An enjoyable read that will have you hooked as you flip through the pages. I enjoyed this novel and it was the first novel I have read by this author. I look forward to more titles.

I really enjoyed this thrilling and mysterious story. The perfect length for the amount of tension it keeps you in. I absolutely loved the setting of Reykjavík Iceland. The ending fell a little flat for me, but I loved the story getting there. I’d absolutely read more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley, Hildur Knutsdottir and Tor Publishing group for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not even sure what I just read. This book is a whopping 208 pages and it’s a super quick and easy read. This was a wild ride through those pages and I was left a little confused in the end.

A creepy novella, but ultimately unsatisfying. Strange things are going on in the protagonist's life - she's tired all the time, her muscles ache, there are unexplained injuries. Slowly, she discovers what's going on... and it's not good. The plot is engrossing, but things do not get explained in the end and it's pretty frustrating.

Haunting, visceral, and paranoid. I was glad I didn't know much about The Night Guest when I went into it. Having more information about the reveal would have likely turned me off and robbed me of a very enjoyable reading experience.

This spare horror novel is not going to spoon feed you all the details. And that's part of why it works so well- the novel haunts you like Iðunn is haunted as you try to figure out why the abuse and death s happening.

If you cannot read about animal death, this is not for you.

The premise for this book is so very creative and thought-provoking. I loved the blend of humor, terror, and incredibly literary exposition. This will be a top book of the year for me.

3.5/5 Stars

I read this book in one sitting and left with so many more questions than I started with. If you are not into ambiguous endings, this one is not for you. Check the trigger warnings because there are some pretty horrible things in this book.

I probably would have rated this higher if some of the questions I had were answered. There were a few things that happened and I just don't understand why they happened or how they tied into the plot.

That being said, I could not put this book down! I loved the formatting of the chapters. The one sentence chapters made this so much creepier and really made me feel the desperation our main character was feeling at the time.

I'm not going to go into any of the details since this is such a short read. But I would recommend this book if you're looking for a quick and spooky read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Tor Nightfire, for the advanced copy. All thought and opinions are wholly my own.

A one-sitting read.
Suspenseful, chilling.
Better start than end.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️




I write Haiku reviews but am happy to provide more feedback!

Sooooo this book definitely threw me for a freaking loop and I honestly don’t know what to do with myself after reading...

I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS.... Is this b*tch crazy or is the twist at the end real?

I mean sleep as a horror play... this writer cuts to the jugular... I mean I can’t even imagine the scenario where you woke up and you don’t know what the hell you did the night before... I mean it can happen occasionally, but not in this capacity.

I’m still shook from this and I need answers man... I’m dying.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for an ARC of this book! The Night Guest was a quick fun read that is perfect as a palate cleanser. I would strongly suggest looking up trigger warnings before reading. While this was an enjoyable read for me, there are some dark themes that may not sit well with others.

Iðunn can’t explain why she’s so tired. This story jumps right in at the doctor’s office as she’s trying yet again to get answers. Eventually, Iðunn realizes that her issue might not be health related, and may actually be something quite sinister. Typically, I’d be really frustrated with a character like Iðunn, who at times seems kind of naive or clueless. However, she didn’t come across as helpless or dumb, she eventually starts putting the pieces together. I did feel as though the ending was abrupt and I definitely wish the story went on a little longer. But for those that like an open ended ending, this may be the right read for you.

The story revolves around a woman who begins to experience unsettling events in her home, leading her to question her own mind and the intentions of those around her. Knutsdottir masterfully builds tension and atmosphere, creating a sense of unease that keeps readers on edge. The narrative explores themes of isolation and vulnerability, making it a compelling read for fans of suspenseful fiction. With its twists and turns, "The Night Guest" offers a thought-provoking look at the fragility of perception and reality.

Spoiler….First, if animal or pet (in this case cat) violence and/or death is a deal breaker, this book will not be for you. While it is not extremely graphic or gory, it is a central theme to the book. As a cat owner, this part was extremely disturbing for me – so wanted to put that trigger warning up front.

Trigger warning aside, I felt like the Night Guest had an interesting premise but overall was lacking in execution. The main character, Iounn, knows something is not right, waking up extremely fatigued and bruised, among other weird symptoms and occurrences. The story follows her as she tries to figure out what is happening, and what she is doing while she should be sleeping.

The Night Guest was a brief book and I feel like it could have really benefited from another 50-100 pages to dive into the family dynamics (and sister), along with the “why” and “what” behind the nighttime behavior. Also, the ending felt very rushed and disjointed. I can appreciate ending that leaves you thinking and forces you to come to your own conclusions, but this one had too many holes for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the copy of this book!

Actual Rating 3.5

This is a horror novella that was well paced and had me hooked from the beginning. I enjoyed getting to know the protagonist and felt that she was written quite well. She was interesting and had some unique ways of thinking about things, which added to the odd qualities of the work. I also enjoyed how quickly the tension began to increase and how things got spooky fast. The atmosphere was strong as well.

