The Book:
The Engagement Party by Finley Turner
Published November 7, 2023 by Crooked Lane Books
Date read: January 3, 2025
The Engagement Party spoilers can be found below, but they’re hidden under a spoiler tag so you’re safe to keep scrolling if you’d just like to read my review.
The Characters:
Kass
The Sedgemont family, including Kass’s fiance Murray
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The Plot (from Goodreads):
An engagement party turns deadly in this debut thriller, in the tradition of Sarah Pinborough and Ruth Ware.
Kass Baptiste is newly engaged to her fiancé Murray Sedgemont after a whirlwind romance. Before they even get to share the news, an invitation arrives via messenger – to an engagement party hosted by Murray’s parents. When Kass and Murray arrive at the Sedgemont Estate, she is astonished to learn that Murray’s family is one of the most powerful families in North Carolina. As Kass’s future mother-in-law, Beatrice, whips herself into a frenzy over the perfect party for the state’s elite, Kass begins to receive anonymous threatening social media messages.
On the night of the event, as champagne is popped and the celebrations begin, a body is found in the lavish home. All eyes are on Kass, the interloper amongst the rich and powerful guests. Over the course of the party , Kass’s dark past unexpectedly becomes intertwined with the murder, and in order to prove her innocence, she must finally come to terms with her secrets.
As Murray’s family secrets are revealed, Kass must prove herself innocent while evading the anonymous threats that haunt her every move. to protect her children at all costs. When she begins the game, she unwittingly enters a twisted web of deception and intrigue. Can she maneuver through the treacherous storm and the relentless competition and get home to her family? In a ruthless battle for survival where the stakes are higher than ever, the blurry line between the virtual and the real proves that the only person we can trust is ourselves.
The Engagement Party Spoilers
The Reveal:
Kass’s secret from her past was that she felt responsible for her best friend’s death. They were bickering on a subway platform while drunk, and Kass had grabbed at the friend’s bag. The friend (I can’t remember her name, sorry) jerked the bag away but Kass had already let go, and the friend lost her balance and fell in front of an oncoming train.
The friend’s boyfriend, Lawrence, happened to know the Sedgemont family and was invited to the engagement party by chance. He had been stalking Kass because he thought she had killed the friend on purpose, but Kass hadn’t posted about Murray specifically. Lawrence was surprised to see Kass but instantly decided to use this to his advantage.
The Ending:
I can’t remember if he killed the family’s lawyer.
He did try to set it up to make it look like Kass had done it, to frame her for this death since he couldn’t prove her responsible for the friend’s death.
I don’t remember any more specifics, unfortunately. Feel free to add more in the comments!
I hope these The Engagement Party spoilers were helpful.
The Review:
I told you I’m motivated this year…here’s my second #backlistbooks25 read!
After a quick engagement, Kass is invited to meet her boyfriend Murray’s wealthy family. Murray has never mentioned quite how wealthy his family is, and Kass is not warmly welcomed. She soon realizes that Murray is not who she thought he was, and then people begin dying when a storm cuts off their contact with the outside world.
This was a pretty classic locked-room mystery tied in with rich people behaving badly. It was an enjoyable enough read, but there wasn’t much to set it apart from other thrillers in my opinion. I’d give this author another chance in the future.
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