✨This was a fast-paced read that was so easy to get lost in.  It kept me on my toes and on the edge of my seat throughout. 
✨I absolutely did not see the twist coming.  I thought it was going one direction, and boy, was I wrong. The misdirection here is thrilling.
✨The epilogue!  Wow!  Mind=blown!  What an ending. 
✨The narration by Emily Joyce was very well done. She’s a narrator I’ve not listened to before but definitely enjoyed. 
 
Such an entertaining domestic thriller which @baparisauthor does so well.   
 
My thanks to @netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book before its publication date.

Delicious domestic psychological thriller! I listened to the audiobook on 2.0x which I found a perfect pace. Engaged from the beginning, I enjoyed every step of the journey, and was disappointed when the book ended. I did not anticipate the twists- and although I did not see them coming, they were believable. I give 5 stars to the books that I really enjoyed and would reread one day, and this book definitely met that criteria!

B.A. Paris is so HIT or miss for me. I seriously either love it or hate it and this one just fell flat sadly! Sorry to kill the vibe on pub day.

This biggest problem with this book was the pacing. We got so stuck in the circle of this boring couples everyday life and kept repeating how horrible their houseguest was that it just felt like "OKAY ENOUGH. Kick her out and move on! Do something exciting!"

It was a decently exciting mystery, and the only reason I held on until the end, but it just became a bit mundane at times, which was a different writing style than Paris normally offers. I also think this premise is beginning to become extremely overdone.

My final thoughts are, skip this one! Sadly unless you are a huge fan, I think you have better options out there. Save your cashhhh money guys!
OUT on Feb 20, 2023

This book is dumb. The plot is dumb, the two-dimensional characters are dumb and the resolution is lazy (and dumb). The utter stupidity of every character in the book can only lead the reader to one conclusion: someone is lying or the narrators are incredibly intellectually disadvantaged. Unreliable narrators can be fun, especially when they are deluding themselves and the reader, but this was just....dumb. I'm giving it two stars because it did hold my interest enough to finish and I also wanted to see if my obvious theories were correct. I don't think I'll be reading any additional "thrillers" by this author.

Honestly, I had a very hard time getting into this book and I assure you I tried multiple times to pick it up.
I feel like I didn't really connect with the characters, the pace was overall slow and overall it was not my cup of tea. I had high hopes for this book. But unfortunately DNF.

Thank you NetGalley and St.Martin's Press for the an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This author’s book are always 3.5-3.75, pretty-good-but-forgettable domestic-intrigue books. More of the same here.

A couple with an unexpected house guest, new friends, a dead body… it somehow all weaves together… secrets, lies, disappearances, deaths, etc. The kind of thing that gets wrapped up in a neat and tidy first-person 25-minute epilogue.

Got an advance copy from NetGalley, and you know how I love not waiting. It’s pretty-good-but-forgettable.

Mind Blown!
I was not expecting that twist at all! Another B.A. Paris surprise. Great work!!
This book, with a drama filled storyline was centered around couples Iris and Gabriel, Laure and Pierre and Esme and Hugh. It also included gardener Joseph and daughter Beth. Laure comes to visit Iris and Gabriel after finding hidden betrayal from her Pierre. The drama unfolds throughout the whole story with unexpected death and betrayals all over the place.
It then ends with a shocking and unexpected twist in the epilogue.
I thoroughly enjoyed this whole book and will definitely recommend it to my fellow readers.

Thank you, NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and the author for an advanced copy of The Guest. Expected publication February 20, 2024.

I always enjoy BA Paris books, so I was very excited to be approved to read an advanced copy of The Guest. This book did not disappoint me. The story was told in true BA Paris fashion, and I loved every minute, twist, and turn! Gabriel and Iris return from holiday to find their long-time friend, Laure, to have basically moved into their home. Laure is seeking advice and help with some marital troubles that have arisen after discivering her husband has fathered a child with someone else. Before long, she has overstayed her welcome and becomes a nuisance to the couple, who appear to be having their own problems. What secrets are everyone hiding from each other?? Read The Guest to find out! Thank you again to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this advanced copy.

*Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this book, with my honest review below*

B.A. Paris is an author whose work I generally enjoy so I was expecting this to be a great read, and I wasn’t disappointed. I was concerned at first that the number of characters would be a little chaotic to keep up with but this was written and plotted perfectly, with each character, minor and major, adding an element of tension and pulling me deeper into the mystery.

Iris was fascinating, and I was hooked on the mystery of Joseph, the gardener, and concerned for Gabriel, her husband. Esme and Hugh, the couples’ new friends had me constantly questioning if they were truly friends or actual foes. And from the jump I thought Laure would be the protagonist in this novel.

Was I right or wrong? That’s for the reader to find out, but I can assure all that this is worth diving into and the twists that are expected from B.A. Paris deliver. I can’t wait for the next novel and was left extremely satisfied, as you will be too!

Thank you again for the ARC, St. Martin’s Press and B.A. Paris. It is much appreciated and I enjoyed the read and the opportunity to share my feedback.

Another success for B.A. Paris. The Guest is intriguing from the very beginning, when married couple Iris and Gabriel come home from vacation to find their friend Laure in their home. Laure is one-half of the couple's best friends, married to Pierre. Laure confesses that her and Pierre need some space, as Pierre has just dropped the news to her that he has a daughter. Laure’s stay in the couple’s home is complicated and slowly layers of secrets are uncovered. There’s a slew of complicated characters that took me a while to see how they all intertwined. I knew Paris would do a great job of weaving her story all together and I was not disappointed. The Guest was interesting and complicated and filled with twists that keep readers engaged.

A sincere thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I just finished reading "The Guest" by B.A. Paris. Thanks to Net Galley and St. Matin's Press for the advanced copyin exchange for an honest review.

This story is about a married couple Iris and Gabriel who are trying to get over a traumatic event when their friend Laure arrives at their home and asks to stay because her husband Pierre announced he has a daugher and is tryiing to sort himself out. Gabriel is dealing with his own personal crisis and as it turns out so is Iris..we just don't know until we are well into the book. There are many mysteries in this book and we don't quite know who the bad guy is or what the big secret is...until we know...and then the story gets really interesting. It is all revealed at the end in a fairly spectacular way and the reader is left quite satisfied.

What I liked about this book is that it provided a lovely backstory for the two couples and the reason why they are so invested in each other. There are definately some secrets involved which, when they are revealed, explain much of what happened throughout the book.

What I didn't like about this book was the implausibilty of some of the events that occured. Without giving anything away I ask myself how they were able to get away with what they did. There was a bit of suspension of disbelief, kind of like when you are watching a Soap Opera and the character returns from the dead and everyone accepts it. Okay...

Overall, a good read, entertaining and easy to follow. Good for lovers of this genre or lovers of this author.

Happy Reading everyone

I love B.A Paris books and this one was no exception. A slow start but once the story gets going its full of twists, turns and a Rollercoaster of emotions. A great book

Thanks Netgalley and publisher.

All thoughts and opinions are my own and aren't influenced by anyone else

When Iris and Gabriel come home from a trip, they find their friend Laure has been living in their home. This isn’t overly weird; they have an agreement. When they are in Paris, they stay at Laure and Pierre’s (but always let them know when they are coming). They know something is off immediately. Laure tells them that Pierre has admitted to her that he has a child with another woman. Laure decided to leave her husband and fled to Iris and Gabriel’s. They want to be supportive of Laure, but she is moody and unpredictable. It starts to become even more tense when Laure oversteps by rearranging cabinets and moving furniture.

Iris becomes friends with a new couple in town and Gabriel is not long after. They have a gardener who has a shady past and has taken an interest in Laure. Secrets from everybody’s past start to fly and no one is quite sure what to make of it. Some of the secrets are much more dangerous than others and can’t be kept forever.

