A review by r_a_bell
The Guest List by Lucy Foley

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

It was overall good, but the majority of characters weren’t likable in the least, which was kind of the point. The atmosphere was well developed and there were several big twists/reveals. Some of these were pretty predictable, and it was kind of improbably that ALL of these things could actually occur. It makes for a good story, but it kind of takes away from the realism of it. The ending sticks with the sense of realism, and although it resolved the issue at hand, it’s not the kind of feel good ending a lot of people would be looking for. All in all, a good quick read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child death, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcoholism, Murder, Sexual violence, Sexism, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Grief, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Infidelity, Blood, and Drug use

Minor: Classism and Pregnancy

While there’s not exactly an adult/minor relationship, there is a much older man involved in a sexual relationship with a 19-year-old girl, which is close enough and still has much of the same power dynamic, which could be really triggering for someone who finds adult/minor relationships triggering. The content warning for sexual violence is in relation to revenge porn and the threat of publishing revenge porn