The ending was…something. At first, I felt like I missed something, and then I mostly just felt like it was a bit of letdown after I’d thought about it some more. Despite this, I really enjoyed this novella overall and would recommend it to folks who like unsettling horror. My thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I enjoyed this book about a woman who is constantly tired and doesn't know why. Her doctor and friends think she's fine, so she tries vitamins and sleeping pills, but nothing helps. So she decides to buy a fitness watch in order to count her steps. She wakes the next morning to find that she's walked over 40,000 steps overnight, but she can't remember even getting out of bed.

This was a short book at 208 pages, and many of the chapters had one or two lines, so it was a very fast read. I was invested in knowing what this character was doing during the night, but then the ending was a bit of a letdown for me. There is also mention of dead amimals, and that is my one trigger when reading books.

Definitely give this one a try if you are a fan of horror books and if you are not too triggered by animal abuse.

Thank you, @netgalley and @tornightfire, for the #gifted e-arc and physical copy of this book!

Absolutely brilliant. This is what a horror novella should be--creepy, fast paced, and dread inching up with every page.

I hope more of this writer's books are translated soon :)

I'm not really sure what I just read. This was a really creepy, fun, fast-paced thriller with short chapters. I was never sure what was going on and I'm still not. This is not the book for you if you need to understand the plot. It's very entertaining and unsettling in a fun way though if you're okay with uncertainty.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

this was SO close to being a perfect book for me, I loved the writing, the pacing, the premise, the discussion of women not being believed in healthcare. it was so unsettling and creepy. I was just left a littttle unsatisfied in the end - I wish we got to see more of what exactly Iðunn was doing and more of an explanation as to what was going on. would love to read more from this author!

Haunting and gruesome descent into madness for an ordinary woman. While our MC navigates the mental health care system and HR at her work, she spends her nights prowling the streets as a somnambulant predator. This darkly funny novella is an entertaining horror bite that is perfect for fans of witty social-commentary and a bit of gore.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy. These opinions are my own.

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir is an eerie little splinter of psychological horror, one you can finish in a single sitting. (Providing you don’t mind potentially settling into a brief, murderous psychosis. NBD, right?)

This Reykjavík-set novella (we love a short book) opens with Iðunn, a woman in her late 20s with major sleep issues, sitting in yet another doctor’s office. She can fall asleep, sure, but when she wakes up she feels even more exhausted, in a way that can’t be fixed with a simple Ambien perscription. It’s as if she’s been running sprints and lifting while she sleeps, somehow. Sometimes she even discovers mysterious bruises down her arms and legs in the morning, with no recollection of how she might’ve gotten them. Even so, doctor after doctor dismisses her chronic fatigue since her blood tests look normal.

She tries adjusting her diet, buying a step-counting watch to focus on an exercise routine, taking different vitamins and sleeping pills, but all to no avail — she continues waking up with increasingly disturbing injuries, and a deepening sense that something troubling transpires after she closes her eyes. It all comes to a head when she falls asleep with her shiny new watch on one evening, and wakes up the next day to find she’s walked over 40,000 steps. Overnight. With no memory of it. Personally I would love if I could get all my cardio in while not being conscious of it, but Iðunn is, understandably, perturbed.

The sparse chapters and updates to her nights out explain so much with short, ominous sentences — describing her wounds or the wet, soggy detritus that still clings to her with spare language. Lots of literary jump cuts and fragmented thoughts. I loved the rhythm of it.

Since it’s such a short book I obviously don’t want to give away too much and ruin the surprise of what horrors are in store for you, but here are a few random things to note:

There are so many similarities in theme and tone to Rachel Yoder’s novel Nightbitch here. If you enjoyed that book, pick this one up with haste.

At one point Iðunn walks over 47,325 steps in one night, which equates to over 20 miles, give or take. (My 10,000 steps per day goal pales in comparison, damn.) And Reykjavík is tiny! Send me your sneaker recs ASAP, girl.

The Night Guest works as a novella, but I would’ve loved to see more of how it digs in to the idea of women suffering under the patriarchy to the point of violence, especially in the case of their symptoms not being taken seriously in a medical setting: “Hysterical women. I seriously wanted to lecture him about all the diseases women have had that have been misdiagnosed over the years — and how medication (not to mention everything else in the world) is designed for the male body-but I just didn’t have the energy for it. Or maybe I was chicken. Or maybe that’s the same thing because it’s a lot easier to gather your courage when you’re not dead tired.” We get a decent taste of these themes, but I wanted a meal.

Dead pet warning — all that’s described is the aftermath of what happens to them so it’s not incredibly graphic (definitely no Nick Cutter-style animal gore here, thank Christ), but it’s never my favorite thing to come across so be aware if that’s a no-go for you.

The mystery of Iðunn’s sister and her untimely death is hinted about early on, in a way that gave me shades of the 2003 Korean horror film A Tale of Two Sisters (and its 2009 remake, The Uninvited). Their relationship is like that of a twin who unknowingly absorbs the other in the womb. Freaky. Into it.

Shout out to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!