This book is a slow burn, told by multiple POV's . I loved the ending, it actually made the book for me. I connected with the characters, and cared about what happened to them. This book is all about the "who"

This one missed the mark for me. But even the best can't be right all the time (2.5 stars rounded up)

I'm not a regular reader of the Daily Express, but even I had to pause when one of their articles showed up on one of my social media pages last week. It was about someone who had been caught driving at 122mph in a 30mph limit, which, quite worryingly, was just the tip of the iceberg. Apparently almost half of the UK police forces have caught drivers speeding at more than 90mph on 30mph roads over the last 18 months.

The trouble was that, in order to get people to click on the article - and then either share a lot of their personal data, or pay to read it - the Express needed a photograph. And apparently the only one they could find showed a speed restriction of 50mph being entered by a pre-2008 Ford KA. Which is a car that couldn't do 122mph if it had a rocket stuck up its backside. And of the 3,600 comments that the post received, most of them pointed this out. With the result that the whole point was really kind of lost.

My point here is that, no matter how strong our abilities or how good our intentions, there are times when we all get things wrong. Like the recent occasion that I bought a sofa bed to put in my converted loft. I'd measured the space in the room and worked out that it would fit just fine. As indeed it would have done, had it fitted up the stairs, which it didn't.

Even the great Agatha Christie - still my favourite author of all time, and the third best-selling novelist ever behind Shakespeare and the Bible - wasn't able to be right all of the time. Her best novels were clever, ingenious, intricate, entertaining and yet thought-provoking, as well as typically nailing the human psychology, and that's why they're deservedly still as much in demand today as they were up to a century ago. But she also wrote A Pocket Full of Rye, which was none of these things.

I'm procrastinating. But I can't put it off any longer. Sadly, this brings me to The Perfect Guest, which is proof that, no matter how much I love her as an author, Casey Kelleher is fallible too.

The blurb is certainly intriguing. And it all seemed to be going so well at the beginning. 16-year-old Stephanie's world - never the most stable or secure, due to her mother's struggling with an addiction to drugs - has been turned upside down by her mother's death. Meanwhile, the world just seems too much for Rosie, who is reduced to camping in a tent with her boyfriend Ash and their sick young baby. But is Kay - Stephanie's grandmother but a stranger to Rosie and Ash - 's decision to invite all of them into her home really the promise of safety that it appears to be?

The trouble for me was that, from there, the book failed to live up to its initial promise. Part of the issue was that I didn't find any of the characters likeable, and when - as here - the characters are driving the story, there needs to be at least one that you can get behind. Mostly, though, my problems were that I guessed the solution fairly early on and at the same time, wasn't really convinced by how the book got there. I really couldn't get my head round Kay's thought processes and often forgot how old Stephanie was supposed to be, because she often sounded like someone aged well into her twenties. The opportunity to portray her as someone who had been forced into maturity beyond her years in some ways and yet was still a child in others seemed to have been missed.

These sorts of issues are a problem in any psychological thriller. But in a book by Casey Kelleher, who has the ability to write a plot that keeps me absolutely hooked and include a twist that blows me away, it's something close to devastating.

I'll finish, however, with a note to anyone for whom this is the first book by Casey Kelleher. If, like me, you didn't particularly enjoy it, please don't write her off just yet. Because, like I said at the beginning, we all have our bad days. Trust me for a while longer, give her the benefit of the doubt and read The Missing Mother, The Babysitter's Secret or my favourite of them all, I'll Never Tell before making up your mind.

My thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for the digital ARC of this book, which was published in the UK on 28th January. I have reviewed it voluntarily and honestly. Given its critical nature, my review will be published on this blog and Netgalley only.

*The Perfect Guest* by Casey Kelleher is a gripping psychological thriller that keeps readers on the edge of their seats from beginning to end. The novel centers around a seemingly innocent guest invited to stay at a lavish country estate, where dark secrets and hidden motives unravel.

Kelleher expertly builds suspense throughout the story, layering in twists and turns that leave readers questioning the characters’ true intentions. The pacing is fast, with a well-structured plot that maintains tension, making it hard to put the book down once you start.

The character development is strong, with multiple viewpoints that help create a sense of mystery, and the author does an excellent job of portraying the psychological complexities of the characters. Each chapter reveals more about the secrets, lies, and deceit that lead to a chilling conclusion.

