{ review } The Guest by B.A. Paris

Pub: February 20, 2024 by St. Martin's Press

Thank you St. Martin's Press & Netgalley for the gifted arc to read and review.

B.A. Paris has been an auto read author for me since I read Behind Closed Doors and I always look forward to her new books!

The Guest is a slow burn domestic drama that centres on the power of secrets on relationships and marriage.

The book moved very slowly for me at the beginning, but I trusted that B.A. Paris was building up to something! The story spends a fair bit of time on the intricacies of Iris and George's marriage and the minutia of their daily lives. I would have loved to spend more time with Laure and Pierre in Paris. The ending ramps up the suspense and the epilogue totally explains some of the actions I had questioned earlier in the book.

Ultimately I always enjoy B.A. Paris books and The Guest is no exception. Behind Closed Doors is still my #1 by the author (read it if you haven’t!) and I will be eagerly waiting for her next book.

Iris and Gabriel are already facing struggles as a couple when their house is suddenly taken over by their best friend, who has left her husband after finding out he's had an affair resulting in a child. Let's just say I had no idea where this book was going, even through I thought I had it figured out a couple of times. Although I'm not entirely convinced I believe the motivations at the end, it definitely came as a surprise. For this, I recommend!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

To Whom It May Concern at St. Martin's Press,

Your silence is unacceptable. As an influencer and reviewer I am deeply dismayed by your non-response in the face of the issues of safety and equity brought forward by the organizers of #SpeakUpSMP. Your failure to ensure the safety and equitable treatment of Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian influencers and authors, as well as all BIPOC influencers and authors, is both disappointing and unacceptable.
Your silence not only disregards our valid concerns but also undermines the trust and partnership between influencers and St. Martin's Press. It is imperative that you acknowledge the demands for accountability and engage in a transparent and meaningful conversation with us.
I implore St. Martin's Press to break its silence and take concrete steps to address the issues raised by the boycott.
Non-response is not an option. Until there is a genuine effort to address these concerns, I will continue to withhold reviews for all St. Martin’s Press titles.

Sincerely,
Rosie
@RosebudReading

This book was okay for a domestic thriller. I found the plot and mystery aspect were overshadowed by the day to day lives of the characters.

Overall it was a good read, not my favorite of B.A. Paris but it was still enjoyable!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

OMG!!! This book completely had me at the end! I was not expecting the twist, and I absolutely loved it! I love it when a book makes me so shocked that my jaw is left hanging on the ground!
This is definitely going to be staying on my mind, rent-free for a while.
I actually thought that some parts of the story were really predictable, but the ending turned everything upside down. We were only seeing one side of the story. I like how it wasn't until the end that we got to see the story unravel.
Overall, this was a pretty quick read that made your head spin when it was over.
I also liked how the story took place in the UK mostly, but also in Paris.
The characters in the story were okay. The only two likable characters were probably Gabriel and Hugh. They were also the most innocent.
I would definitely recommend this if you like a good thriller!

This authors is a must read for me! I enjoyed the twist, though had guessed some of it. I really liked the ending.

What to expect in this book:

-Fast chapters
-Slow burn
-Mystery/intrigue
-England setting
-Neighborhood/domestic drama
-Untrustworthy characters

Thoughts

Thank you to #NetGalley for this copy in exchange for an honest review. This is my third book by this author and since I am a huge fan of neighborhood thrillers, I was excited to read her newest! The Guest surrounds Iris and Gabriel's sudden guest that appears at their home after a holiday. Iris' friend Laure seeks their home as a retreat after she has walked out on her husband. Laure's appearance begins a series of stressful events that lead to the unraveling of multiple secrets.

What led me to B. A. Paris were her psychological thrillers and this is definitely not that. I would categorize her newest novel as much more family/domestic drama than thrilling. While there is mystery and intrique, most of the major action does not happen until the last 10% of the book. The audio was very engrossing and I am glad that I switched over from physical about 20% in; it made the book much more interesting to me. I truly did not dislike this book at all, it just was not as captivating or surprising as I had hoped that it would be.

