tedious to get through to the end. I had fun reading this, though, it just seemed to dragged out once the book turned it into an attack to the whole resort rather than figuring out little by little who was the ultimate villain in all of this. Even though it was an interesting turn of event, that was when it took a while to really get into it. It was as if the car slowed down and it puttered to the end when it was going along just fine.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Long Weekend is a story about Emma, whose millionaire boss gives her a ticket to the opening weekend of an uber exclusive resort on a private island. It seems like a dream come true, until it isn't...
One by one, the guests begin to get killed off. Who is behind it? Who's next?!
The story is told through Emma's journal that she kept throughout the ordeal. Emma is a bit wishy washy, trusting a person one minute, doubting them the next. But I suppose that would be understandable under the circumstance, she doesn't know who is behind it all.
Someone must be the master planner, pulling all the strings. But who? All the other guest on the island are rich and famous, mostly celebrities. Her childhood crush included, the rich and famous actor Robert Castro. Then there is Penny Atwell, the famous talk show host, and Fiona Appleton, a rich businesswoman who has taken over the family business. Also a well known social media influencer, and a dirty ex-politician. Is it one of them, or the people who are running the hotel.
The stakes get higher and higher, and it becomes all out survival of the fittest.
Will Emma survive? Will the others? She dreams about the future with her new "friends", but she has no way of knowing if it will come to fruition.
The story seems to end with the end of Emma's journal, which is really no ending at all - we don't know if she survived, but there has been no trace of her once the police and FBI finally got to the island.
And then there is the epilogue, keeping you gussing until they very last sentence, when all is revealed and you found out who was behind it all, and why.
A fairly quick and easy read, so there's that. A lot of incosistencies in the book, and a lot of wishy-washy emotions with Emma.
It was ok. And even 3.

Six individuals are invited to enjoy a weekend on a private island to celebrate Hotel Horizen resort's grand opening. These individuals are not your average folk- Fiona Appleton's family owns the largest money printing press in the world, Robert Castro is a famous actor, hailing from a family of famous actors, Lucas Jones is the most watched person on the internet, Penny Atwell made her name as the most successful tv host, Michael Samson, a politician, and Rebecca Marsh, who comes from money. When Rebecca isn't able to attend, she gifts her employee, Emma Jones with the invitation to go in her place. Emma is excited by this opportunity, because not only would she never be able to afford something of this expense, but she sees it as the perfect opportunity to kickstart her career as a journalist. She has a plan to write about the lifestyle divide between those with wealth & those without, the difference between the rich and poor.
When Emma arrives at Hotel Horizen, all is not what it seems. Suspicions arise almost the second she steps foot on the resort, and things really start taking a turn when people start dropping like flies.
This was a really enjoyable book, with twists that'll leave you questioning a different potential killer each time! I suspected the killer correctly early on in the book, however the very end had my jaw drop! Completely nutty, but I loved it!

Thank you NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, and SM Thomas for this thrilling read!

Long Weekend by SM Thomas was a great quick and easy read especially as its a great holiday read.

WoW! An exclusive invitation to a luxurious island resort, this should be the holiday of a lifetime for Emma. But beneath the lavish settings and indulgent amenities, lies a sinister plot waiting to be uncovered. This sounds so good and it was excellent!

When, Emma's boss, Rebecca, gifted her the golden ticket to Hotel Horizons grand opening, Emma has her own agenda - to write a tell-all article about the rich and famous guests. But, little did she know, this weekend would become a nightmare she never could have imagined...............Emma starts to look deeper into secrets of the elite, and she realises she may have bitten off more than she can chew.

Will she uncover the truth and make her mark as a journalist, or will she become the next victim in this twisted game of power and deception?

This book was a great page turner and ended up reading it all afternoon - well the weather outside was horrible - so this book was a lovely find.

I highly recommend this book.

Big Thank you to Netgalley and especially BooksGoSocial for my ARC.

