Thank you to the publishers and netgalley for a copy of this audio book. At first, this didn’t catch my attention. I actually stopped listening for a couple of weeks and moved on to other books. But I didn’t want to leave this unfinished. And boy oh boy am I glad I picked it back up.

Juliette and Hugh live in a gorgeous estate. No heirs, Hugh gets to live there for life but won’t inherit. Out of the blood, his cousin arrives….the one who actually will inherit the property. What happens next are numerous twists and turns. Some you could see but still fun to experience.

I thought this book was well-written and the narrator did a wonderful job with the material but I do not find that this book stayed with me after reading it. Engaging while reading though..

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first audiobook from NetGalley. Juliette has a comfortable life married to art dealer and owner of family estate Mullens end. Normality is well and truly disturbed when distant cousin Alexis turns up on the doorstep looking at what her eventual inheritance may be. One through the door, it becomes obvious that Alexis has no intention of leaving…

Told from multiple perspectives there really were so many twists and turns and sub plots! I thoroughly enjoyed the book, but I really disliked the narrator. She didn’t fit the age profile of the characters, sounding very much older and making every character sound like they were about to say “jolly hockey sticks” or walk out of an Enid Blyton book.

Thoroughly enjoyable (just read the book not the audio book!). Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy.

I wish this title stuck with me more than it did. It was okay while listening, but I draw a complete blank after the fact.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this fantastic book! I really enjoyed this one. The central plot revolves around a long lost family member- something that I think is very prevalent today with DNA websites and companies reuniting families. This one kept me on the edge of my seat and I really enjoyed the multiple POVs and unreliable narrators. I thought the author did a great job of building the characters. The audiobook is enjoyable with a great narrator. I would recommend this to anyone who loves suspense or thrillers

One warning - beware of who you let into your home (even if they claim to be a long-lost relative).

The main characters in this novel are: married couple Hugh and Juliet who live in a mansion that’s been in Hugh’s family for generations. Belinda, a close family friend, and Alexis, who claims she is Hugh’s third cousin.

Alexis seemingly shows up at Hugh and Juliet's doorstep one day and asks to spend some time with her family while waiting to get settled. However, she over welcomes her stay and begins to cause problems among the married couple.

Murder, betrayal, and deceit. All recipes for disaster and all included in this story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture Audio for my ARC!

The House Guest
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Alison James

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Bookouture Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: I let her into my home. And now she’s destroying my life…

I open the creaking oak front door of my beautiful country house to see a stranger on my doorstep. The woman is stunning with glossy red hair and flawless make up. ‘Can I help you?’ I ask.

That was my first mistake.

Alexis tells me she is a distant relative and shows me a DNA match on her phone. She has no family and would love to get to know us. My husband Hugh invites her in to join our dinner party. As we drink wine, she opens up about her sad childhood. Her amber eyes are mesmerising and I can see my husband is being drawn in by her story. Then she asks for our help.

Saying yes was the second mistake.

As Alexis and Hugh spend time together, swimming in our luxurious pool and playing tennis in the sunshine, my husband grows distant and the deep cracks in our relationship begin to show. And when our house guest gets me to open up about my marital problems, I start to wonder why she’s really here.

And then I discover a secret about Alexis that makes my blood run cold.

Am I being paranoid? Or will inviting Alexis into our home destroy my marriage? And is it too late to get rid of her, before she puts our lives in danger…?

My Thoughts: This was a great psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. When someone shows up on your doorstep claiming to be a distant cousin, beware. Hugh and Juliet Mullen is having a dinner party when Alexis shows up unexpectedly at the doorstep because she would like to know them and provides proof of a DNA match. Alexis requests to stay while she is waiting on her apartment to be finished, which Hugh agrees to. The magnificent family estate is named Mullins End. Then things, strange things, begin to happen at the estate. This thriller contains secrets, betrayals, greed, lies, and twists. This was a slow burn but the ending was so worth it.

The story is narrated in a four different POVs, each being their own protagonist with a different persepctive. The narrators are unreliable and you do not know who you can trust. The multiple narrators is necessary, as each character builds entanglement to the web of the story. As the story moves along, it strays away from a slow burn into a fast-paced read. The characters were well developed with depth, mystery, intriguing, and each were authentically created, you may not like all of the characters, but you can understand them. The author’s writing style was complex, multilayered, suspenseful, twisty, and absolutely engaging. The characters are built up in the beginning of the chapters, the plot is delivered in twisty layers and subplots begin to develop, and the ending is another twisty surprise.

The narrator does an amazing job at voice variation, tone, and setting the stage. The narrator really brings the characters from the page to my mind, playing like a movie. The narrator has a way with character voices, even when there are multiple voices, you have no problem keeping up with who is who. This psychological thriller that is compelling, gripping, captivating, and will keep you engaged. I have read a lot of thrillers and this is the most unique premise I have read. I highly recommend picking up the audiobook, it is a shorter listen at under 8 hours.

