This book was a completely wild ride. From the first chapter, the reader wonders what tragedy befell the couple who stayed at the guest house. As the story moves through time, being told from the point of view of different characters at different points in time, everything unfolds into a competition of who is the craziest, most-unreliable narrator. In the end, there are even more upended beliefs and you're kept guessing until the last pages. Lots of craziness and suspenseful moments that leave you wondering what you would do for love.

After a lil mini binge on rom-coms, this one got me!
The story stressed me out from the very beginning. Extremely expectant momma goes on a remote get away with her husband with physical limitations, and they can't get to the hospital when her contractions start because the B&B they're staying in is dark and abandoned and their car is gone.
When I tell you my anxiety went through the roof, I mean my fitbit was worried about my heart rate.
It was a good twisty thriller!
Thanks to the publisher & Net Galley!

Did not see that twist coming! As a mother, this had me so anxious the first 3 quarters of the book!!!… but then felt the end was a little rushed. Would’ve liked a little bit more. For a male author, it felt like he did lots of research to understand a mother’s experiences in those first few days/weeks, and portrayed it well. Ultimately, liked the final ending. Jamie was a fav character and appreciated the attention brought to the ableism he experienced as a person with cerebral palsy.

Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy. Would read this author again!

I did not see the ending coming at all in The Guest House. This book flowed between present and past well and kept me interested throughout. I enjoyed the writing and the overall plot of the book. I enjoyed reading The Guest House and look forward to reading more books from this author.

I just love books set in creepy houses, they tend to be quite atmospheric and usually have a macabre vibe that I enjoy. I also really appreciated the authors inclusion and portrayal of Jamie’s cerebral palsy. That’s not something we see often enough, especially in thrillers. If you enjoy a tense build up, dual timelines & unexpected twists, give this one a read!

I received this ARC courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher. This was a wild ride of a book. Several twists kept things surprising and thrilling. I would have liked more explanation of Jamie’s disability since it was mentioned so much throughout the book.

An original plot with some very engaging and unseen twists and turns. The characters felt very credible which gave the strange plot an air of menace and risk. A really great read and one I will revisit. Thank you for the ARC

A really engaging and submersible thriller that kept me guessing, I really enjoyed reading it and the twist caught me off guard completely. Thank you for the ARC!

Jamie and Victoria just want a little weekend getaway before their baby arrives, but their guesthouse experience soon turns into a nightmare. They wake up locked in this house with no phones or keys, and Victoria is going into labor early. What will this young couple do to try to save their baby?

This book is full of twists and turns, and I could not put it down once I got going. Good luck figuring out what’s really happening and who you can trust.

Told in dual timelines and dual POVs with short chapters, this book was incredibly difficult to put down.

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC!

I will admit I was getting frustrated by the two main characters in this novel but then there was a hefty twist. Suddenly there was enough shock value for me to become invested in the ongoing tale again. A clever concept but I sort of feel that once the twist was revealed, there was not a lot to explain that wasn't somewhat obvious. I did like the outcome and essentially enjoyed the originality of the plot. Enough originality to recommend to other readers.

I received this arc from netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

OKAY WOW.

That was a wild, wild ride! The tension was high almost the entire time, the pacing was EXCELLENT—fast and unrelenting at times, and I didn’t guess any of the twists. It’s not often that I say “WTF?” or “OMG!” out loud when I read a novel…. And I did that at least 5-6 times throughout haha.

This may be a jarring book for some as the subject matter includes IVF, fertility, childbirth, and harming children. However, I handled it well (even as a mom to a 3-year old and someone who has suffered a miscarriage).

I loved that there were multiple POVs to this novel as it let us into the psyches of the main characters. And that epilogue…

This is a must read if you love a fast-paced, high tension thriller. September can’t come soon enough! Thank you so much to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC!

5⭐️

WHAT HAVE I JUST READ!!!🔥

This is one phenomenal read that inflicts a rollercoaster of emotions. I really felt connected to Victoria and Jamie during the heartbreak they were experiencing. The multiple twists were superb and I was gripped from the very first chapter to the Epilogue. The plot was stunning and contained everything you would expect in a thriller!

I also really liked how the protagonist had Cerebral Palsy, and how this disability never restricted their drive and motivation in this unputdownable read! 🔥📚

This thriller is going to be a big hit🔥

Many thanks to Robin Morgan-Bentley, Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for this ARC!

I highly recommend this read!

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press, Net Galley and the author for the advance copy.
I loved this book. I’d label it horror as a mother of three! What an ingenious premise and a very interesting structure. I am not often surprised by twists and turns but this one got me! I speedread it as I was sick with fear. This book was absorbing and compelling and I read in one sitting.
The plot is told via dual timelines and these were very easy to follow. We get Jamie and Victoria’s perspectives both present and past. The pacing seemed almost frenetic as we sped back and forth trying to understand what happened. We know they did not come home with a baby, but what happened? I kept reading to find out first if he was alive and second what happened and who did actually die? The author dropped just a few nuggets with each chapter to keep me reading.
At first, I thought what had happened was totally unbelievable but the actual reveal delighted me as I didn’t particularly like those two characters. They were not portrayed as monsters, just not as mothers/women I would admire. It was nice to see the dad be the good guy for a change. Jamie was not totally lovable and so quite human, but he did his bit as a father. I enjoyed the author’s note where he discussed normalizing disabled main characters. It was educational to see how someone with cerebral palsy navigates his day-to-day life and how insensitive people can be. He was ultimately the better parent despite all the circumstances.
I see Lucy Foley, Shari Lapena and Ruth Ware fans enjoying this book. Just stick with it as the beginning is a bit different and filled me with such a sense of dread. It picks up steam and is a very unique take on a thriller.