However, some readers might find the plot a bit predictable at times, as a few twists are easier to anticipate. Nonetheless, the suspense and the buildup to the final revelations make up for any foreseeable moments.

Overall, *The Perfect Guest* is an engaging and tense thriller perfect for fans of psychological suspense and drama. It offers a captivating look at trust, manipulation, and the dark sides of human nature, making it a compelling read for thriller enthusiasts.

What a bloody brilliant, twisty read this is! If life hadn’t kept me so busy, I would have finished this much quicker.
This is my favourite so far by this author as she spins a tangled story from three different perspectives, leaving me unable to decide who I believed, and who I trusted.
An excellent read for fans of dark psych thrillers.

Some people have a heartfelt relationship with their grandmothers. That isn’t the case for Stephanie. She hardly knows her grandma as her mother was a drug addict and they were estranged. Things have changed though, her mother died and now Stephanie is going to live with her grandma. Is this the chance for them to grow a relationship? Shortly after she moves in, her grandma invites a homeless couple and their baby as guests into her home as well. Stephanie is suspicious of them, especially the man’s temper. Stephanie doesn’t think the guests should stay, Her grandma doesn’t seem in a rush to have them leave. Is Grandma in danger? What guest can be trusted as things escalate?
This was a book I enjoyed reading. I had my suspicions but it was one that I looked forward to continuing each night to see what twists the book would take.

I found the blurb intriguing and was looking forward to getting stuck in. But the story was not what I was expecting. It’s told from 3 different points of view - Stephanie, Kay and Rosie. I found it a very slow and repetitive read. The characters were well developed but not overly likeable and I had the plot sussed early on. This one just didn’t do it for me and I was bored and not inclined to want to read on. It didn’t live up to the blurb.

2.5/5 🌟🌟/🌟

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review #ThePerfectGuest

Right away I was drawn into to the intensity and danger of this book, it kept my attention all the way through,

Three women, three women in emotional turmoil. Three women thrown together because one just cares.

Kay is a lonely older woman. She’s lost her estranged daughter and is lonely in life but I get the impression she doesn’t know how to show she cares without emotional suffocation.

Stephanie has lost the only person in her life, her mum. Not an amazing mum but it was her mum. Stephanie is learning to cope living with her grandmother as well as dealing with her grief as a teenager.

Rosie is in a muddle. New baby, overbearing partner, no fixed abode taken in by a Good Samaritan. Someone who her partner wants to take advantage of.

This trio of women are in a pickle with a dark cloud of getting the authorities involved – which none of them want for different reasons. It gives for an uncomfortable read as all I wanted to do was call the police to help baby George.

I really liked the way Kelleher switches narrator at the beg of chapters but there was no noticeable pattern to the change. Sometimes I’d get a couple of chapters with a character before doing a circuit for each of my leading ladies and then without warning I’d get another double header with one of them.

I was unsure who the “perfect guest’ was to start with as no one was ideal. The more I read the more confused I was as to who the book title referred to. That said Kelleher took me on a merry dance of mistrust and secrets in her compact cast. I didn’t know who was the most reliable and in the end gave up trying. That is a good sign for me – a psych-thriller needs the unnerviness and mistrust of characters and Kelleher delivered!! She messed with my thought process brilliantly 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

This was a wild one. You can kinda suspect what’s coming but the end was just jaw dropping. This was super twisty and turny throughout and the characters were brought to life. You don’t know who to believe or trust. Well written and a roller coaster of a ride.
Absolutely a recommended read!

Kelleher is an author whose books I have become familiar with thanks to Bookouture and I think this is my fourth book of hers to date.

It's a moderately paced psychological thriller, that had me desperately willing my eyes to stay open so I could snatch a few more chapters before sleep prevailed.

I found it dark, intense and the suspense sent my pulse into overdrive!

The characterisations are spot on, and as always unreliable narrators added an extra air of tension and disbelief into the mix.

Great plot with an unexpected ending! Thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it!

Kelleher conjured up some very whacked out characters for this book.
I was fooled by one character for almost the entire book but wow that person was just despicable.
I totally agreed with Stephanie that Rosie and Ash were posers and opportunists.
I felt sorry for Stephanie because she was the big loser in all of this.
I never cared for Rosie or Ash at all.

