Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

The Roaring Ridleys: A Novel

Rate this book
In Jazz Age New York, a shocking murder shatters the privileged life of the city’s most elite family in a propulsive mystery-thriller debut from author K.M. Colley that spans from Harlem to Long Island’s Gold Coast and high society’s glittering world of deadly secrets.

In the glittering world of 1920s New York, the seven Ridley heirs seem to have it wealth, status, and protection as the city’s most powerful family. But when notorious gossip columnist Dale Caimen is found dead during their family’s renowned summer soiree, their carefully constructed world begins to crack.

Behind the champagne and jazz, each adopted Ridley sibling harbors secrets that could destroy them. There’s Amelia, the responsible eldest trying to hold it all together; Adesua, whose artistic ambitions in the Harlem Renaissance threaten her family’s expectations; and wild child Kavita, whose dangerous nights in speakeasies may have finally caught up with her.

As the murder investigation intensifies, long-buried tensions surface and family loyalties unravel. Someone knows the truth about the Ridleys—and they’re willing to kill to expose it. In a world where appearance is everything and power comes at a deadly price, the siblings must decide what matters protecting the family name or each other.

276 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2026

Loading...
Loading...

About the author

K.M. Colley

1 book56 followers

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
170 (10%)
4 stars
305 (19%)
3 stars
521 (33%)
2 stars
353 (22%)
1 star
205 (13%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 165 reviews
Profile Image for K.M..
Author 1 book56 followers
December 12, 2025
Well, hello everyone I wrote this book so of course I’m gonna give it five stars 😂. No but seriously if you took the time to read this book, whether you liked it or not, I really appreciate you taking time out of your day reading into the crazy world of the Ridley‘s. Truly, I have smiled at every single review because it’s wild to me, seeing after years of hard work and rewrites this coming to fruition. The fact that you all are rating the uncorrected proof so beautifully really makes my whole day! As you can tell I love New York so much. It is a place that I felt I grew as a woman. So this book is an ode to all of us who are striving for a greater life even if we weren’t put in the best positions we’re gonna make the most of it! Appreciate you all so much. Happy reading!
Profile Image for Patti Whitfield.
46 reviews
April 9, 2026
A disjointed mess of a book with gaping plot holes. It begins with a "Seven Wonders" adoption, which brings current celebrity international adoption into the 1920s. This in itself is implausible given race, ethnic and class bias of the time. Added to the incredible start is a tepid who done it, insipid characters, mid chapter plot jumps, mobsters, adoptive incest and editorial errors. Saying that someone told ChatGPT to create a story set in the 20s with modern themes of racial, ethnic and class disparity is being far too generous to what is actually on the page.
Profile Image for Hillary.
1,537 reviews26 followers
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
January 11, 2026
This was mostly incoherent. At this stage, I would normally make some kind of comment about how the plot was okay and the execution needed fine tuning, but, to reiterate: Incoherent...but with occasional shopping time?
Profile Image for Shelly Fisk.
7 reviews
April 24, 2026
I don’t know why but I feel bad for giving this a bad review. I gave it 2 stars because I did manage to finish it, barely. I liked the premise, but it was so hard to follow the plot. I can’t even count how many times I had to go back and reread something because I thought I missed a plot point. (Only to find out it just wasn’t there)
17 reviews3 followers
April 18, 2026
I finished it just to lend credibility to my review — It was a hot mess. Why? Read the other 1-2 star reviews. They speak truth. No need to repeat all the shortcomings. I thank my fellow reviewers for doing the heavy lifting.
Profile Image for Gabrielle Anastasio.
12 reviews
April 14, 2026
My favorite genre is historical fiction, so I went into this very optimistically. I appreciate that this was a first-time black female author who created a fictional story that touched upon race in the Prohibition era in a way that was unbelievably positive. I know a lot of readers have commented on how unrealistic the race relations were, but I think that’s the point … this was the author taking creative liberty to rewrite history for the purpose of fiction.

However, I found this book incredibly hard to follow, due in part to several errors in which the author themselves confuses names and inserts the wrong character name into a sentence. This falls on the editor. There is also a lot of jumping from event to event with no transition or explanation. There are portions of strong writing followed by excerpts of weak writing.

The author completely lost me toward the end when they glazed over adoptive sibling incest. What the hell was that about? Are we not going to talk about that?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
9 reviews
April 12, 2026
Dumbest book I've read in a long time.

