Any book written by Sara Ackerman, I’ll pick it up. I am a loyal fan of hers and she has another 5 star under her belt with this one.
We follow Jane Stanford in 1905 and Zoe in 2005. I found the character development well done and Jane’s story was fascinating. Learning the history of the beginnings of Stanford University was an added plus.
This must be the summer of murder/mystery stories, for my choices on NetGalley to pre-review I’ve picked up several. This was a particularly enjoyable read, and I liked that it was based on a true story. Well done, Ms. Ackerman well done. I found each of the character stories intriguing, especially Jane and Iliahi, and am so proud of Zoe for standing up for herself. Comes in with 5 stars.
This is my own opinion expressed in this review. Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing.

I really enjoy this author unfortunately this book was just not for me. I struggled to stay interested in all three timelines. I did find 2005 timeline from Zoe's point of view the most interesting. To be honest I can't quite figure out what I didn't like. Hawaii is my favorite place to travel which is why I wanted to read this book, I hope to try to try and read it another time and maybe it will speak to me better then.

This book was a slow starter for me, but it ended up being a good one. I’ve been to Hawaii three times and reading this book made me miss it and want to go back! The only thing I didn’t really like was the spiritualism aspect of the story, but since it is based on real people, I suppose it’s actually integral to the story. The last forty percent of the book really picked up and it was hard to put down

. I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was a fairly good book. The concept is interesting but, for me, the story flipped back and forth to much. At one time I thought I was reading three different time frames. The historical part of the story is about a wealthy older woman, whose son and husband have both died and she’s a little eccentric but likable. The current plot is a young woman who is a writer that has writers block and goes to a writer’s workshop. The characters are well written and the storyline is interesting. I will read another from this author and I will recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest review.

In The Guest in Room 120, Ackerman blends historical fiction and contemporary mystery into an atmospheric page-turner. Based on the real-life 1905 poisoning death of Jane Stanford -the Mother of Stanford University- Ackerman reimagines her final days at Waikiki’s Moana Hotel. The story is told through three perspectives: Stanford herself, a young Hawaiian woman employed at the Moana at the time of Stanford’s stay, and an author attending a writing conference at the same hotel in 2005 who becomes entangled in Jane’s story. Each perspective offers the readers more pieces to the captivating puzzle of Jane Stanford’s death.

Ackerman paints the Hawaiian setting in beautiful detail; the sea breezes and floral air come to life on the pages. She also brought new life to Jane Stanford, writing the woman in a way the history books cannot. Ackerman adds embellishments to the tale, making it an intriguing fictional novel with elements of romance and spiritualism. The real-life case remains unresolved, but the book is a satisfying contemporary read steeped in historic mystery.

What really happened to Jane Stanford?

Sara Ackerman’s dual timeline follows the 1905 journey of Jane Stanford and Iliahi Baldwin and the 2005 journey of Zoe Finch. All three women are connected by the Moana hotel in Honolulu. Jane and Zoe are guests in Room 120 and Iliahi is employed at the same upscale beachfront hotel.

Ackerman’s examination of this mysterious death is both compelling and enlightening. Readers are pulled in immediately by the mysterious cover. It hints of something mysterious happening in Room 120 and as readers flip pages, the mystery begins to take hold - switching timelines becomes compelling rather than cumbersome.

I can’t think of anyone better to tell this story; Ackerman’s Hawaiian heritage, her love of the islands, and her stellar ability to infuse her narrative with a distinct sense of place make this novel worth reading. I’ve always loved Ackerman’s characters; this time, her mystery stepped into the spotlight and was enriched by the meticulous crafting of her sense of place.

I hope this mystery enchants you as it did me. If you love true crime, Hawaiiana, unique characters, and multiple time-hops, this one’s for you.

I was gifted this copy and was under no obligation to provide a review.

“The Guest in Room 120” by Sara Ackerman is an engaging historical fiction that will keep you turning each page trying to figure out what comes next! The story revolves around the mysterious death of Jane Stanford co-founder of Stanford University and is told from the voices of 3 strong women. Told in a dual time line between 1905-2005 we journey to Hawaii and the luxurious newly built Moana Hotel where Mrs. Stanford is escaping a recent suspicious attempt on her life. A unique strong emotional bond forms between herself and a young Hawaiian hotel worker. When tragedy strikes the young hotel worker is left carrying the burden of undisclosed and dangerous secrets.
A hundred years later a best selling author checks into the same hotel room to attend a writers conference and begins to have vivid nightmares that connect her to Stanfords mysterious death.
As she begins to dive into the past to uncover what really happened the vibrant backdrop, great characters and unique historical events had me riveted to this novel.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is an interesting twist on the suspicious death of Jane Stanford, widow of the man who started Stanford university.
There is a dual timeline and mystery surrounds Room 120 on Waikiki Beach.
I felt the story drug out too long and I lost my interest part way through.
The ending is fictional but a creative twist to what very well could be close to the truth.
Jane Stanford is real, but the rest of the fictions are fictional.
I received a complimentary copy this book. My opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA for the ARC.

