You Are Fatally Invited

September 1, 2024

In Pliego's debut, Mila is hired by an anonymous author to host a retreat for six thriller writers at a manor off the coast of Maine. Mila plots to use the event as cover for a murder, but when the wrong guest turns up dead and a storm cuts off the island, she instead finds herself trying to outwit a killer. Prepub Alert.

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Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 2, 2024
Pliego’s tongue-in-cheek debut puts a postmodern spin on the classic locked-room mystery. Six thriller authors are invited to a retreat on a private island off the coast of Maine organized by the mysterious J.R. Alastor, a pseudonymous bestseller who has never been seen in public and whose real identity remains unknown. At dinner on the first evening, each guest is invited to play a game that exposes some wrongdoing they’ve buried in their past. The next morning, the writers discover that their elusive benefactor has cut off all communication between the island and the mainland. Then one of the writers turns up dead, his mutilated corpse displayed above a gravestone with his name on it. Mila del Angél, a once-aspiring author whom Alastor has recruited to host the retreat, is stunned—mostly because she’s planning a murder of her own, and she never accounted for a second killer in her midst. Pliego gleefully toys with genre tropes while delivering a slick, satisfying mystery all her own. Seasoned Agatha Christie fans may have quibbles about mechanics and motives once the dust settles, but those issues are too minor to detract from the fun. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable ride. Agent: Hannah Schofield, LBA Literary.

December 13, 2024

DEBUT Reclusive bestselling author J.R. Alastor has invited a group of writers to his private island for a writing retreat. The invitees expect a week of good food and good wine, plus a chance to mingle with the normally private Alastor; they each must sign NDAs. But instead of Alastor, the writers are greeted by Mila del Ang�l, who has been hired to coordinate the retreat. Mila's only contact with Alastor is through a smartwatch, and she has her own private motivations. Every day brings a new and deadly game, but not their host. Each chapter is told from the perspective of one of the people on the island, including Rodrigo and Olivia, partners in writing and in life, who are suspicious of the invitation's true purpose; Fletcher, who acts like he knows more than the others; cautious and observant Ashton; Cassandra, older than the other guests; and the mysterious Mila. As the writers are killed off one by one, their own secrets start to come to light. VERDICT Readers who love puzzles, locked-room mysteries, and Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None will enjoy this inaugural effort by Pliego, with its chilling conclusion.--Pam O'Sullivan

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2025
No one knows the true identity of famous author J. R. Alastor. Not even Mila, who has been hired to organize Alastor's mystery writers' retreat on a remote private island off the coast of Maine. Without ever meeting in person, the reclusive author and Mila plan a week of nightly mystery dinners, complete with riddles, puzzles and challenges based on classic mystery tropes. The six authors who accept this exclusive invitation are ambitious, successful, and secretly burdened with a variety of demons from their pasts. In fact, one of the authors wronged Mila years ago, and she sees this retreat as a unique opportunity for revenge. But when one of the authors turns up murdered, and it's not the author Mila had in mind, she realizes she is trapped with a madman (or woman) who seems determined to kill not just one, but every author on the island, perhaps including her. Debut mystery author Pliego delivers a fresh and satisfying take on the classic locked-room murder mystery.

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