I could not get through this one, but I think it is largely the fault of the tag line. Based on the title “The Open House” in combination with the tag line “Thirteen people go inside, only twelve leave” as well as the description of the book,I was under the impression this was a locked box mystery story. I got about 10% through and realized it definitely was not and about 65% of the way to through before I had to give up. A more accurate tag line and description might help this book find its audience.

"The Open House" by Sam Carrington is an enjoyable thriller. It is told from the point of view of 3 characters: Amber, her ex mother in law, and a mystery guest. When Amber and her husband divorce, they decide to put their home on the market. While Amber desperately wants it to sell, her mother in law does not. In fact, it seems like she will do anything to sabotage the sale of the home. When Amber's realtor suggests an open house, Amber spies on the event. Although she notices 13 go in, she only sees 12 come out. Soon after that, strange things start occurring around the house. It seems like every character has some sort of secret to hide.

The thriller was slow going for me in the beginning, but seemed to pick up speed. I prefer when plot twists come out of left field, but I was able to foreshadow some in this book. The ending, however, was unpredictable. All in all, a solid read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Talk about a personal fear put into print! Excellent idea and well executed from the beginning. Definitely makes you rethink putting your house on the market and having an open house!

Wow what an intriguing compelling read! Tense, creepy and thrilling full of suspense and twists!
I raced through this book as I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next, it started off with such a plausible plot one that could happen to anyone selling a house via an estate agent, but then it becomes more sinister and chilling you really don’t know who to trust/ believe as the plot thickens! So many twists snd turns that take you by surprise and keep you guessing right till the end!
A very enjoyable domestic/psychological thriller guaranteed to jerk you in the edge of your seat!
Thank you netgalley for this early read.

For the first three quarters of this novel, I was in it! I couldn't flip the pages fast enough.

Then, it was suddenly like nails on a chalkboard. TOO much. Too, too much. Twist after twist after twist...when there are that many, it dilutes the one before it until pretty soon, you're sitting there like, "What the hell was that?

It's a shame too, because the red herrings were expertly done. Although I suspected a few things, I had no idea where some of the clues were going...and I was truly invested in getting to the end so I could find out all the gritty details. The story was creepy too...although I confess, I couldn't understand why they stayed in the house when so many creepy things where happening. I would have taken my kids and run. And, unfortunately, the conclusion was a shit show.

Overall, though, I still think this is probably worth reading...I'd recommend it. And if you're the type of reader who loves never-ending twists, this just might be a five-star read for you.

Available December 10, 2020.

My heartfelt appreciation to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for my review copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

When I started this one, I was really getting into it but quickly I started to notice that the writing could definitely use another round or two of edits. As this is an ARC, I can’t say for sure if it will get those edits before being published, but I sincerely hope so! The use of hyphens in almost every single sentence was distracting. I also got confused quite a few times on who was speaking, because sometimes there wouldn’t be any quotation marks between one person and the next, or any indication as to who was speaking.

I also found the way the 8 year old son was written fairly unbelievable, because he spoke so eloquently and was very objective about things, to the point where if you weren’t told his age, you could’ve easily said he was in his late teens or early 20s and I would’ve believed it.

I do think the premise was really interesting. A couple trying to sell their house after a split holds an open house, and while 13 people enter, only 12 leave. I ended up not liking the way that this was woven into the story at the end, because in the grand scheme of things it didn’t matter at all and nothing was really done with the knowledge of why only 12 people left.

Outside of the writing, I did enjoy the book for the most part, until about 50-60% through when I started getting antsy that we weren’t getting any sort of reveals. Each of the twists started to get progressively more ridiculous to me, and there was a LOT happening because there are so many subplots. I think this could’ve benefitted from focusing on ONE aspect of the story and cut out the strange side plots. I also didn’t think that there was any way for you to connect the dots and see what was happening, because there weren’t really any clues laid out for you and the way that it’s written only gives vague answers or descriptions.

I definitely didn’t agree with the decision Amber made at the end, because it was so out of character for her that I was just…confused as to why she made that choice. There were almost two endings, one about the house and one about the people. The way the mystery around the house was resolved felt a little….bland? It didn’t feel like it mattered all that much. The ending with all the people involved was a little convoluted, but I think if that had been the focus of the entire book and was cleaned up a bit, maybe it would’ve been better.

