Here I am on outlier Island! Most of my friends loved this book so I encourage you to read a variety of reviews. I was really anticipating this read and I love Hitchcock's movies so I was all in!

The premise is good. Alfred Smettle (yes he was named after THE guy!) has bought a creepy hotel that looks like the Bates Motel from Psycho and has filled it with memorabilia. His Mother was a great Hitchcock film buff and Alfred grew up watching all the movies with her. He too soon became fascinated with the famous director. Now, it's his hotel's First Anniversary and he's invited five of his closest college friends to come and stay for a special weekend. The thing is something happened between them long ago and they really have not spoken for sixteen years. It will soon become clear as to why Alfred has gathered them all together.

The first half of this book was really dull for me. It just went back to their college years and told their stories. Nothing grabbed me. No one is particularly a good person so there is no one to root for here. It got a little better at the half way mark as the mystery picked up. I did enjoy all the mentions of various Hitchcock films and some quotes. I was surprised with the culprit and I did like the ending.

✨Happy Pub Day✨

📖The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel

If you’re looking for a locked room mystery that’s absolutely PERFECT for this time of year … look no further!! Love all things Hitchcock, again look no further. A twisty whodunnit, look no further.

This was a solid 4 star read for me. I really enjoyed this one.

ARC received in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you to Berkley Pub & NetGalley. You truly had me at twisty locked-room thriller!! 🖤

#TheHitchcockHotel: 🏨🔪🎥🚿
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Thank you @prhaudio @berkleypub for my free copies! #PRHAudioPartner #BerkleyPartner⁣
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“Why is honesty the obvious solution only in retrospect?”⁣
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To be an ode for Hitchcock, I was expecting a bit more horror, shock and awe, razzle dazzle of thriller. It was more locked room mystery (which is my mother effing jam don’t get me wrong) but I felt like it could have been for another director to make it as tame as it was. The ending was shock and definitely living up to it, but the rest made me want more. ⁣
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Those ending chapters (what up 55) was so good. I love being able to see the table of contents, but I’m glad I couldn’t on audio because that would have spoiled it for me. Helen Lloyd was amazing on audio and I definitely feel like it is one you can’t miss. (She’s only towards the end but well worth it) I liked that there were multiple POVs and I wish I had a full cast of narrators. Regardless 3 is better than 1, and I loved the audio.⁣
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The Hitchcock Hotel is out tomorrow 9/24 and definitely fun for the locked room, ex school besties mystery lover like myself.⁣
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QOTD: Name a thriller or horror movie you definitely want to watch during spooky season.

I am such a big fan of Wrobel and her previous titles.
Her writing is just one of those that you can’t turn away from.
And I am a huge fan of Alfred Hitchcock!
So this was such an exciting book for me.

The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel was a damn good locked room mystery.
This book was amazing. It is well-written, intriguing, and straight up binge worthy.
This is a cleverly crafted story and I found to be so gripping I wasn’t able to put my Kindle away.
The overall vibe of the book was straight forward and then the tension was slowly increased until the plot felt so taut. I loved the slow build, the way the events started to unfold and turned more and more twisted. I was riveted and wanted to know what would happen.
It captures you, compelling you to turn the pages until all of the words are used up.

Wrobel has a way of pulling you into a narrative and not letting you go, she is a very talented author in my opinion.

Overall, I love this book, finding it a well written and very entertaining, enjoyable thriller.
Propulsive and addictive, The Hitchcock Hotel is the twisty new psychological thriller you need to read!

“A twisty locked-room thriller about a Hitchcock fanatic with an agenda who invites old friends for a weekend stay at his secluded themed hotel. Wrobel pays homage to Hitchcock in a way that will appeal to both unfamiliar readers and devoted fans.”

Thank You NetGalley and Berkley for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
It was such an honor to read and review this outstanding new novel written by Stephanie Wrobel. Once again she did not disappoint.

Thank you letting me participate in your Blog Blitz!

The Hitchcock Hotel pays the ultimate homage to Alfred Hitchcock. Although I haven't seen all of his movies, I'm pretty familiar with his biggest works.

I enjoyed this one, it's a good locked room mystery with lots of surprises along the way.

3.5 stars

In college, the six of them—Alfred, Zoe, TJ, Julius, Samira, and Grace—were members of a film club as well as close friends—until it all fell apart. They haven’t all been together since something happened 16 years ago.

Alfred was devastated by what happened, but he’s always wanted to prove himself to his old friends. And now he’s ready, as the owner of a hotel dedicated to his most favorite movie director—Alfred Hitchcock. The hotel is filled with authentic memorabilia, offers movie screenings around the clock, and even has an aviary with 50 crows.

He’s truly proud of his creation, and arranges for a reunion of the group over a weekend. Every single one of them has secrets as well as some unpleasant memories from college. Alfred is ready to pull out all the stops in the hopes that his work will lead to notoriety and more guests at The Hitchcock Hotel.

This really was a great concept I was excited about. The book is full of trivia and references from various Hitchcock movies, although you don’t need to have seen them to appreciate what Stephanie Wrobel was doing with the plot. And who among us hasn’t wanted to show former friends that you’ve made something big of yourself?

My biggest issue with the book is that none of the characters were likable or even sympathetic, so I stopped caring what actually happened to them. While some had serious secrets, some had more mundane things they were hiding. And sadly, I guessed the twist in advance, which for me, didn’t require much detective work.

Thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for my advance reservation for The Hitchcock Hotel!

Thank you Berkley for my free ARC of The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel — available today, Sep 24!

