Lots of twists and turns to follow and the ending OMG!!! The beginning kept me interested and also really creeped out! I would have left with the first few occurrences!
All Amber wants to do is sell her home and start her new life with her children and new beau Richard. Amber and Nick are ready to split, well Amber is! Nick has strayed for another woman and that is the last straw for Amber!
Barb is Amber’s mother-in-law and is the original owner of the home! She doesn’t want her family split up or the home sold! She is afraid that she won’t have as much time with her grandsons and can’t understand why Amber won’t make it work! But, Barb is unaware of Nick’s infidelity because Amber still wants to protect her!
There is little interest in the home and the estate agent Carl suggests an open house! When 13 people go in and only 12 go out as Amber watches on her Ring app, she gets an uneasy feeling and believes that someone is still in the house even though she has checked the home! Then things go missing and appear and are
moved and her boys think they see someone.
Amber grows even more concerned. Someone wants to frighten Amber but who? Could it be Barb or Nick, unable to let her go, or Carl the estate agent with interior motives? or a
complete stranger?
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Upon Amber deciding to leave the village she knows so well her two boys her estate agent suggests she has a Open House to gain more interest.

Little does she know that events that have already happened, are deciding whether she sells or not.

A brilliant and hugely addictive read.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for ARC

Thanks netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this very overlong complicated book the open house.
I did enjoy it but found it overlong and kept loosing the plot. There were so many people involved in this story, the second half of the book was much more exciting.
The story tells you what secrets families have, and how it can ruin every body’s lives.

Amber is living with his 2 sons following her separation from her husband, Nick. Eager to move on with their lives (and moving in with her new love, Richard), they agree to sell their house and split the money. They thought selling the house would be a breeze - Strategic location, near to schools, huge garden, good architecture. They were left disappointed when they house selling is slower than expected. After months of being in the market with no offer for the house, their real estate agent proposed to hold an open house. Reluctantly, Amber agreed.

Through the doorbell camera app on her phone, Amber spied on the open house event - just to see the how well (or not) the open house went. 13 people came in for the viewing but only 12 left the house. Did she miscount the viewer? Or is someone still in her house?

Upon returning home after the viewing, she was relieved to see the house empty. Then weird things started to happen in the house - things keep missing and turning up, unexplainable power cuts and her son insisting a man watches him sleep in the night. Feeling like they're not alone in the house, Amber is desperate to uncover the mystery surrounding her house - before it's too late.

* * *
The story is told in 3 person's POV; Amber, her MIL Barbara, and an unknown person. This book is full of question marks and creepy unexplainable happenings taking place in Amber's house after the first open house event. Twists and turns are nicely put and they keep the story interesting. Unveiling of the event near the end will make you go 🤯🤯 but im pleased to say the ending is tied up nicely.

However, I feel there is one thing the book could do without; less chapters. The chapters could be combined and not be divided unnecessarily (there are over 100 chapters).

Overall, The Open House is a great mystery that will keep you guessing til the end.

Fantastic read, better than I was expecting i honestly couldn't put it down! Good few twists that I wasn't expecting, totally kept me guessing the whole time! Will be recconendung to all my book buddies!

This book is a taut psychological thriller that I devoured in two days. The novel is told from three points of view: that of Amber, a mother in the midst of a separation and imminent divorce from her police detective husband; Barb, her mother-in-law who is determined to prevent Amber from leaving with her sons to join her new fiancé in another county; and an unidentified narrator who is apparently behind the strange happenings that ensue when Amber puts her house on the market.
The writing is skillful and engaging, and the many plot twists and differing accounts of events give the story mounting suspense as it unfolds. The characters are well-depicted and believable; their conflicts drive the action at a good pace. The only quibble I have with the story is that I found the denouement disappointing—perhaps there was one twist too far right at the end. I just didn’t find the conclusion satisfying.
Overall, though, I really enjoyed the novel and my interest didn’t flag to the very end. I recommend it to readers who like mystery, unreliable narrators, and psychological suspense.

