The Dinner Guest

This is one where one really cannot say too much without fear of giving something away. So, what I will say, is that I enjoyed this twists.

Four people were in the dining room that night, and Matthew ends up dead. The real question is: who killed him? Charlie, the husband; Titus, the son; or Rachel, the stranger?

This book was SO. GOOD. I devoured this book within a day. I normally don't love when books alternate point of views, but I feel as though doing so in this book increased the suspense, mystery, and the questions that I had. Every time I thought I knew what was going to happen and how it was going to end, I was proven wrong. The amount of loose ends to tie up and pieces to put together kept me hooked until the very end.

10\10 recommend to anyone wanting a good mystery\thriller.

Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to review this. I will keep this one short and sweet.

A very twisty thrillride. You think you know the answers to all the questions, then it throws another curve at you. A wonderful read if you love thrillers. It really keeps you guessing all the way through

Four people walked into the dining room that night. One would never leave. It is a bit hard to review this book without giving too much away. There are so many twists and turns and the ending will really catch you off guard. It does start out rather slowly but it picks up speed quickly. It's told from different characters perspectives and sometimes that seemed a bit mixed up but all in all this was quite a thrilling little mystery! Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

What a thriller! I love the mystery ! There was some slow parts but the twist made it worth it! It was a great mystery book of a group of friends and a murder!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review and opinion. WOW! This is a thriller that will keep you engaged until the very last paragraph. Loved all the twists and turns!

Where to start…? Wow, what a roller coaster B P Walter took me on from the very beginning. I had a little trouble with the format of the timeline going back and forth so often but quickly got the hang of the storyline and how it contributed to it. Without giving too much away, if you’re in the mood for a twisty thriller that will keep you guessing up to the very end…definitely pick up a copy of The Dinner Guest.

I really enjoyed this book and thought the premise was super creative. I love a good bunch of characters with a bunch of secrets. Thanks to net galley for the copy!

This was another great thriller. I enjoy thrillers with alternating points of view, I like getting the different perspectives, backgrounds, and storylines and I always love how it comes together at the resolution.

The Dinner Guest by B P Walter is well written and had me from the beginning. A nice domestic style mystery with a great twist and excellent writing. Well rendered characters, lots of emotion, and well-described scenes and settings. Enjoyed this book very much. Recommend.

This is a twisty novel.
Two man share a married life along with their so. To all intents and purposes, they seem happy.
Then they happen upon a lady in a store and one of them invites her to book club night.
Then things begin to change. Who is this woman? And why is she nosing around the house?
From that point forward she becomes part of the extended family…but there is more…..does she know one of them from an earlier time?
To air it all out, they invite her to dinner. One of them is stabbed to death and two have to talk to the police.
You will be surprised at the ending. Very twisty indeed!

While it may seem as though so much is given away in the book's blurb, there are many twists and turns throughout this thriller. Fast-paced, and with well-written (and intentionally, thoroughly unlikeable!) characters, this was a page-turner that I flew through. Unique in its own right, I'd love to see more thrillers in the future with this same vibe. I don't want to say too much in this review and risk giving anything away. Prepare yourself to hate them all, and yet be so curious about what really went down at this deadly dinner that you can't keep yourself away, either!

My thanks to Harper360 and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview this title!

Such a rollercoaster of a book with so many twists! Enjoyed the mystery and the slow burn. You never really know what's happening.

Honestly, this book took me a little bit to get into. About 60% when I was about to give up, I finally felt like the story started to pick up pace. I enjoyed the multiple viewpoints of the story and the chosen characters. I did enjoy the overall plot. I also enjoyed how you knew something was happening behind the scenes but weren’t allowed to have all the pieces since the story was being told through the character who was the most in the dark and wasn’t taking the clues given. My favorite part was the ending in the sense that I had many various outcomes in my head and naturally I thought either I was going to be caught off guard OR I would guess the ending. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised with many of my guesses all being thrown in. For me, the epilogue is really what elevated my rating from a 3.5 to a 4. Everyone always loves a good villain, at least I do.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper360 One More Chapter for the opportunity to read this novel.

Who stabbed Matthew at the dinner table? Was it his husband Charlie, his son Titus, or Rachel who has confessed? Except, she didn't, did she? This tale of secrets, lies, jealousy, and murder is told by Rachel and Charlie in turn. Charlie thought everything in his life and marriage was tootling along just fine until Rachel turned up. He didn't trust her, didn't like her, didn't understand why Matthew did. And he wasn't happy when Matthew invited her to dinner. This might sound like a classic trope-y set up and it is but the twists are good. Power through a slow spot in the middle knowing that there's going to be a surprise. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

Wow, talk about making a lasting impression.

