Seven people are invited to a dinner party by an unknown person. The seven guests are very unlikeable people, for very different reasons. The guests place cards all have a drawing on them which we come to learn are the seven deadly sins. At the end of the meal the guests are all given an envelope which contains the age they will die. Nobody really believes this to be true until the first couple of people have died. Then the remaining guests start trying to find out what is going on and save themselves.

This was a slow book at the beginning but it meant you got to know the individual characters better. Once the book got going it was full of twists and turns. I did figure out early on who was behind it all but it didn't spoil my enjoyment of this book.

Overall a very enjoyable book with lots of twists and turns. I have not read anything by the author before but I definitely will.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Harper North for the opportunity to read this book.

This was so quick and readable i was hooked all the way through and managed to finish it in around 24 hours. I liked the chapter format and how each character voice was so distinctive. My only complaint with this book was that it was quite solvable by around the 70% which isn't entirely a bad thing but i kind of knew who the killer was when one specific element was brought up. The writing definitely made this for me and it was so devourable. I think some of the plotting was a tiny bit off but i enjoyed this too much to get distracted by those points. A very fun, enjoyable mystery!

Initially I found it a little tricky to get into this novel, but by the end I couldn’t finish it fast enough! Mystery, intrigue, and a whole lot of self reflection about whether we truly make the most of what time we have in our lives.

A delicious and heart racing read.

Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests is a darkly clever and unsettling mystery that asks a chilling question: how would you live your life if you knew the exact age you were going to die?

Seven strangers gather at an exclusive dinner party, hosted by someone unknown, only to be presented with black envelopes predicting their deaths.

Most dismiss it as a strange parlour trick—until the first guest dies exactly as foretold.

What follows is an eerie and gripping tale of fate, paranoia and suspicion. As the years pass and more predictions come true, the remaining guests must face the possibility that someone is orchestrating their deaths. Each perspective adds depth to the story, allowing the reader to experience the creeping dread and the growing desperation from different angles.

K J Whittle builds the suspense gradually, weaving together seven distinct voices and slowly tightening the tension until the story becomes impossible to put down. The blend of psychological unease, gothic atmosphere and classic whodunnit structure makes this a memorable and inventive take on the locked-room style of mystery.

Although it begins with a slow pace as the cast of characters are introduced, once the deaths begin to align with the predictions, the book grips with intensity and intrigue. The unraveling of secrets and the escalating fear among the survivors make for a compelling and thought-provoking read.

Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests is an imaginative and chilling mystery with a unique premise and a satisfyingly eerie execution.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperNorth for this eAarc in exchange for an honest review.

This is an easy whodunit read. The pacing is just right and I thought it well done.

I did enjoy this book but it’s missing something. It needed a bit more suspense and danger.

The premise was good but it just needed something more.

This was a bit of a surprise! An Agatha Christie type story for the 21st century. I read it in two sessions, I was so engrossed in the story. Seven strangers are invited to a dinner party and are given a card with the age when they will die on it. Who is behind it, why are they chosen, how will they die? The story doesn’t dwell on too much background ( though the clues are there!) but moves forward at the pace of the cards. Some guests looked at their cards, some didn’t and some lost theirs. I really liked this. I’ve marked it as 4* only because I did work out the ending!

An enjoyable pacy whodunit, Seven Reasons toys with its central ticking-clock premise of seven strangers predicted to die at a dinner party, to great effect. Everything is Christie-esque, and while the twists are easy enough to spot, the morally grey cast of suspects/victims/protagonists are pulpy enough to carry it forward to a mostly-satisfying conclusion.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

This starts off really well and I was immediately drawn in by the varied and easily distinguishable characters, the black envelopes and the ages at which the diners would die.

The first death comes early on and then we are off! Each character dies in a different way and finally "then there were two". The book echoes the classic Agatha Christie "And then there were none" in many ways but no spoilers! I did guess one of the mysteries of the book quite early on but then I have read so many Golden Age murder mysteries that I know the wily ways of the authors.

I was genuinely surprised by the events on the bridge in London but I would say that from that point on the story dips a little. I was not entirely convinced by the "sins" of the diners or by the ease of their dispatch and I felt the very last few lines were quite absurd and let the book down.