Personally I wasn't overly thrilled with this book, not as good as her previous ones in my opinion. It took me a while to get into the story line and unfortunately I gave up halfway through.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

I was really intrigued by the concept of this novel - original and chilling. Amber is selling her house following her marriage break up. Via a security device she watches the viewers go in - 13 go in but only 12 come out. The tension in this novel builds and builds - noises in the house, objects moved, lights switched off. And someone doesn’t want Amber to move. There was a lot to like in this book - the concept is really original and well plotted and the tension is gradually built up. Unlike others I had really no idea what was behind it all. However, I began to feel a little frustrated at over half way through I wasn’t really sure about where it was going. I also found the reveal frustrating as new characters seemed to appear and the reveal was paused, played, paused and I thought a little overwrought. Lovers of chilling thrillers and long periods or literary tension will love this. With thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books for a digital copy of this book.

The Open House is a psychological thriller centred around a couple trying to sell their home in Apple Grove, Stockwood. Amber and Nick are selling up due to their separation. Once belonging to Nick’s mother Barb and father Bern the house has been in the family for years, a place where Nick and missing brother Tim grew up so it’s with great reluctance the house is being put on the market. Amber is planning to leave Devon and set up home with her new boyfriend Richard and her boys Finley and Leo once the house is sold. With a planned new housing development in the pipeline, affecting the residents and their properties, how easy will it be to sell? With little interest from prospective buyers, estate agent Carl suggests an open house might be the way forward to complete a longed for sale. Desperate to begin her new life with Richard, Amber agrees for this to go ahead, although part of her feels uncomfortable at having strangers traipse through her house, poking their noses into every nook and cranny. When thirteen people enter the Apple Grove property for this open house event but only twelve leave, this thriller really takes flight. Unexplained disturbances at night, missing objects and moved furniture and the boys distress are just some of the elements of a storyline guaranteed to thrill, chill and leave you desperate for more.

With more than a handful of dubious characters to keep your eye on, who will become your number one suspect determined to frighten Amber and the boys to the core?Surely Barb has to come at the top of any list; doting grandmother is only one aspect of her personality with something more sinister going on beneath that facade. There’s Carl Anderson, the estate agent employed by Amber who takes shiftiness to a whole new level. How about busybody neighbour Davina and her husband Wayne, a man whom no one ever lays eyes on? Does he even exist? You can’t exclude Richard, Amber’s boyfriend and reason for selling up and taking the boys to live with him in Kent. His lack of presence doesn’t bode well. Finally, even Nick, has to loom large on your radar of suspects since he has the strongest motive, alongside Barb,for Amber and Finley and Leo to stay in Devon. The author has cast her net far and wide, making it virtually impossible to guess who is responsible for unnerving poor Amber and why.

Whilst the list of suspects seems endless there’s also a real dilemma occurring in this storyline. Does someone want to scare Amber to the extent she’ll leave the house and sell out to the developers just to escape the weird and unsettling atmosphere that pervades her home? Or is someone deliberately playing mind games with Amber, ensuring the property never sells so that she and the boys remain in Stockwood for good? It’s as if there are possibly two forces of evil at play here, tugging Amber in opposite directions and that for me is the hook that kept me turning the pages. What’s most gripping about this storyline is that it’s chilling, terrifyingly spooky and what occurs within these four walls would have me running for the hills with never a backward glance. Maybe if you are as easily spooked as I am, don’t read this alone late at night!!

The person I strangely felt most sorry for in all this mess, aside from Amber is Nick. I know his actions have been the catalyst for their marriage break up so you could be forgiven for thinking his wife leaving is just desserts but apart from this one mistake he seems genuine, unlike the majority of the other characters. Or maybe the author just wants to lull you into a false sense of security where he’s concerned?

