The Long Weekend: A Novel

Written by Gilly Macmillan

Narrated by Olivia Poulet

“Twisty, dark, and packs a punch. . . . Gripping and genuinely nail-biting.” — Sarah Pearse, New York Times bestselling author of The Sanatorium

In this pulse-pounding thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of The Nanny, a group of women travel to the most remote place in England for a weekend escape, only to discover a startling note that one of their husbands will be killed before they return home. Perfect for fans of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley.

Three couples

Two bodies

One secret

Dark Fell Barn is a “perfectly isolated” retreat, or so says its website when Jayne books a reservation for her friends. A quiet place, far removed from the rest of the world, is exactly what they need.

The women arrive for a girls’ night ahead of their husbands. There’s ex-Army Jayne, hardened and serious, but also damaged. Ruth, the driven doctor and new mother who is battling demons of her own. Young Emily, just wed and insecure, the newest addition of this tight-knit band. Missing this year is Edie, who was the glue holding them together, until her husband died suddenly.

But what they hoped would be a relaxing break soon turns to horror. Upon arrival at Dark Fell Barn, the women find a devastating note claiming one of their husbands will be murdered. There are no phones, no cell service to check on their men. Friendships fracture as the situation spins wildly out of control. Betrayal can come in many forms.

This group has kept each other’s secrets for far too long.

""Fast-paced and incredibly compelling . . . this book will not let you put it down."" — Shari Lapena, New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Mar 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9780063074361

Gilly Macmillan

Gilly Macmillan is the internationally bestselling author of seven other novels including What She Knew, The Nanny, and The Long Weekend. She lives in Bristol, England.

Reviews for The Long Weekend

[Deb Rausch · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I was looking for an escape read… and this was not it. I loved the first few chapters… great intrigue and suspense. By the end I was angry at the editors who didn’t make her rewrite the last 2/3rds of the book. I lost all connection with the characters, felt like all the death and trauma was over played and ultimately felt cheated. Spoiler… if he was that mentally ill, all these close friends would have known. The alcoholic new mother who was a physician?? Just too much unnecessary drama. It took away from the story.

[Yolan Shiffrin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It was captivating. It took a little bit to see what was going on when switching between characters because the narrator didn’t really change any voices. Especially not between the men and women.
The characters were all a MESS!! Lol. Very dysfunctional group. No one stood out as the lead character.
I still liked it and was guessing a lot of it till the end.

[Kristie Smith · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

As tedious as it was poorly written. Save yourself the time and pass.

[Rlynoyb · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I am going to ditto Audra Rose's comment below. I didn't even get through the first chapter. I could not tell which character was talking, it was a strange way to write a book, let alone try and listen to it.

[KMH MEREDITH · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love this author; however, this story seemed rushed to me. I didn't love any of the characters like I have from previous books. But still a good listen.

[Sam Szostak · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

DNF. Got to 54% before quitting, this book is awfully boring and all the characters are painfully irritating with no depth.

[Katie Cash · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Weird. Slow, choppy beginning.
I didn’t hate it, but I wouldn’t mind getting those hours back, it it were an option. Took me like three weeks to finish.

… But it wasn’t like every other book.

[Audra Rose House · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I felt this book was challenging to follow while listening due to multiple POVs without a clear distinction between them. Sometimes it was hard to know who was speaking.

[Amanda · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good story but the production of the audio book needs fixing. If you want to tell a story from multiple POVs usually the narrator will include a meaningful pause between them or even the character's name. This was a near constant stream of words and could be very confusing if not closely followed.

[Marta Em · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The story was not exciting, there was no mystery ! And the audiobook was a mess - the person reading it didn't change her voice for the characters, there were absolutely no pauses between she switched to a new chapter or a new POV, so it was often so confusing - you weren't sure if it's a male or female character speaking or maybe a new one? Terrible.

[M A · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I may change my review but so far this book is hard to follow. The narrator does not pause between characters. She also uses the same monotonous voice the whole time. It's annoying and hard to keep up with.

[kim flanagan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good story but terrible narration
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