Hard to get into but intriguing enough in places to keep me going. I found the flashback/journal entries some of the most interesting and the mystery was decent enough but I struggled with Francesca's voice and almost cartoonish characterisation and found the final reveal a bit much.

I've read all of Lucy Foley's previous novels and enjoyed them as tightly paced, twisty thrillers and this follows the same pattern. There's lost to enjoy here - especially loved the sending up of wellness for the wealthy angle - and there's a still few surprising twists that are cleverly plotted. But I just didn't enjoy it as much as her previous and felt it was a bit by numbers.

This was a slow burner for me at first, the first couple of chapters I wasn't sure how I was going to get on with it as I did not like one of the central characters. But that is the beauty of a Lucy Foley novel- she creates flawed characters (to say the least in this instance!), who are not supposed to sit comfortably with you. The story builds and builds, with different layers creating an uneasy atmosphere. It flits from present day to the past as we become more and more involved in each different cast member. Two chapters in and I was hooked, and then raced to the conclusion of the book.

This is sure to be a summer hit, a perfect beach read for people who love a pacy thriller. I would definitely recommend it. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Midnight Feast was my first Lucy Foley read, and I will certainly be reading some more of her books now!
The Midnight Feast follows Francesca, the owner of a luxury hotel build in a rural coastal town, as she prepares for the hotel’s grand opening. As the story unfolds, we learn about mysteries from Francesca’s past, as well as discovering the true identities of a cast of characters who are not all as they seem.
Each chapter is narrated by one of a relatively large cast of characters from 3 different timelines. This had the potential to be a little confusing, but I think the author has done well to minimise the impact this had on the book, as overall I personally did not find it difficult to follow at all. The chapters were clearly signposted with who was narrating and when, and Lucy Foley crafted the characters so well that it was clear who’s voice was who’s.
This was a classic mystery/thriller, filled with lots of dark secrets. It reminded me a lot of Lisa Jewell’s ‘The Night She Disappeared”, with lots of similar themes.
Overall, a fast paced read that I finished in a day and couldn’t put down!

Lucy Foley is able to create books you can't stop reading despite the unlikeable and entitled characters (who I love to hate)
She's also brilliant at mysteries set within a wild, natural environment. In this latest book, we see the story unfold in Dorset with its rugged coastline, coves and caves. It's the perfect setting for this atmospheric tale which is steeped in folklore.
I really enjoy the authors writing style, where each chapter is told from the perspective of a different character. The timeline is a little jagged but I thought this added to the eeriness of the plot.
Another wicked tale from Lucy Foley.

I was so excited to be chosen to pre read this and it did not disappoint! My favourite of Lucy Foleys books so far!

I loved the different times and the same place and the minor changes but that is what happens and them all being connected was a great twist.

I was a bit confused by the age differences that did make it slightly hard to follow but I really did enjoy it !

Fantastic book from this author. I've loved her others and this one did not disappoint! Gripping, lots of twists. Great :)

I am a big fan of the writing of Lucy Foley having previously read 'The Hunting Party', 'The Guest List' and 'The Paris Apartment', all splendid books, brilliantly written. 'The Midnight Feast' has some light humorous moments mixed in with the drama. Any lifelong Agatha Christie fan will always get my vote.

