3.5 stars

Readers who enjoy a twist, a turn, and a series of questionable characters will be quite pleased to find all of these elements here!

Alyssa, the m.c., outlines what appears to be a super creepy relationship with her husband who has - seemingly out of nowhere - ditched her. This seems out of character to her to some degree, but it's hard not to develop some judgements early on. Some of the "endearing" memories of their life together seem anything but, and one can only hope that whether she wants it now or not, Alyssa is able to break out of this situation expediently.

Along with this surprise, Alyssa meets a new pal - Bree - whom she rapidly invites into her home. Wouldn't you know that Bree ALSO has a shocking twist occur in her life at the exact same time. The confluence of convenient surprises, timely character intros, and, well, maybe naivete on the part of the m.c. near the start of the book put me off a bit, but readers who can suspend disbelief and persist won't be sorry as they will come upon the most fulfilling twists near the end.

For me, this read was tough to stay connected to at times, but I developed a much greater appreciation for the content upon completion. It is well crafted, and it's an overall fun thriller/mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.
Wow. This one was a total roller coaster ride.
Started off a little slow but the pace picked up quickly. I was guessing through the entire book and the ending was still a surprise.
The ending was a little confusing because there were so many characters involved and it was sometimes hard to figure out who was helping and who was bad. But the overall ending was great. I listened to this whole book in one day.
Narrator did a really great job.

Alyssa and her husband are getting a divorce and she has started overthinking everything. From the placement of the tulips to where her one earring sits on the dresser, she believes he is going in her house without her knowing which is not in their agreement. Alyssa meets Bree who claims to be running away from her dangerous relationship, but when she stops and thinks about it, she is the one who assumed it was a dangerous relationship. They become fast friends and Alyssa invites her to stay in her guest house. They go through lots of problems together, like when Bree inherits millions of dollars from a relative she knew nothing about. That brings Dez into their friend group but Alyssa never fully trusts him. When Alyssa finds out that the FBI is investigating her husband and that she may go down with him, she doesn't know what to do.

I loved this story and found the constant new issue arising intriguing. It made me want to keep reading. I still do not fully understand how it all happened because the breakdown of who was who and what her husband did was really short in my opinion. I look forward to reading more from Hank Phillippi Ryan.

I expected a bit more thriller in my thriller. This was suspenseful in the way of wanting to know where the story line and characters were going. And it works for me. I did enjoy the story even when our main character just blindly trusts completely strangers. And yes, she does question them and then explain away any issues almost every single time, but she remains aloof.

Then came twist after twist after twist. Just when you think you have everything figured out the author throws a wrench into it all and you're left reeling. And refirguring it out. I still didn't have it figured out by the end so I'm giving this a solid 4 stars.

The House Guest had me all over the place. I began listening to the audio arc for Netgalley and initially REALLY disliked the book. When female main characters are written in such a way they exude naivety, and a boatload of incredibly unbelievable choices, I do not connect with them. If I cannot empathize with, or care about, a seemingly foolish woman making foolish choices, the book bores me. But, since this was for Netgalley, I kept listening.

I cannot explain many of my thoughts as I read the book because those thoughts would reveal too much and ruin the experience, but I am glad I stuck with it and I apologize to Hank Phillippi Ryan for all the bad words I may have said to her. In my head, ok occasionally out loud.

The ending surprised me and saved the whole thing - well done.

I enjoyed this book. It had a lot of twists and turns that not only kept me guessing but made it hard to figure out who was doing what I’m the plot of the book. I enjoyed that I was unable to figured out the end before I reached it and was surprised that I wasn’t close at all to what the end really was.

I'm rounding this one up to a solid 3.75 because this was 'Slow Burn' AF.

I am very thankful to Hank Phillippi Ryan, Forge Publishing, Netgalley, and Macmillan Audio for sending me both ALC access and a physical ARC to read. I have to say that I started this book as a physical copy and finished it on audio. I think the suspenseful factor played out better in the audio format. The House Guest is set to hit shelves on February 7, 2023, and I'm so glad I was able to be an early reviewer.

Alyssa Macallen is having a rough time following the blunt separation from her billionaire husband. The lifestyle and friend group she's so used to depending on also left her. One evening, she's wallowing in her sorrows alone at a hotel bar and stumbles upon an equally meek woman, Bree Lorance. Bree is on the run from her dark past that's come out to haunt her at every turn, so Alyssa takes her under her wing, moving her into her guest house so she can seek protection and her safety as she ALSO deals with marital problems.

Quick to trust this stranger, Alyssa gets thoroughly invested in Bree's battles and accomplishments until she realizes she's got issues of her own to sort out, including the fact that her estranged, soon-t0-be ex-husband has been committing various acts of financial fraud.

Throughout the following chapters, Alyssa realizes that she can't really trust anyone, for their intentions are not what they seem. This WTF read will surely capture your attention, but not until you are 75% into the book.

I didn't finish this one. The writing style just didn't keep me interested enough to keep reading.

