Description:

Could this reunion be the death of them?

The Precipice is a legendary, family-owned hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. With the recent passing of their father, the Bishop sisters–Iris, Vicki, and Faith–have come for the weekend to claim it. But with a hurricane looming and each of the Bishop sisters harboring dangerous secrets, there’s murder in the air– and not everyone who checks into the Precipice will be checking out.

Each sister wants what is rightfully hers, and in the mix is the Precipe’s nineteen-year-old chambermaid Charley Kelley: smart, resilient, older than her years, and in desperate straits.

The arrival of the Bishop sisters could spell disaster for Charley. Will they close the hotel? Fire her? Discover her habit of pilfering from guests? Or even worse, learn that she’s using a guest room to hide a woman on the run.

Adele’s Review:

This reviewer enjoyed reading Jamie Day’s novel The Block Party and looked forward to reviewing One Big Happy Family. The story is set in a grand but decaying Maine hotel on the coast. The hotel owner has died, and his family arrives for a reading of the will while a hurricane looms.

Setting is particularly important in this novel, since atmosphere is key to the plot. The protagonist is the hotel maid. The dysfunctional family of heirs are characters as offbeat as the cast of Knives Out or an Agatha Christie novel. The Wills and Trusts attorney appears corrupt. There’s a murder, of course, of someone unlikable. The hurricane strikes and a tarot card reading in the semi-darkness follows. The book is well-written, and the pacing inside the decrepit hotel is just right. One Big Happy Family is like a big bowl of mystery stories stirred with an invisible spoon, forming a new story that will delight readers of cozy mysteries and whodunnits.

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6365276529

Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CGS1QT8G