🍷🍷🍷🍷/5

Sleep disorders! I didn't know that I liked that trope until now. Ah! The Night Guest is a book you can read in an afternoon. A sweet 200ish pages. It absolutely hooks you in and keeps you there. I loved the premise, the bite sized chapters, the overall tension, but I did feel let down by the ending. I actually wish it was longer to fully flesh out what was going on, but nonetheless, I really enjoyed reading it.

TW: Animal death. That was surprising/I didn't love it, but it's there so just sending out that warning!

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @tornightfire for the ARC! 💕 The Night Guest comes out on September 3rd in the US!

I just absolutely loved reading this book! This author was new to me and was just amazing
Thank you NetGalley for letting me read this in advance

The Night Guest is a deeply unsettling incredibly tense novella about a woman who's having trouble sleeping and I loved every second of it, What starts off as a woman going to see her doctor because she's waking up feeling more tired that when she went to bed quickly devolves into some of the most heart pounding story telling i've read in awhile.
For a more in depth review please check out my spoiler free youtube video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsS9nlBAyu8

This book is just creepy and you will read it in one sitting. You will keep flipping the pages to find out what the heck is going on and where the story is going. This was a short novella about a girl named Iðunn, she is waking up each morning tired and feeling like she ran a marathon in her sleep. She tried to get help to find out why she is so tired but the doctors state there is nothing wrong with her and you are left to try and piece together what is happening to her. I was a little disappointed in the ending and felt it wrapped up a bit too quickly. There was a few jaw dropping moments though and I had to reread a few pages to make sure I was getting the point correctly. This author is twisted in such a good way. I would like to see a full story written by this author as they have a very interesting and twisted mindset.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

This book grabs you immediately. The premise is straight forward and I am always impressed by authors who can pack a punch in less than 200 pages. Reminiscent of Cassandra Khaw's ability to build a haunting horror novel in a succinct manner while still retaining beautiful prose. This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I devoured it in one sitting. Along with Idunn you will feel drive to uncover the truth behind her mysterious ailments. Trigger warnings for animal cruelty however.

The Night Guest is a short but impactful story about a woman who is endlessly fatigued despite sleeping soundly every night. The writing is a bit manic, which added to the anxiety and perpetually eerie vibe I felt while reading. It felt similar to a Black Mirror episode.

I really liked this novella until... the end 😤

I am all for abrupt endings that make you think and leave you shell-shocked. But this story NEEDED more closure. I ran through a list of 10 different meanings for the final scene and am still unsure what happened. There was too much ambiguity, so I ultimately rated The Night Guest 3 ⭐️'s.

This was a quick, creepy read that kept me on edge the entire time. I will say that I'd wished I'd known about the animal harm in this book when I picked it up. That is one thing I don't like reading about. I was getting inklings as we crept along and then bam! Murdered cats...

For the most part, I enjoyed my time with this novella. It was definitely horrific and anxiety inducing, though the ending was a bit of a letdown. It was very ambiguous, and you never really get confirmation of what exactly was happening. I ended up just being a little confused by it.

Thank you to Netgalley, Tor Publishing Group and Tor Nightfire for the e-arc of this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC!

Wow, this was a hyper-fast read. I couldn’t stop and read it in one sitting. Fast-paced story and short chapters make this a compelling horror that will have you glued to the pages or headphones. 96% of this was excellent, but the ending simply did not deliver. Lackluster, vague and abrupt - the ending left me dissatisfied and wanting so much more from what was a great novella up until the final chapter.

This book kept me reading from start to finish. I found the one line chapters odd. It was a psychological thriller about mental health. The animal torture was a bit odd/too much. I'm thankful it wasn't descriptive. I was a bit confused on the ending.

I’ve heard hype surrounding this short novel, so I had to check out The Night Guest for myself. I read it in one sitting, and it was easy to get lost in. The myriad of questions swirling around this poor woman and what is torturing her is absorbing, but it ends so abruptly and without more detail I was left disappointed and wanting more.

The overall manic feeling while also trying to uncover the mystery surrounding Iðunn’s illness was intoxicating, intense, and quite creepy. I love how short and random the chapters are, and I do think there is a great discussion that could he had about mental health and dealing with loss but making it a thriller and the abrupt ending with zero explanation ruined the whole experience. I would’ve preferred a concrete solution to one that is ambiguous and up to interpretation.

I had high hopes for this novel, but it all came crashing down in an instant.

