Addictive. A perfectly constructed, character-based domestic drama full of secrets, suspicion and spite. The three women have such different lives and connections, it’s clear that bringing them together is never going to end well. I felt like a fly on the wall witnessing the buildup of tension and questioning everyone’s motives as events unfolded - and was kept gripped to the end. The London setting is ideal as it’s easy to imagine these families living nextdoor to each other. I loved the way their stories became intertwined and exposed topical issues of racism, entitlement and consent. I’m looking forward to reading other books by this author.

Slow burn but had it's moments of excitement and intrigue.. An interesting story built around how three different people attending the same street party can perceive and experience events differently.

The Street Party is advertised as a thriller, but I think it fits more into a domestic drama, or women's fiction with suspense. It focuses on the group of neighbours living in Northgate Square in Wes London. The story revolves around three women and their families. Ruby a recently widowed, working mother with two children, Melissa, Ruby's best friend who is married to Rex, the headmaster of St Bede's and is stepmother to his daughter Cecelia, and Nella Jackson who is married to local politician Marcus. She is obsessed with money, beauty and putting on airs of having a perfect life. She has a daughter, Willow, and a young son, Beau. Nella decides to organize a street party and fundraiser to raise cash for charity and give her husband an opportunity to shake some hands and raise support for his newest political endeavour. Fireworks, alcohol, drugs and fun sounds like a wonderful time, but something happens at the party that'll change the lives of these three women and their families forever.

The women are the main focus of the story, but it is the actions of their children that drive a lot of this story. There is an allegation by one of the young women that puts things in motion that will change lives. Some of these kids are spoiled rotten, but giving gifts, money and protecting them from failing is not what kids need and trying to get attention often has problems. This story is a slow burn, with the first half of the story, setting the stage and introducing the families. These families are all very different and dealing with different issues, but they all have problems. The story is told from the POV of the three women. They alternate between chapters and I was often left wondering who was telling the truth. All three women pretend everything is great on the outside but behind closed doors it tells a different story. The story sped up for the last third and it kept me riveted. This story reminded a bit of Big, Little Lies with characters that didn't always present themselves honestly. This story was full of secrets, lies, deception, betrayal, addiction, scandals and domestic violence. There were some twists and turns throughout the story and some things that took me by surprise. This is a neighbourhood that I definitely don't want to move into, but I did care about several of the characters and was cheering for a certain outcome. The audiobook is narrated by three performers, Anna Cordell, Laura Brydon, and Nano Nagle. This gave each of the women their own voice which was wonderful as you could always tell which woman was sharing her story. This added to the enjoyment of the story, as I always prefer books with a cast of narrator. If you enjoy a good community story, with some well-written characters, toxicity, lies and suspense, then pick up The Street Party.

The community of Northgate Square is made up of wealthy and not so wealthy residents. Each year, they have a street party where neighbors get together for bake sales, clothing and home sales, face painting, fireworks and more with proceeds all going to charity.

This year, Nella and Marcus Jackson are heading up the planning. They are quite wealthy and Marcus is hoping to run for Prime Minister. Their daughter, Willow, is a pretty girl but will be going to public instead of private school and Nella wants her to meet some other students from public school. They also have a young son named Beau.

Ruby is the widow of Jonny working at her florist shop to make ends meet. Her daughter is living in Berlin and her teenage son, Zach, a mixed race boy, is in public school.

Melissa teaches yoga and is married to Rex, a pompous man who works at the public school. Cecelia, Rex’s daughter from his first marriage, lives with them. Melissa has never been able to have children which makes her very sad.

As the planning meetings begin, we see the true colors of the Jacksons as they field their way using the help of Ruby, Melissa, and others to get the street party together. After the party, some awful accusations appear leaving some people devastated.

It was hard for me to continue to read this book because I couldn’t figure out what the point of the story is. I refused to give up because Bookouture is the publisher and they have been so kind to by allowing me to read and review many of their novels. What I got out of the story is how wealth and privilege can sometimes produce children who feel they can bully others with no consequences. There is a lot of alcohol consumed by the adults and even by the children. Marital abuse is also a factor. An interesting read if you have the time.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I'm not sure quite how I feel about this book. I didn't particularly like the subject matter and didn't really feel it was a mystery thriller. It was clear who was lying. However, it was well written and once I got into it, I did want to keep reading to see what was going to happen at The Street Party.

