I was in the mood for a light-hearted puzzle mystery book and this recently published “locked room” mystery seemed to fit the bill. A TV host detective with secrets in his past wakes up handcuffed in a hotel room and tasked with figuring out which of the five other kidnapped people in the room murdered the corpse in the bathroom. If he doesn’t solve the murder in three hours, his mysterious captor seen only on a TV screen threatens to blow up the whole building. I read the book all in one day and found myself skimming some parts because those parts seemed to be slowing down the action. The book flashes back and forth between different points in time and there is a reveal at the end that tells you in detail about how everything was set up. I should have picked up on more of the clues along the way. If you are a cozy mystery lover, this book is probably too dark for you, but I think there is a specific audience that would really like it.

Thanks to NetGalley, Harlequin-Hanover Square Press, and the author Chris McGeorge for an electronic review copy.

I did not enjoy this book. I felt it was too derivative - specifically of the movie, Saw. Initially, the dual timelines flowed and brought more depth to the story, but that effect fell apart toward the end, making the story feel disjointed and, at one point, like you had entered a different (almost better) story altogether.
I hope mine is an unpopular opinion and that others found the book enjoyable and rewarding, but this just wasn't the book for me.

Coś tutaj nie wyszło. A tak się dobrze zapowiadało.

Sześciu nieznajomych zamkniętych w jednym pokoju, trup w wannie i trzy godziny na odgadnięcie, kto jest mordercą. Początek brzmi jak dobry kryminał, prawda? Taki z głęboką analizą uwięzionych osób, powolnym szukaniem motywu, składaniem strzępków informacji w spójną całość, aż do momentu, kiedy morderca zostaje odkryty.

Żadnej z tych rzeczy nie znalazłam w "Zgadnij kto". Tak jak pisałam wyżej, książka zaczyna się w miarę dobrze a potem już niestety jest tylko źle. Owszem, pojawiają się jakieś tam zdawkowe informacje o poszczególnych osobach, ale jest ich zdecydowanie za mało, żebym mogła choć przez chwile pobawić się w detektywa i spróbować odgadnąć o co tutaj chodzi. Jeden wielki bajzel, niemal bez znaczenia dla samej historii. W dodatku to, czego dowiadujemy się o bohaterach zamkniętych w pokoju jest przeraźliwie nudne i okazuje się kompletną stratą czasu, ponieważ w ogromnej mierze nie wpływa w żaden sposób na “śledztwo”.

Jedyną rzeczywiście interesującą historią w "Zgadnij kto" jest opowieść o wydarzeniach z dzieciństwa Shepparda. To, co w jego życiu miało miejsce jest bez wątpienia zaskakujące i przez długi czas trzyma w napięciu. Niestety, tylko po to, żeby na koniec opaść, jak sflaczały balon.
Zakończenie jest nudne i brakuje w nim finałowej kulminacji, która zostawiłaby nas w zadumie nad ludzką naturą. Zamiast tego mamy dwóch dorosłych przygłupów bijących się na plaży, gdzie jeden wart jest drugiego. I pomyśleć przez tą parę zmarnowałam dwa wieczory. Dwie gwiazdki.

Happy #pubday to Chris McGeorge on the release of his entertaining whodunit, #GuessWho. After Morgan Sheppard solved the murder of his schoolteacher at the age of 11, he was able to parlay his resulting fame into a career as a successful daytime talk show host (think Dr. Phil meets Sherlock Holmes). His detective skills are put to the ultimate test when he and 5 strangers wake up in a mysterious hotel room along with a dead body. They are told that the killer is amongst them, and unless Sheppard solves the murder, all of them will die. I thought this one was fun; it kept me on my toes and I enjoyed playing detective along with Sheppard. If I had any criticism, I thought the use of flashbacks served as more of an exposition dump rather than actually propelling the story and mystery forward, but overall the book is an engaging murder mystery that leans into the current “escape room” craze.

