The Guest or the book that keeps you guessing... is a twisty suspense filled psychological thriller that keeps you trying to figure out the baddie until the last second. An edge of the seat, compelling page turner.

The action and suspense parts of this book were very well-written. I will admit, though, that the other parts seemed disjointed and not completely thought out. The characters didn't seem very developed either. I almost didn't finish this book multiple times but did end up pushing through. I am glad I finished because the ending was great writing!

Thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for my ARC which I received in exchange for my honest review. The Guest is the first book I have read by author Cathryn Grant.. I am a huge fan of psychological thrillers so I was very excited to be approved for this title. Unfortunately, The Guest did not live up to my expectations.

The book has a promising premise. Successful art gallery owner Ellie, is surprised when her husband Seth invites a stranger home for dinner. While suspicious of the newcomer, Ellie finds herself attracted to the mysterious Ace. Ace's presence in the home only amplifies the problems in Ellie's marriage and she is devastated to learn that her husband has been keeping secrets from her. Even more distressing is the murder of a local girl which brings the police to Ellie's door to question her teenage son, Brandon.

Seth's duplicity soon becomes apparent and Ellie finds it impossible to reconnect with a husband who is unemployed, moody and virtually estranged from his stepson. Meanwhile, Ace ingratiates himself with Brandon and helps him navigate the do's and don't's of police interrogations. Although Ellie can't help but wonder why Ace knows so much about criminal investigations, this does nothing to cool her ardor for him.

I found the first 70% of the book to be tedious and slow. The author describes food and meal preparation in such detail that at times I felt as though I were reading a cookbook instead of a thriller. Seriously, if you are interested in what a character had for breakfast, lunch and dinner and what wine they paired with their meals, then this is the book for you!

Thankfully, the second half of the book is better than the first. The story has a lot of twists and turns and there are some truly pulse pounding moments towards the end. While I did enjoy the shocking conclusion, it is a bit of a boring journey to get there.

This is a tricky book to review without hinting at a spoiler. If I were evaluating it for being well written, I would give a strong 5 stars. Five stars as well for keeping me trying to figure out who the true bad guy or culprit is here. But the clues were there and I did have a pretty good sense of where the plot was heading.

You've got the murder of a young neighborhood girl. And you have Ellie, her husband Seth, son Brandon and daughter Simone. Ellie is happy with her very successful art gallery. And pleased that she is able to attribute her own very hard work and talents to that success. But knowing her own family close up as she does, it is apparent that the cracks in its foundation are widening.

The entire story is told from Ellie's point of view and she is quite good at getting you to empathize with her. There is no doubt that she is a loving, attentive mother and wife. But this is where I think her character structure begins to lose consistency.. For such a strong woman who has built a business so wealth-producing that she married husband Seth with a pre-nup, she seems awfully wimpy at getting her husband to kick this unwanted stranger out of her house.

Given the stranger is exceedingly handsome, charming, gentlemanly, kind, endearing himself to the kids and very helpful around the house, Ellie's gut is still telling her not to trust this stranger. Or her own feelings of attraction towards him. So I accept that she has strong mixed feelings. But the behavior she accepts from her own husband Seth is where I had to suspend my belief. Most strong, successful women would not put up with the outrageous behavior that Seth seemed string out for far too long. And a strong woman would have checked out her husband's story about losing his job, fooling around about getting another one, uncharacteristically spending week-ends away from home and on the golf course. And she would have googled the mysterious houseguest, Ace, right away instead of waiting so long. She would have asked him to explain his circumstances much earlier on if she were going to allow him to live in her house, given very strong protective motherly instincts.

But by the end of the story you learn that she is not at all a weak woman to be messed with and apparently never was. For that reason, I believe the author significantly misrepresented her so that she could set us readers up for a "shock" ending. So the storyline becomes more than a little disingenuous.

My honest opinion. And I am thankful to the publisher for allowing me to read and review "The Guest". Having said all of that, I do think that it is better written with a smooth, straight forward prose than many I have been reading lately. So must conclude that most of the book has great potential, maybe just some important inconsistencies to iron out, if possible.

I read this book in a day Wow what a read. You get to feel attached to Ellie and Seth and their children Brandon and Simone. When Ace comes to stay - a man Ellie doesn't know even though he is a friend of Seth's family, she is immediately attracted to.him, but she doesn't know him and his past. When a girl is found dead who Brandon goes to school with alarm bells start to ring who is Ace and where did he come from? Is Brandon capable of murder as revenge for being bullied, or did someone else kill her?

