🚢🔪 Book Spotlight: You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego
Genre: Mystery • Thriller • Locked-Room Whodunit

☕ Book Details & Rating
Format: Audiobook
Standalone
Page Count: 384 pages
Rating: ☕☕☕☕ (4 Coffees)

☕ Coffee Pairing
Perfect Sip: Spicy Mocha Espresso Martini
Why it Works: This drink starts dark and smooth like a classic espresso martini, but the mocha adds a rich undercurrent and a pinch of chili brings the heat—mirroring the tension and simmering danger on the island. It’s bold, a little decadent, and leaves a slow burn at the back of your throat… just like the twist waiting at the end of You Are Fatally Invited.

About the Book

A powerful, anonymous author—J. R. Alastor—hosts an exclusive retreat on a remote island for six bestselling thriller writers—and one event coordinator, Mila, with a hidden score to settle. What starts as a trope-filled week of games and literary banter turns deadly when one guest ends up murdered (and it’s not the kill Mila planned). Trapped on an island with a raging storm and clever games rigged for blood, Mila must survive a group of deceitful peers and outsmart a killer who knows exactly how writers think.

My Thoughts

This is one mystery I was unable to solve. This one kept me guessing to the very end. I loved this as an audiobook. Each POV had their own narrator. It made the book come to life and it helped keep all the characters straight. We quickly learn that the event coordinator, Mila, and the mysterious host are working together to bring these writers down. Each writer has deep dark secrets that they think no one knows, however, the host reveals that they aren’t so hidden.

When the games turn deadly, we understand that Mila did not know this part of the plan. We understand that she did have plans to murder someone who had stolen her story and essentially ruined her life. She was after vengeance. Pliego does a really good job with the character development even with so many characters. We see their inner dialogue and we see how self preservation starts kicking in for some as the numbers start dwindling. Others you see start to rise to the occasion and try to figure out who the host is and how to make it off the island alive.

The twists were very well hidden. We do learn who the the mysterious J.R. Alastor is and honestly was floored. We find out who Mila was after, it made a lot of sense who it ended up being. The real shock was when we found out who among the writers was a serial killer. There wasn’t even the slightest of hints in my opinion. I was shocked!

I loved the setting as well. The island was almost a character in itself. The way the house is described makes it come to life. The impending storm gave a sense of foreboding to what was coming.

Final Thoughts

You Are Fatally Invited is a sharp, meta-style whodunit that blends locked-room suspense with behind-the-scenes author drama. Ande Pliego does a fantastic job juggling a large cast, keeping the tension high, and sprinkling just enough clues to make you feel like you’re playing along—only to completely blindside you in the end. The audiobook format, with multiple narrators, adds an extra layer of immersion and makes the shifting perspectives easy to follow. Dark, twisty, and atmospheric, this book delivers a fresh spin on the classic “writers trapped on an island” trope and kept me hooked until the very last reveal.