The Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards

3.5 STARS

The Wasp Trap is a psychological thriller, following two timelines: one set in 1999 and the other in present day. Six ex-students of an acclaimed professor meet for a dinner party with a difference. One of them has a secret, which someone is willing to kill for...

The main character, Will, was a likeable enough narrator; the other characters were a mix of the usual - posh and rich, poor, quirky and a jack-the-lad. Overall, the characters were well written but seemed to lack some depth. The house setting was claustrophobic; the segments set in 1999 added some much needed context to the current drama. However, it did feel like certain parts were more drawn out than was really necessary.

Overall, a worthy addition to the psychological thriller genre and one you'll race through. Thank you to the publishers for the ARC.

Twisting, Immersive..
Twenty five years since Will worked with an eccentric professor of psychology- along with a diverse group of individuals attempting to change the future of online dating - he receives an unexpected invitation to a reunion dinner party. Once at the luxury mansion house, nothing is quite as it seems and as the evening progresses things will become more and more bizarre. Making good use of a dual timeline, this is a pacy and edgy suspenseful thriller with a well drawn cast and a fast moving narrative. Characters are numerous and clues abound as the tale progresses well to its somewhat unexpected denouement. Twisting and immersive.

Usually this author is a hit or miss with me, and this book was a great hit. I read it in one sitting, I could not stop until the end. I loved the twists and the mystery. I didn't see the ending coming.

OH MY GOODNESS! What can I say about The Wasp Trap?

This was a very, very easy 5 stars. I couldn't put it down. I got takeaway for dinner so I didn't have to stop reading!!

The Wasp Trap is a story about a psychopath. But the question is, who is the psychopath? And what do they want?

More than that, it's a story about friendship, betrayal, lies, family, unrequited love and a few other things.

We hear stories about a group of friends from two time periods: 1999, the summer it all went wrong, and 2024, 'now'. But unlike some stories that constantly switch between time periods, this works really well. It switches every few chapters, so there's time in between to understand what's happening.

A married couple invite their old friends to a dinner party, many of them haven't been in touch since 1999. Before too long, they'll all regret having accepted it.

The suspense, creepiness, foreboding and mystery that is weaved throughout this story is pretty incredible. Everything was done SO WELL. There are twists upon twists and if you tell me you saw them coming, I wouldn't believe you!

As I was reading, I kept thinking, 'this is where X book went wrong' or 'if only X book was written like this'... I compared The Wasp Trap to so many stories I'd read lately that simply didn't work for me, and I think I will continue to do so in the future, because it is just SO GOOD.

Mark Edwards knows how to write the perfect crime/mystery/suspense novel and I'd recommend this book to absolutely anyone who's looking for something more.

You won't regret it.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Michael Joseph Penguin and Mark Edwards for the ARC - I feel very privileged.

Thank you Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House and Netgalley for this ARC.
As usual a Maine Cooke features in the story!! 🙀
Full of brilliant twists and turns and really different, I really enjoyed this book.
Gasped at times and couldn’t put it down.
Absolutely recommend and when’s the next one!

Let’s just start with… E X Q U I S I T E.

This novel is perfecting, dual timelines, a secret, a reunion, multiple POV’s from full bodied characters, a home invasion, a missing child, unrequited love and a reveal that keeps you tense until the last page. How will I read another novel again? Will I be bored?

Edwards creates tension with ease and leaves the reader anxiously tearing through the pages to find the truth.

I recommend this to any reader that needs a break from the slow burn and the bleakness and wants a white knuckle ride through thriller, mystery, romance, and psychopathy.

Incredible.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC given in return for an honest review.

Theo and Georgina are hosting a twenty-five year reunion dinner, at their fancy house, for those they worked with on an immersive, high-stakes project in 1999 - and haven't seen since. Narrator Will, a fairly unsuccessful writer, finds it all a bit strange, but is mainly focused on seeing Sophie, the love of his life, again for the first time in a quarter century.

It doesn't take long, though, before the evening takes a terrifyingly unexpected turn. Somebody has a secret, held silently since that fateful summer of 1999, and somebody else wants to know what it is, at any cost...

This was an enjoyable read, but there were too many characters - nine people in the house, as well as those others referred to. I found it difficult to keep track of who was who among Will, Sophie, Theo, Georgina, Rohan (I kept forgetting about him), Lily, Finn, Callum, Amber... then there's Eve, Dominic, the professor, Olivia, Mia... It did get easier as the story progressed and I guess wouldn't have worked otherwise.

When the voting started, it kind of reminded me of a more lethal version of The Traitors.

There are plenty of twists and turns, and I definitely didn't see the ending coming, though it did feel somewhat implausible.

Thanks for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy!

Excellent twisty storyline.
Keeps you guessing right to the end.
Thoroughly enjoyable.
Thanks for the opportunity to read and review

Finished this in one day, couldn't put it down. It's been a while since I've read a thriller and this was the perfect way to get back into the genre.

I actually loved this. Locked room, so many secrets and moments of sudden shock. Very satisfied with the ending, several of the twists caught me off guard which is usually quite hard to do and even more so with the epilogue 😱

Loved the characters and the writing style. The plot flowed perfectly, and even more so with a duel timeline, and multi-pov I think it worked really well because it was easy to follow whereas in other thrillers it can be confusing.

Best thriller I've read so far tbh and my first 5 star thriller (I think) 👏🏼

I absolutely loved The Wasp Trap, an excellent twisted plot, a massive dose of unpredictability and some edge of the seat moments.

The characters are compelling and cleverly divisive, leading to an intriguing group dynamic thrown into a life threatening situation.

The story fairly rocks along towards a satisfying finale.

Really enjoyed it.

This story has plenty of mystery, suspense and intrigue from the off and short chapters which I love. The story is based around an evening dinner party which goes wrong (won’t share to much info) and explains how the characters all share a past together. The story has duel timelines past and present which unfolds to a conclusion at the end of the book. I read this in a few days and found it to be a great thriller.

Wow what a book! As always there is a Maine Coon in the story 😂
The prologue had me gripped and I couldn't wait to find out what was happening and why. One of the main characters Will is so relatable and he finds himself in a terrible situation through no fault of his own. There are a good few twists and turns that made me gasp and I really enjoyed the ending. Thank you for another great book.

Wow! Yet another fantastic thriller from Mark Edwards. This one was really gripping and unique, and I couldn't put it down until I reached the brilliant and shocking conclusion!