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Everyone knows I love to recommend a great book, and I recently read a murder mystery that is a must share.

Lucy Foley’s The Guest List was named one of New York Time’s Bestsellers and was listed on Reese Witherspoon’s book club, so I felt it was a must read. It sat on my nightstand for months as I finished other books and worked on various projects, but I finally picked it up over the weekend and finished in a 3-day timespan. I couldn’t put it down.

The book has all the makings of a great mystery.

The location is set on a secluded island in Ireland, where several people have been buried, but a large, restored folly is now home to a wedding venue.

The characters have so much depth and are all connected by just a tiny thread. It’s impossible to not connect with at least one person, as every guest there has a slightly different story and it’s told from everyone’s point of view.

The true key to being a great mystery though is the reveal, and I’ll tell you when the lights went out in the book and it was revealed I NEVER saw it coming.

To give you a little background, Jules (the bride) is a magazine editor who is marrying television star Will Slater.

They’ve only known each other for a few months, but everything fell into place; all the stars aligned.

Jules was then enthralled to find this vintage folly to turn into a glitzy palace for an exclusive, paparazzi free wedding.

The guest list included Will’s “mates” from his boarding school Trevelyan’s, her half-sister, her estranged parents and father’s new wife and the MC and former love of her life, Charlie and his wife, Hannah.

She also, of course, includes her wedding planner, Aoife and her husband Freddy.

The guest list only gets more convoluted when old secrets come to the surface and everyone is faced to deal with the truth on a small island that you can only get to by boat.

The quote “oh what a tangled web we weave when we first practice to deceive,” has never rang more true than in this book.

I know you’re wondering how could you possibly relate to characters who are liars and one a killer, but I promise their background stories are so well fleshed out and detailed that you feel empathy and understand their anger, their pain, their confusion and their heartache.

To be honest, I kind of wanted to befriend Hannah by the end. She seems like she would’ve been a riot during her teens and as a mother and wife.

In fact, her narrative alone almost made me give the book five stars.

I can’t really compare the book to other mysteries, as I never really read much Sherlock Holmes or the Hardy Boys, but I do highly recommend everyone to check it out. Even if you don’t like mysteries, it’s got some scandals in there too you might just find interesting.