The Midnight Feast - Lucy Foley

It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense, small or large, has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles; crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches; the “Manor Mule” cocktail (grapefruit, ginger, vodka, and a dash of CBD oil) is being poured with a heavy hand. Everyone is wearing linen.

But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. Something’s not right with the guests. There’s been a fire. A body’s been discovered.

THE FOUNDER * THE HUSBAND * THE MYSTERY GUEST * THE KITCHEN HELP

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.

Blurb taken from Goodreads. 

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I was provided with an advance copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I've always found Lucy Foley's thrillers to be really sold: enjoyable, reliable, and intriguing. So, I was very excited to read The Midnight Feast, which I read on holiday. 

If I'm honest, it took me quite a long time to get into this one - much longer than Foley's previous books. The characters and the setting just didn't grip me as much as usual. However, when I did eventually manage to get into the story, I absolutely FLEW through it, so invested in finding out what had happened. 

The Midnight Feast is a bit more of a niche setting, which might not appeal to all readers, but its another very solid story from Foley.

Rating: ✫✫✫✫

My Thoughts

There's a few reasons why I struggled to get into The Midnight Feast very quickly, and I think one of the main ones was the setting. I'm not sure what it was about the resort environment, but I didn't feel very enticed by it. That, combined with the back and forth not only between characters but also timings, left me feeling with a bit of a block. It wasn't an easy book to connect with straight away because of how much there was to follow, and I think if you do want to get invested in the story quickly, you need to start off by reading a big chunk!

You're probably wondering why I have this book a four star rating if I have so many negative things to say. Well, it's because for all my misgivings about this book, it is still very good. I don't imagine Lucy Foley could write a bad book, and it is still a great story. The back-and-forth between past and present worked just as well as usual to create some mystery and an intense atmosphere. It jut felt a little bit clunkier than usual. 

The characters and the story themselves were also solid, and the more we found out about the characters, the more interested I became in the book. It was just a shame for me that I didn't get the initial excitement in opening The Midnight Library that I have with Foley's other books. It was definitely more of a slow burn for me, but still one I enjoyed.