I was so incredibly impressed with The Dinner Guest. I will have to say that the cover completely drew me in. The simplicity yet mystery had me intrigued and I was crossing my fingers and praying to the book gods for an approval.

When I heard the chime of my email ding with my special "netgalley" alert, I peered with one eye, hopeful it was an approval and not a denial .

Well, well, well, look what we have here.... AN APPROVAL!!! woohoooooo, cue the happy dance, my feet have not hit the ground . The delight was unreal and I could not wait to get started.

This book is twisted, dark, and has all the key components for a best seller. I can not wait for the world to see what this book holds.

This book needs to be on everyone's radar and I would absolutely love to see this turned into a movie. The Dinner Guest, screams blockbuster hit!

BP Walter, I have my eye on you.

FIVE STARS!

The Dinner Guest
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 5/24/22
Author: B. P. Walter
Publisher: One More Chapter
Pages: 416
Goodreads Rating: 3.69

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for providing a copy of the book for me to read in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Four people walked into the dining room that night. One would never leave. Matthew: the perfect husband. Titus: the perfect son. Charlie: the perfect illusion. Rachel: the perfect stranger. Charlie didn’t want her at the book club. Matthew wouldn’t listen. And that’s how Charlie finds himself slumped beside his husband’s body, their son sitting silently at the dinner table, while Rachel calls 911, the bloody knife still gripped in her hand.

My Thoughts: The chapters are average length. There were two narrators, Charlie and Rachel, told from their POV. There were so many suspicions, secrets, questions, and definitely lies. Walter takes you on a wild chilling ride throughout this book. The character development was out of this world, the author does such a good job of not only developing the characters but making you form hate/love opinions of the characters. The writing was suspenseful, creative, and just plain amazing. This was a face-past thriller, which is my most favorite kind. The plot was fantastic! This book releases next week and I highly recommend you pre-order this book

The Dinner Guest will keep you on the edge of your seat! The book opens when a murder and the killer confessing. It is told from multiple POV and in the present and the past. The author gave the right information at the right time to move the book forward. Rachel enters the life of two fathers and their child. One of the fathers welcomes Rachel with open arms and the other is suspicious. This creates tension in the story and kept me wanting to learn more about the suspicions. I'm very glad the author titled each chapter with whos POV it was and a timeline with the murder as the center point. It was very helpful piecing together what happened and trying to figure out the twist. I was surprised at the ending and loved it!

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

Interesting, I enjoyed i.t.

Wow, such a good psychological thriller! This is well written and well thought out. This book will
keep you both engaged and guessing the whole time. It’s told from multiple perspectives and I think that sped it up even more. You won’t be able to put this one down.

Read this if…you like morally gray characters and a good revenge story.

Charlie and Matthew have a seemingly perfect life. They are the adoptive parents of Titus, who seems to be a good kid. They meet Rachel, who seems to be a harmless stranger, and invite her into their lives. One night, the four of them sit down for dinner, but only three will walk away from the table. A cold-hearted murder reveals a myriad of secrets and lies, proving that nothing and no one is ever quite as it seems.

This was one twisty whodunit! Told from the perspectives of Charlie and Rachel, I thought the plot was well developed. Readers are introduced to the murder quickly and the story jumps back and forth in time between the year before the murder and the year after. The author did a good job of weaving all of this together and I didn’t have any trouble following the timeline. I did find it difficult to connect to the characters because every single one was awful in his or her own way. I wanted someone to root for, but there wasn’t anyone who was entirely innocent. Other than that, I enjoyed the story and how everything connected together at the end.

A big thanks to Netgalley, Harper 360,, and the author for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5/5 (rounded up)

Thank you to Harper, One More Chapter, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Dinner Guest by B. P. Walter is a slow-burn domestic thriller with an amazing twist! The story revolves around Charlie, whose husband Matthew and adoptive stepson Titus make the perfect picture of "gay marriage." But then, a young woman named Rachel ingratiates herself into their lives. Who is she? And why did she stab Matthew with a bloody kitchen knife?