I did however really like the atmosphere created! It was very eerie and I felt paranoid along with the characters about what was going on.

All in all, I liked the first 60%, which was fast paced and suspenseful, but from there it was downhill for me.

Review will be posted on my blog (meltingpages.com) on 11/13/2020.

I always have mixed feeling when reading this author. This book was okay. There’s a lot of books out with similar story lines. The ending left me frustrated.

This is my first book from Sam Carrington so I had no idea what to expect. The story is told alternatively from the viewpoint of Amber (ex wife of Nick and mom to 2 boys) and Barb (her Mother In law). Amber wants to sell her home and move away to live with her boyfriend Robert, while Barb is doing everything she can to discourage her from leaving. Amber's realtor Carl suggested an open house to encourage more interest in the home. Amber, maintaining a watching eye, noticed that 13 people went into the house but only 12 came out.

The author carefully and thoroughly outlines the backstory of each character and slowly builds up to an unexpected ending. There are various subplots that slowly weave together in an intricate web of lies and deceit, I have to admit that I was creeped out enough to want to close all the blinds while I was reading at night. Towards the end, I struggled with the flow and felt like unnecessary details were thrown in to build on the suspense. This is where it fell a bit flat to me.

Overall, I thought this book was suspenseful and entertaining. I gave it 3.5 stars and will be sure to pick up other books from the author.

Thank you to Avon Books UK, Sam Carrington, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

This was an entertaining and fast read with lots of twists and turns. It had a desperate housewives feel to it, what with everyone on the street holding onto deep dark secrets! Not the best thriller I've read but certainly has its place

Nick and Amber are divorcing and selling their home. From her video doorbell, she watches an open house happening at her home and counts 13 people going in but only 12 coming out. And here is when weird things start to happen. Told from Amber and Barb, her meddling mother in law, POV, I enjoyed this story very much.
Lots of suspense, secrets and twists! Couldn't part it down! Highly recommend!

Nick and Amber, in the midst of a divorce, are selling their house. At the open house, Amber, who’s watching the event from her home’s security doorbell camera, thinks she sees 13 people enter the house, but only 12 leave. The story takes off from there, with plenty of secrets lurking about, some shady characters, and an interesting subplot. Loved most of this book, but you really have to suspend belief when all is said and done, so it was a bit of a letdown. It’s a good page turner though, and I would definitely recommend it. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through @NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Everyone’s welcome. But not everyone leaves...
Nick and Amber Miller have split up and are selling their Devon family home. But despite the desirable location, the house hasn’t had a single viewing so far.

When their estate agent, Carl, suggests an open house event, Amber reluctantly agrees, even though she doesn’t really want their busy body neighbours snooping around her home. At the open day 13 people enter the house but only 13 leave... did Amber count wrong? Are her eyes messing with her?

Someone doesn't want the house to sell, and is willing to do anything to stop it...but at what cost?

Not a bad book, easy to read and get into the story of, but it does jump about a bit and you need to remember who said what and when as it is told in two viewpoint - Amber and Barb, her meddling mother-in-law and then Suddenly an unknown narrator joins in.

I love Sam Carrington’s books and was excited to read this one.

Amber and her husband Nick have separated and she plans to relocate with her two sons to live with her new boyfriend Richard. Selling her house is proving difficult so her estate agent arranges an open house viewing. As she watches the event happen Amber is struck by the number of viewers who arrive compared to how many leave. She is sure one viewer didn’t leave the house.

When strange things start to happen, Amber is unsure if it is just her imagination or if something more sinister is going on.

The plot of the book was original but I found the first half of the book a little slow. The twist in the story was fantastic but I felt the second half of the book was hurried and a lot of the twists came at once. The ending seemed a little hurried with lots of loose ends being tied up quickly.

Overall I did enjoy the book and it left me with a few surprises not at all what I was imagining.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for my chance to read this twisty thriller.

