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spatterson12's review
4.0
This was a quick read that reminded me somewhat of the Big Little Lie’s structure. The book alternated between the time leading up to a large event and the bystander interviews after the event.
Amaya is a complex character who has a compulsive need to check in with her former best friend, Kaavi. And by check in, more so through the use of multiple anonymous social media accounts that constantly comment and engage with Kaavi’s lavish lifestyle posts. Having spent five years with zero communication, Amaya is surprised to find a wedding invite from Kaavi in her inbox. She’s also surprised to see that the groom is no other than her college boyfriend who she dated for four years and also hasn’t spoken to in five years.
Amaya will do whatever it takes to stop this wedding, formulating multiple plans to make this a reality. So when the bride goes missing the day of the wedding, the reader is left trying to figure out how Amaya did it.
Amaya is a complex character who has a compulsive need to check in with her former best friend, Kaavi. And by check in, more so through the use of multiple anonymous social media accounts that constantly comment and engage with Kaavi’s lavish lifestyle posts. Having spent five years with zero communication, Amaya is surprised to find a wedding invite from Kaavi in her inbox. She’s also surprised to see that the groom is no other than her college boyfriend who she dated for four years and also hasn’t spoken to in five years.
Amaya will do whatever it takes to stop this wedding, formulating multiple plans to make this a reality. So when the bride goes missing the day of the wedding, the reader is left trying to figure out how Amaya did it.
aliduhan's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
catarina_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
cover_2_covered's review
5.0
Undoubtedly outdone herself with this one as well.
After reading her debut novel My Sweet Girl and the plot twist that came along with it, I expected this to be equally amazing as well.
And is did not disappoint!
You're Invited was well plotted and written in such an amazing way that you don't know the book has gripped you till you're halfway in. The way the Sri Lankan themes are described and highlighted throughout this book helps the reader connect with the culture in order to understand the full picture.
The utilisation of language (which is so Sri Lankan) and the flawless delivery of the translation is executed perfectly throughout the whole book.
I read this in one day and as always, the plot twists just kept on coming.
It highlights basic human qualities like jealousy, anger and love; while projecting on individual character growth.
It focuses on the world wind of chaos surrounding wedding planning and captures the essence of the true upper class Colombo 7 crowd. ( I say this with ease because I have first hand experience on how this society works)
I love how you really don't know the whole story till the final few chapters and how the writing manages to keep the readers on their toes about it without making them drop the book.
Each character is eerily consistent with actual human behaviour and qualities. It gives us a detailed behind the scenes to life behind the high walls of the "picture perfect family"
If you go into this book with assumptions.... believe me.... all of it will be debunked by the end of the book.
That being said, I have one tip for you - pick this one up while totally expecting the unexpected.
After reading her debut novel My Sweet Girl and the plot twist that came along with it, I expected this to be equally amazing as well.
And is did not disappoint!
You're Invited was well plotted and written in such an amazing way that you don't know the book has gripped you till you're halfway in. The way the Sri Lankan themes are described and highlighted throughout this book helps the reader connect with the culture in order to understand the full picture.
The utilisation of language (which is so Sri Lankan) and the flawless delivery of the translation is executed perfectly throughout the whole book.
I read this in one day and as always, the plot twists just kept on coming.
It highlights basic human qualities like jealousy, anger and love; while projecting on individual character growth.
It focuses on the world wind of chaos surrounding wedding planning and captures the essence of the true upper class Colombo 7 crowd. ( I say this with ease because I have first hand experience on how this society works)
I love how you really don't know the whole story till the final few chapters and how the writing manages to keep the readers on their toes about it without making them drop the book.
Each character is eerily consistent with actual human behaviour and qualities. It gives us a detailed behind the scenes to life behind the high walls of the "picture perfect family"
If you go into this book with assumptions.... believe me.... all of it will be debunked by the end of the book.
That being said, I have one tip for you - pick this one up while totally expecting the unexpected.
bookish_withsky's review
2.0
I don’t know if audio was the way to go for this one. It wasn’t bad, I just didn’t find myself caring much about anything that was meant to be going on or anything like that.
mtzbookworm64's review
4.0
Agatha Christie type murder mystery set in Sri Lanka during a wedding celebration. Can Amaya stop her ex-boyfriend, Spencer, from marrying her former best friend, Kaavi. Each chapter has clues as to who killed Kaavi.
thepagelady's review
3.0
Amaya is invited to Kaavi's wedding. But when she arrives everyone is surprised to see her which is a shock since the invitation said Kaavi and her family were excited to see her. But then Kaavis goes missing and is expected to be dead. But everything isn't what it seems to be! You're Invited is a suspenseful read! It switches between the wedding and the present and for the most part it's told from Amaya but then it adds in Kaavis. It's definitely a story with plenty of twists to keep you entertained! Great read!
linnaboobooks's review
4.0
To me, this book personally falls under more of the suspense subgenre with psychological elements. As we're taken through the lead-up to the day of Kaavi and Spencer's wedding, we get a good look at Amaya's psych and the obvious mental struggles she's going through.
kyemmpem's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
thephdivabooks's review
4.0
A woman finds out her former best friend is marrying her ex-boyfriend and decides to go to the wedding to resolve things. Can you imagine attending the wedding between your ex and your former best friend? That would be a hard no from me, but that partly what made this story so fascinating from the very first page!
