You're Invited

3.25(still trying to decide if this is a 3.25 or 3.5 star read)Very disappointed that I didn't like this as much as I thought I would. It was very slow paced and all the ‘reveals' were thrown all together at the end. I wish the author had sprinkled them out throughout the whole book for more suspense because for the first 67% I felt like nothing was happening, just interviews and gossip and the last 33% was like twist after twist after twist and reveal after reveal after reveal.One thing I will say though the aunties gossip in this is spot on. I am SriLankan too and I have been in many situations with aunties like this lol and let me tell you this is almost exactly how it is. Also I really enjoyed reading abt the setting coz many of the places mentioned in the book are places I have been to.(Mt Lavinia beach, Lovinia's secret passageway, Colombo 7, etc) And since SriLanka is rarely mentioned in thrillers it was like a whole new experience reading this. I will definitely be checking out [a:Amanda Jayatissa 20764500 Amanda Jayatissa https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1608019813p2/20764500.jpg]'s other book [b:My Sweet Girl 61381189 My Sweet Girl An addictive, shocking thriller with an UNFORGETTABLE narrator Amanda Jayatissa https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1656758133l/61381189.SY75.jpg 86560415] and I cannot wait!!Thank you Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.:))

I've seen a lot of negative reviews for this book but I honestly don't get it. I enjoyed this book as much as any Lucy Foley or Simone St James book. Honestly kind of wish this was read with a group.. definitely a lot to unpack.

I loved that this book had South Asian representation. I don't know that I've ever seen that in a thriller before. I do wish there was more description of the area – hotel sounds like it would have been a beautiful place to picture had we had more details.

The main character Amaya was kind of conflicting because she was made out to be more and more nuts as time went on (like who really pictures someone dying horrifically every time they annoy you). Her big reveal for what happened was also kind of lack luster – why couldn't she have just said something earlier? Why was the baby a big secret? Why couldn't she ever contact her bestie again? Kaavi's mom seemed to really despise her but later found out she thought she was useful... Idk so many questions.

Kaavi also was made out to be an angel and boy did that girl have some skeletons in her closet. The biggest being that she could just kill someone with seemingly no psychological ramifications.

I just finished You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa and I can't wait to share my thoughts with you.

Amaya has spent the last 5 years rebuilding her life after her relationship with her boyfriend ended. She even cut out her best friend.. Out of the blue she receives an invite for a wedding. A lavish affair in Sri Lanka. The upcoming nuptials of Kaavi... Her best friend for most of her life, a woman she cut off and her ex boyfriend Spencer...

She can't allow this to happen so she accepts the invite with an agenda. When the bride goes missing, everyone who was there is called in to see what they know... While all the evidence points to Amaya, there seems to be secrets and lies floating around the guests too and nothing seems to be as bright and shiny as it first looks.

I don't think I have ever been speechless after reading a book. Every single twist shook me to my very core. A story weaved with such precision, I stayed up late to finish it. I had to. It sunk its delicate claws into me and wouldn't let me go until I was finished. I didn't figure anything out. Not one single thing and the hits just kept coming. My mouth popped open and didn't close until the last word was read.

Amaya is introduced to us in such a way, you find her to be mildly unreliable and I really dug that. Kaavi is the other POV you are given and she also has the unreliable feel to her as well but for other reasons. The rest of the book is conducted as interviews with all the wedding guests being questioned about Kaavi's disappearance. Not a fan at all of that as a format for writing but artfully done and a really ingenious way of getting a bulk of information to us in a few pages. The pace was well balanced and I was engaged from start to finish.

The book covers a 3 month span from when the engagement was announced to the wedding day. It's a whirlwind of excellence you won't want to ever end. Most of the characters have that unlikeable feel to them and that just made it so much better.

I am a sucker for a good psychological thriller and this one nailed it. Are you looking for a thriller with unreliable narration? You won't be sorry with this one!

5 stars

Thank you #netgalley and Berkley publishing group for my ARC