An alright book that was entertaining however is unlikely to live long in my memory and was predictable.

An interesting premise and made me question a lot. Laila is an interesting protagonist and turns out to be someone you root for.

This was a slow burning domestic thriller the story features a lot of secrets and kids and shock revelations and focuses on two of the main characters who have gone on a five star holiday to the white sands resort to try and work out where their marriage is going wrong and then the holiday takes a turn when unexpected events happens the resort and how events of the past come to light to shape the future.

This story makes you question if everyone is as they seem and if you were reading asa holiday read would make you second guess all of the other guest around the pool and what they are capable of.

A body is found in the pool at a holiday resort. I loved the multiple POV that has you guessing throughout who done it. With all the guests having something to hide and a possible motive. Really enjoyed my first heidi perks book and definitely will not be my last.

Rating: 2.1/5

This is my second experience of Heidi Perks' work, having previously read and enjoyed "The Whispers". Unfortunately, "The Other Guest" was not as much to my liking. Although this appears to be positioned as a mystery thriller, I would say that it is actually far more akin to a family drama for the most part.

The story is set in a high-end holiday resort on a Greek island, though I can't honestly say that I ever felt the essence of that location was captured in the writing. The pace of the novel is decidedly pedestrian and although there is an unexplained death early in the piece, it does little to inject any great energy into the narrative. The story is told predominantly from two perspectives: Firstly, that of Laila, who is holidaying with her husband, James, and secondly from the viewpoint of Em, the mother of the teenager whose dead body has been discovered. Neither of these two characters are particularly endearing, nor engaging. Em's behaviour frequently struck me as unconvincing, as someone who has just lost a young son in sudden and dramatic circumstances. Laila did little to make me warm to her and struck me as something of a narcissist, who felt that everybody around her should accommodate her needs and wants.

Overall, "The Other Guest" certainly isn't awful, but nor is it likely to live long in the memory.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

This book was a slow burn it took me a while to get through! It keeps you guessing throughout however it’s quite flat.

Laila & James are on holiday following a stressful few years which we find out quite early on is to do with an unsuccessful IVF journey, I empathised with Laila and the times her envious nature crept in. I did however find the references to her ex boyfriend when looking at a 15 year old boy quite odd!!

Em is on holiday with her husband and 2 sons, when tragedy strikes where will her loyalties lie.

A thriller this was not.

I did however enjoy the setting & description of the hotel.

Thanks to penguin random house and netgalley for a digital arc of this book.

This book sounded quite intriguing from the synopsis but I found it a bit slow paced for me and although it was well written, there wasn't much depth to the story and I felt a bit underwhelmed by the ending. The built up of tension at the start, from the different characters was interesting. Wondering who had killed Isaac and why had me captivated.
I thought Laila's obsessive people watching behaviour started to get annoying rather than interesting. It was a shame as this book has lots of potential, it just needed to add some background details to each character and the book seemed to end so abruptly, I was left feeling cheated. I would say that with a bit more character detail and maybe a better ending this book would be great Just not enough for me, sorry.

I loved this author’s previous novels, and was exhilarated to read this book! The setting is lush as befitting a novel set on a dream holiday, with many seedy secrets lying beneath the surface. An excellent read!

This was a good story which was let down by an underwhelming ending. The tension at the beginning was great, trying to figure out who was most likely to die and I have to say that I was surprised when I found out. I thought Laila's obsessive behaviour started to spiral from this point and she began to irritate me. I don't think I really liked any of the characters to be honest. Then the end of the book seemed too abrupt and I was left feeling cheated. It was an ok book but not great.

I had such high hopes for this book, as it sounded really intriguing plus it had the added bonus of being set on an idyllic island. However, this just wasn’t the book for me. I found the pace dragged, and the tone of writing bored me. The main character really wasn’t my cup of tea, and I found her inner narrative didn’t make sense a lot of the time.

James and Laila visit the upmarket White Sands Resort, to reconnect after 5 failed IVF attempts.
Laila enjoyed people watching whilst relaxing by the pool.
Em and Rob, other guests at the resort, enjoying a family holiday with their teenage sons, whilst Rosie and her partner are on honeymoon there.
On one of Laila’s early morning walks she sees the hotel staff trying to get the body of one of Em’s sons out of the pool.
Was it an accident, was it murder, what are people hiding?
I very much enjoyed reading this book. Heidi Perks wrote the chapters from different characters perspective. Slowly, as secrets and events get revealed, you switch from innocence to reason for murder. At the end of the story the author lets the reader know how the characters move on from the holiday, very clever. I could not put the book down..
A very clever story with lots of twists and turns that keep the reader guessing

I was left somewhat underwhelmed by this book. I usually really enjoys this author’s books and this one started promisingly.

I was expecting a thriller and this just wasn’t it. The storyline is good and there are lots of twists and surprises along the way but the ending was just not a thriller!

Without wanting to give any spoilers it is hard to explain but I just felt we spent the whole book waiting for the killer to be uncovered and the truth was (spoiler alert!)……… there isn’t really one…

Still a good read but just not a typical thriller for me. An interesting look at relationships but the ending was underwhelming.

This is definitely my favourite book by Heidi Perks and I've loved all of them. A perfect escape read, beautiful setting and nicely written. A summer murder mystery mixed with domestic suspense. Highly recommended xx

A suspenseful thriller that races along, and keeps you guessing until the very end. Beautifully written, with heartbreaki rubbing shoulders with mystery. Couldn’t put it down.

This is a very good summer read, with an array of very different characters. Laila and her husband are on holiday in an expensive and lovely location when a tragic incident occurs. Laila much to her husband's displeasure has spent most of her time people watching and feels that she knows who is responsible. There are many twists and turns some involving previous relationships before the truth finally emerges. A good storyline with great characterisation.

Disappointed with this book. I normally enjoy Heidi Perks’ books but this one wasn’t her best. Very slow, irritating main character and too unbelievable for me.

Took me a while to read this one, i just couldn't get into it. In saying that i enjoyed the ending when i thought if finally picked up. Just a bit of a slow read for me.

An enjoyable read. The story started slowly but I really got into it. I was expecting a real climax but it was more of a gentle explanation. Despite that I did enjoy the book and will look out for more of the author's work.
This is an honest review of a complementary ARC.

This is a great read, digested it in one sitting! Such an easy book to follow, and did not want to put it down!

Being completely honest, I didn’t know who had committed the murder. Along the journey of this very intense (page turning) book, I did suspect several individuals, but I didn’t know which of the contrary evidence would convict them, so I changed theories several times.
This story surrounds families on holiday, in a hotel on an island they cannot easily leave. he boat doesn't run every day. Our main character (and the story is told from several different points of view) is keeping several large secrets from her husband. By complete coincidence, he’s keeping secrets from his wife, but neither knows the other’s secrets for a long time.
One visitor’s son dies in the pool and quite quickly several of the guests provide alibis that fall apart as the novel continues to weave it’s way until the final outcome. Everyone know more than they're saying.
Having enjoyed this story, I’ll be sure to read more by this author. I found the reasons why things happened became clearer as the pages turned.