Well hello to you my reader chums! As many of you know, my favourite type of books are crime thrillers, especially murder mysteries or 'who-done-its'. One of my favourite crime thriller authors is Lucy Foley; I absolutely love her books, The Hunting Party, The Guest List and The Paris Apartment. Since reading all of those books, I've been eager for her to bring out a new novel - and couldn't wait to read The Midnight Feast.

Lucy Foley has an incredible writing style; I love how she builds up a story, develops the characters and structures her book - and how all the big pieces of the puzzle come together in the end. If you're looking for a new murder mystery book, here is my book review of The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley.

Synopsis

Set in the middle of the Dorset coastline in midsummer, it's the opening weekend of The Manor, a new countryside retreat, attracting only the richest guests. Although under the midsummer sunshine and a massive heatwave, old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. The evening just about begins when a body is found and the mystery of who was killed and who did it begins. The story starts with a secret fifteen years ago, one that has crashed into a party, ending in murder. 

Characters and relationships

One of my favourite things about Lucy Foley's books is how she crafts the characters so beautifully with great depth. This book is split into several main characters, Francesca, Bella, Eddie, Owen and DI Walker. 

Francesca is the rich and pretentious main character, opening this new countryside retreat on the site of what used to be her family home. I didn't like her at all as a character; she was mean, harsh to people around us and thought she was better than everyone else. I could gather that she's in this spiritual phase of her life, trying to promote that type of lifestyle, yet really, isn't that wonderful of a person and it's all a cascade. 

The character Bella, I didn't originally understand her purpose in the story as she sounded like an average woman, not similar to the rich and upper-class crowd at this countryside retreat. She's a mum with revenge in her path for something that has happened to her. The longer the book goes on, the more layers are unveiled as to why Bella returns and the past she brought back with her.

Eddie is sweet and a little bit of a lost character, growing up on his parent's farm next to the glorified Manor which is now being turned into the countryside retreat. He's only young and secretly working at the new retreat, keeping the secret from his parents, who are locals of the area. The locals have a big issue with the new estate and Eddie doesn't seem to mind too much as he wants to make money to start a new life, outside of his tiny village. Eddie had a cute and innocent persona like a young man, completely out of his depth. 

DI Walker, I thought initially was just the detective of the book, yet the more the book went on, his role became more prominent.

Overall thoughts

Overall, like any Lucy Foley book, this book didn't disappoint in any way. The fast-paced nature and short chapters added to the book's suspense and speed. I wasn't sure how this book would pan out but every page somehow got better and also darker and deeper. The layers of the story are GENIUS and I love how the book maps out beautifully from the past to the present, and how the two link so well.

I thoroughly enjoyed the character development in this novel and how it added to the overall plotline and its heavy secrets. I would 100% recommend this novel to everyone because of the perfectly crafted murder mystery, the intense level of revenge and hatred and the wonderfully paced book, which reveals information exactly at the right moment.

Ending

The ending was just as I wanted it to be, yet there were still plenty of surprises in it to enjoy! A great way to end a book that built up so much suspense.

I hope you enjoyed this book! What are you currently reading?

Thank you for reading <3