I found this book a compelling and intriguing read.

Amber Miller is trying to sell her property after splitting from her husband , but it’s not having any interest from buyers. The estate agent recommends an open house to show the property off to its full potential. That’s when things start to get very strange in Amber’s world.

I found this book an easy read and read chapter after chapter long in to the night. I found the writing free flowing even though it was seen through the perspective of three different people , Amber , her ex mother in law Barb and intermittently a third unknown person. Usually this style of writing , leads to me getting confused and losing interest in the story. This is not the case with The Open house , there was just the right amount of twists and turns to leave me scratching my head. The conclusion was not one I envisaged , but it completed the book in a gripping manner.

Highly recommended !!!
Thanks to Net galley and Avon books for this ARC copy .

I’d like to thank Avon Books UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Open House’ by Sam Carrington in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Amber’s house hasn’t sold despite being on the market for some months and when the estate agent, Carl Anderson, suggests having an ‘open house’ Amber reluctantly agrees. Watching through the app on her phone, Amber sees thirteen people arrive at her house but only twelve people leave, and although she think’s she must have miscounted Amber can’t help feeling that someone is in her house watching her sons Finley and Leo sleep and moving furniture around. Is it her imagination or is someone trying to stop her selling the house?

‘The Open House’ is a chilling and suspenseful thriller that kept my attention throughout. It had a thought-provoking plot, drama, suspense and twists and turns, and although I thoroughly enjoyed the first 85% I thought the final chapters were a disappointment as they were so far-fetched as to be unbelievable. Nonetheless it’s an entertaining novel and well worth reading.

After being kept in the United States by the pandemic, I was immediately on board to be mentally transported back to my favorite place in all of the UK… Devon. The scenery was rich, the characters were likable (especially the two little kids), and the worries were real.

One of my favorite tropes is “someone is hiding in your house,” precisely because its realism is much more terrifying than other, more impractical thriller/horror storylines. (But don’t worry, this one wasn’t toooo scary.) And I do love a good who-dunnit, especially when it is equipped with alternating character perspectives. Even though it was a lengthy book, it was a quick read because of the conversational dialogue. I would recommend this for fans of The Woman in the Window, In A Dark Dark Wood, The Crow Girl, Sorry, and Never Have I Ever.

So.....I'm 100% conflicted on this book.

I absolutely love a good thriller, and the whole premise of this book really captivated me. I would say I loved the first 50% of this book...and then it just got really dull and muddy. All the random twists and turns just really made the last half of the book really drag on and felt so bland.

I absolutely give the author credit for a really interesting plot, but just can't recommend this one in my opinion. I think some folks may like it, but it just wasn't for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books UK for an ARC of this book.

Another great book by this author. A dark a nd creepy book with curves balls everywhere and you really don't know who to trust x

Thank you to Netgalley and AVON a division of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. for a copy of "The Open House" in exchange for my honest review.

The story is told in the voices of Amber Miller (38), her mother-in-law Barb, an unidentified voice who gives background - enough to intrigue but not enough to figure out who it exactly is in the beginning and the final chapter takes place 8 months later.

Amber has split from her husband Nick and plans to move from the Devon village of Stockwood to Kent where her new boyfriend Richard lives. Amber and Nick share 2 boys Finley (8) and Leo (6). Barb can't let Amber and her boys move away as she needs to be able to drop in whenever she wants to. Amber feels that Barb is interfering with her life, causing trouble.

Another important character is Davina - painted as the neighbourhood busybody, she is a wonderful character who adds a lot to the plot. Her husband Wayne is an interesting character as no one in the village has ever seen him.

Amber is trying to sell the house so that she can move to Kent. Barb doesn't want her family home sold - but does she have other motives as well. Carl the Estate Agent doesn't seem to keen on moving the house. At an Open House Event arranged by Carl, Amber (watching on her doorbell app on her phone) counts 13 people entering her home and only 12 people leaving. Where is that person? Are they still in the house? Could she have miscounted?

So many strange things start to happen that Amber questions her own sanity. Strange noises in the night, disappearing/reappearing rucksacks, a missing diary, a key the Estate Agent isn't keen to return, power is turned off in the house, a coffee table moved, a broken cup, the boys think someone is watching them in the night, then the doorbell camera is smashed. Who is behind all of this? Is there actually someone in the house? The 13th viewer?

Is everything tied to the house sale? What about the developers that want to buy the land and tear down the house? Then an old man appears - Amber feels he's a threat but Barb actually knows who he is.