Overall a good read though.

* A good but not great read, some flaws*

Catchy title and catchy premise for a mystery/thriller that’s definitely worth reader’s time. Anyone used to this specific genre will feel right at home reading this book. But I also think it’d be a great read for beginners who want to get more into the genre. Very accessible.

The premise already tells you what to expect but not the how and the why. The journalist in me is always asking for answers to those questions. We find out the “how” slowly, while the characters start to deal with this odd situation they find themselves in. But there is still the curiosity over what will happen next, if it’ll be right the way we’re told it will or if there will be surprises. Plans can go wrong after all. I’ll get into the way the “why” is answered in the last part of this review.

The first thing we notice about the characters is that they’re not likeable. At all. And it’s done in an obvious way. Each reader will dislike one more than the others due to personal pet peeves but they’re all purposefully awful. We get more context for the way they are throughout the book but the first impression is bad. And it was something I found very curious. I wondered why the author chose to present such flawed characters in this kind of situation. Normally, we would feel bad about them dying soon but when we’re told right away they aren’t good people, does that change how we feel?
That’s where the “why” comes into play and what’s the most important about this book, in my opinion. It’s more about what’s moral than it is about the mystery. We see the eternal dilemma of what would you do if you knew when you’re going to die as well. Each character approaches this in such a unique way. And it helps explore who they are and add nuance to them as individuals.

And the title says it clearly. The book is the explanation of those “reasons” and that will be what makes a lot of people either love the book or feel underwhelmed by it. I expect the twists and the ending to be divisive. I liked all of it but didn’t love it. I feel like the other option that was hinted at was better and could have been really cool if executed properly.

A big positive, which I think it’s worth mentioning, is that I read this book during an awful heatwave. It felt like my brain had melted and I personally struggle to do most things when it’s really hot. Concentrating on reading or writing is not easy. And yet this book kept me interested enough to try and find a way to read at least a little every single day. I can only imagine how quickly I would have read it had it not been for the awful weather.

I had not heard of this author before, but I am a fan of locked room type of mystery thriller. This wasn't exactly the locked room thriller I imagined it would be, but I loved it, and will look for more of this authors work.
Seven people who are strangers to each other are invited to a dinner party by an unknown host. They are served wine and food by mostly silent waiters, and at the end of the evening each guest is given a small black envelope. Those who open the envelopes see a message telling them at what age they will die. Most are dismissive of the messages, and so they all leave to resume their lives. Then, the first one of them dies at the age written on their card. Coincidence? Maybe, but after the second death...then the third...the remaining characters need to find who is coming for them, and why.
The story is told from the points of view of each of the seven characters. I found the characters mostly unlikeable, but as the story unfolds, secrets come to light about possibilities that could have made them unlikeable. I didn't see the ending coming, and I look forward to the next book by this author.
Thank you for my advance copy.

A fascinating, gripping book. Kept me guessing right to the end, with several unexpected twists and turns. This is a murder mystery masterpiece, showing great insight into people’s minds and faults. I will definitely watch out for more books by this author.

ha and eek was what i felt whilst reading this lol. it was a great premise and had me turning the pages needing to know what was coming next and to answer all the why's we all got going in.
seven strangers. a dinner party invite to each. and then a note telling them when they will die? errrm i'll not be leaving a tip. in fact id like a refund please!
wouldn't you just laugh it off. but you'd still be spooked right. and thats kind of what the characters do as they walk away from the night. but then a short time later one of the guests does indeed die. and then more begin to die as the notes told them they would. so now its a race to the end, literally. as they have to find out who and why before its too late for them all. it feels like a bit of a deeper darker dive into Agatha Christie type novel with this one. and i enjoyed it just as much as i do them. they have an eerie but exciting feeling to them. and at some points it felt like the Final Destination movie that i went to see when i was too young and that freaked me out! it was good to be back with all those vibes in this read and i was really invested into knowing where the story would take us. because in this the folk aren't trying to cheat or race against death they are racing against someone playing death for them!
i really wanted to know who the killer was and just why they would take such a path as this. the characters were all really well written and each very different which made puzzling together any connections all the more intriguing and left me with questions at every turn.
the pacing of the book was great as you go between tense and then sitting wait for whats next, and then excited and waiting for whats next.
the ending was great and i didn't see it coming. a great way to finish a brill time with a book.

