This book read like an Agatha Christie locked room mystery with a modern twist. The ‘locked room’ being the loch guest house where Nicola, her partner and son find themselves having to spend the evening after a mistake in the booking at their planned hotel.

The guest house owners are acting strange and take away their phones on arrival and tell them no one can go out after 9 and lock the doors.

The tension in the guest house is heightened when Nicola, a police officer learns the history of the place. 10 years ago that night, the then owner was murdered along with all the guests and then Nicola’s young son George goes missing.

As Nicola and the other guests search for him, more of the story of the night of the murders is revealed. Alongside the main narrative from Nicola and her partner Matt is a narrative from Elita, daughter of the murdered owner who has been kept hidden since that night in the walls of the guest house and weaved throughout is a true crime
podcast transcript whose relevance to the main story is revealed towards the end.

Well plotted with interesting characters. Interesting idea and enjoyable read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Embla Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest thriller by Caroline Mitchell. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

DI Alex McKenna, her partner, Matt, and her young son, George, head to the Isle of Skye for the weekend. Matt's plans for a romantic weekend to see the aurora borealis soon turns into a nightmare when they discover that their hotel has double booked. They check into the only hotel with rooms available nearby - The Loch House. With a very sordid past and reputation, things feel wrong from the beginning when the proprietors take away their phones and present them with a list of rules. Then the snow comes and they are trapped.

I really liked the way this story played out - we hear from multiple POV as well as transcripts from a true crime podcast. As the plot proceeded, the podcast filled in the back stories in a way that felt very natural. There were many creepy characters, as well as the creepy house itself, that left me chilled, and you won't know who you can trust. Add a storm to a locked-room mystery and you have yourselves a great read! Another winner by Caroline Mitchell!

Did your controlling boyfriend bring you to see the Northern Lights only to find your perfect room was reserved for the wrong days? Di’d you then go to the ONLY place with rooms available? Did that place have a bunch of weird rules to keep you locked in and isolated? Oh, and was this place once the crime scene of a horrific and unsolved massacre? The bad luck and bad decisions characters seem to make slowly unwind a bigger crime. The author has a way of letting you take all of the clues and details and unravel the story on your own. The only let down was the “podcast” wrapup at the end. I know it is the latest craze to put murder podcasts into books. And I love ppodcasts, true or otherwise. It’s a little bit weird for those of us old enough to have been listening to and viewing (Yes, viewing!) podcast for decades. I may just be tired of that. The rest was a great day of reading.

Caroline Mitchell is the Queen of eerie, atmospheric thrillers and this latest novel doesn't disappoint. When DC Nicola McKenna is whisked off by her boyfriend, alongside her son, for a relaxing weekend on the Isle of Skye, it is just what she needs after the stress of previous cases. However, things go awry as soon as they arrive and discover their room has been double booked. The only place available to stay is The Lock House with its long list of rules ams strange atmosphere. No mobile phones, no leaving your room after 9pm...it certainly doesn't emit relaxing vibes. When her son goes missing on the first evening, it is the beginning of the panic and fright. The secrets of the house and the people inside carry a dark energy and Nicola wonders whether any of them will survive the weekend. To add to the unsettling thrills, we get the pov of previous occupants as well as a murder podcast. Fabulously thrilling. #thelastguesthouse #carolinemitchell #netgalley #embla

Rules, rules, rules, you must obey the rules! But will following the rules be enough????? Caroline Mitchell has delivered another thrilling and gripping book about a weekend gone awry! This creepy and eerie book was full of atmosphere, tension, and a bunch of quirky characters!

DI Alex McKenna, her boyfriend, Matt and her six-year-old son, George were hoping to be enjoying a lovely weekend at a hotel on the Isle of Skye to see the aurora borealis. When they arrive at the hotel, they learn that there is a booking mix up and there are no rooms left. It's late, it’s snowing, they are grumpy, and in need of a place to stay. The receptionist finds them a room at "The Loch House." From the eccentric and odd owners to the peeling wallpaper, rules, and doors that lock from the inside, something does not feel right...