The themes of this story are family secrets and how far people will go to protect them. Justice - the legal kind or your own. Controlling the narrative to suit yourself. Perhaps the best part is Amber wondering who hasn't been in her house without permission.

Looking forward to more from Ms. Carrington!

Interesting book that kept me page turning or tapping to read it as fast as I could. I wasn't keen on Amber but although I thought some of her thinking and choices were odd I still wanted to find out what was going on. I had no clue what was happening everyone it seemed was potentially dodgy .I did think the ending was a bit bonkers and it did take some of the shine off the book for me but as I had enjoyed it up to that point, I will still give it 4 stars.it didn't spoil the book for me so that I wouldn't still recommend it to others..

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of the book! This review is based on my own honest opinion.

Nick and Amber Miller are splitting up and decide to sell their house, even though Nick's mother, Barb does not want to sell the house. The estate agent arranges the open day and Amber, through an app is able to see the open day. She counts thirteen people go inside the house but only twelve people leave the house...where's the thirteenth one? Then ever since the open day, small things start happening around the house...

This is the first book I have read from this author. At first, the book was a bit boring but towards the middle, it got more and more interesting with unexpected twists and turns in each of the chapter. The story was told from the perspectives of Barb, Nick's mother and Amber Nick's ex-wife that you wouldn't know which side of the story as a reader to believe in. The eerie things that are happening around the house after the Open Day particularly the presence of a certain "man" in the house was intriguing, interesting and creepy--the author did a good job with that! The book was written fast paced and well written, that I was so hooked into the story that I didn't want to even stop reading! However, the ending to me was a bit disappointing but maybe it was just me.

Overall, this book is a fast paced thriller that will keep you up all night! Worth four stars!

This was a just ok read for me- A very slow burner that took a long while to get into. Did not wow me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Everyone is a suspect, everyone has things to hide and secrets they don’t want getting out. Throughout the book I kept thinking I know who did it but then it changed and once again I found myself thinking it was someone else. Great mystery!

I read a lot a lot of thrillers so I definitely understand the genre. This had too many unbelievable twists for me and the ending was kind of all over the place. There are also way too many characters to keep track of, this whole book could have been tightened up a lot to make it much more believable and understandable.

Amber Miller is getting separated from her husband, Nick Miller. Everything between them is amicable. Amber has met with Richard and plans to move to Kent. The only thing that stopped her was their Devon family home. She needed to sell it and then share the proceeds with Nick. However, she isn’t getting many viewings for the house to sell. Carl Anderson, her estate agent, proposes an open house. With much reluctance, Amber agrees. But she has a terrible feeling about the event. So, on the day of the open house, Amber looks through her front door camera. Looking at the video, she notices that thirteen people entered the house but, only twelve came out. Though it was disconcerting, she shrugs it off as wrong counting.

Every day, since open house, there is something amiss. She keeps losing stuff and then they reappear. With the house is not gaining any traction in the market, and something bizarre going on the house, it feels someone doesn’t want Amber to leave the house.

Amber and her mother-in-law Barbara Miller narrates the story. Barb fills in the gap in Amber’s account, making both of the narratives intriguing. Barb is a woman whose sole motive in life is to look after the happiness of her son and grandsons. Nothing deters her. She keeps pushing Amber and interferes in her life.

Amber keeps bending backwards to accommodate people. The entire process of selling the house and moving to Kent is taking a toll on her. With weird things happening around her, she cannot meet Richard, which makes her crabbier.

Carrington created a tense atmosphere where the readers can get the impression of something strange going on in the house.
Once the mystery unfolds, it becomes a roller coaster ride of revelations. With every piece of mystery unveiling itself, the reader feels a jolt.

In the beginning, there are a lot of characters to navigate. But towards the end, the reader realizes there are only a handful of people who continue until the end. Few of them did not have any part to play. Some did not get enough space at the end, like Davina. She played an important role until the midway. But by the end, she disappeared.
The ending is power-packed with a lot of mystery unfolding before the reader. The reader might get a lot of information in a single throw. Also, Amber could have acted differently.

The central theme of the book revolves around assumption amongst family and how sometimes no explanation can derail relationships.

The Open House is a psychological thriller with twists that you will never see them coming.

My rating for the book is 3 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Avon Books UK for the copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

3 stars. This book started off really good and I didn’t want to put it down. But at about halfway through it became predictable and I just wanted to rush to finish it. It wasn’t horrible but just not the best.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

Unsettling, tense, but absolutely brilliant, The Open House is quite the thriller!
I was delighted to be part of the Cover Reveal and now I am delighted to have a quick review for you.
Thanks to Ellie Pilcher at Avon Books, Harper Collins, for an e-book and for the invite.

