2 stars ( rounded up)

This is the end of the road for me and Hank P Ryan.
I found this book to be absolutely terrible and painful to read. Alyssa's thoughts and second thoughts and doubts, all these are taking entire chapters. Not to mention that she is not the brightest thing under the sun and she constantly swings back and forth between loving and hating her husband that appears to have left her. She forms a deep friendship in a matter of minutes with a girl, that even a four year old would suspect she's lying and hiding something.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan.Audio for allowing me to read this book!

3.75 stars

There was a lot happening in this book. I often didn’t know quite what was going on or who could be trusted; also, while I didn’t figure out exactly what their role was, it was pretty clear to me that both of the friend characters were definitely hiding something major and were, for one reason or another, manipulating the protagonist. All in all, the story was a twisty mess of chaos and intriguing events that, for the most part, I enjoyed.

This was the first read by Hank Phillippi Ryan and overall I enjoyed the book. It was a very slow build but once it started moving I wanted to find out more. There were so many lies, deceit, gas lighting and manipulation that ultimately lead to a decent plot. I could not get over how naïve Alyssa was inviting a perfect stranger into her house and having blind trust in that person. That naivety carried on through the book and it thought it was a little unrealistic. Nothing is as it seems and the ending was nice.

I listened to this as an audiobook and the narrator, Stephanie Willing did a good job!

***** Many thanks to Tor/Forge Books, Macmillan Audio, Hank Phillippi Ryan, and NetGalley for the gifted copy as it was provided to me in turn for my honest opinion.

I really like this authors style and I've read a few in the past. This one definitely did not disappoint. There was so much back and forth suspicion that it was hard to tell who I could trust. The main character almost seemed a bit too naive and too trusting so I was wary the entire time. I really liked the ending to this and thought the letter half of the book was very exciting. I do wish there was a bit more development between the ladies before Brees attorney got involved because I think that would have made the relationship a bit more believable. Overall though, I enjoyed this and thought it was definitely worth the read. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A very entertaining, if not entirely believable, romp about Alyssa, a recently separated woman, and Bree, a down on her luck woman Alyssa meets in a bar. The narrator of the audiobook does a fantastic job of distinguishing the characters and making them interesting, while Hank Phillipi Ryan as always brings the fun twists and turns, zippy writing, and expert plotting. Those of you who don't like suspending your disbelief too much may not relate to this one, but, as for me, even though I had a sense from the beginning of the unbelievable way this was going to end, I had a great time going along for the ride. The ending is a little over-explainy, but it kind of has to be that way with the complicated plot. I enjoyed the book all the way through and had fun with the red herrings and misdirection. Hank Phillipi Ryan remains one of my go-to suspense authors and this is an extremely well-done audiobook that you will be likely to gobble up in one or two sittings as I did.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this well-written and well-narrated audiobook.

So, Alyssa had the perfect life. She's married to a money guy who makes a lot of it and lives in a beautiful home near Boston, which includes pool and guest house. She's got the rich, snotty, entitled country club friends and a good looking husband. When her husband goes missing, she falls apart. That same night, she meets another woman who seems to have man troubles as well. Alyssa, sweet Alyssa, invites this stranger to stay at her house instead of the hotel attached to the bar because, she's just a nice person. The choppy story unfolds and who knows what to believe. Is her new friend, Bree, trustworthy? What exactly happened to Bill? Who can she trust? There were some holes in the story, though, for example, why wouldn't such a big house with wealthy inhabitants have a generator installed for one. The narration was fine, the story just kind of dragged a little and was not very believable.

3.5 stars

Overall I enjoyed this book. During the middle there was a little ebb in the story, but more towards the end it picked up again. The narration was good, I would definitely recommend the audio version. And the ending was a bit of a surprise, that that was a plus as well.

In "The House Guest," bestselling author Hank Phillippi Ryan has crafted a gripping and suspenseful tale of cat and mouse, where it's not always clear who is playing which role. Alyssa Macallan is devastated when she is divorced by her wealthy and powerful husband and begins to fear that he is scheming to ruin her financially. Just as she is at her most vulnerable, the FBI arrives at her door, and Alyssa finds herself in desperate need of a friend. Enter Bree Lorrance, a mysterious woman who is running from a dangerous relationship of her own. Alyssa offers her the safety of her guest house, and the two become close confidantes. As they help each other navigate their respective problems, they make a risky and tempting offer to each other that could solve all of their issues.

