This book dragged so much!
I read Hostage recently and quite enjoyed that one, so this one disappointed me a lot. There were many moments I thought about DNFing it, and honestly I wished I did. The only reason i did preserve was for DC Morgan's story.

On New Year's Eve, Rhys Lloyd has a house full of guests. He's celebrating the success of his lakeside holiday homes, and has generously invited the village to drink champagne with their wealthy neighbours. By midnight, Rhys will be floating dead in the freezing waters of the lake. On New Year's Day DC Ffion Morgan has a village full of suspects.

This was the perfect book to the end the year with. A murder mystery set at New Year with a whole host of suspects amongst the empty bottles to sift through. As well as the murder enquiry to hold my interest, there was also the relationship between DC Morgan and DC Leo Morgan who are thrust together in a working capacity the morning after a drunken one night stand. This was certainly an unconventional police detective relationship which I have not read before. I always like and appreciate when an endearing human element is provided to the people investigating to the crime, rather than just faceless police. There was so much going on in this book (in a good way) that I was unable to guess who the murderer was so I was surprised when all was revealed but there were also other unexpected reveals along the way. The Last Party has started this book series with a bang and I'm looking forward to reading on.

The first in the DC Ffion Morgan series. A body is found in the lake in New Year’s Day. After the huge party the night before hosted by the residents of the new development The Shore, all the local residents were also invited to keep the peace.
Once local, now famous Rhys Lloyd is dead but who did it?
Police forces from Wales and Cheshire are involved due to the location of the lake and the body found.
This is a well written book by Clare Mackintosh with lots of twists and turns.

I really enjoyed this and glad to know it’s part of a series. The main character is both feisty and complex. The actual mystery had lots of twists and turns, and the different narrators kept it interesting, although they were not always reliable! A great read for the Autumn. P

I read this in two days and could not put it down!! I absolutely loved this book and the huge variety of characters we encounter throughout. The multiple points of view work so well in this book, and the two police protagonists are brilliant!

The plot was fantastic, so many twists and turns and I loved how it was all drip fed to the reader meaning my predictions on what actually happened kept changing!! The whole thing was brilliantly executed and I didn’t see that ending coming - brilliant!

This was my first Clare Mackintosh book, and definitely will not be my last. Thanks so much to netgalley, little brown book group / Sphere for the arc.

This book is our first glimpse into the world of DC Ffion Morgan and Leo Brady. The Welsh/Cheshire police forces are combining following a death on bordering waters.

Clare has an inate way of weaving the story together without it becoming any way confusing. This is a multi-pov novel, a very Agatha-Christie esq whodunit book. I loved that no matter who I was guessing committed the crime, I still wasn't right. This book hooks you in, keeps you guessing and will have you picking up another Clare Mackintosh book in no time.

I am a huge fan of Clare Mackintosh and I was delighted to get the opportunity to read her newest book The Last Party. This was one of the most gripping and thrilling books I have read in a long time. I read it over the course of a day as I simply couldn’t put it down. I can’t wait to read more from the author in the future.

I haven't read much of Ms Mackintosh in the past, but she will really be one of my new favorite authors. I enjoyed this book so much, I just had to finish it, and ended up reading long after bedtime! Really recommended for anyone who loves solid read, that keeps you guessing until the very end!
TB

I loved this book. This is a well plotted and pacy mystery/thriller. The book starts slowly but then speeds up. The characters are well developed and some are flawed.

Your new favourite crime series…end of!

I’d had The Last Party on my TBR for ages, so when I received a copy of A Game of Lies I knew I had to read them back to back…and I’m so glad that I did! This is definitely my new favourite police series and I’m fully invested in Ffion, Leo and their world already. I love how evocative the Welsh setting is and how the border can cause complications between the Cymric and English forces. There’s a brilliant dynamic between Ffion and her colleagues, but like all good police procedurals, her personal life is just as intriguing. I’ve found that the more I read, the more I love Ffion and I really hope that this series has legs! Mackintosh blends her police experience and knowledge with brilliant plotting to create narratives that feel both plausible and realistic, but also exhilarating and supremely tense. There’s also lashings of humour that lend an authenticity to the interactions between the pages and caused me to laugh out loud on a number of occasions. As I’ve always found with her books, characters are really well rounded here and the mix of returning and novel-specific characters feels right. Mackintosh has created a community, but she has also fleshed this out with a wider cast of characters that really bring the central mysteries to life. In both novels it literally could have been anybody who is guilty, which feels refreshing, as it’s not often the returning characters in a series seem just as suspicious!

