The Night Guest was a fast, but creepy read that is set in contemporary Reykjavík about Iðunn who struggles with fatigue. What happens when she she is asleep or wakes up with injuries on her hands? If you want to find out than make sure to read this. The author did a good job writing the book and the characters were interesting. Overall, I enjoyed this read and would recommend to any reader who loves horror books. Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for this read in exchange of my honest review of The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of The Night Guest by Hildur Knutsdottir!

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this and I am so glad I went in relatively blind. The Night Guest was a whirlwind that started at a breakneck speed and did not let up until the last page. It does a great job at building the intrigue and keeping the reader guessing and reading on.

The Night Guest is a short horror story following Iounn on her quest to figuring out wtf is wrong with her. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that this book took some super unexpected and very dark turns. Parts of this story made me wonder if there was something more than the obvious happening with the FMC. Either way; the ending, had it be maybe a few pages longer - could have increased this from 3 starts to 5.



Because the ending left me…. Umm… well… confused. Too open ended.. and just… done.



I received a copy of this ARC through NetGalley.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this novel. Knutsdottir is truly a masterful storyteller. This novel took the reader on a journey through a land and with characters that were vibrant and tragic. The story was heartbreaking and gripping in its universal story that people will go to great lengths for those they love.

The concept sounded promising but I just couldn't get into it...it didn't have the creepy, hold me to the chair and can't put down vibe I was hoping for.

I wish I could say I would read it again but I can't

Yessss a really good thriller! Broke a book slump for me, moved fast and kept me interested when my attention was struggling a bit day to day. Pick this up for a fast, engaging read.

I was intrigued by the story blurb and I found the story entertaining, especially as the tension built up with each strange occurrence. However, I couldn't help but feel a bit confused as the plot progressed, with some details feeling unclear and leaving me with more questions than answers. Despite this, the suspense kept me reading, and I was eager to find out what was happening to Iðunn.

In the end, I was essentially underwhelmed but enjoyed parts of the journey.

Voluntarily reviewed after receiving a free copy courtesy of NetGalley, the Publisher, and the author, Hildur Knutsdottir.

I'm really not sure how to rate this one. I really felt for our main character in the early chapters. I certainly believed her that something was wrong. I appreciated the narrative around her struggle to get medical care - and to get a doctor to listen/believe her. I was feeling invested and then the author started to lose me. Things got pretty weird and there wasn't great resolution. I was left wanting more. More explanation, more story, and possibly a better result? It just kind of fizzled for me. I would be very open to trying this author again. If nothing else, I'm intrigued enough to see what's next.

What an absolutely amazing novella! Fast paced and tense, I devoured this book and would highly recommend it. Nothing stresses me out more than feeling out of control, and as someone who has experience insomnia and depression, this made the experience of reading this extra wild.

Despite being so intense and quick, you get a strong sense of who these characters are. I could picture them so easily in my head.

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir

Thank you to @tornightfire for the advanced reader copy.

This week’s headline? All day I dream about sleeping

Why this book? Need some psychological horror in my life

Which book format? ARC

Primary reading environment? Night after trivia and a couple of ciders

Any preconceived notions? I’ll probably like this

Identify most with? Iðunn, in a way 😬

Three little words? “clench my fists”

Goes well with? Sleeping pills and emotional distance

Recommend this to? Love unreliable narrators? Then this one’s for you.

Other cultural accompaniments: https://lapl.org/collections-resources/blogs/lapl/interview-author-hildur-knutsdottir

I leave you with this: “I know that the world’s sorrows are both abundant and profound and that a cat allergy is perhaps insignificant in the larger scheme of things. But there is something so unfair about loving cats and being relegated to do so from a distance.”

I honestly don’t know how I feel about this book. I breezed through it pretty quickly as it’s only 191 pages and it’s fairly fast-paced, which I wasn’t expecting. But I often wonder when I read translated works if I’m getting the complete experience of the original story. This is no shade to the translator of this book or translators in general. It’s more so me wanting to know all the languages in the world and getting to read some of my favorites in the original language. I feel like I’m missing out, in a way.

Trigger warning: cat death 😭😭😭

The Night Guest is now available.

Started off so strong and eerie but TW: the animal cruelty was sooo unnecessary sigh. Also the ending wtf SO UNSATISFYING

Started off really strong and was enjoying it, but couldn't finish the book due to the animal cruelty in it. Proceed with caution if you are an animal lover especially a cat lover. I do thank the publisher for the opportunity to read this one, my apologize I couldn''t finish this one.

This is a long overdue review, but I enjoyed the short read of this book. The plot was interesting and engaging and reminded me of books by Ottessa Moshfegh. The ending was a bit unclear to me and I didn't fully grasp what the answer was, but that might've been the author's intention. This is a book my audience would reach for and would enjoy, especially for a shorter read.

So, I DNF’d this one. I didn’t realize there’s a huge trigger in this one, for animal cruelty… this was not for me unfortunately.

Not sure what to say about this one. Definitely a quick read, finished it yesterday while @sapphicbeans, @thepilbarapup and I had a beer at @sharkysmandurah.

I’m really torn between whether it’s lazy or brilliant. Could have been twice as long! I liked the commentary about women seeing Drs who dismiss them entirely except to recommend being committed for hysteria.

Health issues? Mysterious night activities? All of these are just......no. please no. To have all of the weird happenings with no recollection from the main character, that is truly wild. It is a unique story with horrifying details that keep the reader engaged for the whole ride.

I read in one sitting, and although I felt gripped throughout the book something just kept me from loving it. Had I known the triggers before going in, I probably would have skipped it because animal cruelty is something I don’t want to read about, but that aspect aside I did enjoy the story.

I’ve already recommended this to a few friends who I know have the potential to love this, but sadly it wasn’t quite the match for me personally.

The Night Guest is a book that I went into knowing what it was about (obviously vampires), but without really knowing what to expect. I felt like the book was easy to get into and it was a pretty quick read. The story was disturbing and unsettling, which is something that many of us horror fans crave. I wish there had been a bit more to the story, but overall I felt like it was a solid read.

*TRIGGER WARNING*
Animal Cruelty-I'm a reader that doesn't really get triggered and I go into horror expecting pretty much anything to happen, but I can definitely see how this content could be disturbing to some readers.

4.5 Stars

This was a short but impactful story. Very unsettling and intense. It makes great use of the novella structure, especially in utilizing short chapters and one sentence chapters to continuously build suspense. There’s also a great sense of push-and-pull throughout the story. There are moments where it’s very slow simmering and we’re just following the main character through the mundane moments of her life, and then before you know it a switch is flipped and we’re facing these horrific nighttime episodes.

The ending is a little bit ambiguous, which is gonna work for some readers and not for others. I do think it needed a little bit more back story to get to where it wanted to go, but I do also appreciate how it puts the reader in the position to contemplate whether they believe what is and has been portrayed up to that point or whether they don’t—which ties back into how the character is desperately searching for anyone to believe her experience.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this. Would definitely recommend. The audiobook is really well done as well.