The Hunting Party

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

First, I have to admit that I read the Guest List first.  I enjoyed it so much that I went backward to read The Hunting Party. 

Lucy Foley is magnificent.  She had taken a classic murder mystery and took it a smidgen further.  The book begins like any typical murder mystery, there is a body discovered.  Gasp.  Okay, someone is dead, do not know who, but to be honest does it matter because at this point we do not know anything about the story other than what little information is offered on the jacket.  After the introduction, the book takes you back a few days prior before the discovery of the unnamed body.  One by one the reader is introduced to the various characters in the story: the beautiful one, the golden couple, the volatile one, the new parents, the quiet one, the city boy, and the outsider.  Each have their own quirks and secrets to hide, and each one could have a reason to murder one another because we the reader know that by New Year’s Day, one of these people is going to be dead. 

But as you continue to read the book, it begins to gnaw at you from the inside out, pushing you further into the novel with a desire just to know who it is, but the think that is gnawing at you is that I am not talking about who the elusive killer is.  I almost forget there is even a murderer afoot because there is one more mystery Lucy Foley has given her readers, who’s body is it?!?!?

The characters are complex, petty, insensitive, selfish, and wonderful.  I love imperfect characters who are flawed yet can also be sympathetic.  They are people, flaws and all. It makes them feel real.  We are all complex creatures full of flaws, along with capacity for grace and overwhelming kindness.  Each character shows off a varying range of insecurities, weaknesses, and secrets, but which one is flawed enough to kill, or be killed?  These questions are what push you to turn each page, take in each word with building anticipation until finally! So, crack it open if you have not and see if you can find not only a murderer, but a victim.

It is hard to believe you could dislike someone as much as you do with some of the characters Lucy Foley introduces us too, and yet feel sympathy for them as well.  It is a great weekend read, but maybe don’t take it with you if on a holiday with friends in a secluded cabin during a snowstorm, because what we really learn in the end after reading this book is that we really do not know people as well as we think we think we do.