You can always rely on B.A.Paris for a twisty, gripping psychological thriller and The Guest is another one that will certainly not disappoint.
Extremely well narrated with short, sharp chapters, some intriguing characters and plot twists and then a mighty long epilogue to wrap it all up. Highly recommended.
I am grateful to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced listener copy of this audiobook.

I loved BA Paris’s first book, Behind Closed Doors, so I was really looking forward to this one, although I was listening as an audio book. When Laure, their Parisian friend, takes up residence in their house while they are away, Iris and Gabriel welcome her and say she can stay for a few weeks until she can patch things up with Pierre, her husband still in France. Gabriel is on sick leave from work, having had several stresses in his personal life, including hearing the final words of a young lad as he died in the quarry. When Iris makes friends with new people in the village, and takes on their handsome gardener to help Gabriel, problems begin. Laure seems intent on not moving out, The gardener seems to turn too many heads and more people start dying.
The final chapter, of some 35 minutes compared to 5 minutes of other chapters, seemed to be a synopsis of the book, explaining everything. I found all of the characters to be fairly wet and unlikeable and would have liked revelations throughout the book, rather than have everything explained in the epilogue. I did enjoy the narration, although thought the voice used for the gardener was a bit silly.

The Guest earns three stars, with an additional star for the excellent narration. While the initial promise and intrigue engaged me, the slow pace and increasing implausibility became a source of frustration. Unfortunately, the ending also fell short, leaving me with a sense of being cheated. One thing is for sure - I'm not in a hurry to delve into B.A. Paris's next book.

My first thriller in a while given
I’ve been living in a world of fantasy over the last month or so.
I really enjoyed the story - the short chapters at the beginning really brought out the urgency even when things weren’t really going fast.
The epilogue was exceedingly long and felt like it could be 5 chapters on its own.
I would recommend but not sure I’d reread now I’ve had the twist - still shockingly good!

Emily Joyce was a perfect pick for the audiobook!

I was immediately hooked in to this domestic thriller, enthralled in the brilliance of the woven conversational storyline that crafted an excellent story. Iris and Laure intrigued me, a fantastic friendship seemingly becoming strained by a little too much time together. Gabriel’s character was lovely, also very well written, and I empathised easily with him. The story is carefully paced and intricately arranged in a way that kept the pace and suspense throughout while still being easy to follow and enjoy. This along with the twist that I didn’t not see coming and a beautiful narration made for a very easy 5 star 🌟 review. #Jorecommends

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in return for an honest review.

Another amazing psychological thriller by this author I loved it. Fabulous characters, loved the narration & I did not see that twist coming!

When Iris and Gabriel arrive back early from their holiday, something seems very strange about the house. Then their friend Laure appears, she has had a huge argument with her husband Pierre and has left Paris to stay at theirs whilst they are away.

Whilst intending to take a break, Laure will not talk about anything other than the subject of Pierre and makes herself very at home, borrowing Iris clothes and rearranging things. Soon things begin to get tense within the house; Iris and Gabriel are too polite to tell her to leave and Gabriel is dealing with his own problems after finding a boy dead in the nearby quarry some months earlier. When they meet a new couple in the village, they begin to get some peace, but the new couple come with their own problems.

A great suspense filled thriller with many twists and turns, just when you begin to get to grips with what you think may have happened, some thing new emerges! I really enjoyed this book, it kept me engaged throughout and I didn't guess what had happened at all which I like. I also really appreciated the way it was laid bare in the epilogue.

The narrator was great and worked really well with this style of book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐+⭐
The Guest by B.A. Paris, an audiobook narrated by Emily Joyce is a good, so good gripping suspense thriller with jaw-dropping twists! Seriously!? I just could not believe it! I don't know what I thought would come, I don't think that I expected anything to come at all as everything was wrapping up so well, and then - BOOM! It was so clever! I think there was everything you wanted in a good psychological thriller!

When Iris and Gabriel returned from their Scotland trip they didn't expect to meet Laure in their house. Laure comfortably took over the house and soon Iris realized that she was not rushing to leave! It's hard for Iris as she wants to be with Gabriel to help ease his trauma but all that happens is the opposite and Iris feels how Gabriel emotionally slips away. Things get challenging. When you think you know your friends - do you really know them? Can you trust your friends, old or new? Can you trust anyone? Sometimes you need to learn your answers in hard way!