Here is a gripping excerpt from the Prologue:

"My husband Matthew died on an unseasonably chilly August day at dinner time. We had been together for just over ten years, married for five, and yes, we did love each other. But love changes over time, and in those final moments when I knew he was dying, well, I must confess that through the horror and the blood and the shock, the love I felt for him wasn’t quite as profound as I would have expected. Even after everything that had happened. Back when we married, the thought of losing him would have sent a wave of devastation through me. It would have been barely comprehensible. And I thought it would always be so. It took the worst to actually happen for me to realise that things don’t always play out like you think."

Overall, The Dinner Guest is a delightful domestic thriller with a jawdropping twist. One highlight of this book are the main characters. I like that the main couple have a book club and shop at Waterstones. I also like how the main couple are gay. I thought it was refreshing to see this in the domestic thriller genre. Another highlight is the mystery, which is like a train heading into a crash. The book really keeps you guessing about who Rachel is. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of domestic thrillers, I highly recomend that you check out this book, which is available now!

The book begins with a family dinner. Charlie and his husband Matthew sit down with their 15-year-old son, Titus. Rachel joins them at the table and shortly after Matthew is stabbed to death in his seat at the dinner table. Rachel, holding the bloody knife, calls the police and confesses to the murder. This book kept me guessing the whole way through. What a great twisty thriller I can't tell much more without giving away spoilers, but you will want to keep turning the pages to find out how Rachel fits into their lives. This character-driven domestic thriller is sure to keep you turning the pages well into the night.

I really enjoyed the overall plot of this book, and am a sucker for flashbacks and utilizing different times of the character's life to build anticipation of "the event". The main characters, Matthew, Rachel, Charlie, and Titus, each had their own dynamic the reader was trying to figure out throughout the plot which made it a more interesting read. Every time a little nugget of information was shared with the reader, I stopped being able to put this book down. Foreshadowing is definitely a thing in this book, giving the reader an idea of what *might* come next.

I will say the only thing I did not like is the last few chapters of the book, I thought ending the book at the jail visit would have left it on a much better cliff-hanger, but it still found another one in the end!

Overall, I really enjoyed the pace, characters, and plot development of this book. Given this is a thriller, it is not one that kept me up at night, unless you consider finishing a book in the "wee" hours of the morning the case.

I just loved this book, all the way up to the conclusion. The alternating narrators and timeline keeps the story interesting, but the ending is not plausible based on the character development of the murderer. It felt very abrupt and unexpected, but not in a good way. I still give this book 4 stars because I enjoyed it thoroughly up to murderer's reveal.

An unusual and diverse thriller, "The Dinner Guest" by BP Walter kept me up reading all night with a fast plot and compelling characters. Following the murder of a much beloved husband, a quirky blended family (and their acquaintances) struggle to keep dark past secrets under wraps. Blending multiple POVs and time-lines, "The Dinner Guest" explores how love and hate can be two sides of the same coin.

For me, I enjoyed the gay husband couple with their adopted son that dominated this spooky novel. A wonderful, sweet family dynamic harbored dark secrets that threatened to kill--quiet literally. The most compelling part of this novel was the dynamic, complex characters. The characters' (especially Charlie, Matthew and Titus) personalities, lives, and motives felt extremely authentic and genuine. The characters living, breathing personalities made each revelation even more shocking and painful. While not particularly gruesome or disturbing, the realistic family and martial drama made the novel feel real and tangible. I could almost imagine this happening to someone I know.

This was such an enjoyable, slow-burn, character-driven domestic thriller full of unlikeable characters filled with secrets and revenge and a delicious twist. Loved it!
A huge thanks to Netgalley, Harper 360, and the author for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Stunning, slow burn of goodness. Two dads, newly angsty teen and a new Book Club friend. What an amazing thriller. I adored the ending too! Wow!!

Delightfully twisted! This thriller featured a cast of characters that readers will definitely be intrigued by. You’ll constantly ask yourself who the sinister character is, the one with a hidden agenda perhaps, or maybe someone with an unexpected connect to the past… highly recommend!

***3.75 Stars***

Four people are at dinner - Charlie, his husband, their son, and Rachel (a relative newcomer to the group) - and one ends up murdered.

That is the first page.

The following jumps back and forth to the year prior to the murder giving us their back stories and possible motives and to the immediate aftermath where the survivors are being interrogated by the police and how they are processing the death.

Charlie never liked Rachel. Everyone thinks he is being paranoid. Is he justified in his dislike? You’ll have to read to find out.