Morgan rose to fame as an 11 year old who solved a murder case that everyone else ruled a suicide. Flash forward to adulthood and we find Morgan is a famous TV show host know as a "resident detective". One night after partying with a beautiful woman, Morgan wakes up and finds himself handcuffed to a bed. Five others are trapped along with him. There's a dead body in the bathroom. Now Morgan has to use his detective skills to try and solve the mystery, figure out which one of the strangers is the killer and escape!
This is "Saw" meets "Maury" and it was strange and wonderful! It was a different book than those I usually read and was a quick "whodunit" that I really enjoyed!
Thank you to Chris McGeorge, Harlequin and NetGalley for the ARC of this fantastic book!

1 murdered body, 5 suspects, 3 hours to solve!!! That right there alone sucked me in. It was a little different and strange and surprising. It was like Saw and Mind Hunters mixed. It was enjoyable to say the least.

Thank you Harlequin and netgalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for my honest review.

Morgan Sheppherd wakes up handcuffed to a bed in a hotel room with 5 people around him. He doesn't remember how he got there, or who anyone is in the room. Soon enough, he learns that his therapist is laying dead in the bathtub of the hotel room and one of the five people in the room killed him. He has three hours to figure out who did it before the entire hotel gets blown up. 

The movie Clue meets Jerry Springer - what an interesting and super engaging read! The chapters are short and keep you at the edge of your seat. I read this book in one sitting! You are following right along with Morgan, trying to see if you can solve the crime before he does. The only thing that kept me from loving it was the ending. I didn't like the story of why the murder was committed and thought it could've been a little more exciting. All in all, I still would totally recommend this read to everyone!

4/5 Stars

When Morgan Sheppard wakes up, he finds that he is handcuffed to a bed in a hotel room he's never seen before. All around him are bodies ... 5 of them to be exact ... all living, but just as confused as he is. There is a dead body in the tub in the bathroom. One of the people in that room is a killer and he has exactly 3 hours to figure out who the killer is. If he doesn't find the killer, they will all die.

So begins a take on the locked room mysteries of old.

This is a well-written complex story full of twists and turns. The rapid pacing and energetic action kept me glued to the pages from beginning to surprising ending. The characters are indelibly drawn with a lot of attention paid to each and every one.

It's hard to imagine that this is a debut novel. I've always loved puzzles ... this was the best ever.

Many thanks to the author / Hanover Square Press / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

The story opens up with local celebrity Morgan Sheppard waking handcuffed to a bed in a hotel room with five people he does not know. All five of the people in the room have no idea how they have gotten there, or so they say. One of them must because they are a killer. There is a dead body in the bathtub and someone knows how it got there. It is up to Sheppard to find out who. Or they all die.

How is that for an opening? Absolutely intriguing right? It drew me right into the story. Unfortunately it fell into a lull for me and I had trouble getting into the book after the initial chapters. The author would flip to the past to fill in the gaps, which I actually found really interesting. It was the present day trying to find out who did it that I had trouble with. With that said it was so unique and crazy to wrap your head around what was going on.

Not sure why this was not a 5 star for me, because it is a unique and clever tale but I found it a bit far fetched and I had trouble with that. Don't let that deter you, because a lot of people will love this book. I almost feel like if you like sci fi you would love this. It is not sci fi, but you need to be able to have an open mind and be a bit creative in your thinking and I am sure you will love it. Just not my personal go to book but I am so glad I read it.

3.5 stars from me!

Thank you so much to Chris McGeorge, Harlequin and NetGalley for this ARC!

This is a fast and fun whodunit kind of thriller. Two things kind of bugged me though. About a third of the way through the book I paused to read the synopsis on Goodreads because I couldn't really see where it was going. The synopsis told me more than I had already learned in the book- which I think is odd. I wonder how it changes your perception of the book if you already know the backstory of the protagonist going into it. The second thing that bugged me was that I knew who the killer was from the moment they were all introduced. They just seemed like the only logical pick. Overall it was still a fun read though.