The Night Guest was one of the fast paced books a ever read you will be on the edge of your seat when reading this book thank you NetGalley for the advance copy

This was unsettling and disturbing in the best way. You never quite get your feet underneath you, and I think that was the point.

Major content warning: cats/animal cruelty and death. It happens.

This took me about an hour and a half to read. The chapters are concise, and the story is captivating, escalating quickly. If you have read Come Closer by Sara Gran, where a woman wonders what is wrong with her, this novella gives the same vibes. The health issues and the mentions of women advocating for their bodies and healthcare--not being gaslit or dismissed by healthcare professionals, not being treated like you're "hysterical" because you think something is seriously wrong with your body, are legit. So relatable.
The first 95% or so is premium horror reading.
The last part is a little maddening. I honestly feel a little letdown. Ambiguity is fine but this feels like punishment. I invested, I pushed all my chips in to call the bluff and when the cards were flipped over, it just wasn't enough, I'm afraid. I'm eager to talk to other readers and read more reviews to see if anyone has a theory here that makes sense.
Update:
After discussing this with other fans of the book, we have determined a working theory that has me feeling more satisfied with the ending. Also, take a peek at the original Icelandic book cover, it confirms said working theory.
Enjoy!

Waking up every morning being more tired than when you went to bed. Going to the doctor to get zero answers. Having friends give you their input on how to fix everything. Finally finding out that every night you spend the night (as you are asleep) roaming the town. This was a quick read. I wish the ending would have played out just a little more, but a good book to choose.

This was such a fun and fast read for me. The plot drew me in and I was captivated by page 1! This was creepy and intense, but absolutely recommended!

I could not put this one down.

It’s a fast read, incredibly evocative, dark, and grim. The Icelandic authors aren’t afraid to go there and this was a horror novel that felt like someone losing control and not dealing with the crap in their life.

I wanted to know what was going on and was horrified the further the story went on. Not for the faint of heart.

Comparable comps: Eric LaRocca, Ian Reid

Trigger warnings: animal death, abuse

2.5 stars!

This book made me really anxious. I think it's just very high on health anxiety, and that made me stressed for the main character. On the bright side, it was a quick read and I was definitely pulled in but the ENDING pulled it wayyyyy down. I don't always hate an ambiguous ending, but this one was a little toooo ambiguous for me. Also, I felt very sad about the animal death and I do think that is worth mentioning so people are aware!

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A psychological thriller originally published in Iceland, now translated into English.

It’s a pretty short, fast-paced read with short chapters (some just one sentence long) about a woman who wakes fatigued and never well-rested, desperately looking for help from doctors to know what’s wrong. She buys a step-counting watch to track her exercise, but after leaving it on before going to bed, she discovers she walked 40,000 steps in the night, and what’s actually afflicting her unfolds from there.

The main character (iðunn) right off the bat comes across as anxious, maybe a bit like a hypochondriac though she’s right that something is wrong (how women are treated in diagnostic medicine is commented on, as well as general patriarchy), but as the story progresses, it’s clear there’s something more disturbing going on. Her trying to figure out what’s happening while she’s asleep raised the tension, and her deterioration was both unsettling and fascinating to watch. To the end I’m still not quite sure what was actually happened, but I think the open-endedness leaves a lot of room for people to discuss their theories and thoughts. I see this is classified as horror, but I think of this is a very well-done thriller.

Thanks to Netgalley for the eARC!

🅐 🅡 🅒 • 🅡 🅔 🅥 🅘 🅔 🅦

To simply put it without talking much about it because it’s a book you have to read to experience…If you are looking for a creepy horror type read that’s fast paced and just long enough to give you some questionable dreams…this book is for you. I enjoyed this. There are some trigger warnings within this book so be sure to read your tw’s before diving in.

This book definitely builds and creates some form of anxiety or tension until the end and before you know it you’re at the end asking what you just read but not in a bad way of course 👀

I will be sharing this gem with those bookish friends of mine that I believe this would tickle their fancy with the type of book this is. Watch for this novella to opt out on your shelves September 03, 2024

Thank you @netgalley , @tornightfire and author for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Oh my gosh, I'm so mad at myself for forgetting to review this! I read it back in May and loved it:

Another win for my collection of "unwell women" book favorites! I basically grimaced in discomfort the whole way through this. The level of psychological mind fuckery is top tier. My only complaint?? I wanted MORE!!