Everyone's welcome. But not everyone leaves.

Nick and Amber are splitting up and trying to sell their house. But for some reason, the house isn't moving, and it's unclear why. The realtor convinces Amber to have an open house to attract potential buyers, and she agrees even though she's uncomfortable with the idea. She watches the visitors enter the house through her doorbell camera. Thirteen enter but only twelve leave. The tag line and blurb grabbed me, making me think someone was killed in the process of the open house. But this wasn't the case at all. A far more convoluted, confusing story was at play in this thriller.

The author did well creating a feeling of suspense and urgency, but I struggled with most of the book being Amber's repetitive internal dialogue. It’s a lot of telling vs showing; there’s not a lot of imagery built up.

Things started off well giving a few options to who is causing Amber's angst. But too many additional characters were later brought in, making things overcomplicated and confusing. Early on I figured out the critical aspects of the plot. In the end, this was a "beach read" thriller without a lot of true thriller substance.

An enjoyable fast read. Interesting story and likable characters . An Open House is held. 13 go in but only 12 come out. It kept me reading all day.
thanks NetGalley for the ARC copy. I found a new author to read more from.

Oh my goodness I was so wrong about this wonderful book. At first I thought that I knew who was doing what and I wondered how the main character Amber couldn’t see who was doing these things to her and her family. But, as I got halfway through the book I realised that I was completely wrong and I started to wonder if if was someone else. It wasn’t until near the end of the book that I found out who was doing everything. I loved all the twists and turns and I devoured this book very quickly. Wonderful, I wish I could give this book more than five stars. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

This book is a riveting read right up to the ending....but then it goes off the rails! Without giving too much away I think the ending is just too far out of the realm of believability. Still for the most part it was very entertaining. I will definitely read more by this author as she apparently has a great imagination.

Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion.

by Sam Carrington

(TW for the end)

Amber is desperate to sell her house, but for some reason, it is taking a very long time. Her estate agent holds an open house to try and speed up the sale. But then strange things start happening around the house. Soon, things start spiraling out of control.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book goes completely bonkers, and I love it. I did figure out one of the twists at one point, but there were so many at the end that they almost made up for it. A terrible analogy I came up with is one of those machines where you drop a marble or penny or whatever into a slot, and it goes in slow circles around the container. As it gets closer and closer to the center, the circle becomes faster and faster until it drops in the middle. Then once it’s done, another object hits it or falls on top of it.

This book wasn’t the best-written thriller I’ve ever read, mostly because some of the dialogue is a little unnatural, but I didn’t want to put the book down. I was hooked from the beginning.

I’m giving this book four stars. It will be published on December 10.

(EDIT: NetGalley says 12/10/2020, but B&N says 1/28/2006, so it’s available.)

I really enjoyed this book.

Compelling reading, I gobbled it up in two days.

Nothing is certain, no one is blameless and not everyone is who they appear to be.

Sam Carrington is a brilliant writer, I will certainly read more of her books.

When Amber and Nick split up, they have to sell the family home so Amber and the children can move away and start their new life with her new partner. They put the house on the market with a local estate agent but it’s slow going with very little interest. The agent has a key and suggests holding an open house, but Amber isn’t too keen at the thought of nosy neighbours mooching around her home while she’s in work. She comes up with the idea of watching her door camera through her phone to see who attends while she’s in work but when she sees one less person leave than went in, that’s when the fun starts!

When mysterious things start happening around the house, she is convinced someone is still in the house.

This really is the definition of a thriller, you will end up checking under your bed at night! I’ve already recommended this to friends, and am pretty sure this will fly up the charts!

A diverting and entertaining read, if not particularly ground-breaking. If you've read psychological/domestic thrillers before, you know what you are in for here. But I was still eager to find out what happened next. There's plenty of good twists and turns to keep you guessing.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon books for the ARC of this book.

What a mystery, an excellently executed thriller.

This novel is told via three points of view, Amber, her annoying mother-in-law (who appears to mean well), and an unknown - creepy - person.

Amber appears to be the main character. She has recently split up from her husband and is now looking to sell their house and relocate to Kent, where her knew partner lives.

All sounds quite simple doesn't it.

But after an open house viewing of her home where she's sure that thirteen people entered but only twelve left, things start moving/going missing within the home. This then leads Amber starts to question things, the people around her and even herself.

Is she crazy for thinking that she can't even trust her realtor?

I'd describe The Open House as a slow burner.

As the story progressed I found myself questioning who the guilty party really was.

The realtor, her mother in law, or even her ex?

Even though the pace was slow, it was well thought out and I loved how many twists and turns there were. The ending left me with my mouth wide open. One of those 'Oh My God' moments where you can't quite believe what you've read.

Gripping and devious.