The'Street' in question covers a range of 'classes'. The book revolves round three women who are all involved in the party & the events that follow. Nella is the prime mover for the party, rich, rather vain & obsessed with her status. Her husband is entering politics & this party is to be a good publicity event for him. Melissa is a yoga coach, stepmother of Cici who she loves desperately & wife to a rather unpleasant character. Ruby is her best friend. She is a widow, bringing up her mixed race son & trying make ends meet.

The story is told from these perspectives. It is a slow burn but it drew me in till I really wanted to know how it turned out. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me me read & review this book.

“There was something wrong with the whole picture: as if I was looking at it from upside down. And I felt a jab of fear as I wondered, what really lies beneath the surface here?”

An effective hook. I was at the point of gathering dishes from around the house to wash when I opened the book. But that chore ended up on sister's lap when I decided to go forget the task. Proceed to my room. Lie down. And read.

The characters all exude so much pain, emotion, hurt that made me reflect on so many things. Their road to healing is a huge (and beautiful) part of the story. Seeber is SUPERB at concocting characters. Only a few writers have the ability to create rightly lovable characters --- even less are those who can develop personas worthy of despise. She had me boiling with rage, indignance and swearing at a lot of the people in the novel. Really brought out the emotions...

This novel is a real puzzle. I did NOT have a single clue what would happen next in the story. I was not able to guess a huge a portion of the plot! And when Claire Seeber finally put all her cards on the table to say I was astounded is a huge understatement.

Seeber gave us some heavy things to ponder. Ruby's sentiments are so real, structured in a manner we can all relate to and very raw. The Street Party is one of the few books that really made me feel. And think. And ache.

The author kept me at the edge of my seat with all the suspense she infused into the book! She dragged the revelations out so wisely it rendered me unmoving until the moment secrets came tumbling out.

The weight and depth of a mother's love was also reflected in this book. It made me actually think of my own mother, and all the sappy stuff --- which I try to avoid at all times...Seeber served it in a too compelling way though, I had no choice!

The ending is so beautiful. This novel so rich, wholesome, all-encompassing and real --- I loved every moment of it. A thousand kudos to Claire Seeber!

Wow I could not put this book down! I can't wait to read more from Claire Seeber. I raced through The Street Party in 24 hours and loved the fast-pace of events.

What I enjoyed most about The Street Party are the key characters Ruby and Melissa and the themes of raising children in the modern, post #metoo world, grief and domestic violence. It didn't quite hit the mark for me as it is a very slow burner and didn't really take off until the 54% mark, and while I liked how it finished, the wrap-up could've been snappier. The author's style is enjoyable and I would definitely try her further titles. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance review copy.

Initially, I was drawn in by the cover and the description was even better. However, this book was very slow and it was hard for me to get into. There were a lot of characters and not enough excitement to keep me reading to the wee hours of the morning.
Thank you to Claire Seeber, NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was a very rare DNF for me. I attempted to read the book several times, and eventually I got about halfway through but I just felt there was no hook to keep me reading. It was overly long, uninteresting and with stilted dialogue. I wish the author all the best but this one just wasn’t for me.

Honestly, this is a real slow-starter; I was halfway through the book before the street party events kicked in … and even further on before the real drama began. That said, there are a number of characters at play here, all wildly different and with their own baggage to bring to the party. Could those early chapters have been condensed? Probably. But having reached the end, I can say it was worth the wait.

The story focuses on a group of neighbours who live in the richest part of London – though not all can truly afford to be there. There are three women at the centre of the story

Nella (future politician’s wife with lofty aspirations and more money than sense, and a desire to be seen to be doing good)
Melissa (yoga queen and a very lovely stepmother but with an abusive husband)
Ruby (florist, widowed, lives with her son and is very much on the edge of Nella’s group of helpers)
Nella plans on holding a fundraiser – not only will it make her look benevolent, but it won’t harm her husband’s political campaign either. So, she rallies her “friends” around. Melissa is Nella’s yoga teacher, and also best friend to Ruby who for the life of her cannot she why she has been invited to the inner sanctum.