Nothing good to say about it. Just a lot of feelings and speculation. Slow as hell, so incredibly boring. Who actually pays to public such drivel.
12 reviews
April 9, 2026
someone should have edited this

Dreadful. Confusing and poorly written. Dreadful word usage and poor grammar. How does this stuff manage to get published? Perhaps written by AI?
2 reviews
April 6, 2026
The Ridley Riddle

Although this book has many interesting twists and turns, there is much room for improvement. The plot needs to be clarified in many places and shortened in others. The moral decisions made make me hope that impressionable minds don't jump to conclusions after reading!
Profile Image for Schy.
11 reviews1 follower
April 13, 2026
I really wanted to like this book, since “big group of rich adult siblings with messy secrets” is my absolute favorite genre. However my 43 notes and highlights, all various forms of “what, why, why’d she do that, what’s happening” say otherwise.

The book was just too much telling with little to no showing. Things felt purposeful but then led nowhere, like Amelia leaving her slippers on the office chair, I was waiting the whole book to hear about that again. Also the constant reminders of the birth order made me crazy.
I would have LOVED to see more of the sib x sib drama towards the end just to spice things up. That really had potential. Also if Kavi had done what she was going to do before Pierre stopped her. Just anything to make me feel something.
Profile Image for nikki_moon.
44 reviews
December 26, 2025
I was able to read this through NetGalley in the uncorrected version from the author & her publishers. But my opinion is my own on the book. I’ve read it twice just to be sure, yes twice lol. Considering it was uncorrected it was obvious to ignore small errors if there were any. It’s uncorrected so that speaks for itself that errors are possible.

First I want to say that I love the dynamics between the siblings. Even though they were all adopted the way they have their own ways of wanting to prove themselves better than the other & to their father (or not) really hits the mark for anyone that has siblings. It’s always a competition even if in a loving way or underlying jealousy. If I didn’t know they weren’t blood, I’d think otherwise. The banter between them felt real enough to how my brothers & myself speak to one another or would have in the era this story was written. Also Kavita is my girl, love her bad.

As far as the father & mother well… The mother had no backbone & was just there. The father held his adopted children to extreme high standards & I feel that had a huge impact on the children & how their characters developed overtime. Regardless it’s understandable to the story because again he held himself to unimaginable high standards.

The energy & vibes of the story really made me want to see it on my screen in real life, watching it all play out. I’ve never been to New York but I wish I could have visited in the 1920s. Anyone have a Time Machine?

Overall, I loved the book. I loved the plot twist of the mystery thriller aspect, but what I enjoyed most was getting to dive into the children & why they are how they are & what made them that way. I can’t wait to get the corrected version to place on my trophy shelf. 🖤

Profile Image for Bbecca_marie.
1,750 reviews58 followers
May 9, 2026
Audiobook Review🎧
thank you so much Brilliance Audio + Netgalley for the gifted audiobook!

The Roaring Ridleys
by K.M. Colley
Narrated by Imani Jade Powers

In the glittering world of 1920s New York City, the wealthy Ridley siblings seem untouchable—until a notorious gossip columnist is found dead during their lavish summer party. As the murder investigation unfolds, the family’s carefully polished image begins to crack, revealing buried secrets, dangerous ambitions, and growing tension between the adopted heirs. With rumors spreading and loyalties unraveling, the siblings must decide how far they’re willing to go to protect both their family name and each other.

💭 My thoughts:

A glamorous setup with tons of potential, but sadly this one just didn’t work for me. This was an audiobook listen for me and honestly… probably another one I should have DNF’d. I really struggled to follow the story overall, and even found myself having to rewind and relisten to certain parts because I kept feeling confused. The narrator did a fine job, so my issues weren’t really with the audio performance, it was more the story itself that I couldn’t fully connect with. The pacing felt pretty slow for me, and despite the intriguing premise, I never felt fully pulled into the mystery or characters. Sometimes books just don’t work, and unfortunately I think this was one of those cases for me.

What to expect👇🏽
✨1920s setting + glamour
✨Family secrets
✨Murder mystery
✨Wealthy family drama

Happy reading 📖
240 reviews1 follower
April 14, 2026
learn how to write

The story is interesting but extremely improbable. Especially for its time frame. F. Scott Fitzgerald kept his characters terminally drunk and Edith Wharton tortured her class consciousness out of wasp propriety a family like Woody Alan’s won’t happen for another 60 years but whatever. The writing is stilted because it seems AI generated… learn how to properly write before you write a book. AI is good at summarizing information but horrible at any given writing style.
Profile Image for Elizabeth.
8 reviews3 followers
April 16, 2026
Boring

I appreciated that there were no explicit sx scenes and there wasn’t a lot of language. But those were about the only redeemable parts of this book.