Emily Joyce made this listening journey so enjoyable! Sometimes I felt I lost the world around me and all that was left was me and the characters...

When I saw that I was receiving this advance copy I screamed as I could not believe how lucky I was! And I was correct - this is one more talented, twisted, suspenseful thriller full of secrets and lies! This goes straight to my 6-star shelf!
Thank you, NetGalley, thank you, Hodder & Stoughton, and thank you B.A. Paris for this fantastic book!
(Expected Publication Date 20 Feb 2024)

I always enjoy BA Paris's books, they are suspenseful and gripping, although nothing will compare to Behind Closed Doors for me, she is a must read author with every book released.

This one was a slow burn but weaved full of intrigue. Iris and Gabriel are having trouble in their marriage and when they return from a trip away, they find a surprise guest staying in their home, their old friend, Laure. She has had the rug pulled out from her feet, having been told her husband has fathered a child she had no knowledge of, meaning he has had an affair.

Laure is clingy and overbearing and soon Iris and Gabriel start to feel a little encroached on.

In another plot string, Gabriel is struggling after witnessing a youth falling to his death from a quarry path, in which he hasn't told the whole truth to his wife.

The two stories tie together quite nicely with secrets being revealed along the way. It was nicely narrated and I didn't guess the outcome.

I have read a B. A. Paris book before and quite enjoyed it. Several of this author’s books have been recommended to me, but I haven’t got round to reading them. I took the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of the audiobook, which will be published on 20th February 2024. Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton UK Audio and NetGalley for my copy.

Initially, I found it a little hard to keep track of the characters in this book as it follows three couples but once I got a handle on who was who it was fine.

Iris and Gabriel are having trouble in their marriage and when they return from a make or break holiday, they find a surprise guest. Their old friend, Laure, has decided to stay as she is also having trouble in her marriage and has split from her husband. Laure is quite overbearing and Iris and Gabriel feel like she’ll never leave.
Gabriel is struggling after witnessing a youth falling to his death from a quarry path, but what is Gabriel hiding?
Iris isn’t as innocent as she seems, and there are many secrets revealed as the book goes on.

The narration was good, pleasant to listen to and clear. However I wonder if it would have benefitted from a male and female narrator?

I felt the plot was a bit far fetched at times, but I still wanted to find out what was going on and I was interested in the story. I didn’t really like any of the characters and they felt a bit flat at times. I think it was because there was quite a number of them.

Overall, I quite liked the story but it didn’t blow me away.

I listened to this book as an audio book and felt the narrator was superb. Each character was made real with the voices she gave them.
The plot was unreal! The main story was so believable, I was sucked in from the very start. But the epilogue, that was anything level! I didn’t expect the after story story. Really enjoyed this - very cleverly crafted.

Thank you NetGalley for an early audiobook arc of The Guest

I’ve really enjoyed BA Paris previous books and was excited to read The Guest.
I enjoy her writing style and the short chapters. The guest will have a few characters that you will enjoy to loathe and I couldn’t wait to see how the drama would all unfold
The ending I wouldn’t have guessed and I was pleasantly surprised. I would have liked a bit more from the ending but enjoyed how all the loose ends were wrapped up!

Love this author! WOW! If this isn't a book to brag about I don't know what is... I started it late last night. Never did I anticipate I would be closing the book at 3am left in complete shock... This book was insane! It was twisted, it was gripping but it was so darn good!

The audiobook narrator was great so I recommend listening to this novel if you have any interest!

Thank you Netgalley and B A Paris for the audio ARC of The Guest.

I devoured this in one day! One of the first books I've read of B A Paris but have often seen readers rave about her books, I really liked the way the books laid out. A snippet of the story as a prologue, a bit of drama and a cliff hanger to pique your interest. The narrative was well paced from one main character, Iris in 3rd person POV. Ive not come across a book with a longish prologue ( not sure if this is BA Paris' usual style ) and I really liked it as a good wrap up to the story itself. The Guest had a good number of twists and turns and come good foreshadowing. So if you listen and pick them up, you will figure out the sinister character.

I'll be looking out for more of Paris' books

3.75 stars rounded to 4