The House Party
by Mary Grand
The House Party…
Someone is about to die…
Someone is about to lie…
At the intimate house-warming party for her glorious ‘grand design’, Kathleen confides in her best friend Beth that she is terrified of one of their close friends, but daren’t reveal which one. The guests are a tight-knit group, but Kathleen is convinced one of them is dangerous.
The next day Kathleen’s body is found at the foot of a cliff and Beth must face the sickening truth that she may have been killed by one of their trusted friends. With little help from the police, Beth’s decides to seek answers.
All the friends have secrets they are desperate to hide, but only one of them is ready to kill to keep theirs safe…
The House Party is set on the Isle of Wight – insular, claustrophobic, and with nowhere to run. Mary Grand has written a heart-stopping novel of secrets, betrayal and desire, perfect for fans of Louise Candlish and Lucy Foley.
Purchase Link– https://amzn.to/35kKciQ
Extract from The House Party
Beth took hold of Kathleen’s hand until she let go of the chain. ‘I’ve never seen you like this before. What are you so frightened of?’
Kathleen flinched. ‘Not something, someone.’
‘Who?’
Kathleen looked down at the patio. ‘I can’t tell you.’
‘Why not?’
‘It’s somebody we both know. I don’t think you’d believe me.’
‘Really? Try me.’
‘It’s someone here at the house party.’
‘You can’t be scared of anyone here. We’re friends, we all know each other so well.’
‘I used to think that. But when I saw one of them do something, I realised I’d got them completely wrong. It’s like an art expert will spot a tiny error in a forgery: a signature in the wrong place or the wrong brushstroke. They know immediately it’s fake. That’s how it was.’
‘But you should have told someone. Didn’t you tell Patrick?’
‘No. I couldn’t do that.’ Kathleen looked away.
‘But then you should have told me. Why keep it to yourself?’
Kathleen started to play with her chain again. ‘You see, this person found out something I’d done. It was stupid, wrong, I was so ashamed. They said they would tell everyone if I even mentioned what I knew.’
Beth sat back stunned. She wondered how much her friend had been drinking.
‘I’m not drunk,’ said Kathleen, reading her mind. ‘I know it sounds incredible. These things don’t happen in our neat, orderly world, do they? Oh Beth, you are so lovely, but the world isn’t—’
Beth pushed the swing gently with her feet. ‘My life hasn’t been as perfect as you might think. But you can’t have done anything bad enough for someone to be able to use it against you.’
Slowly Kathleen lowered her hands, clung on to her wrap, looked down. ‘I did, I made a dreadful mistake. December was such a hellish month: first Amy died, then that damn skiing weekend. I was so unhappy.’
‘Oh God. Kathleen, why didn’t you tell me? I knew from your text you were upset about Amy’s accident, and that weekend away, but I never realised how bad things were. If I’d known, I’d have come to see you.’
‘The trouble was things happened so fast. After I sent you that text I did something really stupid. It was so wrong and all my fault. Afterwards I was too ashamed to tell anyone. I tried to live like it hadn’t happened even though the shame was gnawing away inside me every day.’
Beth wanted to grab Kathleen’s hand, tell her she knew exactly how that felt, but instead she said, ‘But it can’t have been that terrible—’
‘It was to me. I tried to imagine what you’d have said if I’d told you. Maybe you’d have tried to understand, but I was so frightened that I’d lose your friendship. It’s not something you’d have ever done.’ Kathleen started to pick at an imaginary thread on her wrap. ‘I thought if I kept quiet, tried not to think about it, it would be like it never happened. That was stupid, wasn’t it? The truth doesn’t go away. It sits there patiently, waiting for someone to stumble across it. Unluckily for me, that’s what happened.’
‘I still can’t believe you did anything that bad.’
‘That’s because you don’t know me, not all of me. If I’d been a better person, I’d have owned up to what I’d done. I know that a sin is a sin and all that, but this so-called friend has done far worse things than me. I’ve just been so frightened of losing everyone’s respect, my friends, my family, my life here.’
‘Can’t you at least try to tell me what you’ve done?’
‘I don’t know what to do. The other day I actually told this person that I was tired of it all, the lies, covering up, but you know what they did?’
Beth shook her head.
‘They laughed at me. I saw in their eyes, utter contempt, loathing. They told me I was pathetic, useless; like one of the millions of grubby grey pebbles on the beach that people trample on. They said if I was to so much as whisper what they’d done they would pick me up and flick me into the sea. I would disappear. Nobody would know. Nobody would care.’
JENA’S REVIEW
The House Party by Mary Grand
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I have followed Author Mary Grand for five years now, and I jumped at the chance to read an advance review copy of her latest book, The House Party. Her earlier books featured intimate portraits of characters that I bonded with and still remember. And this mystery also features Ms. Grand’s insightful and deft touch with her characters.
Why does life always seem to be fine, until it isn’t? Main character Beth lives on the lovely Isle of Wight with her kind and hardworking pharmacist husband Sami, two teenage children, and a darling pet dog. All seems well and normal- daily life is busy, sometimes the kids do something eye-rolling, maybe she and Sami aren’t quite as star-crossed as they once were, but no worries.
Until Beth and her family go to a house party with their close friends. They are there to celebrate the new and fabulous house built by Kathleen and Patrick. The evening takes a surprising turn when Kathleen privately confesses to Beth that something sinister is happening. Someone knows Kathleen’s secret. Early the next morning, Kathleen is found dead below the cliffs of her property.
Beth can’t believe that Kathleen would have harmed herself. Beth begins to observe the families that were at the house party. Altogether, there were only 11 (forgive me if I didn’t count right!) of them. Is one of them the killer? Will more people die?
This book has a quiet, slow-moving plot which I found made it all the more suspenseful, creepy, and tingly. The House Party is filled with real characters, and lovely scenes of the Isle of Wight.
Everyone has secrets, right? Who knows yours?
Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for a digital advance review copy. This is my honest review. Highly recommend.
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Mary Grand is the author of five novels and writes gripping, page-turning suspense, with a dark and often murderous underside. She grew up in Wales, was for many years a teacher of deaf children and now lives on the Isle of Wight where her new novel, The House Party is set.
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