This really had me from the get-go but I thought the ending was just kind of lackluster. I would have liked a little more suspense and drama. I thought it was a really good concept and moved pretty quickly. I do wish the characters had been a bit more developed though to add some tension between their relationships. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’m honestly mixed on this book. I thought it was well written and the narrator did a fantastic job. Where it goes wrong is the predictability. I knew I wasn’t supposed to trust the theoretical relative from the moment she showed up at their front door. Nothing seemed super shocking in the end.

I liked the sound of this book and the blurb certainly appealed to me. I read it quite quickly and it was quite an entertaining read. However I struggled to like any of the characters as they’re all rich snobby people and I couldn't relate to them at all.

This is only my second audio book, but I loved it. It was such a nice book to zone into while doing a mindless task (like cleaning). A few twsits happened and physically had my jaw drop.

At first, the book seems like a boring story. Long lost family member coming in and creating havoc, all that. This book though? NOTHING like I expected! It's 10× better!

Each twist builds till the end and you just cant guess the last 20% of the book, let me tell you. Its a wild ride till the end and its such a good one.

For the first book of Alison's I've read, I'm a fan.

This is a good domestic suspense thriller, which I enjoyed. The story is about a woman called Juliette whose husband is Hugh. They live in a nice luxury house, and have a nice life. A woman called Alexis comes to see them after telling them she is a distant relative. What is her motive and what does she want? Is there something sinister going on?

The audiobook narrator Jan Cramer was perfect for this role, and she did a great job. I love listening to her in Angela Marsons' books, so it felt like being visited by an old friend. Highly recommended!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

Alison James has the ability to write stories that get me hooked.
Hugh and Juliet, live in a mansion that’s been in Hugh’s family for generations.
When Alexis suddenly turns up she claims to be Hugh’s third cousin and decides to stay with Hugh and Juliet for some time. Somehow they slide into this and that's how they end up with a special house guest.
But Alexis isn't the the most pleasant guest and soon troubles start all over.
Tension builds up and it gave me a creepy feeling at times.

Thank you #NetGalley #Bookouture Audio for this audiobook narrated by Jan Cramer

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I was blown away by the narration on this book! Even though it’s only a single narrator, she seamlessly covers multiple main characters points of view and I always knew who was speaking! The story really blew me away! I’m the kind of person that usually thinks three or four moves ahead, sometimes making things more complex in my mind than what happens in the book, but not this time! Every time I thought I knew exactly where it was headed, it switched course and threw me off guard! I would definitely recommend to anyone who likes psychological thrillers with unreliable narrators!

The House Guest is a thriller told from multiple points of view. I really enjoy reading thrillers, but this book was a bit frustrating. When characters continue to make bad decisions, I just want to throw the book out the window. It was also hard to connect to any of the very unlikeable characters.

This is my first book by Alison James and it's likely that I will try another book even if this one didn't quite do it for me. I see promise, but I think this was just the wrong book for me.

The House Guest by Alison James and narrated by Jan Cramer was an excellent audio book / book it was full of brilliant twists and turns that had you sitting on the edge of your seat. WoW this audio book was so good! Once I started it, I found it hard to stop - so glad I had a full battery on my phone! which made it a completely unputdownable psychological thriller that had a shocking twist.

All Alison's books have always been a brilliant read and the way she writes is just amazing especially as she has a way of drawing you in and all the characters of every book have been excellent and perfect.
Alison's books are magical in every way and so believable!

The narrator Jan Cramer was excellent as well and bought this book to life.

I highly recommend this book and a great holiday read. 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read.

Big thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author Alison James in exchange for an honest review.

Very entertaining with lots of unexpected twists and turns. Thanks for the opportunity to listen to the netgalley audio. I enjoyed it and woukd recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to listen to a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

I was hooked on this book from the minute I started listening to it till about 80 percent through, and then the storyline went in an odd direction. I didn’t care for the ending in the book even though the rest of it was really well done it felt like the author had run out of out twists and ideas and couldn’t think of a proper twisty ending so just grabbed an ending.

The narrator did a really good job, I enjoyed listening to her and her cadence and tone was really good

Overall a pretty good book I just didn’t care for the ending. There were lots of twists and turns.

Man Alexis was just a total bag of dicks! This was my 1st book by Allison James but not my last, I am adding her books to my TBR! This was good read but a bit triggering for me since Alexis was so rude.

#TheHouseGuest
#NetGalley

The book also dealt with some intriguing themes, such as identity, family, and justice. The story was fast-moving and full of surprises, keeping me interested until the end. The only thing that I did not like was the ending, which seemed hurried and disappointing. I wished there was more explanation and satisfaction for the main characters. I would suggest this book to anyone who enjoys thrillers, mysteries, and dramas. It was a captivating and enjoyable read.