You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

What could be worse than your ex-boyfriend marrying your childhood best friend? Getting accused of her murder…

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

August 2022; Berkley; 978-0593335123
audio, ebook, print (384 pages); psychological thriller

A few years ago, I read Jayatissa's debut novel Sweet Girl, and loved the shocking psychological thriller. I was worried that a second novel couldn't live up to my expectations as it had set the bar pretty high. Though it took me way longer than I wanted to read You're Invited, I can say it didn't disappoint.

We start with a prologue that describes an incident on the wedding day. Then we go back 3 months and get Amaya's view of the events leading up to the incident. The chapters are separated by interview transcripts about the incident. 

I was glad that it didn't take long to get to the wedding day as I was dying to know what happened. Between learning about Amaya and the tidbits the family and friends reveal in their interviews, there is no way to know really what happened and who is the most likely suspect. You know there are several people who are manipulators. I almost screamed when the story once again went back 3 months, this time the story follows Kaavi, the missing bride.

While I enjoyed the twists and turns of the plot, the characters got on my nerves. Amaya's mental illness would typically endear me to a character but it just felt too much. She self-harms and she's obsessive - the thing with the numbers got old fast though I get that it developed the character. While being into BDSM isn't a mental illness, this interest of hers when paired with her other issues does seem a bit too stereotypical.

At times the characters read like the people on reality television shows such as Real Housewives or a telenovela. They were all too self-involved. Even though Kaavi runs a nonprofit charity, it is still all about her and her image. 

I don't read a lot of novels written by a Sri Lankan or set in Sri Lanka and I found the glimpse of life on this island country interesting. But again. I had to wonder if life was overdramatized like you would get with reality television.

If you are doing any "around the world in 80 books" type challenges this year, this book will check the box and it is one great ride.

Buy You're Invited at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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