Nella’s rather handsome husband – Marcus – is keen to get Ruby involved too, and offers to help out with getting her son an internship. Why he would do that is a mystery to Ruby (Could it be because her son is mixed race? Would a politician really be that shallow? ) However, Ruby is quite taken with Marcus’s attention … only to find out she is not the only woman he’s playing.

So, when the party finally begins, it looks like a great success. Until the police call around at Ruby’s house the next morning to speak to her son. Allegations have been made that will rock their world, its implications extending into the wider community too. No one is safe from the after effects of what is purported to have happened that night.

The story is told from the three women’s alternating viewpoints as they come to terms with the aftermath. It calls upon them to reflect upon their own situation, their behaviour, and the kind of world they want their kids to inherit. But, of course, neither woman will air their dirty laundry in public, and so the conundrum continues as to what really happened that night. Who is telling the truth? Who is covering for whom?

The final third of the book lived up to its “unputdownable” billing, though I still wouldn’t class it as a psychological thriller, more along the lines of women’s fiction with a suspense vibe.

What I didn’t like – apart from the slow start – was the constant dribble of “something’s going to happen soon” references, but I loved how the author grounded the characters (Ruby, in particular) in modern British cultural references. Of the three women, Ruby certainly came across as the most relateable.

Who I didn’t like – Melissa’s husband and Nella’s daughter top the list for me, but I loved Fin, Melissa’s stepdaughter, and Ruby and her son. The “good” characters were far from perfect, but the “baddies” were awfully good at being bad.

If you can tolerate a slow start, then you’ll be rewarding with a speedy ending that will leave your head spinning.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Honestly this book wasn't for me. I don't want to spend too much time on a book that I wasn't the ideal audience for, but I will tell you things that contributed to me not really enjoying it.

Firstly? This book was pitched as a mystery and thriller, but to me (and other reviewers) it feels MUCH more like a domestic drama and maybe that is why I had a hard time. This book was extremely slow paced, to the point where it was a slug to get through. The party doesn't even take place until the last third of the book. None of the characters were particularly like-able and the plot had no payoff in the end for me. Also I would like to note the formatting of this book made it hard for me to read. The use of ' instead of " for dialogue and the spacing of paragraphs was less than ideal. I won't be recommending this book to anyone, but I'm sure that there are others who will enjoy it much more than I did.

I was drawn to this book initially by the cover. I found it to be a well written character driven thriller, The setting was great, I loved the party ambiance that the book started with. The different characters were easy to tell apart and well developed. That said, some of them were really unlikeable, and I was dying to see them get their comeuppance! I’ll look forward to reading another book by Claire Seeber.

ve been a HUGE Claire Seeber fan since her brilliant debut novel and she is on my “auto buy” list! So I was desperate to read The Street Party! But OMG I did NOT expect the jaw dropping, brilliant storyline that exploded off the pages with an acutely accurate portrayal of women’s friendships and the lies they tell themselves and others…

To begin with I did find the lead up to The Street Party a bit confusing-why were these women friends? Three very different outlooks on life and parenting came together due to the sheer chance of living near each other. As they planned a local street party to raise funds, I gradually started to get to know them all but it really isn’t until the night of the party itself that this book becomes completely unputdownable. The party itself throws up lots of drama and the aftermath is both shocking and unexpected. It was this part of the storyline that grabbed me the most as it covered some very disturbing and topical issues that felt authentically portrayed and perfectly believable.

The Street Party is a compelling read that reminded me of Big Little Lies with its themes of domestic violence, addiction, sexual violence and betrayal. The difficulties that women face nowadays are often caused by other women-those we are in contact with due to being in the same place at the same time in our lives. The secrets and lies that are gradually uncovered in this domestic drama are convincing in their exposure and issues that come to a head felt organically crafted by Claire Seeber so as to deliver the maximum impact on the readers nerves! I raced through the last few pages so I could see if the characters got the fate that they deserved-and thankfully they did…well most of them anyway!

