The Dinner Guests by Kiersten Modglin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Piper, Beth and Lakynn have been best friends since childhood. They now all live on the same quiet street and enjoy spending a lot of time together.
Since the neighborhood is so quiet, when anything changes it’s a big deal. For example, when the most luxurious home on their street sells, they can’t help but spy on the new neighbors. Who are they? What’s their story?
When the ladies traditional methods of reaching out to the new neighbors fail, they’re at a loss. Are these people intentionally ignoring them?
Then the construction begins; a ginormous concrete wall quickly goes up surrounding the property. And the cameras! What the actual heck?
Weeks later, out of the blue, the friends receive very formal invitations to a dinner party at the now fortified mansion. Even though the invitations arrive last minute, they can’t say no. They’ve been itching to get into that house.
Thus, that Friday night Beth and her husband Leo, Lakynn and her husband Henry, along with Piper and her love interest Shane, all walk together to the mystery dinner.
After introductions, it is clear this isn’t going to be a normal evening. The couple is strange, the discussion topics are strange, the atmosphere is strange. It’s a whole thing.
As the dinner portion of the evening draws to a close, the friends discover there’s no way out. They’re forced to play a game, hoping if they win, they’ll be set free.
How do I best explain the experience that I had reading The Dinner Guests?
Let’s just say it was like being served a well drink when you are used to drinking top shelf.
It just was not for me; at all. I had never read anything by this author before, but have heard a lot of positive reviews for her previous works. I was fully expecting to enjoy this, maybe even love it.
I was actually surprised at how bad this turned out to be for me. It just seemed ridiculous. I could not get behind anything that was happening.
Let it be known that I frequently enjoy books that you have to suspend belief in certain areas, so it’s not that. It was everything else, the writing, the characters, the reveals, the ending…
I think maybe Modglin’s work just isn’t for me. I am glad I gave it a shot, but will most likely not pick up anything further from this author.
If this synopsis sounds fun to you though, you should definitely try it. Reading is completely subjective and just because something didn’t work for me, doesn’t mean it won’t work for you.
Thank you to the publisher, Dreamscape Media, for providing me with an audio-copy to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity!