THE PARTY AT NO. 12

4 stars out of 5

Sometimes when a roadblock threatens to derail your journey, you've just got to suck it up, walk around it and keep going till you reach your destination. Such was the case here for me early on, when a bunch of adult women made a decision so egregious and off-putting that I nearly shut off my Kindle and called it quits. But this is an author whose work I've always enjoyed - and I'd agreed to provide an honest review of the book in exchange for getting access prior to release - so I shoved my real feelings to the other side of my brain and kept plugging away. And in doing so, I found a story that kept me entertained the rest of the way.

Hannah Ford, you see, is having a party - a last hurrah of sorts before she takes off for some post-divorce traveling, with no set date to return. Her mother Alison and her friend Janet Hannah's sisters Charlotte and Beth are there, as are her old friend Sophie, Sophie's mother Dawn and another old friend, Katherine. They're staying at an old home that's been renovated for renting out. Truth is, the party-goers haven't exactly been friends (or close relatives) for some time now - and it's clear they all are trying to hide some kind of secret from the others.

That's why, or so readers are to believe, seven of the guests decide it wouldn't serve them well to bring in the police when the eighth turns up dead. After all, she'd been drinking (or worse) and was injured - perhaps more seriously than the others had thought at the time. No doubt an accident, they rationalize - but calling in the cops would call too much attention to the women and those aforementioned secrets. Instead, they agree to take matters into their own hands - literally - and if anyone asks, pretend the dead woman never existed. 

At that point, my focus turned to hoping they'd all get their comeuppance - the sooner the better. The chapters ignored my opinion, though, shifting from character to character to let readers in on events and interactions of the past that shaped who they are today - all leading up to who's responsible for what happened at the party (with a twist at which some readers will be surprised). The loose ends finally get tied up, and while I can't say all's well that ends well, that's partly because I wouldn't have been happy unless each and every one got her fair share of the blame and that doesn't happen. But overall, it's a fun, easy-to-read book - and I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy.

The Party at No. 12 by Kerry Wilkinson (Bookouture, March 2022); 349 pp.