Woooo! I was not prepared for the STEAMY in this book! Not my usual style, but it worked because of all the twists I did not see coming! Great , fast read!

The premise of The Spare Room sounded very interesting - during the COVID19 pandemic, Kelly reconnects with a high school friend, Sabrina. While deciding whether or not to call off her wedding, Kelly is invited to move into Sabrina and her husband's spare room in northern Virginia. Kelly jumps at the offer and quickly moves in. Things soon escalate, including attractions between Sabrina, Kelly, and Nathan, Sabrina's husband, and they form a "throuple" with each couple having their own dynamic. But Kelly soon finds that Sabrina and Nathan are keeping secrets from her, such as the disappearance of their "ex" shortly before Kelly came down from Philadelphia.

I thought the pacing and the writing were generally fine, but once the story picked up, it moved far too quickly and had a little too much going on, including one too many twists and turns. I also struggled with finding any of the characters particularly likeable, especially Kelly, and it felt like the author was trying to hit on all the buzziest trends/fads.

Overall, this was an okay book, but not one I'd necessarily recommend to all my friends as the next thriller they should pick up.

Andrea Bartz is the queen of writing about dysfunctional and toxic relationships, and it is just as obvious in The Spare Room as it was in We Were Never Here.. Which is what I'm coming to love about her books and her voice within them. I was more impressed than I expected to. be with The Spare Room, especially since it was set during the Covid lockdowns.

Kelly, a 35-year-old woman, finds herself dumped by her long-time fiancé. Thankfully, she reconnects with her old school friend Sabrina, who is married to a powerful and seductive man. Seeking solace after her breakup, Kelly accepts Sabrina's invitation to stay in the spare room of their stunning Virginia mansion. (REALLY?!)
Little does she know, this leads to a steamy threesome with the enticing couple in the midst of a pandemic. Kelly must navigate her new reality in the face of these life-altering circumstances.... (okay, but like holy cow, this is HOT!)
Without spoiling it TOO much, this is no ordinary thriller. It delves into scandalous topics, derails expectations, and presents a plethora of triggering subjects, jaw-dropping incidents, and mind-blowing twists. (I went into this not knowing much, & I am truly blown away!

I love a locked room mystery, and was so excited to read this! It was definitely a binge read for me, and I completely lost track of time while I was reading, which is the best feeling as a reader.

There was plenty of juicy scandal woven through the story, which made for an entertaining read!

*many thanks to PRH/ Ballantine and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

"The Spare Room" by Andrea Bartz is a novel that falls somewhere in the middle when it comes to psychological thrillers. While it has its moments of intrigue and suspense, it also has some shortcomings that prevent it from standing out in a crowded genre.

Bartz's writing is generally solid but not particularly outstanding. The pacing of the story is somewhat inconsistent, with moments of tension and anticipation followed by slower and less engaging segments. This uneven pacing can make it challenging for readers to maintain a high level of investment throughout the book.

The characters in "The Spare Room" are decently developed, but they lack the depth and complexity that could make them truly compelling. The dual narrative structure provides some insight into their thoughts and motivations, but the characters themselves often come across as somewhat one-dimensional. It can be challenging to fully connect with or care about their fates.

The plot, while featuring a web of secrets and revelations, doesn't always deliver the level of suspense one might hope for in a psychological thriller. The twists and turns are present, but they don't always have the impact or shock value that similar novels in the genre can achieve.

Overall, "The Spare Room" is a middling entry in the psychological thriller genre. While it has its moments and offers a decent level of intrigue, it doesn't manage to rise above the competition. Readers seeking a more gripping and emotionally resonant thriller may find this book falling short of their expectations.

Reading the description of this book I thought it would be 100% up my alley and although it was good, and kept my attention, I feel like it was a little too long. I also wish there was more steamy scenes, but that might just be a me thing, since this is a thriller and not a romance. Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I figured out the twists long before they were revealed.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this book. I liked the sense of never really knowing who to trust and believe. The mistrust of all of the characters made you second guess every ones motives. At times I felt it dragged a little but overall it was good.

Set against the backdrop of the pandemic, we are introduced to Kelly, who finds herself in a rut in Philadelphia after relocating with her fiancé, Mike, only to see everything unravel - no friends, no job, and ultimately, no Mike. The opportunity arises for her to move into her high school friend Sabrina's sprawling Virginia mansion, and she eagerly seizes it as a much-needed respite. Kelly's arrival is met with warmth from Sabrina and her husband, and the three of them form an increasingly intimate bond. However, as the dynamic between them deepens, Kelly unearths unsettling secrets - namely, that a woman was there before her, and that woman is now missing.

Trapped within the opulent mansion, Kelly seemingly has everything she could desire, but a lingering sense of unease prevails. The couple remains tight-lipped about the missing woman, leaving Kelly to piece together a puzzle from the fragments and clues she stumbles upon. I relish stories featuring unreliable characters, and this one skillfully lured me into thinking I had it all figured out before tossing a curveball my way. It was a pleasant surprise to find a level of sensuality in the narrative that added depth to the story.

