I like a good locked room story. This was good enough to hold my attention, but not great. A man (who turns out to be not very likable) wakes up in a room with others (some of whom are just as unlikable). The author has managed to capture the feeling of disorientation as the unconscious room inhabitants slowly awake to the realization that they are locked in a room together, with no escape, and a dead body in the bathroom. As other readers have mentioned, the book drags on a bit in the beginning and I just wanted to race ahead to see if something would happen. The action definitely picks up toward the middle, but then there is a flashback that feels as if it's written by an entirely different author, or perhaps was the way the author originally intended to begin the story. It was pretty easy to guess who the captor was based on some foreshadowing, but the ending was different enough (no spoilers) to make the time invested reading worthwhile.

This was an easy read and enjoyable book. I was hooked from the beginning, a little confused, but thought it was a fun-dark-mystery.

My review has been posted directly to goodreads. Please refer to the link below to see my review of this book on goodreads.com.

Rating 2.5: I thought the concept of this book sounded really interesting. It started off immediately grabbing my attention but it became too slow paced even with the looming countdown. All of the characters were unlikable except one (but they barely have a role) and at times I was rooting for their demise just so it was over and we got to the big reveal. Also I figured out the big reveal of the killer in like chapter 2. I did like Shepard's and the "Villian's" background stories. I did like the flashbacks but I felt like this book seemed almost over every 50 pages but there was still like 200 pages left. It was way too long and involved and I ended up not being a fan.


I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A fun and fantastically paced locked room mystery that that is nearly impossible to stop reading once you start.

The story-while enjoyable and gripping-has some sloppiness to it, with some components that feel a bit contrived and forced and a lot of plot points that don't hold up if you look too closely at them.

Like many a popcorn thriller, it's best read if you squint a bit and don't think too hard about the details. Such things don't bother me too much in this type of book, but I felt it was worth noting for those who prefer something closer to exactitude in their mystery/thrillers.

My only real gripe with this was regarding the psychology and motives of the villain. On one hand, I could completely understand why this person sought to menace their principal target. I expect I'd feel the same if it were me. What's tougher to reconcile is the villain's sociopathic willingness to allow innocents to become collateral damage in that quest.

We get a lot of the villain's backstory in the second half of the book, and while I believe that person (or any person) is capable of the revenge-driven torment of the primary victim, I'm not sure I buy the amoral ruthlessness of laying waste to the lives of so many others when laid against the backstory. It's plausible, sure, but it also feels thinly constructed and unlikely.

Excellently written and very fast paced. I really enjoyed the story and can't wait to read more from this author.

This was a dark thriller that definitely kept me guessing till the end.

Six strangers wake up in a hotel room, there is a body in the bathroom. Someone in the room is the murderer and it is up to Morgan Sheppard, tv's "resident detective" to find out who.

In my opinion this book was book-ended with a really strong start and a really strong (almost) end.
The opening chapters were like a punch in the gut. Although it tapered off a bit the author did a very good job in keeping you roped in and guessing as to who the killer is and why this is all happening.
At a certain part in the book it flips back to the past and this was when it got really good again.

This was a fast, easy read. Definitely a book you can read on a lazy afternoon.

The rules are simple.
But the game is not.

"At eleven years old, Morgan Sheppard solved the murder of a teacher when everyone else believed it to be a suicide. The publicity surrounding the case laid the foundation for his reputation as a modern-day Sherlock Holmes. He parlayed that fame into a gig as TV’s “resident detective.” Until, that is, Sheppard wakes up handcuffed to a bed in an unfamiliar hotel room. Around him, five strangers are slowly waking up, as well. Soon they discover a corpse in the bathtub and Sheppard is challenged to put his deductive skills to the test. One of the people in the room is the killer. He has three hours to solve the murder. If he doesn’t find the killer, they all will die."

When I first read the description, I immediately thought of Saw. That's what made me want to read this book so bad! I love story lines like Guess Who by Chris McGeorge. This was a fast paced thriller that grabs your attention and doesn't let go until the very end!

Thank you to #NetGalley and Harlequin/Hanover Square Press for the ARC of #GuessWho, available now!!

Guess Who has an interesting premise, that has been positioned by others as 'Agatha Christie meets Saw', so I was immediately excited. I loved the concept that strangers wake up in a hotel room together with a dead body and have a limited amount of time to figure out 'whodunnit' before disaster strikes. Unfortunately for me, that's where my enjoyment of the book ended.