Seven strangers receive an invitation to a dinner party. They have nothing in common, apart from the invitation. They have no idea who invited them, or why. Waiters keep them supplied with good food and fine wine, but their host remains elusive. And then each guest discovers a black envelope next to their wineglass. Inside is a message, telling them at what age they will die. 🍷
Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests is a unique spin on the Agatha Christie classic, And Then There Were None. The story is told from the POVs of the seven dinner guests: Vivienne, Tristan, Matthew, Stella, Gordon, Janet and Melvin. All of them have secrets, and someone wants all of them dead. 🍷
I have to admit I worked out the who early on in the narrative, though I did doubt myself, because it took me a little longer to figure out the why. The ending surprised me though. 🍷
Pacy, with twists and well placed red herrings, Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests is a wonderful homage to Agatha Christie. 🍷
Thanks to Harper North and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

A fairly predictable type of murder scenario without a huge amount of impact or surprise. Large overdose of the word 'fugue' ! Easy reading without reaching the heights.
My thanks to NetGalley and HarperNorth for this arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

🍴 Seven Reasons To Murder Your Dinner Guests;

My Review! 🍴

(Written by K.J. Whittle)


Blurb;

Three courses. Seven guests. One evening they'll never forget.

Seven strangers meet at Serendipity's for an anonymously hosted dinner party. As the evening reaches its close, small black envelopes are placed in front of the diners… revealing the age at which each will die.

Spooked, but not wholly shaken, the group disperses into the rainy night with the hope of forgetting the ghoulish stunt.

But two weeks later, one dinner guest dies at the age foretold. Was it a tragic accident? Or something more sinister?

As the years go by, the other guests begin to die in line with the predictions given on that first night. And it's up to the remaining few to figure who, if anyone, was behind that dinner party before their numbers catch up with them too.

Told from the perspectives of the guests, Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests balances mystery and mortality, asking: how would you live your life if you know your number was up?


My Review,

When I first started reading this book, it drew me in & was compelling enough to keep me turning the pages, however, by half way through I felt this was more of a 'chore-read', reading it just to get to the end. It wasnt written in that 'easy-read' style either, so had to concentrate more, & when it kept flitting between each of the seven guests, it was kindof hard to keep up.

Its a read im deffo glad I read, & whilst I personally wouldn't recommend it, I'd still say that it's very much worth the read.

Based on a rating of 1-10, where 10 is the highest, I would give this book a rating of 6.

I found this quite a fun read and I really enjoyed every page.

Seven guests are having dinner and after the dessert is served each are given an envelope with a number inside.
This number is the age they will die and very soon the predictions start to come true.

I loved the twists in this book..it is hard to talk about it fully without giving away spoilers but this is book that is worth every minute of reading time.

I loved it

Thanks to Netgalley for letting me review this book.
Fantastic book! Funny in places, dark in other places. Lots of twists and turns. Seven people meet up for dinner in mysterious circumstances. They each get a not depicting the date of their death. This is definitely a five star book. I can't recommend it enough ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A very Agatha Christie esque story.
Seven people are invited to a suave dinner party at a London restaurant. After dessert they are all given envelopes with a number written inside, The number is the age at which they will die..
One by one the predictions start to come true. But is this supernatural? Or is someone murdering them? And if so why?
A good premise for a story. Engagingly written. Told from the points of view of the various guests.
Recommended.

Seven people receive invitations to a dinner party and each receives a card stating the age when they will die. Then when some of them start dying , is it coincidence or not. Could someone be killing them? How worried should they be. There are no obvious connections between the seven although they were all given a card depicting a separate deadly sin. The story is told from each person's perspective but mostly from Vivienne who is the most keen to try and find who is behind everything. I thought that the other characters were a bit stereotypical although maybe this was deliberate to show their deadly sin , but it felt a bit annoying. As there wasn't much to investigate a lot of time was spent simply waiting for someone else to die.
Eventually we find out the connection between the seven diners but I felt some of these were a bit flimsy. The book never really grabbed me but it was easy reading and I was keen to finish it to find out who was behind it all.
Thanks to NetGalley and HarperNorth for the ARC