By 2012 the book had already sold a million copies in Europe.[4] Arifa Akbar (The Independent) noted that the “sly” and “riveting” novel seems to head in one direction and then “is galloping down another, unexpected path” and finds that it “may thrill, chill or cheat”, whereby its “spectacular style triumphs over substance”.[4] The book was twice reviewed by the New York Times. Janet Maslin found the morality of the story “really sickening”, none of the four characters at the dinner are “really sane” and compared it negatively to Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl where the characters are vicious but also sympathetic.[2] Claire Messud noted a “bracing nastiness” in the book as more and more secrets are disclosed.[5] She opines that “The Dinner” is, to some extent, “attuned to a distinctly European society, one simultaneously more ostentatious in its apparent “civilization” and more ashamed of its underlying savagery”.[5] Alex Preston (The Guardian) indicated that the book is about the nature of evil and found it to be a well-paced and entertaining novel that shows “brutal violent creatures” under “the thin facades of decency and manners.”[1] Lisa Zeidner (The Washington Post) recognized black humor in the novel as in the unlikely choice of a public restaurant for the delicate discussion.[6] She opined that Koch illustrates the absurdities of our privileged daily lives and pokes fun at "Dutch mediocrity".[6]