Will definitely be looking for more novels from Cathryn Grant thank you for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

My first book of Cathryn Grant

Probably, just waiting for that “boom” twist in the story. Albeit, there was but that scenario played in my head. I am not sure if it’s because it becomes the new trend to psycho thriller or I have read it in some books. But if one person will read without or few exposures to “twisted stories” this will be a hit for them. It was fast paced. I can’t put it down. It’s simple and easy to read. I noticed she put more story in her cooking skills in the kitchen than giving fascinating background about art which I appreciate. Some authors have these lengthy explanations about certain subjects to show off their research. Her husband Seth- boring, lazy and just read the book. All in all, it’s okay. Will it leave a mark? Maybe. Maybe not.

Never a dull moment! This, when Seth's "cousin's friend" comes into the lives of Seth and Ellie. And also, into the lives of their children; Brandon (14) and Simone (6).

This suspenseful thriller is difficult to put down. Swept into the lives of each of the characters, the reader is consistently absorbed!

The murder of a teenage girl. Who really is Ace? Are Ellie and Seth both holding secrets? And - the nightmare that unravels for Brandon...

HIGHLY Recommend! A suspenseful read for all.

Many Thanks to Inkubator and NetGalley for the chance to read and review!

Great psychological thriller - stayed up all night to finish!
Ellie seems to have it all together - great husband Seth, son Brandon and daughter Brandon. A local girl winds up murdered and all eyes turn to her son Brandon as a suspect. In the meantime, Seth starts acting strangely and invites a virtual stranger home named Ace to live with them. But Ellie has a secret or two as well.

Who killed local girl Jasmine? What is her husband Seth up to? What is Ace's past? What's Ellie's past? It all comes together.

I received a free E-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks NetGallery!
This book is about Ellie, who owns a successful art gallery and is deeply in love with her husband, Seth, and has two kids, Brandon and Simone.
But not everything is picture .perfect. Something seems to be wrong with Seth as he begins to become more distant and moody towards Ellie, especially when Seth brings home and offers to let a complete stranger, Ace, stay in the guest room of their house.
Ace is charming and very caring towards the children. He gives his full attention to Ellie, who is continually growing more attracted to Ace.
But when a girl at Brandon’s school is murdered, and Ellie is beyond shocked when the police tell her they think her son might be involved.
Ellie knows in her heart that Brandon is innocent and she feels certain that Ace is somehow connected to the disturbing things that are happening. She starts to dig for the truth and uncovers the terrible secret that will change her life in ways she can’t imagine and led her to ask herself "Just who did she let into her house and heart?"
I really enjoyed this book. The story line was well put together with a great build up of connecting events that lead to a fantastic twist towards the end of the book. Ellie was a good character, but seemed weak during the early parts of the story. She was afraid hurting her husband's pride because of her success in her career as well as her relationship with their son, Brandon. Seth was a weak man. I did not respect him at all. He was prideful and restful towards his wife just because she made more money than him. He belittled her and did not really communicate with her when he was having troubles. Ace and his relationships with the other characters was a little weird. I liked Ace's relationship with Brandon. He seemed to take a genuine interest in him. I did not really understand the motives in the pursuit of a relationship between Ace and Ellie. The book failed to flush out fully those actions. The pacing of the book was good, by moving the story along, but left out some key details needed in order for the character's actions and decisions to make sense to the readers. The ending of the story was a great surprise and believed it was wrapped up nicely. Although, I was kinda confused by the acceptance of one character's actions by the other. I would recommend this book to those who love psychological thrillers. I can't wait to read more books by this author.

Ellie is successful gallerist and mother of two. She is married to Seth who one day brings home an attractive stranger who eventually starts to live with the family. Ellie doesn't know much about him and her husband acts very strange. Then the girl at sons school is murdered and police thinks that he is somehow involved in it. As a mother she is devastated.
Ellie starts to dig for the truth and finds all kind of secrets in her own household. Who are these people really?

Perfect psychological thriller that you'll read in one evening.

I thought that this book started off very well. Ellie's whole world seems to be falling apart- her husband, Seth, looses his job and does not tell her, her son Brandon is questioned by the police in the disappearance of their neighbor, and her husband invites an acquientance to live with the family without consulting her. Ellie was well developed and we got to know her well, but the rest of the characters did not become as well known- well they had secrets. I felt that the ending kind of feel flat- but it was a quick and easy read that I overall enjoyed.