This book was a really gripping read, I have to say from the first few pages I knew it was going to have my attention and I really hoped it continued until the end. It’s so fast paced so I found I just had to keep going and as I had the time I intended to get to the gritty part. Even right until the end you are questioning all the characters and wondering if your mind is playing tricks on you and that’s all down to the talent in the way it’s written. Really glad I picked this one up!!

Many will know how stressful moving house can be. But in The Open House by Sam Carrington, the stress levels are taken up a notch for Amber. She is currently going through a divorce which the reason why she is selling the house they were gifted by her mother-in-law when she and her husband, Nick, got married. But Nick’s mother certainly isn’t supportive of the idea of Amber selling the home and moving elsewhere with her grandchildren. But is there a darker reason why Nick’s mother doesn’t want the house to be sold? What secrets is she hiding?

I think this is Sam’s most chilling book to date. In an effort to track more potential buyers, Amber decides to take the advice of the estate agent when he suggests an open house event. Amber can see the visitors enter her home. Fourteen enter the property, but only thirteen emerge. Had Amber simply miscounted? But what is even more concerning is when her son is too frightened to sleep in his own bed and complains of the man upstairs in the house.

I loved the mystery element behind this book. A well as what is happening in the present; we also have the mystery of what happened to Nick’s brother, Tim. Tim disappeared when they were teenagers, and it is part of the reason why Nick later joined the police force. He does so in the hope of finding evidence of what happened to his brother. This is also one reason why his mother doesn’t want Amber to sell the house and move. She feels as though her family is breaking apart and after the disappearance of her son, she says it’s all she has left.

I wanted to know what Amber’s former mother-in-law’s motives were and the real reasons behind her not wanting the house to be sold. For me, I didn’t quite believe that this could simply be the case that she didn’t want her family to move away. Amber is determined to find out the reasons why. I also wanted to know what had happened to Nick’s brother all those years ago.

I really enjoy Sam Carrington’s books, and if you haven’t discovered her writing yet, then you really need to. I can’t wait to read what she writes next.

I found this one just ok . It was pretty slow to get into I did prefer the second half to the first but overall not one I would really recommend.

What a premise! An open house where the owner watches via an app- and sees that 13 go in but only 12 come out.

That had me hooked! A great novel that really draws you in and keeps you there. Some suspending your sense of disbelief but that's ok as the writing and plot are good enough to ignore that. Had to say I felt the ending spoilt it.

A good read but I felt a bit betrayed at the end if that's the right word?

A thrilling story with a spectacularly shocking end, this will be another bestseller for Sam Carrington. I had worked out a couple of the twists but towards the end of the book they just kept coming. I have to admit that I could have shaken Amber at times for being so passive, she just let everyone from her mother in law to the estate agent walk all over her. It wasn't until she made a surprising friend that she started to stand up for herself. In spite of this I couldn't help liking her. All in all this was a great book that is well worth the 5 stars I have given it.

Unable to move on with her life until her home sells, Amber Hill agrees to an open house. Curiosity leads her to count the number of potential buyers....thirteen. But only 12 leave, and the mystery starts. Immediately after the open house, events designed to influence the sale will cause Amber to question exactly where that last buyer went.

Amber and her husband are divorcing. They have decided the family home must be sold, but Amber's mother in law is forcefully objecting to the sale. With good reason we will come to find. As Amber and her children are slowly tormented, the story takes on a very creepy vibe. The house does not want them to leave????

A great story line, unique to me. Sam Carrington kept the story changing, never leaving the reader a slow chapter to take a break. A great read that was pretty surprising in the end.

First, I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher to allow me to read an advance copy of the book.

I came to this book with some expectations for being a different concept of a domestic thriller/mystery book. The idea of the book I found it very interesting about a mystery missing 13th person on an open house but sadly for me the execution was not the best.

I liked it to have the two narrators being Amber and Barb but the third one I was not so invested in it. I also enjoy Davina as a character to show how abused and cancellation can work I found it very interesting. But the rest is was very blunt, I did not found myself invest on the plot or hook that I feel is very important for a mystery book, and the end is not by far my favourite the major plot twist, in my opinion, is very rush and the second one I found it not relevant because me as a reader I did not invest on that point due to the plot itself did not conduct so much for that point.

Overall was enjoyable but not a great story or plot for me