It’s June 2025 and Francesca Meadows has achieved her greatest ambition. The family home in Tome, Dorset has now become The Manor, a decidedly upmarket wellness retreat. It’s well heeled clientele are nestling into the ‘Woodland Hutches’ and keenly anticipating the forthcoming Solstice celebration, the Midnight Feast of the book’s title. It’s what Francesca and her younger architect husband, Owen, have been planning for.
But their guests are kept very much away from the village and its inhabitants. In fact there is a real sense of ‘Us and Them’ developing. An insular community of people surviving on the margins faced with an equally insular community of the wealthy. The Manor and its estate is encroaching on ancient woodland with its ‘Hutches’ and there are dark, muttered warnings about incurring the wrath of ‘The Birds’. But are they just tales to frighten the outsiders or is it something more real? After all, Francesca’s grandfather was found dead, from an apparent heart attack, in his study holding a single black feather and they appear throughout the book.
Francesca presents herself to her followers as a polished, spiritual leader or guru. But, as the guests assemble for breakfast, she sees an unexpected face from the past amongst them. It’s not someone she wants to be reminded of at the culmination of all her dreams.
Bella, not her real name, has come to the Manor in response to being sent a clipping of Francesca by an anonymous sender. They knew each other in their teenage years growing up in Tome and she senses the darker atmosphere of The Manor.
But, as excitement builds, for the Solstice in the woods, Bella remembers a mystery within them and one that she wants to solve. But the day after the celebration, a body is found on the beach and a wrecked Aston Martin at the cliff above. The Manor is ablaze with the guests wandering about completely dazed. It was a billed as ‘a night to remember’ but it became a night to forget. Is it the revenge of The Birds or the locals?
The story is told from several points of view, including a 1970’s summer journal, and also different timelines. There were a lot of characters to keep track of and I did wonder at one point if there was anyone in the story who didn’t have a dark secret or an earlier persona that they had discarded. The only really likable character was Eddie, the dishwasher and aspiring barman. There was an inexplicable scene in which Bella attempts to seduce him.
There was a distinctly Folk Horror vibe to the book with the mysterious Birds and the woods. Some of the guests ask to be moved from the ‘Woodland Hutches’ due to the atmosphere in the woods. They’re where mysterious events take place: ritual sacrifices, nocturnal gatherings and a general feeling that the visitors are unwelcome. I wish this element had come more to the fore.
However, there were some interesting twists towards the end and that was where the book really livened up for me.
This is the first Lucy Foley book that I’ve read and I would definitely read another one. She handled the different POVs and timelines very adeptly.
My thanks to the publisher and Net galley for an ARC.

Well this is a page turner! I wasn’t sure what to expect after the first couple of chapters but was thoroughly engrossed and couldn’t put it down.

The book is set in a local village where there are very wealthy guests at a new hotel retreat and much less affluent locals who are entrenched in tradition, including that of the birds in the wood. Clever writing brings the reader a real sense of the building of the tension and the stories from the past and the present day mould together to a very interesting climax.

There are some very odd characters and traditions that you just need to get behind to enjoy and I really liked the characters and the twist at the end.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Love, love, love Lucy Foley books. I was so excited to get an arc of this story from NetGalley and I wasn’t disappointed. I found it so easy to read and it kept me intrigued throughout. We have the early timeline of Francesca, “Sparrow”, “Shrimp” and Jake amongst others as teenagers. Francesca being the rich, spoilt girl. The plot continues in 2025 with Francesca opening a fancy hotel for the super rich. With the finding of bones and discovering threats made to the others, the pages just have to be turned! Is justice done in the end? Well read this exciting story and see! Thank you to NetGalley, Lucy Foley and the publishers, Harper Collins for the arc of this great story.

The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley (book review)
Releases 6th June

Score 4.25 out of 5

To the point-
For Foley fans and those who enjoyed her previous mysteries this is definitely one that you'll enjoy and there's a strong likelihood that this could be one of your most enjoyed books of the summer or even the year.
For people who haven't enjoyed Foley's previous books or the multiple POV style this book is unlikely to win you over. It sticks to the same style and prose of previous books so it's best not to read expecting something radically different to what came before.
And for those who are unsure, if you like The White Lotus then this may be for you. A luxurious hotel: check, behind the scenes and guest storylines: check. While it doesn't have the same complexities of The White Lotus, it does have more similarities than differences.

Review
I enjoyed The Midnight Feast and thought, arguably, could be Foley's best mystery novel. The mystery style is similar to Hunting Party and Guest List where there is a body and you have to wait until the end to find out who it is. This is where I think Foley has improved her storytelling. In the previous mysteries I became frustrated by the time the reveal came, and while I enjoyed them all, I felt it became too drawn out to keep the tension. Midnight Feast fortunately seems to build anticipation instead of robbing it.

The Midnight Feaster is told over three timelines, the days before and after the feast, and one from years before told through journal excerps. The inclusion of the latter not only adds context and further mystery but also causes an extra dimension that means the story doesn't feel more protracted than it needs to be. That is not to say there aren't sections that feel dragged out but in comparison to the previous stories it is less frustrating.

I enjoyed all the Foley books so far and The Guest List holds a nostalgic place for me but The Midnight Feast is possibly the second best book of Foley's. Midsommar clearly influenced much of the story (there is another that I won't name in case of spoiling anything) and I enjoyed those elements immensely.

