Well, this was a super fast read that I enjoyed for the most part until the end. Argh!
I had no idea who done it, or who to believe and I was shocked at how it all played out. I enjoyed the different premise of this thriller - recently separated, selling her house in order to move in with her new man, her ex mother in law is a little "clingy" to say the least and wants her son and Amber to stay together and be close to her grandsons. Enter a corrupt real estate agent who has a mysterious open house where a guest may or may not have stuck around, and don't forget the nosy neighbor - and you have a page turner!
Thankful for this ARC

This was a good twisty thriller with a good amount of characters/suspects. I did find that there were a lot of stories colliding in the end but it all got wrapped up. I would definitely recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley for the privilege to read and review this book.

Oof. #theopenhouse #samcarrington #netgalley #netgalleyreads wow. When I started this book it wasn’t anything like I had expected. I gobbled this one. It’s out now and I HIGHLY recommend using that #giftcard on this one. You and your husband are divorcing. Time to sell the beloved family home. You have two young children. The realtor in your small town is showing the house. Thirteen came in. But. Only 12 came out. #bookstagram #booknerd #readersofinstagram #readmorebooks #booksbooksbooks #treatyoself2020 #giveyourselfabook

Amber is trying to sell her house because she wants to move to where her boyfriend Richard lives. She has a noisy mother-in-law, Barb that wants her to stay in the house because it was her house before she sold it to Amber and Barb's son Nick.
Amber thinks someone is getting into her house too. Is it her real estate agent or her mother-in-law or someone else?
This book is so good. It is certainly a thriller and you will not want to put it down.

Something strange is going on in this house.

This story was a bit predictable to me and I don’t think I enjoyed it as much as I should have. It was intriguing and kept me reading, which is good enough for me to recommend it.

I’m giving it a good solid 4 stars because it was creative and most people probably wouldn’t have figured it out as early as I did.

This book definitely had the twists and turns and even a few surprises at the end. I did enjoy it but felt it slowed down a bit in the middle, but I kept going and im glad I did! Memorable characters!

Thanks #netgalley #samcarrington #avonbooks

Published date - 10th Dec 2020

Book sypnosis- Everyone’s welcome. But not everyone leaves…

Nick and Amber Miller are splitting up and selling their Devon family home. But despite the desirable location, the house isn’t moving. Not a single viewing so far.

When their estate agent suggests an open house event, Amber agrees, even as she worries about their gossiping neighbours attending and snooping around their home.

But Amber has more to worry about than nosy neighbours. Because thirteen people enter her house that afternoon, and only twelve leave.

Thank you, Netgalley, and Avon Books UK for providing me with an ARC of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Open House is my first book by the author Sam Carrington. As this was my introduction to her, I had expectations for this novel. When I saw this book on Netgalley, I was intrigued by the synopsis. It sounded like an interesting premise that could be great for a thriller. So the story is told to us in different POVs. We get Amber's, the protagonists, and her mother-in-law's perspectives. Amber is going through a divorce from Nick, her husband. She is trying to have a fresh start in life, but her mother-in-law is creating problems for her to move on smoothly. Some strange and mysterious events start to happen, causing alarm for Amber. It makes her doubt her sanity and wonder who the culprit is and what her intentions are.

Overall, I believe the thrilling part was there until it fell flat in the end. The ending didn't feel justified. Some of the actions were not believable at all. The pacing and the shorter chapters made it easy to go through the story pretty fast. I wished the ending was different, and it would have been a truly suspenseful read for me. If you like family drama focused stories and a quick read, this could be the book for you. I gave the book 2.5 stars, and recommend checking it out if you love the author's works or are in the mood for a quick change.

All in all this is a good thriller. It’s twisty and turny in ways none of us could’ve guessed, but then also a little obvious in places. I feel like I was losing my mind alongside Amber at one point and wasn’t sure what on earth was really going on. For me personally the developer/Wayne part of the story didn’t have a satisfying ending, and I was agog at Amber’s choices near the end but definitely a good read, and definitely made me want to read more from the author.

An excellent twisty story with many bumps along the way. It is definitely one I will recommend! It will make you think and you will not want to put this one down.

The Book was absolutely fantastic, I could not put it down.  A brilliant Crime Thriller that will leave you with chills!!!
 
I have to admit I was absolutely terrified, I kept frightening myself and had to keep turning lights on in my house, checking behind doors and I haven’t stepped foot in my integral garage!
 
The build-up in the story was filled with twists and turns.  I actually suspected the outcome early on, but disregarded it because I then started to believe something else!
 
Such a good plot, and the synopsis doesn’t really give too much away at all.  The opening chapter made me think that something completely different was going to happen, so it was a really great way to deter the reader.
 
Highly recommend this book!

Nick and Amber have split up. Now the process of selling the martimonial home has started her mother in law is ready to do anything to stop it leaving the family.

I enjoyed this mystery, especially the three narratives, Amber's, her mother in law's and the unidentified creepy one.