Absolutely Incredible. I’m still in shock after reading this book!

The characters are creepy and so well written. It’s a dark storyline, with plenty of jaw dropping twists. It’s fast paced, and intense. I highly recommend!

This book is a page-turner mystery for sure. Victoria and Jamie are traveling to a remote area of northern England for a "babymoon" vacation before their first child is due to be born. When Victoria goes into labor on the first night, Jamie tries to locate the owners for help, but they are no where to be found. What's more, all of the doors and windows are locked preventing the couple from leaving the guest house. What is going on? Who are these innkeepers? How will they get away to welcome their new son into the world.? So many questions and lots of twisty turns take the reader on a whirlwind journey to learn the surprising truth. A very satisfying read indeed.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this advance copy.

3/5 Stars!

This Review is Spoiler Free!

A compelling story with a twist I didn't see coming! The Guest House is a wild ride!

Jamie and Victoria head to a weekend getaway just a few weeks before the birth of their first child. But while there, Victoria unexpectedly goes into labor, and they realize that their keys - and the hosts of the B&B they're staying at - are gone.

Robin Morgan-Bentley has suspenseful writing down to a science. I made the mistake of starting this one just 40 minutes before I had to go onstage for a two hour performance...and it was insanely difficult to drag myself away from my Kindle to get onstage for Mahler. The second I got home, I was back to it, and finished it in one sitting.

While there are definitely some sections where readers may need to suspend disbelief, this chilling book is absolutely a fun, quick thriller!

*I received an ARC from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and views in this review are my own.

**MAJOR SPOILERS**

**Trigger Warning - mention of harming/killing babies, mention of abortion.

I think I need to stay away from books that revolve around babies/children in a violent way, or even more specifically when the mother doesn’t want the child.

I couldn’t stand any of the characters, I felt for Jamie but he wasn’t really a likeable character. The entire storyline was ridiculous & the decisions of the main characters Jamie & his wife Victoria were dumb. I didn’t hate this book but it’s not one I’d have read if I knew then what I know now.

The only two things this book has going for it is the authors writing is pretty good overall (minor things in the writing annoyed me- example he mentioned that Jamie had curly hair multiple times where it was unnecessary & basically filler), & the author did a good job at the eventual twist of things.

The fact that Victoria (Jamie’s wife) was essentially the villain, along with Fiona & Barry who we find out later are her aunt & uncle, just made it ridiculous. Since she planned this ridiculousness she realistically (in an unrealistic situation) should’ve been able to control the narrative more & avoided stuff going down how it did while in the guest house. I feel like the whole situation could’ve been avoided..but I suppose that would have made for no book so🤷‍♀️.

The story alternates between past (their stay in the guest house) & present after the baby Danny is taken from them. That part of it didn’t bother me & actually worked well but I feel like it should’ve been shorter & I would’ve liked it better. Either that or give some more excitement & reading material different than repeating the same things (Jamie & Victoria’s pov) just written out differently. Maybe have put in some chapters from Fiona’s POV?

Eventually I had an idea that the main character Victoria (the mother of baby Danny) was behind things but wasn’t quite sure how, so the twist was still a surprise & kind of clever. The first 75% of the book most times I was thinking ‘get on with it already!’. We know Danny is alive so the repetitive mention of the black cloud of what happened (zero details)in the guest house was annoying & I wanted to know what happened not just that something happened, especially since Danny was alive but not in their possession. Most suspense books I don’t need instant gratification by any means but I just feel like the way this was laid out drug on & had a lot of repetitive mentions to where I wanted to yell at the book to tell me what happened??

I do want to mention that the author did a good job at appropriately portraying a character that had cerebral palsy, which after I finished the book it was mentioned that he the author has it so it makes sense. It also kind of makes sense to me that the author was a man (I assumed Robin was a female 😉) in how he portrayed Jamie’s character. Jamie’s character was not necessarily sensitive but you could tell he was good hearted & excited to be a father, so from a female (and mothers) standpoint it was sweet I like how he made Jamie’s character caring & not more of your common suspense book (jerk) husband.

I probably would not recommend this unfortunately. The author is talented but I feel like this needed tweaked a lot & then it could’ve been a good one. I’d absolutely give another book of his a shot.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

This psychological thriller was an enjoyable read full of suspense throughout and with a great twist at the end. The characters were good, the plot was great and the style of writing was perfect which makes for an easy read. This is the first book I have read by this author and I’ll be keeping my eye out for more in the future. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys this genre.
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

This one started out strong with a non linear timeline and two POVs. A couple on a baby moon leads to a terrifying situation where the momma to be goes into preterm labor and oh yeah the couple who owns the B&E just wants their baby. Cool. Yeah that seems normal. Flash forward and its madness. What happened to baby Danny? What the heck is going on? Okay. The twists were just borderline ridiculous. For one, the momma just gave birth and shes moving a dead body? No. Not possible. Also. The big big twist at the end? No. Just no. Ugh I wanted to like this. But as I kept reading it was just too unbelievable and forced and frustrating. But! It was a clever idea and I did have a need to finish the book and see what happens. But I may have also skimmed the last chapter.

This was un-put-downable! I enjoyed it from start to finish and had no guesses for what was going to happen. Great build up to some unexpected twists. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.