Loved the setting! I knew who the killer was from the beginning but enjoyed how the author revealed the killer in her story.

Historical mystery novel and a story that I hadn't heard of before made this novel especially interesting to read. Based upon the mysterious death of Stanford University founder, Jane Stanford. Written from a dual timeline, early 1905 and 2005. There's so much jaw dropping drama, it's difficult to remember that this is based upon a real-life event. I love the journey from San Francisco to Honolulu and what lies ahead...
I don't want to give secrets away, read it!

This is one of the best books I've read so far this year. I knew about Leland Stanford but not any thing about his wife Jane. Powerful women in 1905 were not well accepted by powerful men at that time. She was strong and not always likeable to those around her, but she didn't deserve to be poisoned. Even worse, the crime was covered up and really never been solved. The characters were well-developed and the plot fast-paced. I couldn't put it down. It was both an enjoyable and informative read.

Sara Ackerman’s The Guest in Room 120 is a duel timeline historical fiction novel, that is based on the suspicious death of a real person. It has three narrators, two in the early timeline, Ili’ahi Baldwin and Jane Stanford, and Zoe Finch in the more current timeline. To me, Ili’ahi is the most interesting and likable character, so it’s a little bit disappointing that her part of the story is told purely through journal entries. It takes a while into the book for the connections to click into place. Ili’ahi lives in Hawaii, and takes a job at a new hotel called Moana, which is where Jane ends up after it’s confirmed that she was poisoned back in the Bay Area.

Years later, Zoe ends up in the same hotel room that Jane stayed in when she comes to Hawaii for a writer’s conference to try and cure her writer’s block and in memory of the trip she never made with her friend Ginger, who she suspects was murdered.

In some regards I like Jane, because she feels like things are happening at Stanford that are in direct contradiction to the intent she and her husband founded it for, and she continues to fight for what she believes in against a group of men in 1905, after her husband’s death. But she’s also an entitled and demanding rich person who cares little for the wants and needs of most people around her.

Zoe I don’t dislike, but there’s nothing about her that connected with me on a deep level. She’s attending the conference under a pseudonym, and crosses paths with an author whose first book she wrote a critical review of. She doesn’t get around to telling him this, while they fall for each other, which is likely to blow up in her face. Until later in the book a lot of this timeline is just her and Dylan circling each other and Zoe participating in the conference. When spooky things start happening in her hotel room and she begins investigating it is when this storyline finally feels like it has some meat to it.

I also felt like this storyline left the reader hanging, because it starts with Zoe being motivated to go to Hawaii because of Ginger’s suspicious death, and yet something Ginger gives to Zoe that connects to the past storyline and if her death really was murder seem to fade into the background. I kept waiting for a clever hook that tied the item and the two deaths together and it doesn’t happen.

The murderer in the early time period was obvious to me from the very beginning, it was more a matter of if anyone in the story actually figured it out and justice was served that was the question. That felt kind of underwhelming to me, but I won’t give it away.

I really loved the setting of Hawaii, the incorporation of a native Hawaiian into the story and the discrimination they were likely to face as their islands were overrun by white people, and the unique historical events that Ackerman made the focal point of the story. It was good, but I felt like it had the potential to be even better than it was. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I want to thank Harper Collin’s and Sara Ackerman for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. I was already looking forward to reading a new book by Ms Ackerman but this book exceeded my expectation. The character development was beautiful and made me feel like I was right there with these three women during the span of all time periods. Each of them had such realistic backgrounds and personalities. They felt like friends to me and I didn’t want the book to end. The plot was executed in a fashion that I’m not sure anyone else could have pulled off. I now want to look and read more about Ms. Jane Stanford with everything brought to light in this book. I am so glad I was on this journey and was able to be taken elsewhere for a while. This book is by far my favorite read of this year and favorite of Ms.Ackerman.

