I had previously read Bartz's "We Were Never Here" and I think this work is much better. The intricate plotline made this an interesting read, although the remaining 50 or so pages did drag on a bit. Overall, a unique look at relationships, jealousy, and what lockdown can make people capable of.

I was almost at the verge of DNFing this book :(
The aspect of this book that I lacked connection to was the fluidity between the plot and the characters. This was not really a mystery/thriller and the main reason why I was intrigued in this book was because of the cover. The book dragged a bit as well but the thriller showed up at the end. One major thing I dislike about a book is when the plot is about the pandemic but I have to say that this book didn't have a in depth content about pandemic or keep pointing it out which I liked. If you are planning to read this, then do not think this is a mystery thriller book because only partially its mystery thriller.

This was not a good book. To covid heavy for me and very predictable. It had me for the first few chapters and then it all went down hill for me. Thank you Netgally for the ARC.

A story whose setting is during/post COVID pandemic, this book looks at a woman, Kelly, at a critical moment in her relationship with her fiance. She is invited to spend some time isolated with an old school friend, Sabrina, and Sabrina's husband, Nathan.

Their house is amazing, and soon, Sabrina and Nathan entice Kelly into a relationship with them. But Kelly soon discovers they have done this before, and that woman is missing. She starts to mistrust everything around her.

I did not really enjoy this story. I have read Bartz before, and I like her books, but this one just irritated me. She is good at writing people you just don't like. I didn't enjoy any of the characters in this novel. I found Nathan and Sabrina to be too shiny and perfect (which I'm sure was the intent). Kelly had totally poor judgment in character and was so whiny and paranoid.

The ending also made me really angry. The twist was so out of left field and ridiculous.

I enjoyed the depictions of a pandemic world and an unconventional relationship, but that was really all.

Every time I thought I figured it out, something happened and it was all different. Enjoyed the writing and story. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read The Spare Room. Unfortunately, this book was not a fit for me and I ended up DNF’ing it. I was hoping for a thrilling book, but after a while of reading I wasn’t connecting with the story and had to put this down.

Thank you for the opportunity to preview The Spare Room
Wickedly delicious novel with interesting characters and full of spice, lies and sex!

Bartz will have your head spinning till the last page.

3.5 stars

Thanks to the Publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of The Spare Room.. I really wanted to like this book as I am a fan of Andrea Bartz however this one just didn’t do it for me. DNF, I didn’t connect with the character’s or the story line.. sigh!

“The Spare Room” by Andrea Bartz takes place during the pandemic. Kelly’s boyfriend has just called off their wedding, so she travels to stay with and friend and her husband. They all end up having a romantic connection and decide to open their marriage to include Kelly. As their relationship progresses, Kelly finds out that this isn’t the first time they have opened their marriage to include another woman, and that woman has since gone missing.

This story was definitely unique. I went in blindly and was not expecting the amount of steam that is in this book, and to be honest the topic isn’t for me! But that has nothing to do with the author’s writing style, which is phenomenal. I found this book to be less of a thriller and more of a romantic mystery, as a huge portion of the book was focused on the romantic scenes.

Thank you so much to publisher and NetGalley for this ARC! While this book topic wasn’t for me, I will definitely continue to read more of this author’s books.

You might need to take a cold shower after reading this!

It's 2020 and Kelly hasn't been living in Philadelphia very long. She moved there for her fiancé who just put the brakes on their wedding planning. She's stuck in lockdown with him, no job or friends, isolated in every possible way.

The one bright spot in her life is her newly rekindled friendship online with an old friend, Sabrina. She offers Kelly the opportunity to stay with her and her husband in their mansion in Virginia. Kelly jumps at the chance to get some space from her situation and think about what she wants.

Once she arrives, Kelly is in awe of their mansion and their relationship. She wants to be liked and accepted by them and slowly starts to also feel an attraction to both of them. What surprises Kelly is that they both like her too. Here's where things really get spicy!

They open their marriage to Kelly and she's with both of them equally. To me, that's not the spicy aspect. There's nothing risqué about polyamory. However, a big portion of this book revolves around the sex Kelly has with them together and separately. I don't think that's something you would expect in a suspense/thriller novel unless you're specifically looking for that in what you want to read. I'm not bothered by it, just giving a heads up to those who might be.

Their relationship is off to a good start, Kelly feels like a new person and is high on the new love feelings. Then she discovers they've done all this before and the woman before her disappeared. Before her fresh start, Kelly was an insecure and paranoid person. So she falls back into her old ways of thinking once she doubts everything she thought she knew about them. She slowly spirals as she investigates, afraid she's living with a murderer. Or are they both killers?

The Spare Room is a unique, steamy, suspenseful ride. The very end was especially chilling.

Thank you Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the e-ARC.

I am a HUGE fan of Andrea Bartz, so I was thrilled to get my hands on an ARC of her latest and greatest!

