The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir starts off innocently enough: Iðunn is tired of waking up exhausted, of seeing doctors that don’t take her seriously, of Googling her symptoms and coming up with nothing. Everyone has an opinion of what she should be doing to get better: eat better, take more exercise, meet more people, buy a smart watch.

Which is fine, until the smart watch begins logging all of the steps she’s taking at night. While she’s asleep. The rest of the tale slowly dissolves into a fever dream of mounting dread and beautifully detailed Icelandic cityscapes.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
It’s a quick read—I read it over the course of a few hours, devouring most of it during my lunch break. If you’re looking for a quiet, eerie read, I highly recommend this one.

Wild! I binged this one. I couldn’t put it down. Short chapters! 🙌🏼 This was bizarre, unsettling, and intense. I kept turning the page to find out what happened next. The sense of dread grew as the story progressed, and I loved the ending!
𝘔𝘺 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨: 4.25⭐️

Thank you @tornightfire for the #gifted copy! Opinions are my own.

Thank you for the ARC of The Night Guest.

I enjoyed the MC of this novella. I could identify with her and her frustration with Medical experts. It’s so easy to say the symptoms are in your head.

I liked the intensity and how it increased with one sentence chapters. It was intriguing to try to figure out what was actually happening to the MC. The step tracker was the perfect tool to establish what was going on when the MC slept or not.

I believe the ending will not be for everyone but I like endings that make you think.

Overall this is the first time reading from this author and I would love to read more. I enjoyed this nitty gritty psychological horror. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Iðunn is in yet another doctor's office. She knows her constant fatigue is a sign that something's not right, but practitioners dismiss her symptoms and blood tests haven't revealed any cause.Until one night Iðunn falls asleep with the watch on, and wakes up to find she’s walked over 40,000 steps in the night . . .

This book was so addicting! The way it is written sucks you in from the start. I wanted to know what was happening and was constantly trying to guess. The story was fast paced and I couldn't put it down till I finished. I did find the ending a little disappointing because of how ambiguous it was, but overall really enjoyed the story.

The Night Guest was a wild ride of a book! It's short, but it definitely packs a punch.

We follow Iðunn as she wakes up everyday exhausted, no matter what she tries (exercising, eating more, taking vitamins or sleeping pills,...). There's seemingly nothing wrong with her, but after she buys a smart watch and realises she walked 40,000 steps during the night, everything goes downhill. She wakes up sore and with bruises, or with her fingernails ruined and bloody; and she is desperate to understand what is happening to her.

Keeping a brisk pace and told through an unreliable and somewhat detached voice, this is almost a perfect short horror book. I personally thought it suffered from being a tad too short (though I had no problem with the one line chapters-they built the tension wonderfully), I would have liked some more character development; and the ending did nothing for me. I like open endings, but only to a certain point, and this one was past it.

All in all, though, a great quick read if you want some good psychological horror!

Well now, that was a little bundle of weirdness, hiding behind a pretty cover. Highly addictive weirdness though, because once I started reading it, I didn't have the willpower to stop.
The Night Guest practically pulsates with tension and suspense, and I don't think it would be unfair to say it is downright creepy.
The only thing stopping me giving it another star is the abrupt ending. It left me a little confused. A second reading has, I think, clarified things a little.
As I have friends who are cat lovers, I feel that I should warn them that several cats die in this book. It happens off page, but we are made aware of it towards the end.
Thanks to Tor Publishing Group and Netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for this review.

This was PERFECTLY paced. I couldn’t put it down.
It would have been nice to have a little less of an open ending, but I’m not mad at it. It’s given me tons to think about.
Also the translation was so clean, I wouldn’t have known it was translated if it hadn’t said.

Now that I’ve read it the choice of bright cover is hilarious, it really doesn’t match the content.

The Night Guest" by Hildur Knútsdóttir is a haunting and atmospheric novel that delves into the depths of loneliness and isolation. The story follows Iðunn, a woman grappling with a mysterious illness that leaves her increasingly debilitated and isolated. As her condition worsens, she begins to experience strange occurrences in her Reykjavík apartment, blurring the lines between reality and delusion.

Knútsdóttir's writing is evocative and chilling, immersing the reader in Iðunn's deteriorating mental state. The descriptions of Reykjavík, with its long dark nights and eerie landscapes, add to the growing sense of dread and paranoia. The slow-burn suspense keeps you guessing, as you question what is real and what is a figment of Iðunn's imagination.

However, the pacing can be a bit slow at times, and some readers may find the ambiguity of the ending frustrating. Additionally, the lack of resolution for certain plot points leaves some questions unanswered.

Overall, "The Night Guest" is a well-crafted psychological thriller that explores themes of isolation, vulnerability, and the insidiousness of loneliness. While it may not be for everyone, those who enjoy atmospheric and thought-provoking stories will find this novel a haunting and memorable read.

A very unsettling story about paranoia, society’s expectations of women and an ode to all women who seek medical help and they are misdiagnosed or simply ignored.

Our main character is a middle aged woman who feels exhausted and has no explanation for her lack of energy. She has tried it all, she has gone to multiple doctors but no one has been able to help her.

One day she gets a smart watch to help her track her steps because she wants to be healthier and walk more. However one night she forgets to take off the watch when she goes to bed. The next morning the step count is over 40,000. How can that be? Is she sleep walking? Where is she going?

It is a quick and intense read with excellent writing that hooked me from the very first page. I could not put it down. It is one of those books that truly creeps under your skin.

