Wow - absolutely fantastic read for me

What a captivating murder mystery retreat for 6 authors to be invited to an island - just my sort of thriller I love to read., kept me hooked. Absolutely fantastic, short chapters, full of twists, written so well

Highly recommended to thriller, murder mystery fans

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing

If you enjoy a good murder mystery this is definitely a book for you. Imagine being invited to an authors only retreat on an island from a famous author who is well known but not known at all.
Its clue meets murder mystery evening. You have to play a game to survive but you have no idea what the game or the rules are.
A great twist and a mystery that will keep you guessing
I highly recommend trying this debut novel.

This was a good thriller, and a different take on a ‘locked room’ mystery. I liked the variety of characters and the pace.

5/5 stars! The idea of this book is so fun. A book filled with mystery authors at a writer's retreat + murder. What was so clever about this story, is the humor woven into the thrill. Reading this + watching Knives Out = a delightful way to spend a weekend.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Six thriller writers are invited to the island estate of J.R. Alastair, a famous author who has never been seen and is possibly a pen name for another famous author, for a writers retreat. While there, they will participate in games but they don’t know that Mila, the assistant facilitating the weekend has plans to kill one of the participants. Even she is shocked when the first person dies and it isn’t who she intended to kill.

I liked the concept of this book. Although I sometimes struggle with keeping the characters straight in a locked room mystery that wasn’t much of an issue here. What I struggled with was the different points of view and keeping up with whose point of view we were getting in that chapter. Sometimes the chapter said who it was. Other times I don’t think it did and led to confusion and reduced enjoyment of this book. Overall it was ok for me.

Set on a remote island, six famous mystery writers are invited to a luxurious writing retreat by a mysterious, reclusive author. One by one, the authors are murdered in ways that echo the plots of their own books, leaving everyone wondering: who’s the killer, and why?

If you love stories that feel like a real-life game of Cluedo, or are a die hard fan of Agatha Christie-style mysteries, then this book is perfect for you!

What a rollercoaster!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for an ARC of this book.

Knives Out and The Glass Onion meet a very twisty, turny and murderous game of Cluedo that keeps you guessing.

Fast paced which made some of the characters hard to keep up with but I really enjoyed it

If you love a good mystery which keeps you guessing until the end then this is definitely for you. A number of renowned authors are invited to a remote island to enjoy a luxurious writing. retreat by invitation from a reclusive fellow author. Although the author is well known their identity is a close secret given that nobody has seen them or can identify them. Arriving at the island they are met by Mila, and events organiser who explains that their host is unavoidably delayed so she will be looking after them. The library at their luxury accommodation is fully equipped with a set of each authors books and an advance copy of their hosts guide to writing. The authors settle in and soon find themselves broiled in a murderous game of cluedo where one by one the authors are killed by methods they've used in their books. But, just who is the murderer and why are they killing. Very good mystery

As someone who isn’t a thriller reader, I drank this up! I am so glad that this was one of my first introductions to the genre, as it has definitely made me want to pick more up.

I was advised by a friend to apply for this arc as she kept saying how good it is, and she was so right! The twists, the turns… the murders! I had absolutely no idea who the killer…s? Were and every time I thought it was one person, the next chapter changed my mind! I had no idea which direction I was looking and I loved it!

The idea of the writing retread was amazing, and even the descriptions of the setting felt very Agatha Christie 🙌🏻 I also felt that having multiple POVs added so much to the story too! Especially as some of them felt like they were unreliable narrators, which made it even harder to figure it out 🙌🏻

Thanks so much to Bantam and NetGalley for this arc in exchange of an honest review. It was a great ride!

Ideal for fans of flamboyantly written and tongue-in-cheek stories that cross the comedy, crime and horror genres.

With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an independent review.

On publication, I will post the blurb and a purchase link on my blog.

Locked room, isolated island murder mysteries are one of my all time favourite things to read and this book did not disappoint. It was fast paced and the mystery started immediately which I really appreciated.

The characters all followed certain tropes and that tied in with the cluedo theme within the game they were solving in the book, but I think some of the character introductions could have been stronger, especially since the characters start dying fairly quickly, and with no real information on them it just didn't feel impactful.

I liked all of the mystery elements, and the twists were interesting, it just didn't feel like the intensity was as strong as it should have been given the circumstances. The atmosphere didn't convince me they were stranded and alone with a serial killer, but I did really enjoy reading the book.

This book definitely had some Then There Were None vibes. A really interesting locked room type mystery with a number of deliberate mystery tropes with a group of mystery writers on an island they can't leave. Lots of death, lots of questions and a really good conclusion.

"You Are Fatally Invited" is like a book inside a book. It's kept fresh by the multiple POVs and the several twists and turns. The ending was satisfying but I did get lost throughout, particularly with Mila's POV, it almost took me out of the story at times.

I have a feeling I'll be in the minority there, though. It's a very impressive debut and my gripes were personal preference. I'm expecting it to be one of the biggest mysteries of 2025!

J R Alastor is a mystery writer whose books are known worldwide. The writer has spent years in solitude on an island, no one knowing anything about the popular author, then suddenly, six other best selling authors are invited to the island for a murder mystery retreat. Of course, all six accept the invitation, they are not going to refuse the chance to meet the legend. Mila Del Angel has been hired to ensure the week on the island for all the guests runs smoothly, she hires a chef and a housekeeper, and has her strict instructions about the mystery games the guests are to play. until the host appears.
After one guest is found murdered, the others all start to question the reasons for the invites, but maybe their questions have come too late.
This is a great locked room murder mystery, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a tense thriller, it kept me guessing, and I did not see the ending coming.

I'm nearly at the end, but i still can't figure out the denouement of this riff on "And Then There Were None"
Intriguing

This was genuinely fantastic! This genre of book wouldn’t be my top choice but when I read the blurb, I really wanted to give it a go. Haven’t read anything like it in that it was so brilliantly done.

For a debut novel - amazing! Loved the intricate story line and it kept me hooked the whole way through - that doesn’t happen often for me but with this, my intrigue was peaked continually!

At times I did get a bit mixed up but think that was more to do with my own attention span than the writing 😂 but the ending wrapped everything up nicely for me!

Character development was so detailed and well done, I loved how each person’s story got me thinking about their role in the retreat.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC :)

I had high hopes about this book but it was too slow and clunky for me. I got a bit confused by whose POV I was reading. None of the characters were particularly likeable and it seemed a very long winded way of saying the obvious.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to finish this book. I found it heavy and slow. Based on that, my rating will be low but have see some positive vibes on bookstagram.

5 stars all the way!
This was a riveting read from beginning to end.
It was well thought out, with twists and turns as you were led through the adventure.
It ticks all the boxes for me.
I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves murder mysteries.
It also has a satisfying ending which isn’t always a given.
I’m looking forward to future novels by this author with eager anticipation.

A very messed up story with so much going on you don't know who is trustworthy and who isn't. There were points where it felt a little long winded but overall a very enjoyable story!