The Family Game: A Novel

by Catherine Steadman

Hardcover, 2022

Status

Available

Call number

823.92

Genres

Audiobooks

Fiction

All Topics

Collection

Franklin Blvd.

Publication

Ballantine Books (2022), 336 pages

Description

Fiction. Literature. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:�??A powerful family and a deadly game. Be prepared for a nail-biting, roller-coaster of a ride in Catherine Steadman�??s classy and ingenious new thriller.�?��??B. A. Paris, New York Times bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors From the New York Times bestselling author of Something in the Water, Mr. Nobody, and The Disappearing Act. . . . THE RULES 1. Listen carefully 2. Do your research 3. Trust no one 4. Run for your life Harriet Reed, a novelist on the brink of literary stardom, is newly engaged to Edward Holbeck, the heir of an extremely powerful family. And even though Edward has long tried to severe ties with them, news of the couple�??s marital bliss has the Holbecks inching back into their lives. As Harriet is drawn into their lavish world, the family seems perfectly welcoming. So when Edward�??s father, Robert, hands Harriet a tape of a book he�??s been working on, she is desperate to listen. But as she presses play, it�??s clear that this isn�??t just a novel. It�??s a confession. A confession to a grisly crime. A murder. And, suddenly, the game is in motion. Feeling isolated and confused, Harriet must work out if this is part of a plan to test her loyalty. Or something far darker. What is it that Robert sees in her? Why give her the power to destroy everything? This might be a game to the Holbeck family�??but losing might still prove deadly. READY… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member SquirrelHead

Harriet Reed (called Harry by her friends) is engaged to Edward Holbeck, a handsome man with a super rich family. Harry is a best selling novelist and Edward is a businessman. He is estranged from his family because, as you're led to believe, they are self entitled, eccentric and controlling.

Eventually Harry agrees to meet the family and the games begin from there.

Harry has a secret from her past but it just about pales in comparison to Holbecks. Edward brings her to the family home for the first time at Thanksgiving. During that visit Edward's father meets with her privately, eventually giving her a tape of a "novel in progess" for her to evaluate. Is it a thriller or is it a murder confession disguised as fiction? Harry researches the information and realizes she is involved in a potentially deadly situation.

The prologue starts with Harry coming to on the floor on the estate of the Holbeck mansion. Wiping the blood from her face she makes a plan to survive this dangerous treasure hunt, a family game played every year at Christmas. The stakes are high and the scenes are brilliantly written.

Near the end of the book this scene picks up so you know exactly how crazy a family game this was. I could not put this down after the twists were revealed - dinner was late on two evenings while I read on! This is the fourth book I have read by Catherine Steadman and I loved it.
Publication date is November 8, 2022 by Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine. Genre: General Fiction Adult, Mystery and Thrillers, Women's Fiction.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader's copy of this book. I was not compensated for the review, all opinions are mine.

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LibraryThing member susan.h.schofield

4.5 stars - This was such a surprising and entertaining thriller. I've enjoyed all of Catherine Steadman's books, but The Family Game is definitely my favorite. The Holbecks are wealthy and powerful family and author Harriet (Harry) Reed doesn't know what she has gotten herself into when she gets

engaged to their oldest son, Edward. There are lots of great twists and I couldn't put this book down. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

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LibraryThing member Mrsmommybooknerd

The Family Game by Catherine Steadman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a read!!! A rollercoaster of thrills and chills. I could not out this book down. I am still reeling and processing it! I loved that I never knew what was going to happen, which kept me on my toes. I marveled at how perfectly the story

unfolded. This book is not to be missed!

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LibraryThing member LoriKBoyd

Harry’s life is going well. Her first book is a hit, just got engaged to a handsome wealthy man, and is finally getting the family she always hoped for. Be careful what you wish for! This wealthy family is odd, enjoying weird games at the holidays and a little bit too much closeness.

A domestic

thriller like no other. It will have you turning the pages quickly to see what is in store for for Harry. Interesting storyline with a crazy cast of characters that shows what money can buy and that, in the end, it is not everything.

Thanks to Ms. Steadman, Random House Publishing/Ballantine Books and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone.

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LibraryThing member rmarcin

Harry (Harriet) Reed is a bestselling author and newly engaged to super wealthy Edward Holbeck. However, after a year of dating, she has never met his family. She finally meets them at Thanksgiving, where his father, Robert, gives her a tape for her to listen to in private. The tape details some

interesting history and also reveals information about Harry's past.
Harry worries that if the tape comes to light, Edward will look at her differently. On Christmas, they go to the Hydes, the family estate in NY and everyone is told to play a special family game. What Harry doesn't know at the start of the game is how she will have to fight to survive, and how everything will change if she loses the game.
Another good thriller from Catherine Steadman.

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LibraryThing member KallieGrace

That really went off the rails there. This was a more enjoyable crazy than something like the Writing Retreat, with things slightly more believable? Maybe? I don't know, I can convince myself that the ultra rich are capable of anything I guess. It has great pacing and building tension and the bad

guy reveal was not obvious from the start.

