Book Review: YOU ARE FATALLY INVITED by Ande Pliego

Renowned anonymous author J. R. Alastor hires former aspiring writer Mila del Angél to host a writing retreat at his private island manor. She eagerly accepts, especially since she has an axe to grind with one of the invitees: six master thriller authors. Alastor and Mila plan a week of games, riddles, and possibly a jump scare to cover Mila’s murder plot. However, a guest’s death—not the planned murder—traps Mila in a different narrative. Isolated by a storm and with the body count rising, Mila must outwit a killer who knows every trick in the book.

YOU ARE FATALLY INVITED by Ande Pliego

In YOU ARE FATALLY INVITED, Ande Pliego presents the reader with a new twist on the age-old "trapped on an island with a killer" trope. But she goes even further by paying homage to the many tropes found within the mystery and thriller genres. From the "locked room" to the "serial killer among us" to the "last girl," Pliego incorporates each into her story with tremendously entertaining results.

The narrative is suspenseful and Pliego's gift for words immerses the reader in the novel's chilling and atmospheric setting. In the beginning, YOU ARE FATALLY INVITED feels very much in the same vein as one of Agatha Christie's classic novels. But, once the story gets going, it becomes apparent that Pliego is not emulating the Queen of Mystery. But, instead, she is making her own path with this masterful debut.

The skillful balance of multiple perspectives feels effortless in the author's hands, and the complex characterizations delve deep into each character's harbored secrets and personal demons. The themes of guilt, confession, and absolution are an ongoing thread from the earliest pages until the twisted and haunting end.

YOU ARE FATALLY INVITED is a master class in the writing thrilling fiction, and should not be missed by suspense and thriller readers alike.