The pacing of this book was a little different for me. It starts off with LOTS of character backstory. It’s almost like watching reality tv with WAY less cat fights LOL. It finally starts to pick up pace around 40-50% of the way through but once it does it unravels so quickly it almost makes your head spin! I was invested in the story, but found myself having a hard time picking it up due to being a little over the day-to-day conversations of the characters. I would suggest sticking with it because the twist toward the end blew my mind!

This is a slow paced, twisty domestic drama. If that sounds like your cup of tea then I’d definitely suggest it!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. This book is releasing February 20th, 2024!

Thank you to @netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the chance to review The Guest by B.A. Paris. It took me a bit of time to get into the book, with multiple storylines and characters running together a bit in the beginning. However, the book picked up steam and the twists were definitely worth it! The ending was perfection!

Iris and Gabriel seemed to be living in a dream setting, but there is trouble coming, in the form of their long-time friend, Laure, who had recently left her husband. Marriage on the rocks, secret child, and then a guest who is not at all afraid of making herself at home.

I read the digital ARC, but when I saw that Emily Joyce is narrating the audio version, I was tempted to read it again!

Confusing, slow start but a wild ride right up until the finish!

I love domestic thrillers even when the twists are so over the top it's impossible to suspend my disbelief. This one ventures into that territory, but before it gets there the plot absolutely drags. Laure, the uninvited houseguest has overstayed her welcome, but that's about the only thing wrong with her. Halfway through, the pace starts to pick up but it's too little too late. I didn't enjoy the big reveal or the journey to get there.

Thank you NetGalley and BA Paris for the ARC copy of The Guest.

This book followed a couple and their friendship with two sets of other couples and some unexpected twists of course. While overall I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to other friends it wasn’t the most riveting thing I read this month. It was a quick fun read and two of the twists did catch me off guard.

I have read several books by B.A. Paris and have not been disappointed. Gabriel/Iris and Pierre/Laure have been friends for 20 years. When Laure learns that her husband may have fathered a child with someone else, she runs off to stay with Gabriel and Iris. As the days turn into weeks, Laure shows know signs of leaving. At the same time, Gabriel is dealing with a crisis of conscious himself. Add in a new couple, a gardener with a past, and several secrets along the way and you have the making of a slow burn thriller. This one starts with a bang and leaves you wondering what is going on. And the ending…Wow!

This was a twisty psychological thriller. It was a little bit of a slow burn, but once I was hooked, I couldn't put it down. A lot was going on in this book, but it was easy to follow. I enjoyed the ride and what an ending! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital arc of this title.

DRAMA! The ending completely blindsided me, I never saw it coming. This was such a good book that draws you in from the start and slowly reveals more through gossip between the main characters, Iris and Gabriel. Lots of twists and I never felt I could really trust any of the characters. Definitely will be reading more B.A. Paris in the future.

This was my first B.A. Paris book and unfortunately it did fall a bit flat for me. I was surprised since I had heard so many good things about the author's previous books.

Without any spoilers, the story centres around three main couples. Iris and Gabriel, Pierre and Laure, and Esme and Hugh. After getting in a spat with her husband, Laure comes to stay with Iris and Gabriel while she sorts things out. Meanwhile, Esme and Hugh have a guest of their own staying with them, who has a dodgy past. Gabriel is having a difficult time overcoming a traumatic event, and the story focuses on the relationships between the three couples and how their individual struggles are impacting their relationships and friendships.

One of my biggest criticisms is that the story never seemed to be going anywhere. The plot dragged and at no point did I ever feel like we were building up to anything. I think the reasoning for this is explained in the epilogue when the reason for all of one of the main character's decisions is revealed. Literally all of the action takes place in the epilogue.

The premise of the story is good but I feel as though if the book had of been written from the main character's first person POV, revealing what is in the epilogue a little at a time throughout the book, it probably would have been a heart pounding, exciting thriller.