A very relatable assistant ends up going on a luxury weekend trip with a bunch of super rich people. Because she's normal person she is noticing all the gorgeous details of the resort and I love that for her. I love her bisexual struggle to decide which hot person she wants to spend her time with.
After that point nothing is relatable anymore. At times it gets a little silly, which I personally love.
That ending though. I don't see why.. actually I don't want to spoil it.

Emma works for wealthy, but frugal Rebecca March. Emma requests a raise from her employer and is denied, however Rebecca counters with offering Emma the opportunity to take Rebecca’s place at the exclusive opening event for Hotel Horizen.

Emma accepts the offer, seeing it as an opportunity to expose the over-consumption of the rich and kickstart her writing career. While waiting for the private jet, Emma meets her five, insanely rich, travel partners.

Upon arrival, the hotel manager is less than thrilled to see Emma, as they were expecting Rebecca. Is this because Rebecca was to be a target? Regardless, Emma is permitted to stay and shortly after, the murders begin…

Overall, this book was a quick read. The characters were tolerable but not relatable. The reader was made painfully aware that Emma did not have the financial status that her fellow travelers enjoyed. Solid 3 out of 5.

Many thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for this ARC!

Emma accepts a vacation offer from her boss to stay at an all-inclusive resort on a private island. She’s getting fed up with how her boss treats her and refuses to compensate her fairly. Emma is going to use this weekend to write a story exposing the rich. There she meets five wealthy guests she doesn’t fit in with; They are Penny, Fiona, Robert, Lucas, and Michael. Emma tries her best to fit in and keep up with her lie. Then the guests start dropping like flies.

I wish there was more of a description of the resort itself. The story went right into the guests sharing drinks together to the first person ending up dead. The story was told from the perspective of the person who left behind their journal. Overall, I was kept on my toes, anxious to see who was behind all the chaos. The killings themselves didn’t make much sense and seemed to lack motive. The lack of security and authorities during this disaster did not add up for me even after finding out who was involved. Also, I thought it was strange to include the main character (Emma) so focused on a hook up while people around her are dying. There wasn’t too much character development, and the characters weren’t incredibly likeable. The epilogue and twists were jaw dropping, but disappointingly, the ending seemed a bit rushed and I was still left with questions. Overall, I did enjoy this book; short, thrilling, and it kept me engaged.

Thank you NetGalley and AR Hurne Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Emma is pretending to be rich to fit in with everyone on this private island in hopes of writing a story comparing their lives… but everyone around her is dying.

This book was easy to read and left me wanting more and more at the end of each chapter. The pace was fast, the action was packed, and the twists were not easily predictable. I wanted more descriptions of the private island written in the story to give it more scenery but the action made up for that.

Emma didn’t act like the typical dumb main character of a thriller. She was almost likable but she kept making it known to the reader that she was so different from the rich and she’s so poor.

The epilogue blew my mind I did not see that coming and my jaw dropped.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and S.M. Thomas for this ARC of Long Weekend

"The Long weekend” book presents a thrilling mystery, set on a deserted island featuring a group of celebrities, a premise that brims with potential. Unfortunately, while the setup promises an engaging who-done-it tale, the execution falls short. The plot developments often veer into the realm of the unbelievable, which detracts from the suspense and coherence of the story. Despite the enticing concept, the narrative's execution does not fully capitalize on its intriguing setup, leaving the reader with a sense of unfulfilled expectations. Overall, while the book could have been a standout in the thriller genre, it ultimately doesn't deliver a convincing or satisfactory resolution.

This book was fine. The twist at the end was surprising but not shocking. It was a bit difficult to follow the actions at times and I also thought the romantic stuff thrown in throughout was weird given the fact that so many people were dying and the characters were scared for their lives. The whole thing was just really convoluted.

The Long Weekend by sm Thomas starts off with an interesting premise, a bunch of people stuck on an exclusive island then one of them gets murdered. Unfortunately, it devolves into everyone getting killed so we know that there is a twist hiding somewhere. It was less a crafty thriller and more of a slasher fiction. Wasn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, SM Thomas and BooksGoSocial for an ARC of this novel.

