I was really not a fan of this book. It took me a long time to read because I was just not motivated to pick it up. It is a thriller, but it didn’t start getting thrilling until the 70% mark. Before then, it was just an insufferable main character, pandemic clichés, and super spicy romance. If that’s what you enjoy, then you’ll probably like this book. I just wasn’t a big fan. I kept waiting for something to happen! I was looking for clues that didn’t amount to anything and there were some scenes that I felt were totally unnecessary (i.e. hot tub). I didn’t like the main character, Kelly, at all, and I don’t think that was the author’s intention. I’ve never heard of a 34 year old woman crying so much! She cried on a coffee date, cried at a brewery, cried while talking about mundane things… it was very weird to me. Overall, I thought it was really a 2 star book, but I added a half star for the twist.

In the midst of the pandemic, Kelly loses her job then she and her fiancé called off their wedding--so now she's alone and jobless.
Sabrina, a friend from high school, invited Kelly to come stay with her and her husband.
The rest of the book is filled with threesomes, murder and twist after twist.
Just when you *think* you've got it figured out--chefs kiss.

My biggest issue was our MC. It's almost like we were led to feel like it was almost a grooming situation, yet she was 35!!! I'd have believed her situation more if she was super young. she def wins the "stupid decision" award for the year.

It also made these unnecessary political jabs, that I could've done without.

It’s the middle of Covid and everyone is trapped in their houses and all that togetherness was wearing, especially for Kelly and her fiancé. The wedding has been put on pause.
   Kelly needed to get away and a recent rekindling of a high school friend on line induced an invite to come and stay with her and her live-in, giving Kelly the space she needed. She got more than space.    
   This friend, a very successful writer, is gorgeous and her partner is model material and very kind. All this beauty, sucess and sexiness stirs up ideas only ever thought about but eventually acted out: the twosome is now a threesome, in everything.  
   The murder/mystery part of the book finally appeared in the final chapters………after too many bedroom scenes, ongoing deceitfulness and trust issues all played out by three people who seemed impervious to what was happening in the rest of the world. I was wanted more action and less interaction.

Andrea Bartz continues to write pulse-pounding, twisty thrillers that I can’t get enough of. The dazzling prose! The fascinating dynamics between characters! The gorgeous but perhaps sinister setting! With THE SPARE ROOM, she continues to explore complicated female friendships but takes it up a notch with erotic thriller vibes. I couldn’t stop turning the pages and some of these scenes are seared into my brain, even months after reading.

As always, I've gotta write my review before I read other reviews because I know I'll be ~swayed~ by what everybody else is saying if I don't. Y'all, I'm not a critical reader. I'm just here for the ride, to have fun and be entertained, and Andrea's previous books have done that for me so I knew this one would do the same. I think if you dislike an unreliable narrator or red herrings or general confusion over what the fuck is going on, this probably isn't for you, but I really love when I feel like I can't trust even the person that's telling us the story. It's FUN and that's what I'm looking for when I'm reading!

So this story is centered around Kelly and set during the pandemic. Kelly is definitely annoying, of course, but she (like all of us, no?) finds someone on Instagram that she deep dives and then starts talking to (someone she knew in high school), and then ends up going to stay with her and her husband when things in her relationship go south. Nothing can ever be that easy though, so weird shit starts happening. My suggestion is always to just be along for the ride, and this was definitely a one sitting read for me.

Spoilers coming here – I kind of hated the way that her ex was the perpetrator who set all of the killing in motion, because that didn't feel super authentic to me? It would've made more sense for it to be one of them, like the call is coming from inside the house. I also didn't love that the story ends with the women kind of going their own ways but amicably, I think I wanted things to be more acrimonious. This doesn't change my recommendation, though!

I love a good story with all sorts of twists and turns. This one did not disappoint. I did not see this one unfolding how it did at all. What did I just finish reading?!

There were so many angles that I was not expecting & definitely adds a whole new perspective to what possibly went on in the darkness that was the pandemic. It messed with everyone’s world in So many ways.

The character development was solid & the plot was dark, twisty and intriguing. For something definitely different, I would recommend this book!

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for allowing me to read this one early!

The Spare Room by Andrea Bartz had caught my eye because it seemed like an interesting premise. Previously have enjoyed Andrea’s books in the past.

The story follows Kelly who leaves her fiancé, Mike, to go live with her friend from high school, Sabrina and her husband, who writes romance novels. Kelly, Sabrina and Nathan create a pod during Covid.