The premise was interesting, and I appreciate the authors desire to create a type of alternate universe where POC are treated with respect and equity in history. But part of writing good historical fiction is making the reader feel like they are immersed in the time. I had to keep reminding myself of the time period because it was too unrealistic of the early 1900s.

Multiple POVs are never my favorite styles, but this was too many in my opinion. Also, what’s up with the two crazy different tellings of what happened in the maze with Adeusa and Wei? It’s like the author couldn’t decide how she wanted it to go so she put both?

This just didn’t seem all that well written. The plot was so slow I kept getting bored. And the ending just seemed weak.

I’m glad I got this as a first reads and didn’t actually spend any money on it.
278 reviews
April 19, 2026
Roaring 20’s themed Novel about a Wealthy Family w 7 adopted Children

This novel evolves around 7 young siblings all
Adopted into a rich shipping tycoon’s family. They are of different races and each learns several of the native languages. Press loves surrounding them. A murder occurs during one of their annual parties for the outside world to observe them. Who murdered the wicked reporter who had secrets about each of them. There world suddenly seems to be falling apart. This novel kept my interest.
18 reviews3 followers
November 16, 2025
I really wanted to love this book but I just couldn't get into it the way I would have liked. Although I did enjoy the story, I found parts of it that just went on and on with no real purpose. It did pick up in the end and I was surprised with the finale. Since the book was set in the 1920s, I would have liked to have seen a more vibrant description of that era tied into the whole thing. It just didn't give me the feeling I was looking for.

This book was an ARC that was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 
Profile Image for Lu thrillskillsandchills.
300 reviews12 followers
May 6, 2026
The Roaring Ridleys were more of a mew than a roar unfortunately. I actually preordered this because the premise sounded fantastic, and I was genuinely excited by what the author was attempting to do by reimagining race relations during the Prohibition era and 1920s through a more hopeful, fictional lens.

Unfortunately, that’s where the positives ended for me.

This was incredibly difficult to follow. Not in a layered, complex way where everything eventually clicks into place, but in a genuinely confusing way that constantly pulled me out of the story. Characters seemed to blur together, scenes jumped around without enough transition or explanation, and there were multiple moments where I found myself rereading passages thinking I must have missed something… only to realise I hadn’t.

After finishing, I looked through other reviews and was honestly relieved to see I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. A lot of readers mentioned similar issues with the plot feeling incoherent and underdeveloped, which unfortunately matched my experience too.

There were glimpses of strong ideas here, and I can see the ambition behind what the author was trying to achieve, but the execution just didn’t work for me. And then the adoptive sibling storyline toward the end completely lost me altogether. It felt so bizarrely handled that I genuinely sat there wondering if we were just… not going to address it further?

I hate writing negative reviews because I know how much goes into creating a book — certainly far beyond a skill I personally possess! But unfortunately this one just didn’t work for me at all. Can’t love them all!
Profile Image for nikki_moon.
44 reviews
April 3, 2026
Can’t wait for my physical copy.

I was able to read this through NetGalley in the uncorrected version from the author & her publishers before its release on KU. But my opinion is my own on the book. I’ve read it twice just to be sure, yes twice lol. Considering it was uncorrected it was obvious to ignore small errors if there were any. It’s uncorrected so that speaks for itself that errors are possible.

First I want to say that I love the dynamics between the siblings. Even though they were all adopted the way they have their own ways of wanting to prove themselves better than the other & to their father (or not) really hits the mark for anyone that has siblings. It’s always a competition even if in a loving way or underlying jealousy. If I didn’t know they weren’t blood, I’d think otherwise. The banter between them felt real enough to how my brothers & myself speak to one another or would have in the era this story was written. Also Kavita is my girl, love her bad.

As far as the father & mother well… The mother had no backbone & was just there. The father held his adopted children to extreme high standards & I feel that had a huge impact on the children & how their characters developed overtime. Regardless it’s understandable to the story because again he held himself to unimaginable high standards.

The energy & vibes of the story really made me want to see it on my screen in real life, watching it all play out. I’ve never been to New York but I wish I could have visited in the 1920s. Anyone have a Time Machine?

