3 ⭐️

Arriving home after a vacation Iris and Gabriel fine their friend Laurie crashing at their house. Laurie, seeking sanctuary from her husband after he confesses he had a child with another woman, quickly overstays her welcome. As time goes by matters become worse and the truth won’t stay buried forever.

The Guest is truly a domestic drama with a shocking ending. I really did not see the twist coming. Despite the twist being really great and the writing good the story over all was very mediocre. I struggled to get to the ending because the pacing was so slow. I thought at about 60% that it was going to start picking up the pace and it just didn’t. It lacked the thrilling elements and high stakes that B.A. Paris incorporated in Behind Closed Doors. I feel like my rating is very generous with how long I struggled to get through it.

CW/TW
Infertility
Suicide

Tripes
Unreliable narrator

Impressive. BA Paris does it again with this page turner. Twists and surprises. Was not expecting the ending. Hightly recommend.

Iris and Gabriel live a quiet life. One event sets off a series of unfortunate events that you cannot help suspect are all connected.

***

This was an ok installment from B.A. Paris..

None of the characters are particularly sympathetic or likable. I find it unbelievable that one accident (in which he was not even directly involved) caused this loving father and doctor to totally shut out his wife. The plot moves fast and then incredibly slow. Toward the end, I was skipping through the marital woes of Iris and Gabriel, because it continued to make no sense why Gabriel was so torn up. Especially as the plot developed.

Laure was just frustrating and frankly rude. The whiplash of her storyline left me utterly confused on how to feel. It doesn't help that a lot of her storyline involved a character that remains entirely offscreen the entire book!
 
And then the epilogue happened. I only read the galley, but I am begging the author to make a change before publication. I was totally baffled and wholly unsatisfied with the ending. What is it with this new trend in thriller to just explain the whole plot to us at the very end in an epilogue?

The end just felt like lazy storytelling to me, so I'm going to have to knock this down a bit. I was such a big B.A. Paris fan, but the last two books have just been so, so to me. I hope the next book takes some of the feedback into account!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Two couples. Deaths. Best friends. A supposed affair with a secret child. A houseguest. New neighbors. Secrets … and lots of them.
That’s what you’re getting with this story … and much more.
Iris and Gabriel have just arrived home from a make-or-break holiday after Gabriel experienced a severe trauma. When they open their door however, a surprise awaits. One of their closest friends, Laure, is in their house. The atmosphere quickly becomes tense as she oversteps again and again: sleeping in their bed, wearing Iris' clothes, even rearranging the furniture.

Just when you think you know where it’s going, B.A Paris takes you for a loop. The plot twists, the secrets, the reveals … I couldn’t put it down.
This isn’t my favorite story of Paris’ but it is a big step up from her last book, which I appreciate very much. I strongly recommend giving this one a read if you enjoy a good thriller/mystery type of story with plot twists.

In a house full of secrets, there's always more to the story. A last act twist I didn't see coming, but one that felt plausible, is always enjoyable, especially when you read a lot of mystery/thriller novels. The characters were believable, and familiar, and throughout the story you weren't entirely sure which mystery was the big story, the one that you were waiting to get to the bottom of. But it reveals itself in the end, and felt satisfying. B.A. Paris delivers another quick read and keeps me coming back again and again.

Thank you for allowing me to read this book as an ARC.
Wow, this was one of the best books I read this year! I couldn't put it down and finished in 2 days! What a roller coaster and B.A. Paris definitely has the reader guessing until the end. I did not see that end coming! What an amazing story and leading us to believe completely differently than what happened. Awesome job and I have to say, this is B.A. Paris' best one yet!!! A solid 5 🌟 read.
I also loved that everything was explained and did not leave the reader hanging in the air trying to figure put what happened. Thank you for that!!

I received this ebook from Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion and review. It started out a little slow, and I felt a little confused in the beginning. After a while, the plot got super interesting, and I definitely wasn’t prepared for the ending. I loved all the intricate lies and how they all formed the story we were originally told.

I’ve read all of the author’s books, so I was so excited to get an early copy of The Guest. Unfortunately, this one was just OK for me as I expected more from an author I am so fond of. This felt more like a domestic drama/suspense than a thriller. There are several different conflicts going on throughout the story. Gabe is keeping a secret from his wife, but there was too much build up to something that was not that interesting. It didn’t make any sense that he would keep that from his wife. Then, you re trying to find out what’s going on with Pierre, but I thought it was kind of obvious what happened. I did lose a little interest in the middle of the book with the everyday mundanity of their lives and conversations. I had a hard time connecting with the characters, though the author did a great job crafting such an unlikeable character. I could not stand Laure. The story does pick up again with a few unexpected twists, but then the story ends kind of abruptly. The epilogue was very long and explained everything that happened in the book. I just thought that was kind of a weird way to end the book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Wow. What a ride! The first half of this book is fairly slow but not at all boring. Laure is pretty annoying. I guessed one small piece of the puzzle but the ending never even crossed my mind. Like at all. Not even for a second. I couldn’t put the book down after the midway point. If you like B.A. Paris then her newest will not disappoint! Content warnings: very very little cursing. Almost none. Implied sexual content but no details.

I found this book to be ok. I didn’t like Laure in the beginning of the book. She seemed to be too needy and it felt like she was overstaying her welcome with Iris and Gabriel. I didn’t find any of the characters to be very interesting. The twist at the end wasn’t all that shocking to me.