I just finished Guess Who by Chris McGeorge, and I have to say it was the craziest book I've read in quite awhile! We're introduced to Morgan Sheppard, an 11 year-old child who solves the murder of his beloved teacher, who everyone previously died by suicide. This event makes Morgan famous and leads him down a new path in life.

Flash-forward, Morgan has made quite a name for himself over the last several years and has become a famous TV detective. He spends his days working out frivolous mysteries such as cheating celebrities and pop culture scandals, which interestingly, hasn't fulfilled his soul as Morgan's also become a drug and alcohol addict. 

After a crazy night of partying in Paris with a mysterious and beautiful blonde, Morgan wakes up literally handcuffed to a pole in a locked and soundproofed Downtown London hotel room. Five strangers wake up alongside him, disoriented and wondering what the hell is going on. If that wasn't crazy enough, there's a corpse in the bathroom, and a scary costumed man talking to the group through the television. A game is announced- there's been a murder (the guy in the bathtub), the 5 other people in the room are the suspects, one of whom is the murderer of the corpse, and Morgan must solve the whodunit in 3 hours....or else everyone else dies. The phones have been cut off and Morgan has nothing to go off of other than his fleeting memory of the night before and his questionable detective skills. Whattt??!

The story jumps back and forth between Morgan's childhood and his present predicament, and is filled with dark clues, suspenseful moments, and an intense countdown to figuring out what really happened...both all those years ago...and last night. This book was reminiscent of a smarter version of Saw, the scary horror movie series, although Guess Who reads more like a smart thriller than simply scaring the wits out of you! 

If you are a fan of suspenseful page-turners, definitely be on the lookout for this book, which comes out really soon, September 18th, and has been generating a lot of buzz!

4 out of 5 stars for Guess Who by Chris McGeorge. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin/Hanover Square Press for the opportunity to read and provide my honest review for this book.

When I heard this book was "similar" to Saw, I had to read it! The main character, Morgan Sheppard, wakes up handcuffed in a hotel room with five strangers. They soon discover that they have three hours to solve a mystery or they all die...

The story goes back and forth between the past and the present. That way, we get a glimpse of Morgan Sheppard, and why he is the way he is. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Morgan and really rooted for him along the way. I thought this was a story of overcoming your demons.

Great writing, it was an addictive action packed book! I also didn't quite expect how it all turned out. Highly recommend.

When he was eleven, Morgan Sheppard proved his math teacher's supposed suicide was actually murder. He stretched his fifteen minutes of fame into a lucrative career as a talk show detective, but paid for it with various chemical dependencies. Then he woke up in a locked hotel room with five strangers and the corpse of his therapist. In order to keep a madman from blowing up the entire building, Sheppard must uncover which of them is a murderer. Sheppard is a hack in the midst of withdrawal, but hundreds of lives depend on him uncovering everyone's secrets, including his own, in the next three hours. Thoroughly twisted, but fun.

Spellbinding tale of the need for recognition!

Guess Who by debut writer Chris McGeorge does not disappoint by even a little bit.

It’s amazing to what lengths people will go to achieve fame and Morgan Sheppard has done that in order to become a famous “detective” on a TV morning show. On the way he has hurt many people and this book is an account of his punishment for what he has done in the years since he became a famous child detective.

The book is written in both present and past which usually annoys me but it seems to work in this book. I have seen that other reviewers find the past long and drawn out but I actually think that this is the best part of the book. It serves to give a picture of Sheppard and his friend Eren and explains why both of them end up doing what they do.

I am happy to recommend this book and give it 5 stars.