THE LAST PARTY

This is a fantastic introduction to DC Ffion Morgan, who is partnered with DC Leo Brady from the English force, to investigate the death of prominent singer and local business man Rhys Lloyd. I loved the exploration of wealth, entitlement, privilege, infamy and reputation. I was kept guessing until the end and felt very strong Christie vibes as I read. The central investigation into Lloyds death was gripping, but equally so was the unfolding of Ffion’s personal story. The series starts with an explosive revelation that I didn’t see coming and leaves future books open to so many different angles. Similarly, the undercurrent of attraction between Ffion and Leo is electric and will definitely be an aspect that readers are fully invested in. I throughly enjoyed The Last Party and was very happy to be able to continue spending time in this world by moving straight on to…

A GAME OF LIES

Well, I thought The Last Party was excellent but I have to say that A Game of Lies is even better! Centred around the filming of a reality show in the local mountains that isn’t exactly what it seems, Ffion and Leo have to join forces again to investigate the disappearance of one of the participants. This book was such a flawless examination of 21st century culture. I loved how it put the spotlight on our haste to put people on pedestals, only to harbour a desire for salacious scandals, discovering their dark and sordid secrets and essentially cancelling those we’ve lauded. It’s a distinctly 21st century social epidemic that we’ve all participated in in some way, so it was an incredibly thought provoking read. I also loved the critique on how the media manipulates audiences and the very real impacts of this. Everything about this novel felt current and incredibly real. I loved that! This book was also really engaging for the shifting and burgeoning relationship between Ffion and Leo. The sexual tension oozes and I am fully invested in where this series will take them!

I highly recommend both of these books and am eagerly awaiting the next one already 😄

I really enjoyed this - its sort of small town and we got good back story for a large amount of the characters. I look forward to the next book.

4.5 Stars from me

You know you are in safe hands with a Clare Mackintosh book and this one did not disappoint.

I loved this introduction to DC Ffion Morgan and DC Leo Brady. They have a will they, won't they vibe that ticks along in the background and keeps things interesting even though they are evidently very different people.

Ffion is Welsh through and through and finds herself living back home with her mum and sister following the break-up of her marriage. The very beginning of the book sets the tone for me as to in terms of Ffion trying to balance being a fully-fledged adult who is suddenly back home and needing to obey Mum's rules!

The book is based around a murder that takes place during a New Year's Eve party at 'The Shore' and the lives of those living in this exclusive luxury development were fascinating - and all underlined with a gentle humour that was fab.

The victim, Rhys, is a famous singer and well-known in the wealthy community. The big party at The Shore is open to residents and local villagers alike and so the suspect pool seems to grow with every chapter. The way Clare Mackintosh unveils new information is masterful and makes for wonderful 'whodunnit' crime thriller that will keep you guessing while warming your heart along the way.

Fab and I look forward to more Ffion Morgan books.

Wow what a read, full of twists I flew through this. Amazing characters and Keith me guessing. I would highly recommend this book.

I absolutely love Clare Mackintosh’s books, I Let You Go is still one of my firm favourites all these years later and I’ve read and enjoyed literally everything else she’s written. However, I’m not a fan of detective series so this one just isn’t for me. The story was good and the characters were interesting in parts but I wasn’t engrossed enough to want to read more about them in the future. I think I’ll wait until this wonderful author goes back to standalone novels.
I’d definitely recommend this series to fans of detective books!

Clare does it again, another brilliantly written book and I loved reading it.
Highly recommend and 4 stars from me.

It is New Years Eve and Rhys Lloyd hosts a party. He is a singer and a developer of luxury vacation homes along Mirror Lake in his hometown. He has invited the villagers to drink champagne with their wealthy neighbours, but is found washed up on the shore by morning. Was it an accident or foul play!!!

Told in a back and forth timeframe, we are party to the murder investigation as well as the lead up to his death.

This was a great plot that kept me engaged throughout.

I will be looking out for the next book on this series.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a brilliant read! Another firm favourite from Clare Mackintosh. Loved the characters and the storyline had me hooked from the first page.

Highly recommended and definitely worth the 5 stars

Thank you Netgalley.

A fab read. She can do no wrong in my eyes and everything she writes is well worth reading ! You won’t be disappointed

I really enjoyed this novel. I loved the two detectives Ffion and Leo and really loved getting to know them better. It was intriguing to see how their working and personal relationships might develop after their first meeting. The Shore was such a vivid place, as were the descriptions of the parts of Wales around the development. I also loved meeting all the characters and the way the story went backwards and forwards in time to fill in the story. It did take me a few chapters to get into this story but once I did I literally didn't put the book down - I read more than half of it in a single sitting. The gradual reveal of whodunnit was brilliant and every time I thought I had it worked out I was proved wrong. I very much enjoyed this book and can't wait to read the next book in the series!

I absolutely adore Clare and her writing style. This book is a bit different from the previous one and I have realised it is actually part of a series.

The story kept me guessing and it was full of twists and turns. I enjoyed the plot very much and I’m looking forward to reading book 2!!!