Wow I had no idea I was going to love this book as much as I did. I have not been able to put this one down. I have literally read this in the last two hours.
Gripping and completely unpredictable.

The Guest by Cathryn Grant is a true thriller novel. Readers will sink their teeth into this novel and stay up late at night to find out what truth this family is living.

Ellie has what may seem to be a perfect life. She is well-off, owns a successful art gallery, has a family, beautiful home, but something is off in her family. She can feel it. Her husband, Seth, has been distant lately, her son is growing away from her and his stepfather. And in the middle of all that, her husband invites Ace to stay with them.

Who is Ace? Ellie doesn't know - she only gets a vague introduction from Seth that he is a friend of a cousin. Ellie does know that she finds Ace attractive. She is deeply disturbed by their attraction. She wouldn't betray her husband and her family for this man.

But the cracks in her life are getting bigger. Her son is accused of a crime, Ace and her grow closer while Seth gets further away. She finds out more about Seth's lies and she is shocked and betrayed. Ellie is learning that maybe there is no one she can trust - even the people who live in her home.

Such a good book! I really enjoyed the twists and turns by the author. Told in first person, the reader gets an intimate look into Ellie's thoughts and feelings. I finished this book in one day - I didn't want to stop reading.

Ellie’s husband Seth has invited a friend of his cousin to move into their home. She is unhappy about this man Ace moving in and the fact that her husband has lost his job and didn’t tell her.
Her teenage son is having problems and school and the police have questioned him about the disappearance of a school friend because he had a crush on the missing girl.
A thriller with lots of twists and turns.
Thank you to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

ELlie has a seemingly great life with her husband Seth, two kids Brandon and Simone and owns a very successful art gallery. Seth though has become close mouthed and depressed and it doesn't help when he invites a virtual stranger Ace to live with them. Ace seems wonderful and Brandon especially opens up to him in a way he doesn't with his step-dad Seth. After a young girl from Brandon's high school is murdered Brandon is questioned by the police and Ellie finds out that Brandon has been brutally bullied by this girl and some of her classmates.

Ellie starts out to investigate the girl's murder, Brandon's experiences and what Ace has been up to in his past. She also discovers that Seth lost his job months ago and has been pretending to be employed. Feelings start to spark between Ellie and Ace also and she doesn't know who to turn to for help.

There are many twists and turns in this fast paced novel as Ellie tries to reconcile her marriage, discovers things about Ace's past and worries about Brandon's emotional health. Things come to an astonishing conclusion as many events from the past are revealed and the ending will really shock you.

Brilliant thriller. Was so thankful to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book. Twists and Turns when you think you have solved it another twist comes

An excellent read which held my interest throughout with well developed ending and a great ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and Inkubator Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book which I can thoroughly recommend.

A real good psychological thriller with a twist ending !!

Ellie has a perfect life- a successful gallery of her own, loving husband and two beautiful children. Then all of a sudden, one day her husband brings in a guest, Ace, to their house to stay. Ace is both charming and mysterious and Ellie cant seem to decide whether to trust him or not.. Her life turns upside down. Her husband starts acting weird ,a girl gets murdered and her son is a suspect, her gallery gets attacked. She begins questioning everyone. Who is this Ace? Why has her husband brought him? What's going on with her son?

You will keep guessing till the end and it wont be disappointing!!

The Guest by Cathryn Grant is a psychological thriller that had me engaged and guessing until the very end. I had my theories but they changed a few times throughout the book. The ending really got me though. Great read!

The Guest by Cathryn Grant is a suspenseful whodunit that had me gripped from the outset. I appreciate a thriller that will keep me guessing until the very end, with bonus points for shock value. This one certainly delivers.

Ellie and her husband Seth have two children, Brandon and Simone. Life appears to be good, and the family ticks along quite comfortably. One day, seemingly out of the blue, Seth introduces the family to the mysterious Ace, who soon takes up temporary residence. His motives are unclear, but Ellie senses immediately that their new guest will irrevocably alter her family's course forever.

This is a fast-paced read that had me unsettled and on edge from the very start. I love a good mystery that features a stranger at the centre of it all, and I was pleasantly surprised by the many twists and jaw dropping moments of revelation. Very well played Ms Grant.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for this ARC.