So many secrets. And what that does to you and your relationships.

I really liked this when I read it. This is my kind of beach read. Not to deep, but a also a page turner. Everything sort of works. I guess. I really liked what comes after the reveal. I thought that was super well done. Huge props for the LGBTQ representation.

But after I finished reading it and gave it some thought, I felt manipulated. Of course all books are manipulating you to an extent. But I didn’t like how I was manipulated here. I can’t really say more without spoiling the plot.

I would recommend this, but you can’t just think to hard about it.

Fast-paced and entertaining. A recommended purchase for collections where thrillers and domestic noir are popular.

thanks to Harper 360 for providing an arc through netgalley!

overall, i enjoyed it. i like a good mystery and have read a lot of them. i feel thats why i was able to figure out the reveal pretty early on but still a solid read if mystery is your thing!

Oh. My. Gosh! This was such a heart-pounding read that had me asking so many questions. I look forward to reading more by Walter and would recommend this book to anyone.

Very much enjoyed this book and the author's writing. One of the more gripping books I've read in a while, hard to put the book down! Makes me intrigued to read more by this author.

Manipulation rules in The Dinner Guest, where key characters live to hide their true personalities amid their wealth and pedigree. Reading groups will enjoy this story about what motivates people to act and to lie. Titus, the adopted son of married couple Charles and Matthew, is an original teenage character who uses the secrets he keeps to get his way. Then there is Rachel, who works her way into their lives to seek revenge for her brother's death. A good page-turning read.

this reminds me so much of a movie and I loved it even more. the suspense was incredible and It never felt slow or forced. I really enjoyed The Who dun it aspect and I never saw the ending coming. deff recommend.

Four people (Charlie, Matthew, Titus and Rachel) walked into the dining room that night. One would never leave.

The less you know before going into this book the better, that's how I went in. I enjoy books that take place over a short time period, it keeps a high-paced environment and stakes are raised. This book was fun to read and kept you gripped from beginning to end. I would definitely recommend this,

4 stars! The Dinner Guest is a thrilling whodunit that will keep you guessing until the end. Highly recommend!
Thank you to B.P. Walter, Harper 360, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The dinner is planned to be served to table of four! One is down! Three of them left as murder suspects! So many questions, so many secrets, so many lies! Get ready to expect the unexpected! This unputdownable, addictive, mind blowing thriller makes you sweat, sit at the edge, tingle your nerves! It’s truly agitating but you cannot stop reading because it’s so exciting, surprising, twisty! Especially the last third of the book: it turns into wilder ride, things get messier, crazier! I hope your heart can handle this whirlwind adrenaline rush! But I’m telling you my friends it’s truly worth it! It’s not only one of the best psychological thrillers about betrayal, addiction, anger management, revenge, it is also objective criticism of class differences and the prejudiced observations of privileged people about the lower classes! I devoured this read I give it five stars.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review*

Gripping, totally enjoyable thriller! I would recommend this to anyone who likes a good slow burn thriller.

A book that grabs a reder from page one and keeps the story moving quickly through the end. There were a few clues that hinted at different endings but WOW, watch the reveal come quickly out of nowhere and surprise the heck out of all of us.

What a freaking ride! I loved this book! I thought going into it that it was going to be another story of a dinner party gone wrong that is somewhat predictable. Boy was I wrong! I loved just about everything with this book…the twists, the elitism, the family drama, the extremely disturbing and graphic torturing scene. This one knocked it out of the park for me!

Charlie and Matthew, seemed like the perfect couple. They had good careers, a beautiful home and a wonderful son. They had their differences but they worked through them. They had friends and family nearby and by all accounts their lives were full. Too full according to Charlie but Matthew disagreed. Particularly, Charlie was not happy with the book club. Especially when Matthew added a new member. A woman he met at the grocery store. Charlie didn’t know anything about Rachel but he knew he didn’t like herS didn’t like her around her husband or her son. One night at dinner he realized, how right he was. Rachel had a knife, his husband was dead and his son was watching it all. What in the world went wrong? What secrets led to the murder? Could Charlie protect him and his son? What lies had Matthew told? This was a good mystery. Suspenseful at times. I enjoyed the characters and the plot. This was a quick read for me. It was 4 stars..I want to thank Netgalley and B.P. Walter for my copy of The Dinner Guest, for an honest review. It was my pleasure to read & review this book. I hope you enjoy it as well..