Full review

This is the first book I have read by Sam Carrington and it is just so good! It all seems innocent, a house for sale, what can be sinister about that? This – 13 people go inside and 12 leave.

It is an excellent hook of a prologue, tempting, teasing readers into what is the lie and secret and it is interesting reading about Amber and Barb, who are the main characters. Amber has the Open House and counts one less going back out at the end of the day. There is quite a tangled web with Richard, Nick and Carl.

There is a tension and curiosity that builds as time moves along, that turns into an uneasiness as there is someone who did not leave the house and may still be in. The writing creates suspense, especially as night falls.

There are thought-provoking, pointed sentences about keeping secrets, that add to the unsettling atmosphere, that in turn makes this a page-turner. It becomes more disturbing, even when the mysterious person who stayed on in the house, makes an appearance. It is spine-tingling all the way to the end.

Thank you to Avon Books for sending me a copy to read via Netgalley

I loved reading this book from start to finish!
It had so many twists and turns (Some may say too many but i enjoyed it) that i couldn't put the book down.

Nick and Amber Wilson are divorcing and selling the family home, but despite the great location, it isn’t getting much interest. Their real estate agent, Carl suggests an Open House day.
Amber is not thrilled with the idea of her neighbours snooping around her home so she’s secretly watching everything from her SmartRing App. She counts 13 people entering her home. But, only 12 leave.
After that the weird things start to happen…

I was completely captivated for the 70% of this book! It was tense, a bit scary and made me double check my doors in the evening! But then all of the sudden it was like a cold shower. It became too repetitive! what really made me give it only 3 stars was the ending. I never thought I’d say this but there were just too many twists! It ended up getting diluted somehow and wasn’t as surprising or as impactful as it could have been. I felt that the first part of the revelation, about the house, was too simple. The second part was just too much and it went on for too long. It was like watching one of the most farfetched tv soap operas. Ambers’s final decision was so out of character that it put final nail in the coffin.
Overall it was entertaining and a fast paced domestic suspense but had a very disappointing ending which really let the story down.

A compelling read told from two point of views.
I like the premise of this book but it gets confusing towards the middle. Along with the crazy MIL, that I would have slugged at one point

Def a fast read.

A gripping, tense thriller. Just amazing. The chapters are told from the perspective of Amber and Barb, the soon to be ex mother in law. Strange things keep happening in her home, along with a mysterious missing house viewer. Something is not right. A thriller full of twists and turns I didn't see coming. I didn't know who to trust. I kept turning the pages to know what was going on. A chilling, gripping thriller. Highly recommend.

This book didn’t hook me from the beginning, but in the second half of the book the plot got more engaging and the story made more sense. The characters were not so engaging and maybe that’s the reason I found it hard to keep reading the first chapters. Overall it was a good thriller.

Thirteen people came to attend your open house viewing, but you are sure that only twelve have left the house. So where is the thirteenth person hiding out? And what do they want from you? This was such a fantastic premise for a book! I even chatted to my husband about it when I started reading, because the concept of a stranger hiding out in my house totally freaked me out. And once things started going bump in the night, I was totally hooked.

Up to around the 70% mark of the story, I couldn’t put it down. I was wondering who had it in for Amber, and feared for her safety. And then – BANG! The book turned into a total car wreck with pieces flying everywhere. Drowning in a sea of plot twists that churned like the Atlantic in a hurricane, I could no longer see the shore, let alone where the novel was headed. Who, what, where, how????I frantically waved like a swimmer in distress but the lifelines weren’t forthcoming. Some abandoned plot strands drifted gently out to sea, never to be seen again. Whilst the rest was frankly so unbelievable that I felt like flinging the book from me in genuine pain. And when the one person you have been rooting for the whole time betrays you in the end, that is the final nail in the coffin for me.

So how do you rate a book that was 70% riveting and original page-turner, and 30% frustrating beyond belief? Furthermore, written by an author you greatly respect and like? It breaks my heart to write this review because ultimately the ending left a sour taste in my mouth. Worst of all, the story had so much potential to be great. It was all there: the original premise, the captivating writing style, characters who were relatable and interesting, and some moments of genuine tension and danger. I admit that I am not a fan of too many plot twists, so it may work out much better for readers who like their mysteries unpredictable to the extreme and want that final WTH???? moment to finish off the story for them. Sadly that’s just not my cup of tea.