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This is the first book I'm reading by this author and I was really pleased with it! It was very exciting and I stayed up late last night finishing it up. I listened to it all day long because it was so exciting and got real twisty at the end! One thing I can say is this. If a man asked me to change my name, I would have said 'sorry dude!' and moved on. Did he have her change it from Alice to Alyssa because it sounds more country club-ish? Probably! Well, I'm glad it worked out in the end! I don't wanna say that much because it'll give everything away but I would definitely recommend this book! I'm going to check out other books by this author. No man is worth giving up your dreams for, no matter how rich they are. Don't drop out of college, and find someone who wants kids. And definitely find someone who's not allergic to dogs! Cats too! (personally I think that was an excuse!) *Many thanks to Macmillan Audio, Hank Phillippi Ryan & NetGalley for the advanced copy of this audiobook!*

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for sending me this audiobook prior to release!

The narrator, Stephanie Willing, made this such an easy and enjoyable book to listen to! She absolutely nailed the narration and brought these characters to life!

This one really kept me guessing the whole time; I truly didn't trust any of the characters and was suspicious of them all the whole time, which made it fun. It slowed down a little bit in the middle, but picked up again towards the end.

While the reveal was far-fetched, I liked the way it was all wrapped up in multiple twists along the way.

I'd recommend listening to this one for a fun and fast thriller fix!

This book and audiobook will be available for purchase February 7th.

3.5 Rounded up for GR

I really wanted to love this book. Unfortunately, It had to many unnecessary details and that lost me. The character twists were very frustrating. I will probably read it again just because it was terribly easy to get lost due to the details.

2.5 Stars

There wasn't much thrill to this thriller. I was never at the edge of my seat or felt like the protagonist's life was ever in danger. The pacing was slow and there wasn't much going on. For majority of the novel, it was just the protagonist bonding with two random strangers. Not to mention, the ending was predictable, well for the most part. I did like the final twist at the end, but that's about it.


Overall, I thought it was an okay read. Wish there were more to the story and more suspense.

***I would like to thank NetGalley, Hank Phillippi Ryan (the author), and Macmillan Audio for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***

This book was billed as a "cat and mouse game" and it really wasn't at all. The blurb also mentioned who gets the friends in a breakup, which turned out to be relevant only as a minor plot point at the very beginning of the book. This was an okay thriller. I found it to be too slow paced and largely predictable, if unlikely. Most of the book was devoted to a budding friendship with unlikely roots rather than the mystery. I think I may have liked it more if the blurb hadn't set me up for disappointment. Alas.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forge Books for the opportunity to review this book ahead of publication. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

HPR has been a long time favorite author of mine for when I need a solid thriller with some twisty twists and rich unlikable characters! Thi House Guest was no different!

We had a naieve wife, a scandalous husband with a pristine country club reputation, shifty bar characters, FBI, fake dogs (just go with it) and a stint in St. Barths. What more could you ask for?!

I think my favorite subgenre off of thriller is: filthy rich behaving badly, thriller. I love the desperate housewives vibes and private jets galore. HPR weaves a great tale - unreliable narrator? You'll have to read to find out, but this was GOOD!

My only complaint, about 80% in, I do think a few elements could have been edited out to avoid some minor confusion, but it all tied together nicely in the end. Another great ride from HPR!

Really enjoyed this story! Twisty and unpredictable this book gripped me right from the start, I couldn't put it down and didn't know who to trust. Definitely recommend foe any thriller/mystery fan. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

3.5 stars This cat and mouse story gave me The Last Mrs. Parish vibes; however, I had a hard time connecting with the story. The last 20% is what encouraged me to round up to 4 stars. Other listeners seemed to enjoy it more than me, so maybe this is a me problem.

Alyssa has been unceremoniously dumped by her uber wealthy husband and he’s determined that she won’t get a penny. He’s willing to go to any lengths to keep his vast fortune and Alyssa knows he’s capable of almost anything. When the FBI shows up looking for her, she knows he’s done something terrible. Needing someone to confide in, Alyssa can’t believe her luck when she meets Bree Lawrence, a woman with a romantic past even more convoluted than Alyssa’s. She invites Bree to stay in her guest house and the two become fast friends. Then Bree has an idea, maybe they could do each other a favor? Make all their problems disappear in a way that no one would ever need to know? Strangers on a Train with a wicked twist

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced audio book in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

Alyssa Macallan is separated from her rich and powerful husband. She has been shunned by their joint friends and her ex is most likely playing games with her. Alyssa meets a young woman, Bree, at a bar and they hit it off. Bree is also dealing with some things and they bond.

Multiple twists and turns.

Stephanie Willing does a great job narrating The House Guest.

Look. The first book by Hank Phillipi Ryan was The First to Lie.. If you go to my website Novellives.com you can see the review. I LOVED that book

This book is brilliant in its themes of Patriarchy, wealth and grief... not over death but another ending- without beating the dead horse.

Now. The psychological thriller part? In spades. I am telling you. For those that read this genre regularly? There may be a few things that you pick up on. It doesn't even matter.

Where Ryan takes you is from what you might have guessed to another planet.

Drink it up like you were in a desert.