This was a bit up and down for me. I liked it at first but then started getting bogged down by all of the characters and their relationships. It seemed pretty incestuous at times. I thought I had most of it figured out but suffice to say, I did NOT. The ending was quite shocking, I just don't know if the payoff was worth slogging through all of the rest. I loved Behind Closed Doors and did not like The Therapist. This was in the middle of those two for me.

I did enjoy the narrator although I had to look up the name she was saying because I couldn't figure it out. I don't think I have ever heard the name Laure before.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, this was a solid thriller with a satisfying ending, which is always something I hope for with a thriller. Initially, I struggled with getting into the story. I did not find the storylines about the houseguest who would not leave, the expecting couple, nor the depressed husband to be interesting. It wasn’t until the shed scene around the 45% mark that things picked up for me. From that point on, I was hooked to the story. Although I did figure out the ending ahead of time, that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the book. This was my first novel by BA Paris, and I’m looking forward to reading more of their works.

How well do you know your friends? If they randomly showed up at your house while you were on vacation? Allowing them to stay in your space for the unforeseeable future? I mean, a few red flags there, but I was seriously hooked on this one. The characters or wildly likable, the setting had me swooning, and each chapter left me wanting to read just one more!

The narrator was captivating, and there was such an ease to her effortless storytelling!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of this audiobook. I’ve been working on getting through this book for over a week. It is just not for me. DNF at 57%

A quick mystery/thriller. The audiobook is narrated very well. I found the book a bit slow in the beginning. It picks and the ending caught me by surprise.

Thank you #NetGalley, #MacmillanAudio, #B.A.Paris, #EmilyJoyce and #TheGuest for the advance audiobook for my honest review.

"The Guest" by B.A. Paris is skillfully narrated by Emily Joyce who has a lovely British accent.

Despite a slow start, this thriller/mystery ultimately delivers with a cleverly woven narrative and a satisfying, twist-filled conclusion.

I'd rate this 3.5 stars, rounded up to four. It's recommended for those in search of a quick, easy read ... perfect for a day at the beach.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing an advanced listener copy of the audiobook.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This book follows Iris and Gabriel, a married couple whose friend, Laure, shows up at their home to stay for a while because her and her husband, Pierre, are having marital issues. Laure ended up staying longer than expected and started to cause some issues for Iris & Gabriel.

There is also another couple that moved into the neighborhood, Esme and Huge, who brought their gardener,Joseph, along with them. As all of these characters intertwine, secrets and lies are revealed leading to several plot twists.


I am a huge fan on B.A. Paris’ writing and this book was also great but fell short compared to some of her others.The abundance of characters whose storylines all intertwine left me re-reading to figure out who was who again. I didn’t get the strong bond to the characters that I was hoping for and I think it was just simply because there were so many. There were characters that really got under my skin though, like Laure. Whyyyy are you in your friend’s marital bed when they have guest rooms?! Ugh. I really couldn’t wait for her to leave.
The overall storyline was great and I definitely wasn’t expecting what came in the epilogue. I also loved that every loose end was tied up at the ending of the book. If you’re looking for a quick, easy thriller, i think you’d like this book.


Thank you NetGalley for the early arc of this book. It is set to release on Feb 20th

I loved every part of this book!! I went in blind had no idea what to expect.
The narrator, Emily Joyce did an incredible job at bringing this book to life. The Guest follows a couple who have been married for a long time and has a daughter in college, Iris and Gabriel. They’re best friends, who of which are married and live in Paris, Laure and Pierre. Lastly, Iris and Gabriel’s new neighbors and their gardener.
The Gabriel happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and witnesses the first tragedy surrounding this family.
You will never guess the twists throughout this entire book. The first chapter drew me in right away and it was very fast paced read. B.A. Paris’ books are always excellent.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The narrator of "The Guest" played a crucial role in enhancing the overall experience. Having both read parts of the book and listened to the audiobook, I found the narrator's performance commendable. She skillfully embraced the characters, particularly Iris, bringing them to life in a way that made the audiobook almost indistinguishable from reading. The narrator's ability to embody the characters added an extra layer of immersion, making the listening experience truly engaging. I would rate the narration 4/5 for its effective portrayal of the characters, especially Iris, contributing significantly to the overall enjoyment of the story.

I have also reviewed of the book .

Thank you to @netgalley & @macmillan.audio for copies of The Guest!

I am a HUGE sucker for a B.A. Paris novel, being an autobuy author for me! So imagine my excitement when I was approved for this one! And you all know how I've been enjoying going back and forth between both mediums.

The narrator was fantastic. She was easy to listen to and understand. I adored her accent and ability to give a voice to everyone.

The story was twisty and fast paced, until the end. I felt the epilogue went on entirely too long. But it was a twist I did NOT see coming. 👏👏👏

Also, a guest overstaying their welcome is my own personal nightmare. 🤣

3.5 stars rounded up. This is a pretty slow paced book that has a lot of components that kind of mesh together towards the ending. I did find it to be a big predictable, a bit boring at times. I think you will love it if you enjoyed other books by B. A. Paris!

The narrator did a great job on this book - five stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my advanced colt of this audio in exchange for my honest review!

I struggled to keep all of the characters straight but found the storyline to be intriguing. I will definitely recommend to people who have enjoyed B.A. Paris' other books!

I finished this book and audiobook last night and had to sit with for a bit… the story leading up to the end is kind of predictable but man oh man the end will have your head spinning 😵‍💫
Over all great book!