A gripping and unsettling read!

The Street Party by Claire Seeber is a domestic drama that focuses on the lives of neighbours living on the same street, Northgate Square in West London. The story revolves around three women and their families, Ruby, Melissa, and Nella. It is Nella Jackson who decides to have a street party. She, along with her husband, politician Marcus, has recently moved to the area. She's obsessed with money, beauty and depicting her life as perfect. The Jacksons have a daughter, Willow, and a son, Beau. She works in media and the party is meant to be a fundraiser for charity but it isn't long before a serious allegation is made that'll change the lives of these three women forever.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this absorbing drama full of secrets, lies, deception, betrayal, and scandals. It's a slow-burning tale, to begin with as the cast of characters is introduced. The differing perspectives of the three women and the alternating chapters add to the suspense, though the plot is also heavily driven by the actions of the children in the story, too. The story really speeds ahead in the last third for a riveting, thought-provoking ending. A very worthwhile toxic tale.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Bookouture via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

Narrated by Ruby single mum to Zach, Melissa yoga teacher, married and Ruby’s best friend and Nella ex television presenter with the picture perfect life and an unhealthy obsession with being rich.

Set in the Notting Hill area of London where the haves live beside the have nots this has very much a keeping up with the Jones’s attitude. Where the perfect facades hides a mountain of dirt behind the closed doors.

Now I abhor snobbery and judgement of any kind based on money. The nicest and most generous people are often the ones with little money and the wealthiest are often the meanest (probably why they have so much in the first place).

So a street party for charity bringing them all together seems like a fabulous idea (if you’re two sandwiches short of a picnic that is). The rest of us know this is a ticking time bomb and boy does it go off with a bang. Accusations are made, the police are called and this street becomes more divided than before.

This is a character driven slow burning book that I would put more in the family drama than thriller category. There are characters you will loathe with a passion (most of them) and topics that will stir your emotions. You will ache for sisterhood rather than women judging other women through jealousy and turning against each other.

I would thoroughly recommend this to people who enjoyed Desperate Housewives and Big Little Lies.

The story is set in London - a square which is home to affluent and less affluent people. From the less affluent side, Ruby and her friend/neighbour Melissa join ranks with Nella and her rich friends to bring the community together and raise money having a ‘street party’/Fayre. Ruby feels out of her depth by these people but her attraction to Marcus, Nella’s husband, means she just can’t seem to say no. This leads her agreeing that her son (Zach) will take Nella’s daughter (Willow) under his wing when she starts at his school.

The story begins with the morning after the street party and then goes back to the events leading up to this and then the fall-out from it. It is told from varying characters points of view (generally Ruby, Melissa and Nella).

Reading the synopsis I had high hopes for this book but unfortunately it fell short of my expectations and I think it seemed a bit like a soap opera. It’s a tale of families, keeping up appearances and how you never really know what is going on behind closed doors.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

A great domestic style suspense with some brilliant characters.

What could be better than a ‘street party’ !! Three women come together to plan and execute a street party but these three women couldn’t be more different and they are all dealing with their own problems and secrets.

Ruby is a widow struggling to make money to support her and her son, Zach. She is good friends with Melissa, who is married and busy looking out for her step-daughter, but she is hiding a big secret. Lastly we have Nella, who is married to a prospective MP and has two children, who seem to be struggling in their own way.

The street party appears to go well but the next day stories are circulating about something that happened and soon the police are involved. What really happened that night ?

This is a great domestic style suspense book that, if I’m completely honest, I did struggle with at the start. I think it’s just the number of characters that are all introduced at the very start. BUT I soon got invested in the characters and I absolutely loved the book, so if at first you struggle please stick with it as you won’t be disappointed !!

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

Thrilling. Tense. Packed with twists. I loved this wonderful book. Addictive and absorbing, this is one I'd highly recommend. Easily one of my best thrillers of 2021!