While the overall plot was intriguing, I had a hard time with the execution. I never connected with any of the characters, in fact, I disliked every single one of them, which made it hard for me to root for them in the long run. When the reveals happened in the book, I wasn't excited about them like I wanted to be, and I found myself wishing the book would move forward faster. It felt like it was too long for the story.

Overall, the book just didn't work for me. It felt unrealistic, slow, and it didn't feel like anything new (which isn't always necessary, but it just felt like this had "been there, done that" and in a better way in other books and movies.) If you're a fan of very slow moving mysteries and unlikeable characters, this may be better suited for you.

3.5 Stars-- Guess Who by Chris McGeorge

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book.

The premise of this book is fantastic. 6 strangers are in a room with a dead person in the bathtub. Who my friends is the murderer? Morgan Shepherd has three hours to find out. I can honestly say I figured out some of the who-dun-it before the end. Some of it, I did not have a clue until about 60% in. But by that time it was obvious the author wanted you to know. However, this did not take away from the star rating.

What took away from the star rating was the dragging of the plot. The plot plateaued at certain times and this bothered me. I liked the ending and how everything turned out, I just wish the book was about 75 pages less. Cutting the excess would have given the book more of a punch since so much would be in a shorter book.

Again, loved the plot and ending just needed some editing. I do recommend this though to those who like a slower burn thriller.

Guess Who by author Chris McGeorge is a great mystery/thriller! It has everything that makes an intense read! I would absolutely recommend this book!
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of Guess Who in exchange for an honest review.

What a great concept! Locked room, a group of strangers and a dead body. Readers looking for a mystery to solve, this is not the right book. Solution is not possible because the clues are just not there.
If, instead, you are looking for a thriller, Guess Who by Chris McGeorge is well crafted. It certainly makes for a good roller coaster ride. The back and forth pitch of the story lends the psychological twist.
Sadly, one does not come away liking any of the characters – expect possibly Rona, a rather insignificant character.

The story is well written and flows easily. It is engaging. Overall, an enjoyable read.

This story was very reminiscent of the Saw movie franchise. Some of the characters were just annoying, while the others were easily forgettable. The plot was interesting enough, although some of the twists I found to be very predictable. An enjoyable read overall, but not original enough to really stand out when compared to other thrillers.

3.5 stars -- I will admit, I was skeptical of this book at the beginning - the premise seemed as though it could quickly diverge into cheesy. But once the book evolved, it ended up being an entertaining and innovative twist on a locked room, horror/mystery story.

Guess Who has a unique story line with a great cast of interesting characters. Anyone who enjoys mysteries or true crime will appreciate the pace and flow of this book, which seems like such a straight-forward story line at first, but hides an additional story line within the simple concept.

I do think some of the flashbacks were a bit lengthy and perhaps a bit disjointed as well. In my opinion, the past took the reader a bit too far away from the present. Additionally, the main character, Morgan Sheppard, is not easy to like, and there are times when, as the reader, you don't necessarily want to be "in his head."

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin/Hanover Square Press for the ARC

Thank you to the publishers for letting me read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

At first the plot was great and seemed like it would be a great read. Starts out with people locked in a room trying to figure out a murder.

Unfortunately, I got rather bored with this and it became too cliche' for my taste in mysteries.

This book was more unique than the current thrillers on the market, and I really appreciated that! I had an inkling who the real killer was at the beginning, but couldn't figure out how it would all come together until closer to the ending. The characters were interesting enough, and it definitely kept my attention. I didn't love the ending, and thought it was weird how one certain character got involved, but overall, it was a solid read.

Morgan Shepphard is somewhat famous. At 11 years old he solved the crime of a local teacher who was murdered and not by suicide as originally thought. Years later, he awakes chained to a hotel bed alongside 5 strangers and a dead body in the tub. He soon discovers is that one of his fellow abductees is the murderer and he has three hours to solve the crime or become the killers latest victims. Can this modern day Sherlock Holmes solve this crime before it is too late? Reminded me of the original Saw movie.

This book was good, but dragged a little bit. Unfortunately, by trying to make the killer unconscious, they made it obvious - I knew who was in on it pretty much right away (but I both read a lot, and am pretty good at figuring out whodunnit early on). I give it 3.5, rounded up to 4 because it was written well enough to keep me reading.

3.5
Good but not great. I did stay engaged with the story throughout & wanted to know who was behind everything but it just felt like there was something missing that could have made the story so much better. I’m also not quite sure I liked the ending, this was one where you kind of felt like everyone was horrible and there shouldn’t really be any happy or possibly happy endings. I’d still recommend it for a quick, enjoyable read.

I enjoyed the premise of the book but felt it dragged in places. It kept me entertained enough to keep me reading though..