It’s such a shame that as tension steadily builds, the moment at which it reaches fever pitch the plot line descends into chaos. Naturally I expect some twists and turns but the author has thrown so many into the mix, my head was spinning. Befuddled doesn’t even begin to describe the way I felt with the author like one of those magicians pulling scarves out of a hat; reveal after reveal after reveal! Yes they will shock you and maybe wow you as the author presumably intends but I just felt confused. Unfortunately with so many unbelievable shocks, the storyline kind of lost its impact for me. Up until this point I was mentally awarding The Open House a solid 4 stars. What finally pushed me over the edge was the direction these characters lives take after the main event. I had to ask myself how the majority of people, especially in Amber’s position would react and she and the rest of the characters definitely act outside what could reasonably be considered the norm.
Overall there’s plenty of tension, suspicion and intrigue to hold the readers attention, all components of a good psychological thriller. On this occasion for me it fell at the last hurdle. My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.

The Millers have split up and wife Amber wants to sell the family home, in part to move on with her life with her new partner. But despite its desirability, the house isn’t sold, nor anywhere near being so. The estate agent suggests an open house, something about which Amber is reluctant but agrees if it means concluding this episode of her life. But she’s adamant that 13 people enter the house and only 12 leave… No one else is convinced but creepy things start happening. It’s clear that someone doesn’t want the house to sell – but why? This is a many layered novel and it kept my excitement throughout.

**I received an ARC from the publisher on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Open House is a good thriller with lots of turns and twists, and will keep you guessing till the end. There were twists I didn't see coming and twists my mind is still fixated on. Overall it's a good read. Alice and Barb are both well written characters and there's a great contrast between the two. You can feel the tension between them from the beginning. Sam Carrington did a great job writing this book. I highly recommend it.

There were lots of plot lines and characters in this book and it was one of those books that seemed to jump around a lot and the ending kind of came out of nowhere.

When Plans Go Awry.....
Deciding to host an ‘Open House’ event may not have been one of Amber’s best moves when things begin to go drastically awry. Engaging suspense, a compelling narrative with some neat twists along the way. Enjoyable reading.

This started out strong for me, and I was hooked for most of it. But then it got a little convoluted, and by the end I just wasn't as engaged as I was at the start. Parts dragged a little for me and there was just a little too much happening by the end of it all.

As a real estate broker I smiled at the title and blurb of The Open House. I always tell clients that Open Houses are perfectly safe but now I may need to revise my statement. This one starts out great with a young couple divorcing and needing to sell the family home passed down from Barb, Amber’s rather controlling mother-in-law. Rick, her husband and a police detective has already moved out. Strange things start to happen after the open house : noises in the night, moved objects, the children convinced there is someone still in the house. Is it the developer who wants to build a new development, the nosy neighbors, even the family?. I have enjoyed Sam Carrington’ s previous novels but did not believe the ending nor the reasons which were rather conflated and flat. Four stars for the first two thirds reduced to 3 for the ending.

They say that moving house is one of the most stressful things a person could ever do. They need to speak to Amber. Throw in an impending divorce, an overbearing soon to be ex-mother in law and a fledgling romance that she is moving across the country for and she really couldn't be facing more pressure. Well, you'd hope for her sake anyway. But this is fiction and Sam Carrington really isn't that kind, at least in the authorial sense. Because after an open house designed to try and boost interest in her home, Amber and her young sons start to experience all manner of strange goings on, things that make your skin crawl and make you wonder just who is trying to sabotage her life, and why.

I really do enjoy Sam Carrington's novels and this is another classic example of how she is able to take the most straightforward. although stressful, of situations and turn it on its head. Many of the elements of the story are easy to identify with - the broken marriage and its impact on the wider family - the interfering mother in law, Barb, the nosy neighbour, Davina. It is everyday life - just with a twist. There really is that underlying tension in the story, the clear knowledge that something isn't quite right in Amber's world, but it is hard to pinpoint just who might be behind it. So many of the characters act in such shifty ways that any of them could be behind the mind games played with Amber and her sons, and yet the motives for each person couldn't be more different, nor could the potential results. It made me question all the clues right to the very end and even then I wasn't quite ready for what came to pass.