About the Book
Amaya Bloom finds comfort and peace in living her life in a very controlled way. She is a believer in the symbolism and power of certain numbers, and uses those to make decisions and guide her life forward.
When she receives an invitation to her former best friend Kaavi’s opulent and over-the-top wedding in Sri Lanka, she is surprised. Kaavi and Amaya haven’t spoken for many years, though Amaya has kept up with Kaavi through an anonymous social media account she uses to follow her.
But the invitation is even stranger because not only are Kaavi and Amaya estranged, Kaavi is marrying Amaya’s ex-boyfriend Matthew Spencer. Amaya knows she must attend and stop the wedding from happening, no matter what it takes.
But as the week-long wedding festivities begin, rumors about Amaya swirl and she can’t help feeling like she has a target on her back. When Kaavi then goes missing, all evidence makes it seem as though Amaya is to blame.
But Amaya isn’t the only wedding guest with secrets… What happened to Kaavi and who is responsible?
My Thoughts
In You’re Invited, the questions and mysteries about what is going on all lie in the decades leading up to the main storyline. How did Amaya and Kaavi’s friendship fall apart? When did Kaavi and Spencer get together? What happened the last time Amaya was in Colombo? So many questions!
Amaya is a character that readers may have a hard time understanding at first. She is clearly suffering anxiety and finds signs, symbols, and atypical treatments to manage it. Though the number symbolism helps her at times, at others it is debilitating. She is also obsessed with her former best friend—stalking her social media using fake accounts and commenting on everything she posts, while simultaneously spiraling about how fake her online persona is.
At the same time, she quickly turned from vapid and unhinged to sympathetic and compelling in my eyes. She still seemed unwell, but it became the sort of situation where I started to see her strength in coming to this wedding, rather than as a crazy stalker who jumped at the chance to see Kaavi.
The twists were a real mind-bender! A lot goes on and everything was turned on it’s head. In the second half of the book we get Kaavi’s perspective on things, but I didn’t really understand exactly what had happened until the very final twisted chapter. An absolutely wild read!
About the Book
Amaya Bloom finds comfort and peace in living her life in a very controlled way. She is a believer in the symbolism and power of certain numbers, and uses those to make decisions and guide her life forward.
When she receives an invitation to her former best friend Kaavi’s opulent and over-the-top wedding in Sri Lanka, she is surprised. Kaavi and Amaya haven’t spoken for many years, though Amaya has kept up with Kaavi through an anonymous social media account she uses to follow her.
But the invitation is even stranger because not only are Kaavi and Amaya estranged, Kaavi is marrying Amaya’s ex-boyfriend Matthew Spencer. Amaya knows she must attend and stop the wedding from happening, no matter what it takes.
But as the week-long wedding festivities begin, rumors about Amaya swirl and she can’t help feeling like she has a target on her back. When Kaavi then goes missing, all evidence makes it seem as though Amaya is to blame.
But Amaya isn’t the only wedding guest with secrets… What happened to Kaavi and who is responsible?
My Thoughts
In You’re Invited, the questions and mysteries about what is going on all lie in the decades leading up to the main storyline. How did Amaya and Kaavi’s friendship fall apart? When did Kaavi and Spencer get together? What happened the last time Amaya was in Colombo? So many questions!
Amaya is a character that readers may have a hard time understanding at first. She is clearly suffering anxiety and finds signs, symbols, and atypical treatments to manage it. Though the number symbolism helps her at times, at others it is debilitating. She is also obsessed with her former best friend—stalking her social media using fake accounts and commenting on everything she posts, while simultaneously spiraling about how fake her online persona is.
At the same time, she quickly turned from vapid and unhinged to sympathetic and compelling in my eyes. She still seemed unwell, but it became the sort of situation where I started to see her strength in coming to this wedding, rather than as a crazy stalker who jumped at the chance to see Kaavi.
The twists were a real mind-bender! A lot goes on and everything was turned on it’s head. In the second half of the book we get Kaavi’s perspective on things, but I didn’t really understand exactly what had happened until the very final twisted chapter. An absolutely wild read!