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LibraryThing member Kiaya40

One of the things I find myself thinking after finishing this story is if it seems too good to be true, then it probably is, which is mostly what happens here. Harry is doing well with writing and publishing best-selling novels and has moved from Europe to New York for the man she loves and is

hoping to marry. Edward is the heir to a huge fortune as a son in a vastly wealthy family and Harry can't believe he picked her, loves her, and wants to marry her. She, of course, has a secret of her own that she doesn't want him to know either though, but little does she know the secrets that his family holds.
This was a thrilling read. It was an intense psychological thriller, and while it had some twists and turns, I kind of guessed and knew what they were. I knew when the pieces fit together what was happening and I was torn about how I felt about Harry because when I started reading the story; I liked her, but then I found out about her history and questioned her character. I'm still not sure how I feel about her with her past and with what happens, but then this story is very much out of the ordinary for what would normally happen when you meet, get engaged, and plan to marry the guy of your dreams.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Random House/Ballantine Books for letting me read and review this enticing and edge-of-your-seat thriller. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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LibraryThing member Bookmarque

Bah, I really wish English authors would stop setting books in America if they REALLY don't know the subtle differences in language and phrasing. Yes, yes, you can live here a long time and pick things up, but damn, get an editor to watch for these things. Also, if you can't do an American accent

at least as good as Hugh Laurie, get another narrator.

Oh Harriet you are a doormat. Please be more on guard and believe nothing anyone says, not even Ed.

What woman wouldn't be sick with nausea and fatigue for three days and NOT KNOW she might be pregnant? It takes her boyfriend to suggest it? Oy vey? Dumbass.

What a clumsy freak. Spills and drops things all the time. What kind of a spaz is Harriet?

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LibraryThing member JHSColloquium

The Family Game opens with a prologue in which Harriet Reed reveals, in a first-person narrative, that she is lying on the parquet floor of the grand entrance hall of the Holbeck family’s upstate New York Mansion. Harriet is bleeding and struggles to stand up, the diamond in her engagement ring

twinkling in the light. She also notes that she faced death twenty years earlier, but survived and is determined to do so again. “A girl with a past tries to marry into money and all hell breaks loose. “We all know how that story ends,” she wryly observes, before the action moves back to November 21.

Harriet arrived in New York City four months earlier. She is a successful author – her first published novel is a bestseller that has so far sold over a million copies. She eschewed relationships until she met Edward Holbeck at a gala thrown by her publisher, and she feels as though she has finally paid for her past mistakes and can now allow herself to experience real happiness. She has started a new life, complete with new friends, and soon she’ll have a new family to get to know. Harriet was just eleven years old when she lost her own parents in a tragic accident. She is adamant in her belief that her future with Edward looks bright. She loves him deeply, in no small measure because “he saved me.”

Edward does not rely on his family’s fortune. Rather, he is an entrepreneur in his own right in the midst of negotiating to sell his company for a staggering sum. Edward is plainly as smitten with Harriet as she is with him. He stages an elaborate proposal at the Rockefeller Plaza ice skating rink where he presents her with the ring that belonged to his great-grandmother. The Holbeck family is not just wealthy. John Livingston Holbeck, Edward’s great-great-great-grandfather, was one of America’s Gilded Age tycoons. The family’s history is as storied – and notorious -- as those of the Morgans, Vanderbilts, Rockefellers, Andrew Carnegies, and they wield unparalleled and far-reaching power, with a stately family home in Manhattan. But Edward has kept Harriet away from his family, explaining that they are controlling and domineering, and have caused problems in his personal life and relationships in the past. His relationship with his father, Robert, has been particularly strained. Robert has long been rumored to be involved in payoffs, blackmail, and questionable foreign business deals, although he has never been criminally charged. “Which makes the sudden appearance of this family ring now on my finger all the more interesting,” Harriet muses.

But meet them she does when she is finally summoned to afternoon tea at an exclusive members-only club on the Upper East Side. It soon becomes clear that the family is capable of meddling in Harriet’s affairs and the meeting has been arranged specifically to convince her to assist them. Edward’s sister, Mathilda, bluntly asks Harriet to help bring Edward back into the fold. “Will you help the family out? We want him back; we want to keep him where we can see him. We think this engagement is just wonderful.” And promptly tricks her into bringing Edward to Thanksgiving dinner.

Harriet soon discovers that when the Holbeck family gathers in their gothic castle -- which boasts all the expected accoutrements in addition to a massive and frightening maze, trails through the adjacent mountain, a treehouse, and an abandoned well – their family traditions include playing bizarre and dangerous games. Harriet is concerned not just for her own well-being, but that of the children who, in her estimation, are far too young and impressionable to be included in such activities. Nonetheless, she knows that she has to participate in the competition, and it would be in her best interests to win. So she puts on her game face>, determined to show the family – especially Robert – that she intends to become a member of the family and will be a formidable addition.