I wasn’t sure about this book in the beginning. It’s incredibly slow paced and there are a lot of things happening that don’t mesh together until the very ending. I did enjoy the book though as I continued reading and kept turning the pages quickly to see what was going to happen. I enjoyed the final twist at the end. I was not a fan of the narration on the audio and continued reading via ebook.

I had the audiobook of this story -- this was my first book by this author— and the narrator did a wonderful job of bringing the characters to life- this helped me to stay intrigued by aspects of the storyline and characters. -- where we follow the interconnecting / interwoven lives of — Iris and Gabriel / Laure and Pierre and Esme and Hugh — with side interplay with the gardener Joseph and the daughter of Iris and Gabriel. This book would be a psychological drama/mystery— There were lots of red herrings and misdirections in the story —but the person I suspected was, in the end, the killer!— so the format was a bit predictable for me unfortunately.
Overall, the writing was good — the author has you disliking many characters in this story—in addition to being unreliable narrators — the characters are painted in such a way that you become irritated or loathe the characters— so I think it is good writing when an author can make you dislike so many people.

Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan Audio for this ARC. This is my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.

Imagine coming back from vacation and someone is in your house unexpected, uninvited, AND sleeping in your bedroom? WEIRD!

Gabriel & Iris, Laure & Pierre have been friends for 20 years after meeting on vacation. Regardless, I don’t think that makes it acceptable for Laure to be a guest in Gabriel and Iris’ house to escape from her martial problems.
Throughout the book, Laure makes numerous excuses to not make amends with her husband and is adamant on staying in Gabriel and Iris’ home indefinitely. She wears Iris’ clothing, makes comments that indicate she knows/understands Gabriel better than Iris, and lies about her bizarre behaviors. It’s as if Laure is trying to become Iris by inserting herself into every aspect of her life, including her job and friendships.

Gabriel encounters an unfortunate event with the death of Charlie and lies about his dying words. Gabriel is actively avoiding Charlie’s mom, Maggie, as he is working out the guilt and trauma from his death. But their eventual meeting brings a lot of new information to the surface.

The neighbors, Esme and Hugh who have a new baby on the way also have a house guest living with them; Joseph is a gardener and a recovering alcoholic. He is hired to help Gabriel in the garden and it’s suspected that he is in a relationship with Laure. What is the connection between Maggie and Joseph?

As soon as Laure goes missing, I guessed what was going to happen. Esme’s character is better understood at this point and Gabriel’s alibi is suspect. All of a sudden, the story takes another turn with double deaths.

Enter Beth: Gabriel and Iris’ daughter who decides to take a year off before going to college. She’s spending a lot of time at the neighbors house babysitting. Then comes another death.

Secrets here, suspicion there, chaos everywhere! I didn’t like Iris’ constant complaining about Laure and not doing anything about it. Laure’s character was becoming overbearing and very clingy. Also, why did we spend more than half the book trying to figure out where Pierre is and why he didn’t respond to Gabriel when he is all the way in France? Joseph is just having an affair with everyone. What was the point of Beth’s character? The ending is rushed with its own twist, but not satisfying as there were so many broken pieces throughout the story line. A quick read, but dragged out and hard to relate to the multiple characters.

Iris & Gabriel, and Laure & Pierre met when on vacation and became fast friends. Years later when Iris & Gabriel came home from a get away, they found Laure in their house seeking refuge while she and Pierre work through some issues. But days turn into weeks and Laure has become an unwanted house guest, one that has overstayed her welcome. Another young couple had moved in close by, and soon they are all fast friends, all but Gabriel and their young gardener, Joseph. Gabriel is going through his own soul searching trauma and has distanced himself from Iris, something she’s rather distraught over. When tragedy befalls the three couples all do not live to tell about it, but are the survivors all innocent? This was a twisty good read and while I saw some of them coming, others I did not! This was a dual read/listen and was narrated perfectly by Emily Joyce. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an ARC and ALC of this book.

I would give this one 3.5 stars. A solid ending, with a beginning that was a little tough to get through. It was obvious things weren't what they seemed, and Paris as usual did a good job leading the reader through the journey and throwing suspicion on different characters at different times. It was infuriating though that no one would talk to each other about things, so everyone was left guessing about people's feeling or motives at various points.
Without saying too much, I think if the ending had not been as strong I would have liked this book a good deal less. It wasn't groundbreaking, but the entertainment factor was definitely there.
Solid narration, good quick thriller, I would absolutely recommend this, especially as a beach read.

I feel like this book shows instances of The Breakdown (my favorite Paris book).

The narrator Emily Joyce was a brilliant choice to deliver this story.

The first half of this book is a bit tough. There is a lot of information with some easter eggs if you pay attention. The set up is for an epic ending keep that in mind.

The Guest by B. A. Paris

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC-audiobook

Narrator: Emily Joyce

The narration is well done.
I’ve never listened to Emily Joyce narrate a book and I enjoyed it.

This is another decent psychological thriller read by B. A. Paris.

Couples that are old friends and couples that are new friends. All have various secrets affecting their relationships. Throw in a few other people to stir the pot; some of them will die. Oh the tangled webs we weave.

I enjoyed the experience of the listening to this. I think it’s one of my favorite books by B. A. Paris. It’s a slow burn, but it worked for me. Friends, relationships, secrets, loyalty, death, lies and deceit will be touched upon.