I love that 'trapped' feeling in books. Add that trapped feeling to snow piling up with no way to leave, and I'm in every single time! Plus, the rules! Some are reasonable such as no smoking in the rooms or loud music. That makes sense and I'm on board with that. But no phones and no leaving after 9 p.m., yeah, I'm not feeling those rules. Seems very restrictive and concerning. Alex felt the same way that I did about these rules. Then there is the ten-years-ago-something-horrific-happened-here revelation that propels the creepy vibe in this book into overdrive.

The description of Dorothy, one of the owners, had me thinking of Bette Davis in "What ever happened to Betty Jane?" You're welcome for that visual! But wait, there is also Henry, Dorothy's husband, with his dirty uniform - well, nothing makes one feel more welcome than these two!

WOWZA! This book kept me on my toes and turning the pages. I love a gripping, creepy, and tension filled book and The Last Guest House hit the spot! I found this book to be well written, well thought out, nicely paced, and dripping with atmosphere. This book also has increasing dread and a mounting sense of danger. There are also quite a few twists, turns and reveals along the way as well. What an enjoyable read!

A break away to the Isle of Skye turns into a not so restful break away. From a double booking to this the Last Guest House.
This author does it again with a tale that is well woven and gripping, secrets are definitely hidden and getting them to come to light is a dangerous and murderous pursuit.
Excellent read.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this thriller of a book

where to start with this one... its different from anything else i have ever read and the podcast bits i couldnt get my head around until further in the book and then it started to make sense

the different points of views were interesting to read as well and didnt put me off the storyline at all

matt has planned a romantic weekend away but the snow storm comes out of no where and then the booking for the hotel he was hoping for was fully booked so they had to find somewhere quick

they ended up in a run down place that had some very strange rules.... but as they were all tired and only for one night it was thought best to just go along with it...

but as the night progressed things escalated very quickly and seriously got out of hand... what was to come was something out of a horror story

but what a ride this book was.... couldnt put it down

I loved this book, the storyline is unique and it had me guessing right to the very end. Caroline Mitchell is one of my favourite authors and I have read and enjoyed every book. As a stand alone psychological thriller this is up with the best. Highly recommend

I loved The Village and the Slayton series so was really keen to read another of this author’s books.
It starts slowly but keep going as this book picks up pace!
Nicola and Matt end up in a guest house they hadn’t planned on staying in.
Creepy and atmospheric this is a great psychological thriller with well thought out characters.

The Last Guest House is a really well written and excellently paced thriller. What i loved most was the atmospheric and descriptive surroundings of Scotland, it built such a tense aspect to the plot. I really enjoyed the addition of a podcast script to the book. It made it a quick paced book that you are immersed in.

This is a good read by the author, dark, full of atmosphere and quite compelling. Set on the beautiful island of Skye, the atmosphere builds right until the end. The story is told from different points of view, which works well and there is a whole cast of interesting characters, all perfectly described! Another very good tale from the author. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

A quick read that packs a punch. The cast of characters are intriguing and I was invested in the mystery. It kept me guessing with plenty of surprising twists.

The Last Guest House is a thriller with tons of suspicious characters and a true crime spin as interviews from a true crime podcast are woven throughout the story.

Nicola and Matt are traveling with Nicola‘s young child for a family trip. She is a police officer and is supposed to be off duty for her trip but the entire setting starts off dark and mysterious. We meet a whole cast of characters at the inn they reluctantly decide to stay in which leads to so many suspicions and curiosity about their motives when things go horribly wrong. You can’t trust anyone! There are so many stories woven into this main story and it was so good! The last half had me on the edge of my seat.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Caroline Mitchell, and Embla Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. This is going to be an amazing read for everyone on April 16th!

I have posted my review on Goodreads, in my Facebook book club, and will post a Tiktok review within the week before it releases.

The Last Guest House was a fast paced, creepy page turner that I really enjoyed. It had a fantastic setting and interesting characters and I just could not put it down. I highly recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Embla Books for my ARC.