I got throught this quickly. I think the only thing holding it back was I couldn't really begin to warm to anyone. Apart from that tis is a fun book that will be perfect to snuggle up and read

What came to mind with this book was the saying “what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive. There is deception around every corner along with some challenging characters. The title is a bit misleading as the open house was a very small aspect of the whole drama. Certain decisions that Amber made were, I thought, quite strange and thoughtless.. Why didn’t she speak to Carl about the thirteenth person at the open house, why didn’t she have the locks changed when she suspected someone was hiding in the house when things had been moved like the coffee table, the picture and her sons school equipment. Why didn’t she speak to Carl about his missing diary. She should have taken important steps when her son complained about a strange man in his room every night. I would have immediately thought about the house next door being empty and perhaps there being a way through the loft from one to the next. I don’t know why she took the blame for Barb’s cup being broken, what did that achieve. Richard was obviously not quite the man she fell in love with, she seemed to know so little about him yet was giving up everything and her sons family stability to go and live with him across the country. The penultimate paragraphs were obviously meant to be thrilling but sadly they were not, just complex and a bit annoying, reality was absent at times. I’m also not sure what Davina added to the story and her errant and missing husband too. The elusive Wayne was an extra that wasn’t necessary. Would someone place bugs and cameras in a neighbours house. He should have been exposed and prosecuted. This wasn’t explained fully and by the end he’d just disappeared. Although this book was set in Devon it could have been staged anywhere in the UK. The only reference to the county was the mention of Bovey Tracey. All in all a good start that got more complicated and unreal throughout.

Amber and Nick are going through a divorce and she is trying to sell the house. This is the house Nick grew up in and her mother in law is doing her best to halt Amber moving away with the kids. She met a man online and they’ve become close enough that she’s moving in with him. Add in a dodgy real estate agent who uses houses for his unsavory activities. Many characters hold secrets in this story and it all comes together nicely at the end.
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A lot of unreliable characters all mixed in with the plot of selling house. I never thought of that storyline for a thriller. Overall, an enjoyable read that kept my interest.

I loved this book It is one of my favorite type of story line and had me guessing for a long time. If I was clever, this is the way I would love to make a living! I think Nick and Amber belong together for the long haul and the author really built up the suspense. I am looking forward to putting him on my favorite author list.

This was a very complicated mystery story. Lots of twists and turns and different possibilities.. Really draws you into the situations. Well described characters that were easy to relate to. Very dramatic, unexpected conclusion.

Another blinder by this author. I didn't realise I'd chosen to read two back to back but I am pleased I did. One of my favourite new authors of 2020.

This is a chilling read- I'm not sure I felt safe in my own house while reading it. Talk about skeletons in the closet. I did think Davina and her husband could have been more rounded and involved characters, but overall, the story, split into chapters narrated by Amber, or her interfering mother in law, Barb, comes across in a really effective way. Some twists I did see coming, but the final one, not at all. What a creepy concept that someone is watching you inside your own home - and the fact you don't know why is even more terrifying. And then that isn't even the scariest part of what is going on. Chilling!! #netgalley #theopenhouse

I was super excited when I first received the email from Avon Books about The Open House, because it sounded so good, and I instantly knew that it was a book I would enjoy, so of course I jumped at the chance. Now that I have read it, I can honestly say that my gut feelings were right, and this book certainly didn’t disappoint.

The story is told from multiple POV: Amber, her mother-in-law Barb, and a mystery narrator (who appears to be the one behind everything that is happening). I think that books with multiple POV are very hit and miss, it either works, or it doesn’t, and in this case it definitely works. It really helps to keep you invested and intrigued by the story, and also has you asking lots of questions that you wouldn’t have had if it was from just one POV.

I immediately took a disliking to Barb. She’s just so sneaky, sly, and unbelievably nosey and controlling. She’s just not a nice person. Her behaviour really wasn’t acceptable, and the way she treats Amber is awful. The fact that Amber is then made to seem like that bad one in the relationship between them is so frustrating, because Amber has every right to be angry at Barb’s actions, and I know I would be too if I was her. I felt so sorry for Amber throughout the story, because nothing seemed to go right for her, and then nobody really took her seriously either, it wasn’t fair on her at all.

The pace of the story was a bit of a slow burn, but at no point did I find myself losing interest. There was just enough to keep you hooked from beginning to end, even in the slower moments. I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style, which definitely helped. I had quite a few suspicions as to what was happening along the way, but nothing could have prepared me for the multiple twists that came, my jaw was on the floor every single time. I honestly could never have expected that ending either, and it was such a satisfying way to end the book.

This was my first time reading anything by Sam Carrington, but I will definitely be checking out her other books, because this was brilliant, and I highly recommend it. A huge thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for my free copy of the book, in exchange for an honest review.

I give The Open House a 4 star rating!

This was a thrilling read, and I enjoyed it until the end. I love ms Carrington's books, and can't wait to read the next one. Recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book It started off well & the characters were great. In the last few chapters of the book the plot fell apart. I felt that it was rushed & the ending wasn't logical.