The characters in The Spare Room are untrustworthy, especially as you get more into the story. While the story takes its twists and turns, it’s hard to look away.

I’ve been an Andrea Bartz reader for a while now, but if you enjoy unpredictable stories with crazy twists and turns, The Spare Room is for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

3.5⭐️

As a fan of Andrea Bartz, I was so excited to receive an ARC! I loved her other books but The Spare Room did not live up to my expectations. None of the characters were very relatable and Kelly seemed more like a teenager than a 35 year old woman. I did love the twist near the end though!

I really didn’t enjoy this one. So much so that I can’t really remember much. I did read it in a day so there’s that.

Amazing thriller, I couldn't put it down!

Every book by this author is even better than the last!

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

This book was spooking and thrilling at the same time. I loved it. It was creepy and intense and I could not stop turning the pages.

I have very mixed feelings about this one! It didn’t really seem like a thriller til more than halfway through and I didn’t love the sexually charged story lines. But once twists started happening I was enthralled and ended up liking the ending! I didn’t guess “who did it” or the final twisted chapters. So overall, a solid read.

Potential spoilers might be ahead.

A genre bending romantic/mystery. So I know this is supposed to be a thriller but I would say it is more towards the lines of a whodunnit story. Looking at other peoples thoughts I know some people are sick of hearing about the pandemic and the RONA, but Bartz’s idea of the concept of someone going missing when everyone is on lockdown. I will say that this does shed light on the larger cities that most likely had stricter policies regarding the pandemic. So go into this know the pandemic does a play a part in this story and honestly I enjoyed it because the pandemic went on for years, it’s part of history now and I think that Bartz did well including that into her story.

Another note because I think people were eating this book poorly due to the romantic themes in this….. Kelly reaches out to an old friend from school after a huge event in Kelly’s life left her needing a new start, with the pandemic there’s limited options. So therein comes Sabrina and Nathan. On that note I loved how Bartz included this love interest as it is LGBTQ+ representative. I really enjoyed her take on polyamory, although this book does show you that relationships no matter what they look like should still have boundaries and discussions throughout. I really enjoyed getting to see Kelly explore herself and that’s where I think this story does well, because not only is Kelly trying to figure herself out after she’s no longer getting married and on the course of what she had always thought she wanted. She is now given the chance to explore and test the boundaries of who she thought she had to be.

Kelly- I’d say she could be an unreliable character, maybe even a not always likeable character, and personally I think that’s why I liked the story more because it seemed more realistic. There are themes of Kelly having deeply ridden anxiety, and I think Bartz did a good job showing us that and showing us some of the consequences and actions anxiety can lead us to.

Ugh, I really think that you should go in with an open mind with this book and you just might love it. I definitely loved this and would totally read it again. I really don’t want to spoil too much, and I wouldn’t say this is your typical thriller, but I loved the twists and turns this story takes you on made it so worth it to me. I was constantly trying to solve the mystery. I also feel like you’re right there with Kelly going through what she is.

If you’re not used to sex in thrillers this might take you by surprise. On a spice level I’d say it’s still pretty closed doors but fairly steamy. 2/5 in my opinion on the spice level. So if you don’t like sex in books you probably won’t like this.

Also Virgo…. The cat, LOVE. And for those wondering Virgo will be okay. PROMISE!

I reallly hope people take the chance to read this and love it! I cannot wait to see what Andrea will write next. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House for the advanced copy of this.

2 stars out of 5.

I really could not get into this book at all. After reading the synopsis, I was impressed and excited to read the book. Boy was I disappointed. This is not a thriller but more of a romance novel. The ending of the book is the only "thriller" part of the book and it felt like an afterthought. The characters were really unlikable and I almost DNF this book a few times. Also, this book takes place during the Pandemic and references that quite a bit.

In The Spare Room, Kelly and her fiancé Mike had a blow out so Kelly goes and visits with an acquaintance of hers from high school named Sabrina. Sabrina, her husband Nathan, and Kelly end up hitting it off and start a relationship. Eventually Kelly learns of their previous partner disappearing and she begins to question who these people really are.

Overall, I think I might have been the wrong audience for the book. I hate ratings book poorly but this book was just not for me.

A big thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was fun and so unique from the other thrillers on The market right now. Also a little creepy if you really think about the plot in real world scenarios. I loved this so much!