Overall, I loved the book. I loved the plot twist of the mystery thriller aspect, but what I enjoyed most was getting to dive into the children & why they are how they are & what made them that way. I can’t wait to get the corrected version to place on my trophy shelf. 🖤
28 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
January 15, 2026
3.5 Stars

I am a huge fan of the 1920s so I was immediately drawn to this book! I loved the glitz and glam, as well as the mob tie in. Some parts of the book felt a little meandering and I was ready for the pace to pick up. However, the characters were really well developed and the end concludes really nicely with some good twists! Overall, I really enjoyed the sibling's relationships and back stories.

#netgalley
Profile Image for Theblkrtheberry.
179 reviews
April 4, 2026
Good Read

I enjoyed reading about the Ridley's. The book was organized and well-written. It also had many strong characters, with some growth. I would recommend this to my family and friends.

Thank you, K.M. Colley
239 reviews2 followers
April 12, 2026
The Roaring Ridleys

I enjoyed this book, but found it a little unfocused in places. Perhaps there will be a sequel to tie up loose ends. I wouldn't mind spending more time with the siblings. As in, will Adesua finally dump Joseph and look at Theo? And in actuality, Wei is no blood relative soooo. Polite society really would have a fit.
120 reviews
April 16, 2026
K.M. Colley, has something different to offer a reader.
This book bubbles along. Set in New York, in the world of elite wealth and grounds itself in the most complex of institutional management, the family.
The story does not resolve it unravels.
I have rated it a strong 4 out of 5 star read which is better than the 3 star read average so far.
To enjoy a book it depends what you look for. I had no expectations however in a “Trump mad world” this story is believable reading.
The authors thank you and summary of the characters located at the end of the book are a must read and suggest read first and then get your coffee heated up and start the story of TRR’s.
96 reviews5 followers
April 27, 2026
I enjoyed The Roaring Ridley’s. This book covered everything from jealousy and competition between siblings, every family member had a secret and a dad that held the biggest secrets of all. Mysteries and twists with every chapter!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
370 reviews
April 17, 2026
Secrets Hidden

Mr and Mrs Ridley adopted seven children from around the world or did they? They had many hidden secrets that eventually came out and almost tore the family apart. Their father was very controlling and made choices that the siblings didn't approve of when they were grown. When a murder happened on the premises everything began to change. Rsch of the seven had a secret, and each thought one of the seven committed the murder. This is a very good book
Profile Image for Christine Richmond.
108 reviews2 followers
April 8, 2026
Seven wonders indeed

Very good read with wonderful characters in the family and without. 100 years later and nothing has changed much for the very rich but an enjoyable story with an unexpected ending.
274 reviews2 followers
April 15, 2026
Family is complicated

Seven adopted children grow up privileged and wealthy in 1920's New York. A blended family of different races, ethnicities and genders, they are under the microscope of media and the elite.

Secrets abound, warping their sense of self. They struggle to obtain their father's approval which leads to murder, heartbreak and difficult decisions.
Profile Image for shays reads.
41 reviews1 follower
April 9, 2026
When a local reporter threatens to tell the world about the scandalous secrets of the seven Ridley siblings, they know they have to keep their family’s reputation safe; no matter the cost. As police investigate the murder of the same reporter, the siblings may not be able to hide their guilt but they might be able to provide some insights about their siblings’ experiences. Will this scandal bring together the Ridleys? Or tear them apart irreparably?

A refreshing choice for these characters to be full of diversity; in nationality, experiences of the world, personality, and culture. I really enjoyed that the siblings each took part in one another’s culture and made an effort to learn each other’s mother tongue. My favourite character was the bubbly Kavita who loved each of her siblings in their own unique way.

The author captured the mystery-genre perfectly, there were twists and turns on every page that had me finishing the book in one sitting. I really enjoyed that with each of the Ridley sister’s perspective, we found out more clues as to who might have killed the reporter and why, without any clear answers. I was happily surprised with the ending!

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the Umbrella Academy, “Everyone in my family has killed someone” by Benjamin Stevenson, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, or mystery-thrillers.
Profile Image for Bronwyn2777.
33 reviews10 followers
April 14, 2026
A fun read

This story was engaging. Perhaps there were a bit too many characters for the author/editor to keep track of, as there were some errors in the text. The story was fun and the characters were as well!
198 reviews
May 11, 2026
I have no idea what I just read! The plot was all over the place and made no sense. The only thing that made me finish it was I don't like to be beaten by a book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 165 reviews