The epilogue and last chapter were enjoyable but really had me questioning if I actually liked the book or just the idea of the characters that I had in my head. and of course, everything is better with a British narrator. Overall, my favorite of hers is still Behind Closed Doors.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advanced e-copy of The Guest by B. A. Paris.

Iris and Gabriel return from holiday to find a surprise guest in their home. The couple's friend, Laure, has walked out on her husband and has been staying at their house. When she tells her friends the reason for her separation from her husband Pierre, Iris and Gabriel quickly offer for her to continue to stay with them for several days until she can decide what to do next. As the days turn into weeks, Laure begins to wear out her welcome by taking the liberty of wearing Iris's clothes, rearranging the furniture, and reorganizing the kitchen cabinets. While Iris is sympathetic to her and Pierre's situation, she is ready for her friend to return home. To get away from their guest who seems to constantly be underfoot, Iris and Gabriel begin spending time with a new couple in town, even employing the couple's house guest and gardener to help Gabriel with his new project. However, the gardener has something lurking in his past that might prove too close to comfort for Iris and Gabriel, and when Laure suddenly becomes involved with him, Iris begins to realize that these house guests need to be evicted as quickly as possible.

The Guest is a decent thriller with a definite twist at the end. None of the characters were particularly likeable, but I did keep reading to see what would happen. This is a pretty quick read for anyone who love thrillers.

This just might not have been my type of book. I was hooked for a bit but then I get bored of some of the characters. It started getting a little messy with the characters overlapping and hard to keep track of.

was so excited to have the opportunity to read this new book by B.A. Paris, since I’ve absolutely loved the two other books I’ve read by them. The premise was intriguing and overall I found the book to be interesting but I felt disappointed once I finished it. Most of the story felt very mundane and predictable, with the big reveal happening in the epilogue. I think I’ve gotten to the point where books with a “gotcha” moment at the end are more of a let down because it feels like the author is trying to come up with the most absurd twists to get one over on the reader.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an advanced copy of this book.

The Guest is a nice suspenseful domestic drama with well-written characters. The guest is Laure, a friend of our protagonists Iris and Gabriel. Laure lives in France with her husband Pierre (Gabriel's best friend), and shows up unannounced to stay at the couple's house in England, claiming that Pierre has had an affair. Laure is very annoying and never takes a hint and follows Iris around being a nuisance and missing every social cue. Iris and Gabriel make friends with another couple in town, who also have a guest with a bad personality. Soon all the guests' secrets start coming out, and then the hosts secrets do too. I liked this book quite a lot - it was a 4 star read through most of it because I love how Paris writes characters. I just thought the ending was a little lazy and unsatisfying. However, this is definitely one I would recommend if you don't mind a slower-paced thriller- others may not be bothered by the ending and enjoy the twist! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing throughout, and the way it played out in the epilogue had me speechless. As I read, I felt that there were many suspects in the events of the book. I’ve read all of this author’s books and have enjoyed them, so this is an auto read author for me. Thanks for the ARC!

What an exciting read I couldn't seem to put down. I truly have only one criticism about the book. The length of the chapters were perfect; really added to the pacing of the book. The Epilogue, unfortunately, felt like it lasted forever. I appreciated the wrap up of events. I didn't mind the change in voice. It just felt like it took forever compared to the rest of the story.

Thank you B.A. Paris, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this e ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I loved behind closed doors and had high expectations for this book . I just found it too slow and did not like the characters. There also seemed to have a lot of characters to keep track of .


Thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review

B.A. Paris’s first few books were all 5-star reads for me and put her firmly on my auto-read author list. Unfortunately, her latest few have been more hit and miss for me, and this one definitely fell into the latter category.

