3.75 rounded to 4 stars.

While the book started off slow, I did quickly become invested in the story line and trying to figure out who and what! While a few hints and bits are released here and there throughout the big reveals at the end left me surprised.

Over all, it felt the book was either missing something or just moved to slow.

The audio book version was great quality and the narrator did a terrific job.


Thank you to NetGalley and Forge Books who provided me with a copy of this book. In exchange I am giving an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

The House Guest
by Hank Phillippi Ryan

I liked this one but it didn't blow me away.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan

The House Guest
by Hank Phillippi Ryan
Narrated by Stephanie Willing

Rating: 3.6/5.0 Stars

First off, I really liked the cover for The House Guest. It caught my eye and made me want to check it out further. Stephanie Willing did a fantastic job narrating this story. It was easy to listen to her (I was at 1.5x), and she brought life to the characters. This is my first book by Hank Phillippi Ryan. Having looked at his other books, he seems to get good reviews, which is why I was a little disappointed by this one. Was I happy to listen to it? Yes. Did I want to finish it? Yes. Did I feel that it could've been shortened a little and still kept the important bits? Absolutely. Did I care about the characters? Not one bit.

The summary of the book sounded great. I wanted to feel something for the characters though. Love, hate...something. Alyssa is sweet but seemingly naive. Okay, so kind of strange that you meet someone in a bar, and she ends up becoming your houseguest without you knowing much of anything about her, but even more strange is the fact that Dez, for much of the book, is Bree's something or other and is just automatically accepted into the trio. Yes, there are some twists and turns and whatnot, but this one just didn't engage me as a listener as much as others. I think a bit more character development could have helped a lot.

Thanks so much to #NetGalley, #MacmillanAudio, and the author for the opportunity to listen to and review this ARC!

I liked this one, but it did not wow me. Alyssa, the main character, trusted everyone that came into her life, even her husband after he left her. I just could not become a fan of hers which is why this book was not for me. It was easy to listen to and follow along.

While this book comes off as essentially a run-of-the-mill thriller, it does something unique which is focused on the central character(s) and developing them rather than jumping between them making readers either lose focus and tune out or miss critical points. I read a lot of domestic thrillers, and this one is closer to the top simply because it did more right than wrong. Some of the situations were cliche (the recording at odd times) but other than that, this book kept me engaged and wanting to see where Alyssa went next.

I thought that the story was predictable, got a little twist then got predictable again. I thought that the story could have been shortened. I was getting a bit bored toward the 70-80% mark. Good narration on the audiobook

The House Guest is a great read for fans of Dead to Me with an Ocean's 11 type vibe. Alyssa is going through a divorce from her husband when she meets a stranger in a bar that she invites to stay with her named Bre.
Bre and Alyssa grow close but strange things are happening to make Alyssa jumpy. On top of everything her husband Bill is being investigated by the FBI.

Likable characters and fun twists and turns- loved this audiobook.

I was so disappointed by The House Guest. I was under the impression that it would be an intense thriller with sinister characters. I kept envisioning a Single White Female situation playing out. In reality, 85% of the audiobook consisted of conversations and memories where nothing actually happened. There was a twist at the end but it was a little more complicated than it needed to be and it still wasn’t very thrilling. At the moment that I thought the action was picking up, it was over just as quickly as it started. The exhilaration level of this book was barely a 1 out of 5.

I wasn’t invested in any of the characters. I wasn’t worried about their worries. I wasn’t concerned with their safety or fears. I was simply impassive about it all.

I did, however, enjoy the narrator. The writing style was nice and I enjoyed listening to the story. The narrator gets a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/

I absolutely loved this audiobook! It hooked me from the very beginning and kept me on my toes the whole time.

Wow. This read was a roller coaster of who is the bad guy!!! I was kept guessing until the very end.

The main character is an oblivious moron. You sort of expect the other characters—all more savvy—to begin pointing out how slow she was to realize things. The MC is irredeemable, and I couldn’t root for her.

I really wanted to like this book, but I just didn’t. I felt like the characters are very shade. The narrative was expected, except a small twist at the end.
I didn’t care for the narrative specifically very cliched and clingy dialogue.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic narrator that brought to life one heck of a story. I loved the characters I loved the plot and that ending was explosive. This was one of my favourite audiobooks of all time. What a great plot, you keep wondering who is not who they should be and then the plot twists and you go what! Your jaw is hanging and then another shift. So many twists and turns give this one mystery and suspense throughout. Absolutely amazing.!

Alyssa Macallan sits in a hotel bar, far beneath her social status drinking her misery away as she worries about the direction her life is about to take. Her very wealthy and affluent husband Peter is divorcing her, and all of the people she once considered friends are following the money—his money. Now she doesn’t know what to do. She gave up law school and her own life the day she married him. As she drowns her sorrows in several glasses of wine, she meets Bree Lorrance another woman running from her problems sitting at the bar. The women quickly commiserate over their troubles, Alyssa with her manipulative soon-to-be ex and Bree with her toxic and maybe dangerous ex.

Before the evening is over, Bree is staying in Alyssa’s guesthouse and the two women are figuring out how they can help each other move forward. They quickly bond over being underestimated and soon make plans to help solve each other’s problems. Things are going well until the FBI ends up at their door.

Full of twists and turns, The House Guest is a fun and quick read. I personally struggled a bit with the intensity of the friendship between these two women in such a short time—really come stay at my home hours after I met you? But perhaps I’m too cynical. Like all thrillers, the book really picks up the pace the last quarter.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, and of course Hank Phillippi Ryan for the advanced copy of the audiobook. The House Guest is comes out on February 7th. All opinions are my own.

This book was excellent! It had all the perfect thriller trimmings! It was fast paced & had me second guessing myself! I was rooting for Alyssa & couldn’t wait for her to take a stand for herself! The ending was incredibly satisfying!

There’s no way I could do a great summary without giving some key plot points away so what I will say is I was very disappointed with this new book from Hank Filippi Ryan I usually love in the door this author‘s books but I was so sadly disappointed with Desmond it seem like it was going everywhere and nowhere at the same time without like the author wasn’t sure where exactly she wanted to go with the narrative that maybe she started the book in wandered off in the wrong direction and stuck with it I DK. All I know is Barbie and I still wasn’t positive as the who was who and why they were there when will the document. I got the just of the book but some of the details were confusing… Very very confusing . I knew from the beginning that something was up with her new friend because I thought the lady protest too much end it all just didn’t sound right. I listen to the whole book because usually by the endyour like OMG I get it oh Miss Ryan is a genius but that wasn’t the case this time. You may like it some people do I did not. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

While I love audiobooks, I feel like I would like this book better if it wasn’t being listened to on audio. I will read the e-book and edit my review accordingly.

Update: I tried the ebook version and it still did not capture my attention. It is very slow paced with very little dialogue.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy of The House Guest in exchange for my honest review.

Hank Phillippi Ryan at her best. An expertly crafted thriller with plenty of twists and turns to keep readers turning pages. I actually listened on Audible, and the narrator was fantastic. This was one mystery I didn't predict. Did not see THAT coming!

I enjoyed this story but there really wasnt any surprising twist or anything. I kept waiting for it to blow me away and unfortunately it didn't. It was pretty predictable.

I love Hank Phillippi Ryan books; this one was a great read to kick off the new year. Alyssa, newly separated from her businessman wealthy husband, befriends a woman also struggling with some personal issues at a bar, and once she welcomes her into her life as a house guest, some chaos ensues as twists are revealed….a nice fun quick read.