This is a book from 2021 that was finally translated into English and I can definitely recommend this to everyone.

I had to lower the rating a bit because the ending was a bit disappointing for me.

However if you are a cat and animal lover like I am I need to give you a content warning for animal harm.

Imagine you have been waking up for days feeling achey/exhausted and the extent of your activity is a short commute to work. You keep having test done at doctor’s office and there are no anomalies found. Then one day you leave your Apple Watch on and wake to find out that you somehow walked over 40k steps - plus you are covered in bruises and… is that blood?? Yeah, that’s what’s happening with the main character of this story - spooky stuff.

The first half of this book was full of suspense and includes some scenes that were truly horrifying - at least with the imagery my imagination offered. However, the ending was a major disappointment which unraveled a lot of my enjoyment of this one.

Let me say, I am not one for ambiguous endings as is, however, the ending of this one was left WIDE OPEN. I don’t have a thought or a theory as to what was going on here, just complete confusion - which is frustrating.

So i’m left a bit conflicted with this one with feel as if it had such strong potential but wasn’t fully realized in the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Nightfire for the provision of an English-translated ARC.

This title is a fantastic example of doing plenty with 'less', letting the readers curious and speculative nature to attempt making sense of what is going on as its short chapters are consumed.

The Night Guest is about a woman suffering a bout of ill health that starts to pervade her waking life. Her doctors think her hysterical (or are hesitant to believe her), her friends and family offer pithy suggestions like "go for a walk" or "eat more meat"...and in the end she is alone in trying to figure how why she is alway so exhausted, or has scratches and bruises when she wakes up in the morning.

Many will speak about the ending - and I will say that the ride is still worth it (especially for how short a book it is).

I was skeptical going into this however I am happy to report that The Night Guest is surprisingly spine-tingling, especially for straight Horror. A quick page-turner that I finished in just a couple of hours. This story had me on the edge of my seat; needing answers as quickly as possible. Atmospherically tense yet bleak this was fabulously translated.

It was refreshing to read a story that intertwines a narrative that many women experience; being dismissed by the doctor as stress or “in your head.”

I will seek out other works from this author in the future!

I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected! The short, snappy chapters are exactly what I love & I was intrigued throughout.

I’m not usually a fan of open endings but for some reason it just worked with this book - it made the most sense. I did find the ending slightly rushed, especially upon discovering the bodies/hostage - I wish we’d seen slightly more from that.

Overall a really good mild horror.

perfect short horror to read in one sitting. Knutsdottir does a do a great job of creating a spooky and uncomfortable atmosphere, and Mary Robinette Kowal's translation is on par with the work. For such a short book, I found the writing was sometimes bogged down by the repetitious interruptions by our narrator. While I wish I knew more about what happened in the past, I quite liked the slightly ambiguous ending.

Wow, what did I just read?

The Night Guest is an Icelandic horror novella by Hildur Knútsdóttir.

Iðunn, a woman living in Reykjavik, is exhausted, waking up every morning with new bruises on her body. She just wants to get to the bottom of what is causing her medical problems.

Told in first person present tense, this is a very propulsive story with short sentences, short chapters, and a unique main character with a sarcastic sense of humor. The increasing sense of horror and creepy dread kept me turning pages at a fast pace. However, those seeking likeable characters and tidy endings will have to look elsewhere.

I’m assuming the translation was excellent, because I would never have guessed it was translated from Icelandic.

This would be a great pick for a book club. (Check out content warnings!)

TW: Cat murders

This was a quick read for me; I finished it in a few hours. The chapters were short, the pacing almost breathlessly relentless. The first half of the book had me hooked with the creepy, atmospheric prose and the protagonist Iðunn's neurodivergent eccentricity.

Iðunn isn't sleeping well, waking up with strange marks on her body and a bone-deep weariness. She first seeks medical help, then buys a smart watch that tells her she's walked thousands of steps in a night. Her sister has died under unexplained, tragic circumstances, but it is implied that Iðunn had something to do with it. She suspects her night terrors are posession, or a psychotic break. She descends into despair and disassociation. She courts an ex-boyfriend of her dead sister, and is pursued by the married man she had an affair with.

Then this novella just... ends, in a very unsatisfying, overly ambiguous way. There are lots of implications of what's causing Iðunn's sleeping disorder, in a way that's intended to be mysterious but is instead just is frustrating. This had a strong first half, but I would have liked a stronger narrative arc, and more character development and interiority for Iðunn. I felt as if I never understood her motivations or relationships. This premise had so much potential and just crumbled at the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was fantastic. Short & sweet, but right to the point - all killer, no filler. It has this uneasy sense of dread that builds throughout and it was super effective.

This literary work is uniquely unconventional in its nature. It captivates the reader with an intense sense of curiosity, leaving them to ponder the unfolding events and ultimately concluding with an exclamation of bewilderment. It is evident that this book will evoke strong reactions, either positive or vehemently negative, from its readers. Its plot is a harrowing portrayal of a nightmarish reality, culminating in an unpredictable finale that is sure to leave a lasting impression. Personally, I found great satisfaction in immersing myself in its pages, and I sincerely hope that you will as well.

What the heck did I just read? This was a strange and spooky novella, and despite the confusing ending, I still really enjoyed it. I absolutely loved the creepy factor (especially what the main character finds when she tries to record herself at night!) and I enjoyed how the author wrote. I would definitely recommend this to horror fans!