While I found Kelly herself to be somewhat annoying, and the book occasionally delved excessively into her internal musings, I still appreciated the overall narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley & Ballantine Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book just wasn't for me. I was interested enough in the thriller/mystery part of to see it through so I could see how it ended. But overall, I think I was just disappointed.

It has an interesting plot - set during Covid (very prominent so if you aren't ready for a Covid book, steer clear - I was interested in the setting), this is about Kelly who is going through a break up and reconnects with an old acquaintance on Instagram during the pandemic. Her and her husband have a spare room and invite her to stay with them in their own little pod. Super interesting to see the dynamic of getting to know people in this situation and of course the secrets they are hiding.

But then the book becomes basically about them becoming a thruple? And Kelly finding out they had a previous relationship with a house guest who has now gone missing. I just couldn't get into it. And the characters really were unlikeable in my opinion which I don't mind - but the main character just unfortunately bothered me with her choices and mindset.

The whole thruple thing jut threw me off and the main character falling madly in love with this couple after such a short time and just basically explaining away every lie or secret they told just grated on me and I had a hard time getting past that. And the reveal at the end of what was really happening left me just going MEH.

I am sure this book will work for other people - it just wasn't for me. I do think the author had interesting ideas and I have another one of her books so I want to give her another try because I think it was just really the relationship aspect and main character that weren't for me.

The Spare Room by Andrea Bartz is a twisty thriller about Kelly, who has just called off her wedding and has no job. Her childhood friend offers her a place to stay--with her and her husband in their fancy remote Virginia mansion. Kelly agrees to enter into a relationship with them, but she is extremely unsure if she can actually trust them. This story was very fast-paced, but parts of it felt a little off to me. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

I wanted to love this book but it was just not for me. There is a heavy sexual tone to the book, which may not be for everyone. This was not even the part that bothered me. The story just fell flat. Nothing really happened for the first half of the book. The characters were all so unlikeable. The story went off the rails in the last 25% of the book - but at least then something happened.

This is a story about a woman during the pandemic that realizes something is missing from her current relationship. She reconnects with an old friend from childhood and moves in with her and her husband. Almost immediately they start to have sexual relations (all three) and decide they want to be in a relationship. Kelly starts to find suspicious things around their house involving a prior relationship and starts to be unsure if she can trust them. The ending was so over the top, i found myself rolling my eyes.

It took me a while to get through this one which was disappointing considering I have enjoyed this authors other books.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was immediately drawn to this book because I loved the plot. It is very different than the average mystery or thriller book. I was pleasantly surprised by how good this book was. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone that loves mystery or thriller books with a little spice.

Kelly and her fiance are on a break at his insistence. She reaches out to a high school friend who offers up a spare room in her house. I was hoping for some suspense thriller vibes, but unfortunately it was more movie of the week. They end up as a threesome...what?

This just wasn't the book for me, I guess I was expecting it to be something more involved than it was.

This story was difficult for me to follow.

I wasn’t able to completely get into the flow of it and ended up DNF it around 35%. After putting a concerted effort in.

Stuck in lockdown with a fiance that has just put a pause on their wedding, Kelly is in desperate need of an escape hatch. A rekindled friendship with a childhood friend provides a place to go and a chance to reflect. Sabrina and her husband have a mansion in a remote Virginia location and generously offer Kelly and her cat an openended stay. When weeks of getting to know each other turns intimate, will Kelly take a leap into the unknown?

The Spare Room is like an overstuffed suitcase, one which has clothing for every season. With too much to unpack and with clothes that seem to be thrown together haphazardly, the jumbled mess is better left for someone else to untangle. There really is not a likable character in the bunch and the plot just goes on and on. There are plot holes that seem to exist only to move the story along and the conclusion is lackluster at best. Overall, I would not recommend The Spare Room to other readers.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Reader's Copy by NetGalley and the publisher. The decision to read and review this book was entirely my own.

This was a great book! The twists and turns made it so I could not put the book down! I would definitely recommend this book to a friend! Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an arc in exchange for my honest review of this book!

The Spare Room unfortunately just didn't do it for me. I found the characters flat, the story unengaging. Up until the last quarter, I felt like I could put down the book at any point, not find out what happens, and not really care. thought the tension build towards the end was well done I'll say that. If you're in the market for a simple thriller, you might like this one but it was just not for me.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my gifted copy.

It took me a while to get through this one. It is very slow almost though 50% of the book, and I honestly just was kina bored. This one was just a miss for me, but I definitely look forward to the author’s next book.

I tried a couple of times to get in to this title and unfortunately it just wasn’t for me. I’ve read the authors other title, but ultimately was left disappointed. I think that some readers will really enjoy this, I just found it a little predictable.