Party Of Liars by Kelsey Cox (Audiobook)

 

During a sixteenth birthday party, a body falls from a balcony. Was it an accident or murder? Or could it have been "The Mother", the legendary ghost who haunts the house?

Author Kelsey Cox has packed a lot into Party Of Liars, from the supernatural element, through revenge, jealousy and desperation to keep secrets hidden. As I listened, I was constantly changing my mind about the direction the story was taking. The story is told from multiple perspectives, and the use of a variety of narrators really helped me to understand clearly whose narrative we were hearing.

The book opens with a sixteenth birthday party for Sophie Matthews. The party is being held at her father Ethan's mansion, a once rundown property that Ethan has completely modernised. Right from the beginning, we know that someone has fallen to their death from an upstairs balcony. The author keeps the reader in suspense throughout as who has fallen isn't revealed until the very end.

Since the setting is a party, there is a wide range of characters. Alongside Ethan and Sophie, there are Ethan's first wife, Kim and his new wife, Dani. Both women are struggling in their own ways. Sophie's best friend Mikayla feels out of place because of the cheerleaders present and daren't tell Sophie she likes her ex-boyfriend, the boy Sophie is desperate to get back together with. There's also the nanny Ethan hired to help Dani, who is struggling with being a new mother, a nanny who acts a little strangely.

There are lots of other guests; friends and colleagues from the well-to-do enclave of Bulverde, Texas. Over the course of the day, we learn that Kim is looked down upon because of her drinking problem and Dani is considered to be struggling with her mental health. As people mingle and the alcohol flows, secrets are uncovered and grievances aired, all leading to the cataclysmic ending. By the conclusion, I'd just about figured out what was happening, but events were still shocking, and even more secrets were then revealed.

Party Of Liars by Kelsey Cox is available in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a review copy.

Author Details

Kelsey Cox received her MFA in fiction from Purdue University and works from home in the Texas Hill Country. You can often find her writing at Mammen Family Public Library, chasing around her two young daughters, or watching British mysteries with her mom and aunts. On nights when bedtime goes as planned, she enjoys curling up on the sofa, glass of wine in hand, and a book with complicated characters and a killer twist in her lap.