The Guest follows a middle-aged couple whose marriage is on the rocks as they get thrown into the drama of their couple friends as their marriage completely falls apart and the wife — Laure — comes to stay with them. This book was long and drawn out, and while there was a lot going on with lots of twist and turns to keep you guessing, it felt like it was just the same things and conversations happening over and over and over again. I was bored and found myself plowing through just waiting to feel invested in the story or the characters, but I never did.

I will say, the ending came as a surprise, and bumped it up a star from how I felt about the rest of the book, but by that point, I was so over it, I still didn’t really care.

I wanted to love this book. I wanted to read something more akin to the tightly plotted and tense page turners I had grown to love from Paris, but this, unfortunately, was not it for me.

B.A. Paris is a master of the tangled webs we weave. His latest novel, The Guest, is no exception. Lauren and Pierre meet Iris and Gabriel while on their honeymoon. The couples become fast friends and remain in each other’s lives, sharing houses when one of the couples is out of town, vacationing together and become as close as family. When Lauren and Gabriel arrive home from a holiday they find Iris has moved into their bedroom. Usually, they ask each other before just staying over but not this time. Iris has decided to leave Pierre after finding out he has a secret child they knew nothing about. Iris always wanted children but Pierre didn’t. Now that he has a child, Iris is hurt and disappointed.

The story unfolds as a snails pace with several more characters thrown into the mix. Although I had a hard time getting into the book, the ending was great! Definitely didn’t see that one coming!

My appreciation goes to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my review.

Thank you Net Galley for an advance copy. Interesting and twisty. If you enjoy a good page turner you will enjoy this book.

The Guest follows the story of husband and wife, Gabriel and Iris. When they return home from a trip they find their friend, Laure, living in their house. Laure tells them that she has left her husband after finding out that he had an affair many years ago and has a secret child. Iris and Gabriel open their home to their old friend but quickly Laure starts to out stay her welcome. Many secrets from the past slowly come to the surface in this psychological thriller.

This book was full of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. While I was intrigued I wasn’t on the edge of my seat. I felt that the pacing was off at time. Sometimes the book was slow and other times it was full speed ahead. I also didn’t connect with the characters and didn’t find them likeable. The ending came out of nowhere and really surprised me. Overall I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it.

B.A. Paris is easily an auto-buy author for me. Ever since Behind Closed Doors she hasn’t let me down yet.

THE GUEST was a wild ride type of thriller. No slow burning here!

I really felt like I knew what was going on the whole time and then was completely gobsmacked. If you’re a thriller lover, you know being gobsmacked is THE BEST.

Iris and Gabriel are on of those IT couples. They have it all until Gabriel comes across a man on his run that breathes his final words to Gabriel which are something devastating. Gabriel keeps this burden to himself and it is a heavy weight to bear.

Then we have Laurie whose friend is staying in their home and aside from overstaying her welcome, she starts trying to be more and more like Iris.

Oh and let’s not forget the bodies that start dropping. GAH! I was up late with this one!

You’ll have to read to see where all this goes. Thriller lovers and lovers of suspense will love THE GUEST!

The Guest by B.A. Paris releases on Tuesday February 20. If you’re a fan of slow burn domestic thrillers that will both frustrate and shock you then you should pick this one up. One of the most infuriating things about this book for me was the notion of a “houseguest from hell”. If I found someone (even a friend) in my house without my permission, sleeping in my bed, and wearing my clothes I’d be furious. They certainly would be staying but the MCs of this one put up with it. I was SO frustrated while reading that I honestly almost stopped reading but I’m glad I didn’t. This book is FILLED with twists, turns, and murder. I wasn’t expecting to have so much thrown at me, but it was really exciting as I was reading. And the ending? Didn’t see it coming. I was glad to see the epilogue wrap things up and make sense of everything even though it was quite long.


𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗙𝗔𝗡𝗦 𝗢𝗙
❥ Domestic Thrillers
❥ Murder Mysteries
❥ Plenty of twists and turns

𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ⭐⭐⭐⭐