Finally, this is an adult book so expect swearing.

Above text used on Instagram review.

Overall, I enjoyed this and felt it was an improvement by Foley. There is the arugment that the style could become stale but I think the improvements in this kept it from becoming so.

I loved this! Told from multiple perspectives and timelines, this is the story of the opening weekend of an upmarket wellness resort, and begins with a body on the beach - the mystery of who is it and what happened to them slowly unfolds from there. Smart, stylish and with a generous dollop of local folklore and old scores being settled, it's a great read.

Oh my goodness! I didn’t think it possible, but Lucy Foley’s storytelling just get better and better, The Midnight Feast sucked me straight in and threw me out, almost spinning, at the other end. This is such a clever story. Right from the outset, it’s creepy with hints of darkness. A group of people arrive for the opening of a wellness centre. But all is not as it seems and the reader is thrown into the centre of this maelstrom with a narrative that’s fast moving and from multiple viewpoints. A whole mix of characters; the real good, the bad and the downright ugly from a broad social spectrum.

This is so atmospheric and steeped in a mix of mystery, folklore and imagination. Loved it.

There was just something about this book that wasn't for me. Good plot, good characters and good twist. But I found some of the storyline a bit much.

I enjoyed this book. It reminds me quite a bit of The Guest List, one of Lucy Foley’s previous books. It also reminds me of the television adaptation of Liane Moriarty’s book Nine Perfect Strangers(I have not read the book!).

I thought the pacing was a good, medium pace. A lot of context was given, which was very important to the story. This story is told from multiple POVs on different timelines and I still found it to be pretty easy to follow. Also, a pet peeve of mine is when a story is told using journal entries and they read like a novel rather than someone’s actual thoughts, and the journal entries in this book were very believable journal entries written by a teenage girl.

There were a lot of characters and a lot of subplots and I think it could have been edited down a bit. It was still easy enough to follow, but I feel like some of these subplots didn’t get their loose ends tied up and they might as well have just been edited out of the book entirely. I also would have liked more clarification on what exactly was going on during the current day Midnight Feast. It felt a little glossed over and since the book is named after the event, it deserved a little more elaboration.

Overall, I liked this book. And if you like Lucy Foley’s other books, and/or you like whodunnits in atmospheric settings, this one is for you!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for the opportunity to read this advance copy!

Blurb: Midsummer, the Dorset coast
In the shadows of an ancient wood, guests gather for the opening weekend of The Manor: a beautiful new countryside retreat.
But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. And the candles have barely been lit for a solstice supper when the body is found.
It all began with a secret, fifteen years ago. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder at…
THE MIDNIGHT FEAST

I love a good thriller and The Midnight Feast has it all- suspense, tension, crazy protagonists, folklore and a spooky vibe. Having read so many thrillers, it’s hard to find one that is original in terms of the storyline but Foley delivers just that in this book.

Told from several points of view and different timelines, Foley creates a fast-paced story with the most dysfunctional cast of characters I’ve come across in a while. Frankie/Francesca is one crazy lady and reminded me of Nicole Kidman’s Masha from the Nine Perfect Strangers series.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the arc. 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I'm afraidI DNFd this book at around 30%, too much flipping between characters which I struggled with.
I found it a real struggle. However, thank you to Net Galley for giving me the chance to read an advanced copy

This book is a suspenseful thriller that dives into the story of The Manor and the problem between the locals and the new rich people. With its multiple POVs and dual timelines, we’re confronted with an old murder from the past timeline that leads to a new one in the present timeline.

I have to admit, at first I was slightly confused and wasn’t sure what was happening but once it started the make sense I absolutely loved this book. Lucy writing is so descriptive that it’s easy to get immersed into the creepy settings of The Manor and the woods and their folklore.

I appreciated the end, how the past and the present were tied and how the plot unfolded and it all made sense at once.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for a digital ARC copy.

#TheMidnightFeast #NetGalley

I was really excited to read this book by Lucy Foley. I’ve read all her books and they don’t disappoint.

I enjoyed the story but did find it a little bit slow. I didn’t feel much suspense and it wasn’t one of those books I “didn’t want to put down”.

It was well written, I liked the characters and how it went back in time to the past and how it all came together in the end.

However compared to her other books, it lacked a bit of excitement for me.