This was okay for me. I expected more, given that I generally like B.A. Paris's books, but it just felt a bit flat. I couldn't connect to any of the characters, and the circumstances felt so plotted that I had trouble really understanding the characters' motivations for why they behaved as they did. It was just not a great fit all around, but I do think other people will enjoy this book, so I wouldn't want to put them off it.

B.A Paris is one of my favorite authors! This book did not disappoint! So many twists and turns, it definitely kept me guessing! It got a bit unbelievable towards the end when more and more deaths kept happening, but I still couldn't put it down! Thank you Netgalley, the publisher, and B.A. Paris for a copy of this arc in exchange for my honest review!

B.A. Paris has made a name for herself in the domestic thriller genre. Her latest, The Guest, tells the story of a long-married couple, Iris and Gabriel, and their new houseguest, Laure, who is married to Gabriel's friend Pierre. Laure has left Pierre after learning that he had a child with another woman. But Iris and Gabriel quickly determine that there is more happening with Laure and Pierre's marriage than meets the eye. After weeks of odd behavior, Laura shows no interest in leaving Iris and Gabriel's house. They try to reach out to Pierre without success, and they begin to wonder if Laure is being truthful about Pierre's infidelity. In fact, it seems that Laure is the one who's been unfaithful.

Halfway through the book, when one of the major characters (I won't say which one) is found murdered, the story takes a dark twist as the characters try to unravel what really happened in Laure and Pierre's marriage. But even more importantly, what has happened in Iris and Gabriel's relationship?

The Guest is briskly paced and entertaining. It's not particularly deep or even realistic, but it's a fun addition to the domestic thriller genre.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my views.

Wow! This book took me by surprise. The premise was great. There is always tension when a house guest overstays their welcome. It's even harder when that houseguest is the wife of your friend and turns up unannounced. Gabriel and Iris seem very simple, quiet people. Gabriel is dealing with the tragedy of finding a local boy dead in a quarry. He heard his last words and was wrangling with finding him and dealing with hearing those words. Iris is very ruffled with Laure's presence. Their dynamic in their marriage is strained and interesting to see how it will play out. 

There are a lot of side characters to follow. Throughout the story, I kept wondering how everyone was tied together. The chapers are short, and the story reads quickly. About a little past halfway, I was wondering where this story was going. When some parts came to what felt like a wrap, I was a little underwhelmed. Then, bam, I was so surprised! The ending twist I didn't see coming! 

I recommend this story if you like a good twist and with characters you're not sure who to trust!

BA Paris is one of my favorite authors but this book threw me off. I felt like it was long and drawn out. Then it just ended the the epilogue was really long and explained really what happened the whole time behind the scenes. I didn’t like how it closed the book. It was a bit confusing.

It starts with Iris and Gabriel coming home from their vacation to one of their friends, Laure, in their home. Laure, recently separated from her husband, almost begs to stay while she gets her bearings together due to the bomb he had dropped.

Laure basically throws the household into disharmony — a major disruption for sure. But when things start getting fishy, Gabriel and Iris begin to doubt her story. Even going as far to try to get ahold of him; nothing is as seems.

I enjoyed this novel and with that — this is a slow burn. Picking up breadcrumbs as you proceed through the novel. The plot picks up somewhere around two thirds of the way through and the ending was not what I expected. There were a few twists thrown in there that I didn’t expect and overall it was a wild, fun ride. It was a little more domestic compared to psychological thriller, but once the story picked up it paid off.

The Guest
by B.A. Paris
Pub Date: 20 Feb 2024
Iris and Gabriel come home from their vacation to find someone in their home. Laure, the female half of their best friend couple, has made herself at home while they were gone due to a spat with her husband Pierre. She claims Pierre, who never wanted children, has revealed to her he just found out he had a child with another woman out of wedlock. Devasted, Laure ran to the unione place she felt safe and made herself at home. The longer she stays, however, the more Iris and Gabriel begin to doubt her story. Why won't Pierre return Gabriel's call or messages? Who is the woman he had an affair with? And...why is Laure always hanging out with the sexy gardner?
#netgalley
#baparis
#theguest

Have you ever read a book and got to the end and thought, well that was kinda predictable but good? That was me here. While I wasn’t sure who was the real Guest….Laurie or Joseph, that I was supposed to be paying attention too, your mind is diverted long enough for you not to realize what’s happening.
The Epilogue was like an explosion of a new book…. All you felt that happened, wrong! While reading you forgot to read between the lines.
Definitely a 4 1/2 star book for me.

This is my fourth B.A. Paris book & I was not disappointed! It started off with a bang, but the middle stalled out a little bit for my liking. It picked up the last 2/3 of the book & ended with a great twist. The epilogue tied everything together nicely!

I definitely recommend this book for someone looking for a European themed thriller. Solid 4 ⭐️ for me!

All my thanks goes out to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital ARC of this book. Publication date February 20, 2024

Iris and Gabriel are good friends with Laure and Pierre. When they return home from a vacation, they find Laure in their house, and Laure tells them she has separated from Pierre, and asks to stay with them for a while. The Guest centers around Laure’s practically moving into Iris’s house, disrupting their lives and making them miserable. Adding to the drama, Gabriel is dealing with his own demons from finding an 18 year old dead at the bottom of a quarry. If the plot seems a little thin and scattered, that’s because it is, and the stilted dialogue and tedious storyline made this a tough read. The prologue was a sign of things to come, with a lot of character names thrown at you without much context, and it seems the book just never recovers. This author is an automatic read for me, and I usually thoroughly enjoy her books, but this one, not so much. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.