Sam Carrington is a new author to me but I'll definitely be reading more from this author now.

Amber and her detective husband Nick are separating and she plans to move with their two boys to join her new partner whom she met on line. They live in Nick’s family home and the sale is upsetting her mother-in-law, Barb, apparently because she doesn’t want to lose her grandsons but perhaps it’s all more complicated than that. The house doesn’t sell and an open day which Amber views by camera starts a series of suspicions. Thirteen people enter the house but only twelve seem to leave. That directs suspicion at the estate agent but it becomes evident gradually that there is much more being hidden and that Barb has more concerns than just losing the grandsons. The story is well told and the revelations come gradually. That leaves the reader with a serious need to reach the end! This is a cleverly devised story and the characters are well drawn. I recommend it.

What a book , full of suspense and characters you just love . This got me hooked right from the start very eerie and strange , one of the best books Ive read for a while. I semi guessed the ending but still a few twists I didn’t see coming . Definitely work read , loved it

If you like domestic thrillers then check out The Open House. It's made up of pacy, short chapters from the viewpoints of three of the characters who drip feed the important details of the bigger story, though it feels like there's a lot more going on than Amber, the main character, is aware of. A series of small unnerving events & creepy goosebump moments lead you to a very quick conclusion. This would be my one criticism, after a tense build up the action ended in just a few pages & left me questioning Amber.

Nick and Amber Miller’s marriage has come to an end. The two agree that selling the marital home that rests in a desirable Devon neighborhood will be the best. Their real estate agent sets everything up and plans an open house in hopes of getting more people interested. There is one person who is not happy with the agreement. Nick’s mother feels that her grandchildren should be raised in the home that they have known their whole lives, and she is willing to do anything to stop it. The day of the open house arrives and things seem to be going smoothly. That is until they tally up the numbers and realize that someone came in but never left. This is a psychological thriller that had me up late into the night reading because I could not rest until I figured it out. When I finished though, I did not see the ending play out the way I thought it was. The writer tricked me and did an amazing job at it. The author does a great job at bringing the suspense out while we see Amber change when she feels that someone is watching her. This is a gripping mystery that starts out a little slow but turns up the suspense pretty quickly. This authors writing skills are up there with Lynwood Barclay and Peter Swanson.

Thank you to netgalley as well as the author/publisher for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

I found this book easy to read and quickly got involved with the characters. Fast paced with plenty of twists and turns and an unexpected ending. I did feel towards the end that there were just too many convolutions which made it less believable. I’d certainly look for other books by this author.

Well I didn't know what to expect, it was a great read. The ending was a bit strange and so I just decided to go with it, there were other examples in the book which I struggled with but again the overall story was enough to keep me interested and wanting to finish.

Will be investigating other books by this author as overall a good read.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley in exchange for an honest and fair review which I have done so.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and Avon Publishers UK in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the idea of this book, unfortunately it didn't quite hit the mark for me. There were too many plot lines to follow and the ending was disappointing and seemed a little rushed.

I did, however, like the writing style and layout of the book. The characters were well rounded

This book looked so inviting. The cover really drew me in but it just wasn’t personally for me. I’m sure others will thoroughly enjoy it.

The Open House by Sam Carrington is a twisty tale of families, lies and lives that will leave you guessing even when you think you have it all figured out.
The story is engrossing with likable well written characters and a main character you can really feel for. The writing is well paced, though the repetition of certain story points made it drag a little in places.
I stayed up well into the night because I had to know what happened and I wasn't disappointed with the ending.

Would recommend it this for those looking to stay up late reading.
Grab this open book and take a tour of the story, but don't get left behind.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for the chance to read and review.

I found it hard to put the book down and it had lots of twists which kept me going. The story is set around Amber whose marriage is over. She has found a new partner and is due to uproot herself and two sons to Kent. There is a every annoying mother in law on the scene who sold the house to Amber and then husband. The house is marketed with many odd things and people drawn in to the story. At times part of the book was a little slow and padded.

Amber's marriage to Nick has failed and she has found a new beau; however he lives in Kent and she is in Devon, so she plans to uproot her young boys and move to Kent to be with him. So the house goes on the market. However, there is very little interest, possibly because of plans to develop the village and build lots more houses, ideally demolishing her present home and those around her. Her mother in law Barb is vociferous in campaigning for the homeowners not to sell to the developers.

So the stage is set. The tension builds as odd events happen - she believes someone is in the house, particularly after she watches 13 people entering for an 'open house' viewing, and only 12 appear to depart.

The story is complex, and has a number of strands. It keeps the tension high, and I was believing in it almost to the end. But at the end, as the strands are pulled together, it just stretched my credulity too far. Some points are glossed over, others are just not believable. So I found the ending quite disappointing and clumsy. A shame, it was a cracking read up to then.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.