The Guest in Room 120 raises !much suspicion as to what possibly could have happened to Jane back in the days when disappearance of women was not highly investigated. This book shines a wonderful light on the crime of poisoning especially by a likely suspect. Enjoyed the novel.

Sara Ackerman wrote a historical fiction with an eerie mystery vibe and I am so here for it!! I have loved every book I’ve read of hers and this was no different. Inspired by the mysterious death of Jane Stanford, this follows a dual timeline between 1905 and 2005. We get flashbacks to Jane’s story, journal entries from Ili, a hotel employee during the time of Jane’s story, and then the more current timeline following Zoe who’s an author attending a writers conference in Hawaii 100 years later. It ends up that Zoe stays in the room in which Jane Stanford died, and she starts experiencing strange dreams regarding this past, so there’s a touch of a paranormal aspect to this which was so fun. I love anything paranormal so it made me love the book even more. Zoe then decides to explore Jane Stanford’s unsolved death with the help of the journal entries, and it inspires her next novel.

This book came together so well for me. While the first 30% or so was a little slower start and lots of back and forth between timelines without much connecting right away, I knew eventually the connections would be made and when they were I was hooked! I loved how much depth there was to the characters, particularly how Ili and her journals played a role. Every character seemed to have their own troubles and afflictions they were dealing with in their lives and it was easy to connect with them emotionally.

One of my favorite things about Sara’s books are how they transport you to the setting. I always feel like I’m there in Hawaii when reading them. Not to mention for historical fiction novels, these are more like “feel-good” stories. When I want a story that will make me feel warm inside but I’m craving some history, Sara Ackerman books are a go-to!

If you want a mix of unique historical fiction, with a hint of mystery and a touch of romance, definitely add this to your TBR!

What an entertaining and informative book this was. Told from three different points of view that come together at the end, readers get to learn about the death of Jane Stanford--yes, of the university. This was complete news to me, and fascinating. But that isn't all readers get to learn about. We learn about what a writers' workshop is like, Hawaii at the turn of the 20th century, and on top of it all, we get a love story. This novel has a lot going on, but the author handles it all with care and professionalism, so it's a joy to read. In addition, it includes all the wonderful descriptions of Hawaii that readers have come to love from Sara Ackerman. Really, really fun book.

Wow! While reading this book, I was reflecting on how it is that when you're reading historical fiction, and know the outcome, a book can still be so engaging and keep you turning the pages wondering what happens next. This is just such a book. The author blends two timelines and three perspectives brilliantly. I found myself really caring for each of the main characters, even the not-so-likeable Jane Stanford. We get to see her pink little underbelly hidden under a life of station and privilege, and wish she could have had a better outcome. I give this book a rousing 5-stars, and will definitely suggest it to my book club.

The Guest in Room 120 is a richly layered historical mystery that masterfully intertwines past and present. Sarah Ackerman creates a compelling narrative set against the lush, yet sometimes shadowed, backdrop of the Moana Hotel in Honolulu. The characters—Jane Stanford and the resilient ‘Iliahi Baldwin in. 1905, and then Zoe Finch in 2005—are vividly drawn, each carrying their own secrets and hardships. The author expertly builds suspense as the stories gradually reveal long-buried truths about betrayal, loss, and hidden histories. I particularly enjoyed the atmospheric setting and the way the story delves into the mysterious death linked to the hotel’s past. While the pacing occasionally slows during the more introspective moments, it ultimately adds depth to the characters’ journeys. This novel is an engaging blend of historical intrigue and modern suspense, keeping readers eager to uncover what happened in Room 120 almost a century ago. Overall, a captivating read that offers both mystery and emotional resonance. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction with a touch of ghostly allure!

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A haunting dual-timeline mystery that lingers long after the last page.

The Guest in Room 120 is the perfect blend of historical intrigue, modern suspense, and eerie atmosphere. Anchored in the real-life mystery of Jane Stanford’s death, this novel is immersive, chilling, and unexpectedly emotional.

From the lush setting of early 1900s Honolulu to the present-day halls of the Moana hotel, the story moves between timelines with elegance and intensity. Jane Stanford is a force of nature, ‘Iliahi is quietly heroic, and Zoe’s unraveling connection to the past gives the entire novel a haunting resonance. The pacing is tight, the characters are beautifully drawn, and the sense of place—both in time and location—is stunning.

If you love historical fiction with a paranormal edge, layered female perspectives, and a true crime twist that still echoes today, this is absolutely a must-read.