I really enjoyed this story, it has everything you need for a glimpse of Christmas in a country house setting. The decorations, the festive music, the mulled wine, the ghosts and a grisly murder. It’s like a December episode of Midsomer Murders, but with a brilliant twist. Bestseller for sure from this talented author.

I’ve recently discovered Peter Swanson’s books and was really excited to be given the opportunity to read The Christmas Guest.

The story centres on Ashley Smith, an American exchange student studying at The Courtauld Institute of Art in London. Christmas is approaching and she plans to spend the holidays in London as she has no family to speak of. Then Emily, one of her classmates, invites her spend Christmas at her family Manor House in the Cotswolds. Ashley gets caught up in the romance of old country houses and despite not knowing Emily that well, accepts her invitation.

I devoured this novella in one sitting! I loved how the story moved along from Ashley’s diary chronicling how as American she felt a little like a fish out of water in the big house, but she really started to have fun with Emily and her twin brother Adam. Without wanting to say to much more and revealing any spoilers - I loved how the tone shifts and I really didn’t see the ending coming!

This is a great read and could only have been better reading experience had I read it in front of an open-fire with some mulled wine at Christmas!

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Faber and Faber, for making this e-ARC available to me to read in exchange for a fair and honest review.

A very enjoyable dark tale with a good spoonful of the ghostly mysterious and liberal sprinkles of atmospheric backdrop.
The focus is on a young girl at university in London who befriends a lonely American and asks her back to her parents’ country pile of a Manor House for Christmas.
The joy of spending time in an old English house and being part of a large, somewhat unwelcoming and austere family washes over the guest and she becomes fully immersed and entranced by the experience. Further darkness is revealed as a young girl, strikingly similar in looks to out stateside heroine, had been murdered in the village recently and it remains an unsolved case. She is further distracted by her friend’s twin brother and his charm and good looks as he hovers on the periphery making tantalising appearances now and again.
This is a great story which slowly builds in darkness as we progress and has great atmosphere. I also loved the narrative as it uses diary entries, in part and also switches perspectives between the main characters.
Definitely a recommended read from me.

This is a good short book full of mystery and intrigue! It is chilly and atmospheric. There is a good twist which kept it interesting. Nice festive book for all.

This is an atmospheric novella from Peter Swanson about a young American exchange student who is studying art in London's famed Courtauld Institute. The story is interesting, and the characters are well-drawn. An easy read, it includes a chilling twist at the end.

Ashley Smith is very excited to receive an unexpected invite to her classmate's home for Christmas. Having lost her mother to illness, and never having known her father, Ashley is no stranger to loneliness over the holidays. So when upper-crust Emma invites her to spend the holidays at her parents' home in the Cotswolds, the young American is only too happy to accept.

Upon her arrival, the complexity of Emma's family relationships, the presence of her broodingly attractive brother Adam, and the cosiness of the nearby village with its pubs and the local characters, quickly make Ashley feel as though she's living in a gothic romance.

But then, things start getting complicated. Even as Ashley starts falling for Adam, she finds out that a recent murder in the village involved the death of a girl who looks remarkably similar to her - and that Adam is suspected of killing that girl.

Emma vehemently denies her brother would do such a thing, and Ashley is inclined to believe her. But the police must have some reason for these suspicions. So where does the truth actually lie? We discover that, nearly 3 decades later, as Christmas comes around again...

This short novel by Peter Swanson is a dark festive read. If you like your crime tales with a twisted gothic flavour then you will delight in this story.
Ashley Smith, an art history student, is invited by a fellow student to join her for Christmas at her family’s country house- and from her arrival a dysfunctional family is revealed.
Upon a visit to the local pub it is noted by locals how much Ashley looks like the victim of a recent murder - one of those questioned for the crime is the brother of her host. There then follows a series of events pulling Ashley deeper into the lives of the family over the festive period….
No spoiler but there is a huge plot twist that takes the tale in an unexpected darker path…this would certainly be an alternative to routine festive cheer. This story has a dark dahlesque feel to it which will either fully capture you or leave you feeling strangely uncomfortable

An interesting gothic novella in which an American student is invited to the large country house of a fellow student. The first part of the story is told through the diary of the American student. I found this part of the book rather slow going. The pace didn't pick up until the story reverted to the present day. The second half of the story was much more enjoyable although some of the revelations were predictable.
Overall, an entertaining read but I would have preferred a full length novel.

Christmas would not be Christmas without the traditiion of becoming immersed in a spine tingling, atmospheric, chilling gothic murder mystery. Peter Swanson delivers this with this well plotted short and twisted novella of 2 halves, drawing on the classic crime tropes, with the season's festivities set in a Cotswold country house packed with guests. It begins with a woman in New York spending her usual Christmas alone, deciding to clear out her closet, and coming across a white moleskin diary, describing events of 30 years ago, and unable to stop herself reading it. 19 year old American art history student at the Courtauld Institute, Ashley Smith, is alone in the world, keen to experience adventure and life.

Ashley is delighted to receive an invitation from fellow student, Emma Chapman, to come spend a week at Chrismas at her family manor, Starvewood Hall, Clevemore. She arrives by rail, and is met by Adam, Emma's twin brother, a devastatingly attractive man that offers the prospect of a romance. She feels a little like a fish out of water, there are tensions, Mr Chapman is an unlikeable cruel character who takes pleasure in humiliating members of his family. Other members of the wider family, such as cousins, and a novelist arrive to join the festive celebrations. Ashley is at a local pub when she becomes aware that she bears a close resemblance to a recent murder victim found in the nearby woods.

Amidst a background of sinister events, Ashley's romantic feelings for Adam grow. The diary comes to an end on Christmas Eve. There is a huge twist that follows that begins with a newspaper article, making it clear that nothing is as it appeared, as we return to the present in New York, where an annual Christmas guest makes their appearance. This is a perfect Christmas novella from a Swanson on top form. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

I have received two Christmas novels to read this week, which felt a little strange given that it’s still August. “The Christmas Guest” by Peter Swanson is a very good read and given by dislike of short stories was a very pleasant surprise. American art student Ashley Smith receives an invitation to spend the holidays at Starvewood Hall, the majestic Cotswold manor house belonging to her classmate Emma Chapman’s family. But this charming English Christmas soon takes on a completely different feel when Ashley becomes entangled in the Chapman family and the village of Clevemoor.

For me short novels often fail due to the lack of detail and suspense but this is a very enjoyable quick read that weaves together two timelines of past and present. Alternating between Ashley’s experiences in 1989 and the consequences of the happenings over thirty years later. For a short story there is plenty of depth and the characters are well developed. as the secrets from both timeframes are unfolded.

This is a fast paced gothic novel that kept me entertained.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Faber and Faber for supplying this entertaining novel in exchange for an honest review.

Perfect Ingredients..
A Cotswolds Manor House, a small gathering for Christmas, an idyllic village and murder most foul mark the ingredients for this deliciously semi-gothic Christmas mystery novella for the holiday season. When Ashley, an American student, is invited to spend Christmas with a friend it seems the perfect holiday experience but the old house harbours unimaginable secrets. Drenched in atmosphere, nicely constructed and with a credible and well drawn cast this is the perfect Christmas Eve one sit read around the fireplace on a snowy night.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ - The Christmas Guest - Peter Swanson

Many thanks to NetGalley for this ARC of this festive thriller - and it was a fantastic opportunity to see if a shorter form book of Peter’s was as good as his traditionally longer novels.

This novella certainly didn’t disappoint!

His trademark twists and turns kept the pace moving along nicely - and a real switch two thirds of the way through the book made me want to keep reading quickly to see how things would pan out.

No spoilers in my review here - but suffice to say it was hugely enjoyable.

One downside however, was my tech as it did make me think there was plenty more to come. When the kindle app says 15 mins left in the book, sadly that wasn’t true! The time it stated actually included a preview chapter of another of Peter’s books 🤣 so it finished rather abruptly and unexpectedly for me. I could have done with a bit more as I’d geared myself up for a few minutes longer!

Absolutely brilliant! Peter Swanson at his best. Reminiscent of a modern day Gothic thriller, I found it gripping and suspenseful with creepy characters. A murder theme runs throughout.
Wthout giving too much away, it's masterly crafted and one of those stories, whereby at the end I had to go back to the beginning to see how it was done!
Highly recommended.

The Christmas Guest by Peter Swanson might be short but it's an engrossing and involving read and his fans certainly won't be disappointed,

American student Ashley Smith is struggling to fit in with her fellow students at London University with the Christmas of 1989, her first since leaving home, fast approaching. As she tells her diary she's thrilled to be invited to spend the festive season with classmate Emma Chapman and her family, more so when she sets eyes on the family's slightly decrepit Cotswold Manor House.

That diary plays a major part in the story,which begins with a woman in Manhattan reading through it on Christmas Day decades later and pondering the tragic,and criminal,acts of the festive season of 1989.

This reads very much like a Peter Swanson nod towards the traditional Gothic murder mystery both in setting and style,with a touch of traditional Christmas story-telling mixed in,no hints,no spoilers on that one. Written with his usual flair and imagination this is an ideal quick read and is an obvious stocking filler for fans.

4+

Well, if that wonderful, evocative, Christmasy cover doesn’t entice you in, then maybe the quality of Peter Swanson’s writing in this novella will. In the present day, a woman in Manhattan clears out her closet on Christmas Day (yes, quite) and comes across a diary from 1989, which, although it turns out to be a murderous year, she knows she won’t be able to stop reading it if she opens it up and takes a peak.

Let’s backtrack to 1989 to find out what’s going on here. American Ashley Smith is studying art history at London University, when she is invited to spend Christmas with fellow student, Emma Chapman and her family. She accepts as she is alone in the world and she doesn’t fancy a lonely Christmas. Emma‘s parents home turns out to be a Cotswolds Manor house, Starvewood Hall and although it’s a bit down at heel ,it’s perfect for Christmas. Even more perfect is Emma‘s twin brother, Adam, a blonde aloof Adonis. Maybe, there will be more on the menu this Christmas other than turkey with all the trimmings?

I really enjoy the way the author tells this as the first half is Ashley‘s diary which captures the personality of a young ingenue who finds herself in the midst of one very weird household. She tries to put a positive spin on the oddities and off notes and you constantly question why she’s there as she is such a fish out of water. Then things start to get really strange, definitely chilling with the added bonus of creepy, Gothic notes which feels a bit dreamlike. Or should that be nightmarish?

The second half reveals coldness that matches the winter temperatures and it’s a gripping read. I do guess part of what transpires, but it doesn’t spoil the “festive“ read. Although it’s a short book, the author does a great job in painting a picture of all the characters and the locations. That house and its inhabitants positively oozes atmosphere. Not necessarily a good one either.

This is a quick, suspenseful, well constructed novel that keeps you immersed. It takes a couple of hours to read so curl by the fire, book in hand, a glass of mulled wine in the other, perhaps a mince pie to keep you going and enjoy the turbulent twisty escapist ride. This would make an excellent Christmas gift for a lover of a mystery thriller.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Faber and Faber for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Christmas and murder

A perfectly okay mystery story. The strength was definitely in the intriguing mystery elements and in the character voices. The characters really came alive and felt very well realised. The writing was so easy to read.

The beginning was a bit whiplashy so it took a bit for me to settle into the story. That being said, I read it in one sitting. It's brief but punchy.