This book is a bold departure from Casey Kelleher's usual writing style, delivering an outstanding psychological thriller. The narrative focuses on four main characters—Kay, Stephine, Ash, and Rosie—each hiding a significant secret. You can expect a stunning twist at the end that will catch you off guard. Secrets and lies are what truly drive this gripping tale.

Another triumph from Casey Kelleher. I really enjoyed this book and couldn’t put it down. It was easy to read and I didn’t know what the outcome was going to be until right at the very end.

Kay lives on her own in her cluttered house and doesn’t realise she’s a hoarder. She is estranged from her daughter Amanda as Amanda is addicted to drugs and Kay hasn’t seen her granddaughter Stephanie for ten years.

Kay receives a troubled call from Stephanie and Stephanie comes to live with her. Kay is ashamed when she sees Stephanie’s reaction to the state of her house.

Kay discovers that there are people living in a tent in the woods behind her house and she has to go and see for herself. She finds a young girl, her boyfriend and a newborn baby, they are living in squalor and then baby is ill.

Kay invites them to come and stay at her house for a few nights- it’s clear that they are running from something bad. Stephanie doesn’t like them being there and is worried they will ask questions as she has secrets too.

A great read and one I would definitely recommend. It was clear that everyone had secrets but I didn’t guess the outcome and I loved all the twists.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy of this book.

THE PERFECT GUEST was the perfect thriller story for me! It was an easy read that I completed in one sitting. I could not figure out who was telling the truth. So the final twist was a great surprise for me! I highly recommend this one!

Many thanks to Bookouture for my gifted copy.

Thanks to bookouture and netgalley for this arc.
I am a great fan of this authors work, but unfortunately this book wasn't for me.. it's a physcological thriller, but it seemed slow in getting going and I thought too much was going on. Whilst others will love it, sorry it wasn't for me

The one word I have to describe this book is 'claustrophobic' - it's an okay plot but it pretty much happens within one house and while this adds to the tension, it just felt lacking in something. I felt disconnected to the characters, and I guessed the twist fairly early on too. I think this could do with another round of editing, too, as some of the writing felt really poor.

I was excited to start The Perfect Guest by Casey Kelleher and y’all I was not disappointed!
This was a quick and fun read that I finished in a few days.
A well written suspense filled with twists that kept me hooked from the very beginning.
An intriguing story with characters who draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.
The characters were all realistic and very well developed.
I really enjoyed the writing style. I found myself gripped, turning the pages, not knowing what was to come next.
It was suspenseful, mysterious and unpredictable.

Reunited with her estranged grandmother after the death of her mother Stephanie is thrown into a house of unrest, deceit and strangers.

I felt that this book could have been over alot more quickly than it was, I felt like I was waiting for something to happen.

A slow burn that was anticlimactic and repetitive.

5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️




✨ Intense. Psychological Thriller.


✨ woo! I haven’t had any 5 star in a long time!
This book is actually really great. First time reading to this author and I’m quite impressed.

✨ who’s the victim? Who is the one to blame. The lies are in between the lines. The book is slow burn but it’s mixed with non stop thrill in every chapter!
Definitely worth the read.

P.S I would love to hear this in audible version as it will bring more life to it especially this kind of rare 5⭐️ plot.



Thankyou @bookouture for the opportunity to read this arc for a honest review .



❤️ shaye.reads

This psychological thriller starts with chaos. Stephanie, Kay’s estranged granddaughter, out of desperation, is forced to reach out to her grandmother after the suspicious death of her mother. There's a lot of tension between these two right from the start particularly Stephanie’s intense animosity toward her grandmother.
One day they notice a tent has been pitched in the back yard. What they find is a young couple, Rosie and Ash, with a tiny baby. After great deliberation, her mothering instincts take over and she invites the couple and their new baby in and gives them a warm place to stay. Stephanie however, is very leery of their presence and takes an instant dislike to Rosie. I took instant dislike to Ash. However all four of these characters are hiding deep secrets, so it’s truly hard to know who to side with. My heart wanted to support Rosie and her baby. There was so much information that each character was hiding that I couldn't wait to for it all to sort out.
I enjoyed there being only only four man characters to keep up with. My favorite part was the way Casey wrote in such a way, I couldn’t read fast enough. The tension was electric. It was very realistic scenario that could actually happen in real life., one you might find in the daily newspaper.
As the tension begins to heats up, characters’ true colors rise to the surface still, things are not always as they seem.

The ending will leave you speechless.
This one needs to be on the big screen.