I LOVED Mitchell’s Slayton Thrillers Series. So I’m always game to read a new thriller whenever she writes them.
The Last Guest House by Caroline Mitchell is a fantastic, tension-filled read with a great sense of foreboding throughout.
Caroline Mitchell knows how to keep the reader engaged!
The plot is tightly woven with tension, intensity and suspense. It is expertly plotted and masterfully executed.
Another fantastic story!

Thank You NetGalley and Embla Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Absolutely amazing! So tense and dark and creepy. I loved the range of characters and how well written and believable they were. The ending was just amazing! I was hooked the whole book through and could not put it down.

Nicola, along with her boyfriend, Matt, and her son, Georgie, were going to the Isle of Skye to witness the northern lights. Their plans swiftly go downhill when a heavy snowstorm strikes and they find out their reserved hotel room is unavailable, all thanks to Nicola’s mistake with the dates. Fortunately, they can make it to The Loch House in time to find an available room before the storm arrives. However, there is a specific reason why this place isn’t as fully booked. You have to read it, to find out.

The old house is untidy and has a creepy atmosphere. To put it mildly, the elderly couple in charge are quite eccentric. There are rules the guests must follow:

No smoking in the rooms. No loud music. No phones, and you can't leave your room after 9pm

They have no option but to remain here for the night because of the intense snowstorm. There’s a feeling that someone is keeping an eye on things. The other guests appear suspicious, and to make matters worse, George disappears. This is a creepy mystery where all is not what it seems. This had my interest right from the start.

The book includes podcast transcripts about a crime in a showbiz family in London, but their significance only becomes clear later. With each passing moment, the suspense heightens as the night unravels with bizarre occurrences, leaving the reader to contemplate the fate of the characters.

Oh, and there are plenty of twists!

This book was absolutely amazing! You’ll find yourself completely immersed in its perfectly dark atmosphere. There’s so much more I haven’t mentioned, but the suspense made me keep reading late into the night. Definitely a must-read in 2024.

Many thanks to @AuthorAJC @emblabooks & @netgalley for a review copy.

Nicola is heading to the Isle of Skye for a romantic weekend with her boyfriend Matt to see the Northern Lights, sadly it's not going to be as romantic as Matt wanted due to the babysitter letting them down and them having to take Nicola's six year old son George with them and, it looks like their luck is cursed, as when they arrive at the luxury hotel he's booked he's got the wrong week, the hotel is fully booked, and they're in the middle of a snowstorm. They have no choice but to take up the recommendation of the only place with available rooms, The Loch House and, on arrival, it's obvious why they have vacancies. With the hosts resembling, in Matt's words, The Addams Family and a very strange set of guest house rules, the couple are unsure how this weekend will pan out.

The Last Guest House is set on the remote and atmospheric Isle of Skye, it's a dark and chilling read with the story being told by three of the main characters. It's evident when Nicola and Matt arrive that this is no ordinary guest house and when they learn of its troubled past they are pleased they're only staying there for the one night, but nothing prepares them for how long that night is going to be, and the events that follow. This latest thriller by Mitchell has a well written plot about a group of eclectic characters that find themselves thrown together unexpectedly. Within the story there is also a podcast running alongside it, which at first appears to have no bearing on the main story but as it progresses everything becomes clear as to how they are linked and, as with all this authors other work, this locked room mystery does not disappoint, I devoured this story in a matter of hours and one thing is certain, you'd never see me going anywhere near a place like this!

I'd like to thank Embla Books and Netgalley for inviting me to read this, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

I did NOT expect that ending! This is my first book by Caroline Mitchell and it will not be my last. The Last Guest House had me on the edge of my seat, not knowing who to root for as more information kept coming out. I loved the aspect of the podcast, you find out things before the guests that have you questioning motives and what will happen next. Twists, turns and so many emotions were felt during this book, from the beginning to the end you’re going to want to know what went down in that guest house all those years ago.

I love Caroline Mitchell's works and was so thrilled to see she's writing a new book! This was a little more mystery/thriller than the paranormal mysteries found in The Slayton series but still a great, creepy, edge of your seat mystery.