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The Party  By  cover art

The Party

By: Robyn Harding
Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
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Publisher's summary

In this stunning and provocative domestic drama about a sweet 16 birthday party that goes horribly awry, a wealthy family in San Francisco finds their picture-perfect life unraveling, their darkest secrets revealed, and their friends turned to enemies.

One invitation. A lifetime of regrets.

Sweet 16. It's an exciting coming of age, a milestone, and a rite of passage. Jeff and Kim Sanders plan on throwing a party for their daughter, Hannah - a sweet girl with good grades and nice friends. Rather than an extravagant, indulgent affair, they invite four girls over for pizza, cake, movies, and a sleepover. What could possibly go wrong?

But things do go wrong, horrifically so. After a tragic accident occurs, Jeff and Kim's flawless life in a wealthy San Francisco suburb suddenly begins to come apart. In the ugly aftermath, friends become enemies, dark secrets are revealed in the Sanders' marriage, and the truth about their perfect daughter, Hannah, is exposed.

Harkening to Herman Koch's The Dinner, Christos Tsiolkas' The Slap, and Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies, The Party takes us behind the façade of the picture-perfect family, exposing the lies, betrayals, and moral lapses that neighbors don't see - and the secrets that children and parents keep from themselves and each other.

©2017 Robyn Harding (P)2017 Simon & Schuster Audio

What listeners say about The Party

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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    316
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    273
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    188
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  • 4 Stars
    243
  • 3 Stars
    178
  • 2 Stars
    77
  • 1 Stars
    52

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Not one likable character

Awful people fill this book but it is still very well done. Worth a listen.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Good story. Interesting characters and my favorite narrator.

Worth the money or credit. Story is consistent and delivers a decent ending. Easy listen.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

I'm Filled with Hate

Let me start by saying that there is not one character with any redeeming qualities and you, most likely, won't like anyone in the book either. I hate every single person and I am filled with loathing for all of the characters.

SYNOPSIS:

Hannah Sanders is having her 16th birthday party and, for the first time, she is flirting with popularity, seeing as the most popular girls in school are coming to her party. During this party, Kim, Hannah's mother, lays down the rules of no drinking, no drugs, no boys and more, basically turning the party into what Hannah views as a little kid's party. During the party, a horrible accident occurs with Ronnie Monroe where she falls on a glass table; when all is said and done, Ronnie has lost one of her eyes and the plastic surgery to make the area around her eye look horrible.

Because of this, Ronnies mother, Lisa, decides the best solution is to sue Kim and Jeff Sanders for three million dollars for damages. Although the motives seem about her daughter's health and happiness, Lisa is filled with a vindictive spirit that poisons everything around her.

REVIEW:

Like I said above, I did not care for any of the characters in any way; Lisa, Ronnie's mother, is one vindictive 'Catch yoU Next Tuesday' and a horrible person. None of the characters are good people, but Lisa has to be the worst person in the entire novel.

Overall, the only thing that kept me going was the desire to know if Lisa and Ronnie were going to get the three million dollars or not. The book was stressful and, honestly, I don't really think that I enjoyed even a page of this book. Yes, it was interesting and there was a lot going on, but I couldn't really enjoy myself because I was not rooting for ANYONE. No one was a good person and all of them had horrible motives.

The book was not a good book and I wish so many things were different. I will say, if you start this book, you will likely want to finish it in order to find out what the ending has in store.

I'm going to be nice and give the book a D-; normally, I'd give this book an F, but I did find myself desiring to know the ending.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Not good

I quit this book after about 3 1/2 hours of listening (130 pages), I just could not take it anymore. The characters were insufferable and their problems weren't problems. They were entitled rich people, worries about their image.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Twisted

This book earns its (4) star review for the unexpected, twisted ending. Wow, makes me smile when a book surprises me like this. I've read / listened to so many books that lose momentum and fall flat at the end. I definetely didn't see this ending coming. ( and by ending, I literally mean the last few paragraphs ). Cassandra Campbell's narration is good, as always.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

10 hours of my life that I will never get back.

If you want a book with all the sex appeal of Big Little Lies and drama of 13 Reasons Why, look literally anywhere else.
The Party fails to deliver on almost every aspect. Nevermind that all of the characters are despicable. Honestly thats not even an issue. The "incident" is revealed about 2/3 of the way

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing from start to finish

This book is like YA for adults, one of my favorite genres. The twist and turns from start to finish keep you hooked, lot of plot without to much character background.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Better than the reviews.....

Not bad at all, saw some not great reviews but this was a solid book. Being parent to a 13 yr old makes books like this one a must listen.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Had five-star moments

How overproduction can go badly. Add group-pressure and U..S.-suing.policy ad welcome to the party. This story would have been better structured for audio with a different narrator for each character.

The book's last third should have been a beginning on a second book. Instead it is hurriedly crafted. I said. "another great book ruined."

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

SATISFYING BOOK DID NOT DRAG,

I LOVED THIS BOOK. IT REALLY KEPT ME LISTENING. READ IT IN THREE DAYS. I WILL READ IT AGAIN. NOT A THRILLER JUST A GOOD STORY. THIS COULD REALLY HAPPEN. BRAVO TO ROBYN HARDING!

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4 people found this helpful