That’s because Robert sends her a mysterious cassette tape. It has been created with a Dictaphone and before she can listen to it, she has to secure the proper equipment. Once she does, she is shocked at the contents of the recording. It has been created by Robert. As she listens to his voice, she realizes how naïve she has been. She should have realized that with all of their power, the Holbecks would never allow her to marry into the family without vetting her. Robert has, of course, had a complete background investigation conducted and learned her secret. It’s a secret Harriet has never told anyone . . . and never intended to reveal it. Twenty years ago, she committed an act that could have profound consequences if discovered because no statute of limitations would bar her from being held to account for her actions. But she has always been confident that no one witnessed her behavior. Robert, however, is highly intelligent and savvy, and from the evidence gathered during the investigation has been able to draw inferences and reach conclusions. He makes it clear that if Harriet does not follow his directions, she will regret it. He also confesses that he has engaged in criminal behavior, along with his rationale. And emphasizes that he will not hesitate to take further draconian action if Harriet does not accede.

Steadman keeps the story’s action moving at a steady pace, gradually revealing details about Harriet’s past, the heinous act she committed, and her reasoning. She wisely makes Harriet not just a believable character, but a likable one and she is, in a number of ways, sympathetic. Steadman challenges readers to ponder the moral and ethical implications of Harriet’s decision and question what they would have done in Harriet’s place all those years ago. Harriet is bright, has sustained horrible losses in her life and, in many ways, deserves the happiness she believes she has found with Edward. Robert is the obvious villain in the tale, a confessed murderer who is wielding his power to ensure that Harriet complies with his demands. Edward is also bright and likable. He’s a caring, attentive partner to Harriet who is happy to be on the brink of formalizing his commitment to her and seemingly willing to interact with his family to the extent necessary in order to ensure his legacy as a member of the Holbeck clan.

However, in Steadman’s capable hands, readers discover clues along with Harriet that not all is as it seems. When the family gathers to celebrate Christmas, the rules of the latest game are outlined. Harriet is given the option by Edward and others not to participate since she did so well in the previous competition and has shared with the family news about how much is now at stake for the happy couple. However, not being a competitor is not a viable option, in accordance with the terms outlined by Robert. The game, however, quickly becomes completely beyond the realm of all reason . . . and Harriet begins discovering bodies in various areas of the vast estate. She knows that she could become one of them if she fails to discover precisely what Robert’s real motivation and intentions are, and is shocked when she discovers, along with readers, that her presumptions have been erroneous, and the stakes are even higher than she originally believed. Steadman deftly ramps up both the dramatic tension and the tale’s pace as it hurtles toward the shocking revelation of the truth.

The Family Game is an inventive and clever thriller in which the setting – that eerie, multi-story castle set in a remote area of upstate New York – effectively serves as an additional character. Even though many readers will correctly guess the largest plot twist well before it is revealed, that does not detract from the sheer fun of going on the perilous journey with Harriet to see if their hunch is accurate. Steadman’s narrative establishes a cinematic quality that makes both the characters and their plights vivid visceral, illustrating again that she is an accomplished storyteller.

Thanks to Random House for a paperback copy of A Smile in a Whisper in conjunction with the Tandem Collective Readalong.

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LibraryThing member dwcofer

This book is described as a psychological thriller, but I did not find it thrilling or scary at all. The ending was predictable and not a surprise at all, evident early on. In addition, the ending was a disappointment, all wrapped up in a few pages as if the author hit her limit of words and then

just wrote a few lines to tie up the loose ends.

The story is told in the first person by the protagonist, Harriet Reed, who goes by “Harry.” She meets Edward Holbeck and they fall in love and are engaged to be married. The Holbeck family is old money. And with money comes power. Almost everyone in the book has secrets they do not want revealed, but many of the secrets are known by others. And money and power can uncover those secrets.

The characters were not well developed and I never felt like I really knew them at all. Nor did I have any empathy for them. I cared not if they lived, died, obtained what they were seeking or not. There were also too many characters. I keep track of the characters and some appeared once and never again. Those did not need to be named, plus many were not integral to the story. The book had about 50 characters, an average of a new character every eight or nine pages. Way too many.

The dialogue was also uncreative. All the characters spoke alike. Harriet is from Great Britain, yet she spoke just like the Holbeck family from New England. Not likely.

The book was too long as well. It could have been cut by a third and been a much tighter and sharper story. The story lagged at many points and I had to force myself to pick it back up. There were parts that were exciting and fun to read, but also parts that were just plain boring.

Overall, I will give it two stars for the good parts, but it really only deserved one star. I won’t be reading any more books by this author.

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LibraryThing member ElizaJane

Harriet Reed meets her fiance's family and is given a cassette by the father. This sounds like he is confessing to a crime. Why is he telling her this? I really enjoyed this. It's not the greatest writing and I figured it out but the plot was so unique it kept me captivated. How it plays out at the

end had me trying to catch my breath. It's only few and far between that a thriller will catch me with a unique plot I haven't read before. A popcorn thriller that would make a good Christmas read.

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LibraryThing member DKnight0918

Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy. It was definitely a thriller. I didn’t see the plot twist coming.

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