Unfortunately, this just didn’t cut it for me. I wanted to like it, but found that some of the characters appeared similar which make it challenging to distinguish at first, and the story itself was just meh. The epilogue was probably the best part.

Wow! What a page turner from the very beginning! The first page really sets the scene for the creepy ambiance of the rest of the novel. Whilst you know from the first couple of pages in the novel where this will end, you can’t help but hope that it won’t.

The story revolves around Emma, the Narrator of the story, an assistant who is sent instead of her Boss, to an exclusive, once in a life time holiday, to a new private resort. Amongst the other guests are a famous actor, seedy politician, mega influencer, billionaire and famous tv host. Whilst you can’t help but engrossed in the story, Emma is a pretty unlikeable character that is difficult to connect to, yet it does not take away from the pace or desire to navigate the clues with Emma as to who is responsible for what transpires.

I was still not fixed who the true villain was until the very end, and this novel keeps you guessing until the very last paragraph. Like me, I bet you reread the epilogue more than once. Recommend this as a solid airport read.

Thank you to the Author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read, review and give my honest opinion of this ARC.

Emma receives an exclusive invitation to a luxurious island resort, courtesy of her boss Rebecca. Excited but with ulterior motives, Emma plans to write an expose on the elite guests. However, her dream vacation turns into a nightmare as she uncovers a sinister plot lurking beneath the resort's opulence. Emma must navigate dangerous secrets and decide if revealing the truth is worth risking her life in a game of power and deception.

This book is one of those where your opinion of "Who done it" will shift throughout the entire story. Every time I had a theory, I thought the ending was obvious. I was wrong, again, and again, and again.

Once the plot starts moving, it doesn't stop. You'll be sucked in, unable to put it down until you finish. The writing is streamlined, without a lot of fluff and very easy to read.

Thank you to Netgalley for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
This book was so, so for me. It was a 2.5 rounded up to 3 stars. I felt compelled to keep reading even though I really wanted to DNF this 20% in. It wasn’t a spectacular read but it got better as the story went along. I will try this author again.

Vacation gone wrong. Quick and enjoyable read. Gave it 4 stars because I felt like there were some holes in the plot. Overall would recommend.

What appears to be a long, luxury weekend on a secluded private island turns murderous and mysterious.

Emma, who has been gifted the long weekend by her boss, is an ordinary person and the only member of the very small group on this trip who is not rich and famous. But her companions, all of whom seem okay at first glance, are among the richest and most famous in the world. Emma wonders just how she’s going to fit into this crowd, a worry that intensifies when she is rudely not welcomed at the resort by the staff. She manages to convince them that she is there instead of her boss, who, clearly by oversight, neglected to inform the place that Emma is coming in her stead. Clearly, she is the proverbial sore thumb, and the room she is grudgingly shown to is minuscule compared to the elaborate individual villas of the other guests.

The story rapidly gets very dark as one by one her companions mysteriously die. Although Emma manages to escape death by the villain, she is missing and is presumed dead. But is she dead? And what evil plot took out her companions? I won’t tell. You will have to read the book for yourself.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley.

In lieu of a raise, Emma's boss surprises her with a luxurious private island getaway, accompanied by a select group of celebrities. However, their paradise quickly transforms into a nightmare and Emma realizes that nothing is as it appears.

This book was a very atmospheric quick thriller that was very entertaining to read. While I did enjoy it overall, there were moments when the reading became slightly challenging. In my opinion, the book could have been better if it had omitted the diary aspect. The transition only occurs in the final chapters, which felt somewhat disjointed. It's difficult to believe the idea of the Emma jotting down her experiences during such intense moments, especially when considering the logistical challenges she would have faced - like writing in pitch dark.

Dispite this I found it a quick easy read and it was very enjoyable. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book and give my honest review.

This is a fantastic locked room type mystery/thriller set in a high-end resort on remote island. My favorite kind of read leading up to the summer! I loved everything about this