Audiobook Review | "The Search Party" by Hannah Richell

 

The Search Party | by Hannah Richell

Narrated by Beth Eyre and Jamie Parker

Published by Simon & Schuster Audio

Length 10 hours 12 minutes 

Publishing January 15th, 2024

A spellbinding locked-room mystery about a glamping trip gone horribly wrong when a powerful storm leaves the participants stranded and forced to confront long-held secrets and a shocking disappearance.

Max and Annie Kingsley have left the London rat race with their twelve-year-old son to set up a glamping site in the wilds of Cornwall. Eager for a dry run ahead of their opening, they invite three old university friends and their families for a long-needed reunion. But the festivities soon go awry as tensions arise between the children (and subsequently their parents), explosive secrets come to light, and a sudden storm moves in, cutting them off from help as one in the group disappears.

Moving between the police investigation, a hospital room, and the catastrophic weekend, The Search Party is a propulsive and twisty destination thriller about the tenuous bonds of friendship and the lengths parents will go to protect their children—perfect for fans of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley.

My Thoughts

Overall, I really enjoyed this story, which was very much a domestic thriller. We have a group of long-standing friends, each with seemingly different lives, who bring their family units along on the trip.

Immediately, there is tension among some of the children, which causes tension with the adults as well. The reader is then propelled into this fast-moving story. In fact, I had a hard time hanging on in the first half of the story. There are four family units on this glamping trip. The timelines change quickly from the glamping trip to the police investigation, to the hospital, and then back to glamping again. So, to say there was initial confusion about what exactly was transpiring in the first half of the story is accurate.

I would normally discontinue reading and give up due to the confusion; however, something told me to just go with the flow and see if I can make sense of who is who and what is going on. I'm happy to say that I don't regret pushing through the first half. It ended up being a very entertaining story. 

The ending was very satisfying, with the resolution that was met, but it was also heartwarming.

The audiobook narrators did a wonderful job of telling this story through different points of view and utilizing different acting voices to portray them. One thing I found very fascinating was when the narrator acted out phone calls. The audio was made slightly muffled and dim to accurately portray what it would sound like listening to someone speak on the other line. That was the first time I have heard an audiobook recording use that technique.

Overall, I would certainly recommend this audiobook. Just remember to hold on to this fast ride, and it will all make sense in the end.

𝘙𝘌𝘈𝘋 𝘛𝘏𝘐𝘚 𝘐𝘍 𝘠𝘖𝘜 𝘓𝘐𝘒𝘌...

- destination thrillers

- locked door style thrillers

- weather events

- domestic suspense

𝘛𝘏𝘌𝘔𝘌𝘚 𝘈𝘛 𝘗𝘓𝘈𝘠...

- adult best friends 

- drama amongst the children 

- a weekend getaway glamping

- love triangle 

- non-linear timeline 

⚠️ Content Warning

Flashback memories of child abuse, neglect and manslaughter.

Thank you Libro.fm and Simon & Schuster Audio for the complementary ALC listening copy for review purposes.  All opinions expressed are mine alone.  

You can purchase "The Search Party" by Hannah Richell in audiobook form from Libro.fm directly here

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