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for letting me read an advance copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

Morgan Sheppard wakes in a hotel room handcuffed to a bed with 4 strangers. Then they find a dead body in the bathroom. When the TV turns on a man in a mask tells them one of the 5 is the murder of the man in the bathroom and Morgan has 3 hours to figure out who the murder is or the entire hotel will be destroyed by a bomb. Morgan is a reality show detective and one that is not always looked favorably upon. Morgan has not told the others, but he knows the dead man. When he realizes they all know the dead man, he begins to start putting pieces together, but time is running out. There is no way out of the room and 3 hours is passing fast. Who would want to kill a man they all know and why? Who would want to trap these 5 people in a room? This story is told in two times lines. The present where Morgan and his "friends" are trapped and in the timeline of when Morgan was 12 and his rise to fame began as a "detective." The current timeline was intriguing and fast-paced. I found the past timeline a tad less exciting. It was needed to give the back story on why Morgan was in the current situation, but it was not as easily read as the current timeline. I am giving this a 3.5-star review rounded to 4.

"The rules are simple......

But the game is not."

Wow. Wild ride does not do this justice! Guess Who is reminiscent of the famed Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None with an intensity of a thriller on steroids! And trust me, you will be trying to guess who all the way to the end!

Morgan Sheppard, a TV detective, wakes up handcuffed to a pole, in a locked hotel room with 5 strangers and 1 dead body. If that isn't bad enough, up pops the TV screen with an unknown, masked messenger informing Sheppard he has 3 short hours to solve this mystery or there will be horrific consequences to be paid.

If that doesn't grab you, I don't know what will!

Guess Who is told from the point of view of Morgan Sheppard in present time with bits of memories of his past poking through to give us a better picture of who he is and why he is. He isn't the most cuddly, lovable protagonist but that is what molds him into the perfect one.

Guess Who has all of the intriguing, creepy ingredients that makes it an outstanding psychological thriller!

Special thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin Publishing for an advanced reader copy of Guess Who.

Guess who was interesting and entertaining. I enjoyed the back and forth between the multiple characters. The Whodunnit aspect kept me interested throughout. The only thing lacking was climax. Once everything was revealed I found myself wanting more of a resolution. The author built me up and left me wanting. Despite these issues it was entertaining and I would read more from this author in the future. Thank you NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for the advanced copy in an exchange for an honest review.

3.5
People who love the party game Murder will enjoy Guess Who. The reader gets to try to solve the murder along with the protagonist as clues are revealed. I might have enjoyed this story more as a short story.

Think similar to Saw as you start out with 5 individuals dropped a room and have to play a mystery persons game in order to get out.

Through twists and turns, this is definitely a whodunit novel.

Enjoyed reading this!

Thank you NetGalley, Chris McGeorge and Harlequin- Hanover Square Press for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Morgan Sheppard is a detective on a very popular TV show who became famous for solving a murder as a young boy. Morgan now lives the high life of a celebrity and is constantly drinking or taking drugs to tolerate his life. Morgan wakes up one morning cuffed to a bed in a hotel room and can’t remember how he got there. Morgan realizes that he isn’t alone in the room, there are five others scattered around the room and a dead body in the bathroom. It becomes clear that they are all trapped there and the only way out is for Morgan to figure out who the killer is.

I love the beginning of this novel and the totally different idea behind it! I loved that this book was a whodunit, but more of an Agatha Christie type mystery. I really enjoyed the short chapters and the character development in the novel. It was unlike anything else I have read and it was just gory enough with the murder to keep me interested in what was going on. I was concerned I would be a bit bored since they are all stuck in one place with only so many suspects and places to look for clues, but the author kept the story moving along.

I did find that the middle part of the novel, where we go back in time to see how Morgan got to be a child detective, a bit long and drawn out. But I did enjoy finding out what happened and why someone would be interested in locking him in a room with a killer as payback. I really enjoyed who the killer actually was and how the mastermind of this whole thing was playing them as well. This person would do anything to get even with Morgan. I really enjoyed the ending and was surprised with how things went and who the killer was.

Out September 18th!