While I never quite identified with Alyssa--she was a bit too much of a flake sometimes, and WAY too trusting--I did find this to be an entertaining read. There were lots of red herrings that kept me wondering what the end game was going to be. I would have liked more from Bill's perspective earlier in the book, rather than waiting until the very end to include him. The narrator of the audio version did an excellent job. All in all, a good read.

This wasn’t my favorite Hank Phillippi Ryan book ever but it was decent with a lot of unexpected twists and turns that will keep readers surprised. The narrator did a good job of conveying suspense and made the story believable.

This book is a well written fantastic thriller! I couldn’t put it down and devoured it in one weekend. This book had so many twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. Highly recommend!

3.5 stars. Thanks, Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to the book and discover a new author. Do you believe in coincidences? I have to admit parts of the story are a bit weird and unbelievable, but it's a story.

Excellent narration made this audio book impossible to stop listening to. Alyssa is in shock after finding out her extremely wealthy husband is leaving her. With the unwanted divorce looming in the future she meets a new friend named Bree. Alyssa finds herself feeling a little superior to Bree because of her outdated looks, but takes a chance on the friendship anyway. After quickly learning that Bree is in a bad relationship of her own, the two quickly bond with results you will not expect. With many twists and turns that you will never guess this audiobook is not to be missed.

This book certainly had many twists and turns throughout leaving you unsure of who to trust. Although I felt that parts of the storyline were a little unbelievable, I didn’t mind too much because…well, it’s fiction right? I felt that overall this book delivered in terms of keeping you on your toes until the very end. I would definitely recommend giving it a read!

Thanks NetGalley er al for access to the audiobook for an honest review.

Thriller I enjoyed the audiobook made my time cleaning and doing chores go by pretty fast. I knew something was fishy with Bree and Dez. I don’t think women can be that naive but I was surprised in the end. Not shocked just surprised. It was slow and steady until about 65% and then it picked up. Slow paced easy to follow. More of a mystery than a thriller.

I love the narrator she made listening very entertaining.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the ALC

Pub date: 2/7/23
Genre: mystery/thriller
One sentence summary: Wealthy Alyssa's soon-to-be-ex abandons her, and all alone in a large house, she meets and takes in down out her luck Bree, who comes with plenty of her own secrets and drama.

This book was such a pleasure to listen to - it reminded me of why I love thrillers on audio. Since there's only one timeline, it's easy to follow, and Stephanie Willing does a great job with Alyssa's voice. It's a little slow until the 60% mark, but then things really ramp up and you get twist after twist! Yes, clearly Bree isn't what she seems (duh, this is a thriller) - but I did not guess what she actually was after. And Alyssa surprised me too - she's not just a trophy wife!

I would recommend this one on audio, and it pairs well with other activities - I listened to it while diamond painting/doing chores.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #Macmillan Audio and Hank Philippi Ryan for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of THE HOUSE GUEST to be published 7 Feb 2023. “You can’t always get what you want. But sometimes you get what you deserve.” This quote describes the domestic thriller better than I could! It’s so twisted, I’m still not totally sure which of the characters was for real! If you like twists and turns throughout your novel, listen to this narration. It was great. #NetGalley #MacmillianAudio #HankPhillippiRyan

Unfortunately, this book was just not for me. I found the writing to be clunky and awkward. The book is touted as a thriller but it didn't feel that way at all.

This one unfortunately didn’t work for me as well as I’d hoped. I found the premise really interesting, but ultimately found this one boring.

Thoughts while listening -
- requires way too much suspension of disbelief (this is a real issue for me with books and film/television) to be viable.
- just how naive can women characters be written? ffs.
- this was too where exactly is this going, and wtf is going on for me, and not in a good way.


As I’ve shared previously, finding a domestic thriller that I enjoy and find realistically possible is notoriously difficult.

Therefore, a reminder to take my opinion with a grain of salt - most of the reviews for this were great.

DNF - thank you Netgalley for the advance copy but I just couldn't finish it. The plot was boring and unbelievable, and the narrator did not do a good job of changing her voice for each character.