Speaking of characters, this is one of the author's real skills. Her knowledge of psychology means that she really understands people, their motivations and actions, and is able to turn that into believable, if not always likeable, characters. I really did feel for Amber, although at times I just wanted her to stop trying to be the peacemaker and tell Barb to do one. Speaking of Barb, she is the perfect literary interfering mother in law, someone you can love to hate. I understood her behaviour, but she is exactly the kind of person who gets under your skin and makes you want to scream or slp your kindle. Perfectly written in other words.

Although this isn't a fast paced action thriller, the sense of menace that builds throughout kept me hooked to the story and reading well into the night. I finished the book in a couple of days and it made me remember just why I enjoy Sam Carrington's books so much, Another fab read and one I'd recommend to fans of the author or of psychological thrillers.

Good read!
Gripping and addictive. I have found this one easy to read and unique.

Full review to follow on publication day

To the publisher: I tried to post this directly to Goodreads but it didn't work. I did copy this review and post it on Goodreads. Thank you!

I loved the synopsis of this book and had high hopes for it but it wasn't for me. In The Open House Amber has put her house on the market and her agent hosts an open house for her. When watching the attendees enter and leave her house she sees 13 go in and only 12 come out. She has a bad feeling about this and strange things begin to happen in her home. She starts to doubt her sanity and what is happening around her. The book is told from the perspective of Amber, her mother in law Barb and an unknown narrator.

There are lots of secrets and twists in this book, which I really enjoyed. What I disliked was the ending, I won't spoil that in this review, but I personally did not like it. This is still a 3 star book for me because of how much I liked all the twists and turns that led to the bad ending. I felt like the book could've ended differently and this would've gotten a higher rating from me. It was a good thriller with lots of suspense and it made me doubt everything and everyone in the book. I love when I don't know which characters I can trust and if the narrator is perceiving things correctly in thrillers and this book delivered those. But a bad ending often ruins a book for me and I can't rate this more than just ok because of how I felt about the ending.

Overall this was a fun, twist filled thriller but the ending wasn't for me.


Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books UK and Sam Carrington for this ARC.

Nick and Amber are getting a divorce. They are trying to sell the house so that Amber can move to Kent with her new partner, Richard. With a suspicious estate agent, a mother in law who does not want Amber and the children to leave, and developers who want to build on the property... there are many things at stake and many parties involved. Not to mention that Amber was sure she saw 13 interested viewers entering the house, and only 12 leaving.

I was totally hooked by this book. The fact that I finished this at 2am says it all! There were so many twists and turns that kept me in the midst of the drama.

There was one part at the end that I just couldn’t accept as believable, however the book was written well and I was entertained thoroughly!

The Open House, by Sam Carrington, is an interesting psychological thriller with an original plot. With short chilling chapters, this book kept me up at night thinking “just one more chapter”. With many twists, turns and questionable characters, I couldn’t wait to figure it out!
 
Amber is trying to sell her house but not having any luck. Her real estate agent holds an open house against her better judgement. She is nervous about people in her home that she doesn’t know without her being there, so she watches through the doorbell camera. She sees 13 people enter but sees only 12 leave. Dun dun dun… then really creepy things begin to happen.
 
It has a good storyline, though some of the characters were so frustrating! Like in a scary movie frustrating - GET OUT OF THE HOUSE! LOL
 
I really enjoyed the way Sam Carrington writes. It has a nice flow and is easy to read. She is a new author to me, so I’ll be checking out her backlist.
 
Thank you NETGALLEY, Sam Carrington and Avon Books UK for this ARC, in exchange for my honest review. ♥️

#NetGalley #TheOpenHouse #SamCarrington