Kelly upended her life to move to Philadelphia with her fiancé; however, when he calls off the wedding, Kelly finds herself jobless and alone -- and stuck in their apartment. Kelly's childhood friend Sabrina swoops in and saves the day, inviting Kelly to quarantine with her and her husband in their mansion.

Life in the mansion starts out as a dram, but slowly cracks in the relationship begin to show and Kelly cannot help but wonder what she got herself in to.

First off, The Spare Room is set during the initial summer of the COVID lockdown, and it was definitely a trip (to say the least) to relive those early days of uncertainty through the eyes of Kelly. Andrea Bartz has SUCH a way of writing that subtly makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. I could not put this book down!

Why did I read this one? Such a disappointing read. I honestly wished I had DNFed it. I didn't enjoy her last book, so I'm not sure what made me pick up this one. Either way, Bartz is just not for me. The story was predictable and the characters were so unlikeable. Oh, and the story was chock full of the protagonist just whinging about everything.

Thank you so much for this ARC!

This books definitely took a direction that I didn't see coming! Heavy on the sexual stuff and less on the thriller but it worked. Totally unlikeable characters all around but as we all know the pandemic changed us and made us think about our lives much differently than before.

I enjoyed this book but felt at times it was a bit drawn out. Maybe 75 less pages would have kept the pace more engaging with less repetitiveness,

Perfect twisty ending!

This book was not what I expected, but it was still an enjoyable read. From the description, I was anticipating more of a thriller/ psychological suspense. There were some aspects of that, but I felt like it was more interested in a sexual drama with some thriller mixed in. Not my usual genre of choice. I would not recommend if you are sensitive to that content. I did find it easy to read, but the main character (Kelly) could be incredibly frustrating in her choices and decisions.
Thanks to NetGalley for the book to review.

I did not care for this book. The ending was a surprise. However, the plot was not my thing. It took me a while to read.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Kelly and her fiancé take a break in the middle of lockdown which takes her to a high school friend' now turned erotica author's spare bedroom within a mansion in the DC area. After reconnecting with Sabrina, a bit more and getting to know her husband Nate, Kelly becomes intimate with the couple. Kelly feels really special by the couple's actions but soon uncovers that they have been in a throuple before, and their prior girlfriend has gone missing. Queue the suspense.

This story starts off as an erotica thriller that keeps getting steamier as the plot thickens. Beware that this book is a slow burner, in case you do not like those. The book does speed up towards the end and throws in so many twists and turns, that as soon as you feel you have figured it out, you will need to guess again. I really liked the mix of genres in this book and would even say this story is better than We Were Never Here. The spooky and spicy aspects make me want more.

The Spare room
by Andrea Bartz
Pub Date: June 20, 2023
Thanks to the author, publisher, and Net Galley for the aRC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
This book is hot!
Staying with a friend and her husband in more intimate and dangerous than anyone could ever imagine in this provocative new thriller by Bartz!
This book is incredibly steamy.
You'll find yourself drawn into this naughty book. Tension builds, you won't be able to put it down.
The trapped in a mansion theme is intense.
Great book! Plan to read this in the privacy of your own home.
4 stars

Before I start my actual review, I have to say that this cover is everything. I love, love, love it. Please judge this book by its cover because I love, love, loved the book too. I had to process my thoughts before writing this review and I'm still (weeks later, mind you) randomly chuckling, like "WHAT the-- did I read?!" You guys, this book was wild and weird (Andrea Bartz said so herself <3) and just so much fun. I initially thought I would rate this 4/5 stars, but it's been living rent-free in my head for the better part of a month, so it really deserves all the praise.

To my relief, the story had just the right amount of pandemic talk that contributed to the story without BEING the story (thank you, amen). And to my surprise, there was romance- like a lot romance. That's not usually my jam, but hey, I guess that weird and wild stuff really works for me. Knowing this was marketed as a thriller, the romance part kind of took on a suspenseful role and I was just anxiously anticipating what was going to go down. I thought I knew too, but nope! What a twist! There were honestly quite a few unexpected twists and turns (including that spice) making this quite the quick page-turning read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this thriller. I was always questioning what was really happening, who to believe, and how everything was going to end. The twist at the end was completely unexpected and threw me through a loop. It was fast paced, had a little bit of spice, and was full of unreliable characters. I enjoy reading both romance and thrillers, so this was the perfect book for me. I could see if you don't enjoy romance in your thrillers, then you might not like this one. This is my second book by the author and she is quickly becoming an auto-read author.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thrilling romantic thriller! Kelly flees her wedding plans and fiance to live in the spare room of an author from high school that she reconnected with on instagram. The two bonded quickly and she feels right at home in her new friend's mansion. As she adjusts to her new life and choices, Kelly continues to field calls from her fiances and anxiously second guess herself. When her hosts invite her to do more than just live in the spare room she is not sure just how far she is willing to go. When clues from the last guess in the spare room turn up, Kelly isn't sure if she should stay or flee again!
#randomhouse #TheSpareRoom #AndreaBartz