Spare Room is a Quarantine claustrophobia "I'm letting my imagination get the best of me" sort of book. When our protagonist's wedding keeps getting pushed back by her fiance, she decides to go stay with a couple she sort of knows off of Instagram. Acquaintances. They're sweet to her and make her feel welcomed to their Covid bubble and give her a space to walk around their large house and neighborhood. The friend is a writer that she's a fan of, the husband works for the feds. Seems like a perfect set up. Our girl feels safe and comfortable and decides to start getting hot and heavy with our hosts, and break apart her life, It's one of those books, It's not really a thriller, yes there's a missing person, but it's really more about the *drama* of it all. Can you trust people? It's well written, finely paced. The smutty parts aren't smutty at all, it's like Bartz attempted to dip her toe into the idea of writing out some locked house couple swap fantasy and didn't go all the way with it, or didn't want to lose focus on it being a thriller either. Overall, it was a miss for me personally. I feel like some book club is going to make it the summer read though.

I just couldn't get into this one. I've read and loved Andrea Bartz other work and will certainly continue to seek out books of here's in the future. I was expecting a more thrilling read. I'm giving it 2.5 stars not because I thought it was a bad book or poorly written. It was a very well done book on sexual triangles. The characters were very well drawn though not always likable. This book will be enjoyed by those who like a lot of romance and sexual intrigue

I read the author's "We Were Never Here" and enjoyed it, leading me to request "The Spare Room." I read about 30 % before giving up.

The good:
*I like Bartz's writing style. It's easy to read and it makes me want to keep reading to know what will happen.
* I liked this quote: "A feeling I get on vacation sometimes, looking out over a new landscape, tears pricking my eyes. This is perfect, and I can't soak it in enough." I've had that feeling; she describes it well.

The not-so:
* The book is set during covid. I'm over that and don't want to return to talk of masks, vaccines, lockdown, "believing in science," etc.
* The book morphed into a situation where the main character was being sexually intimate with both a friend and her husband -- something I find immoral and just ewwww. I felt kind of dirty when I'd open the book, and I don't like that. Others may enjoy.

The Spare Room is set in early 2020 at the start of the corona pandemic and focuses on 35-year-old Kelly Doyle. Kelly recently moved to Philadelphia with her longtime boyfriend, and since the foreclosure, Kelly has been stuck in their new apartment in a new city, jobless, friendless, and now her relationship with her boyfriend is strained.

Kelly's childhood friend Sabrina Lamont and her husband Nathan temporarily invite Kelly to a spare room in their fancy mansion in Virginia. Kelly takes the opportunity, hoping that this time away from her boyfriend will help mend their relationship. Shortly after Kelly's arrival, she begins to develop romantic feelings for both the Lamonts, and much to Sabrina's surprise, the feelings between Sabrina and Nathan are mutual. As their threesome begins to deepen, Kelly learns that Lamomt has done it before with another woman. And to my great surprise, the woman is gone.

I'm always looking for a unique story, especially when it comes to thrillers. So the unique synopsis immediately piqued my interest in The Spare Room. The book made me take some unexpected turns. At several points I expected the story to go in a certain direction, but then the twist was taken away and I was completely wrong.

Although this story contains a plot twist, I'm not sure if The Spare Room should be classified as a thriller, but more of a romantic mystery. I was really surprised by the spice factor in it. Much of the story focuses on Kelly's sexual relationship with Lamont.

Overall, I found The Spare Room to be a fun read. While I didn't enjoy The Spare Room as much as Were Were Never Here, I look forward to reading anything Andrea writes in the future. I think it will appeal to many readers, especially romantic thriller readers.

What in the world did I just read? The Spare Room by Andrea Bartz gave me some major whiplash and definitely was not what I was expecting. During the height of COVID-19, Kelly and her fiance Mike have decided to pump the brakes on their relationship. To give themselves some space, Kelly moves out of their apartment and into a sprawling McMansion in the D.C. suburbs with her long lost high school friend, Sabrina. Kelly randomly connected on Instagram with "Rina," who is now a successful erotica author married to a dreamy federal government employee, Nathan. The steamy kind of tension starts rising with the new living arrangement and Kelly finds herself in....well, a throuple. The drama continues to unfold with a missing ex, a mysterious stranger, neighborhood bullies, and violence in the bedroom. The Spare Room just sort of spirals in the final third and gets pretty bizarre. Normally I'm a fan of weird, but the writing was honestly a little difficult for me to follow. If you decide to read The Spare Room, just know that you're in for a wild, and weird, and just okay ride.