A group of old friends from college go on vacation together every New Year’s Eve. They tell themselves that after the initial awkwardness of reuniting wears off, they realize how much they still have in common and mean to one another. But not New Year’s Eve 2018. The differences have become more pronounced, and their physical and emotional distance reminds them of long-held grievances and hurt feelings. When one of them is found dead, everyone’s a suspect (okay, maybe not the infant).
After loving Lucy Foley’s The Invitation, I decided to try The Hunting Party. There are distinct similarities, and not just because they’re murder mysteries set in a remote location. A lot of the characters seem recycled (The Hunting Party came out before The Invitation, so I suppose The Invitation is the one full of recycling). There’s the perfect couple, the beautiful blonde and her handsome, fit fiancé/husband, who are rich and successful. The average couple; the wife is pleasant and the husband is a little too fond of the beautiful blonde. The single woman, who is shy and a bit of an outcast. The man and woman who work at the remote location.
The mystery in The Hunting Party is great. Foley doesn’t reveal who the victim is until almost halfway through the book so part of the mystery is figuring out who gets murdered. And honestly, with the characters’ backstories, almost anyone could have been the murderer or victim. The point of view characters are well-developed, and are often sympathetic and despicable at the same time. It’s a fast read that I couldn’t put down.