» READ IF YOU «
📽️ enjoy classic Hitchcock films (the art, not the man)
🐦‍⬛ are looking for a fast-paced mystery with dark themes
☠️ love stories with twisty secrets and toxic friendships

» SYNOPSIS «
Alfred has worked hard to renovate his hotel and completely refurbish it, in an eccentric film-based style that Hitchcock himself would have swooned over. Now, it's time to set his sinister plans in motion, starting with a private retreat for some of his oldest friends. But secrets abound among the group, and before long, somebody's clock will run out...

» REVIEW «
This was a fun read, if a smidge predictable. I personally think Hitchcock is a scumbag, but it's hard to discount the fact that he was a talented director. All the hotel decor and events based on the movies was fun! And I do enjoy a toxic college friend-group with secrets, so this was right up my alley. I don't think there was anything overly groundbreaking or jaw-dropping in here, but it was a fun popcorn read, and perfect for spooky season!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This was a decent book, decent read, but it ended up fizzling out for me towards the end. Lots and lots of telling and not much showing.

Intriguing premise: Alfred (named after the man himself) Smettle has been a Hitchcock fan his entire life, his mother introduced him to Hitchcock's work and now he has opened a themed hotel dedicated to the man and his films. For the first anniversary of its opening, he invites a group of people who used to be his closest friends in college and who he has basically lost touch with over the last sixteen years (for reasons revealed later). When they all arrive, things begin to happen that may be tied to their past history together.

Like I said, the idea behind this was good, but there were no worthwhile characters to root for. They were all terrible people, and I couldn't figure out why any of them would have attended this "reunion" and after creepy things started happening I would have been the first to jump in my car and get the heck out of there, but no, they all stayed for some idiotic reason.

So much of the narrative relied on reveals from the past. The characters all knowing what went on, but the reader gets the info doled out very slowly with vague references. In the end, when the very unsurprising culprit is revealed, it ends with the "villain monologue" about the hows and whys everything occurred.

I do think many people will enjoy this book. Just go into it suspending a bit of disbelief and go with the flow, and the story is entertaining enough, especially for Hitchcock fans (and beware, there are lots of spoilers so if you haven't watched his movies and you plan to, you might want to do so before reading this).

First, let’s all take a moment to appreciate the utter perfection that is the cover of The Hitchcock Hotel. Flawless, immaculate, no notes.

What’s inside that cover, however, turned out to be a mixed bag for me. The plot of this novel spoke to me in a major way: A man invites his five college friends to the Alfred Hitchcock-themed hotel he owns in the Vermont mountains. And this man, also named Alfred, may be seeking something more nefarious than a reunion among friends. Doesn’t that just sound so…I don’t know…Hitchcockian? I’d hoped The Hitchcock Hotel would be steeped in Gothic atmosphere and have intense noir vibes, but the execution was disappointing.

I really enjoyed the portrayal of Alfred’s character; he was so strange and intense and shifty and obsessive, with motivations that I couldn’t figure out, and at first I was riveted to the page to see how everything unfolded. But I didn’t find the supporting characters equally as interesting, unfortunately, so the chapters from their perspectives dragged for me. Although I was happy there wasn’t a straightforward past and present format (a method of storytelling I’ve grown weary of), the sections of the book focused on backstory slowed the narrative down. These sections were important, but a lot of the backstory wasn’t very interesting, especially since I didn’t feel that connection to the characters. The mystery and the motives behind it were well-thought-out (if not quite as dark and seedy as this reader wanted), and it all unfolded in a very Hitchcockian way. It just didn’t hold my attention as much as I’d hoped it would, and I think this is partly due to the fact that the writing is all telling and not a lot of showing. The reveals didn’t seem like they happened organically; everything felt laid out like a list of bullet points.

The highlights for me were the nods to Hitchcock – the descriptions of the hotel, the callbacks to his work. It’s such an engaging concept, even if it's not utilized to its fullest potential, and I think The Hitchcock Hotel will appeal to lots of readers who enjoy revenge plots and locked room mysteries. Thank you to Berkley Publishing for the early reading opportunity.

I am a huge fan of Wrobel's writing and THE HITCHCOCK HOTEL was no exception! The pacing teetered between slow and fast and really built up the suspense. There is a trope that I wish I knew about before I read it (I won't mention it here because it is kinda a spoiler because the plot does rely on it), but despite that it was a good fall read

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and Stephanie Wrobel for giving me the opportunity to read this book ahead of its publication.

First and foremost, I loved this book. Truly, 100%, no grifting. I have been hard pressed to find a mystery book that succeeds in keeping me hooked to the end and this book did just that. Was this a particularly sophisticated read? No, not really. But it was what I needed to get out of a very deep reading slump.

I’m not the most versed when it comes to anything Hitchcock related. I’m not a purveyor of his work outside of Psycho, and by proxy, Bates Motel. BM is one of my comfort shows, oddly enough. So that alone compelled me to give this book a chance. As I read, I couldn’t help but picture Alfred as Freddie Highmore’s Norman. The verbiage and imagined tone fit that of BM’s Norman; unassumingly vindictive and dangerous, with the right amount of social awkwardness. Always watching and observing.

None of the characters were very likable, to be fully transparent. This is something that would typically garner a star or two being knocked off of my overall rating. I normally need at least one character that either redeems themself or is likable from start to finish as a personality palette cleanser of sorts. After a few chapters, I concluded that likability wasn’t something that would be make or break for me for this book. I actually enjoyed the (in the most respectful way possible) shitty personalities of the characters. In a whodunit, I don’t think likability is necessarily important; there’s supposed to be doubt cast everywhere you look. In defense of the characters, actually, I think the various POV switches aided in justifying any unlikable trait or action. There were many reasons for why the characters were the way they were. Outside of Alfred, I enjoyed Julius’ story and development the most out of the ensemble.

I think this is the only situation where I can say that I liked being gaslit throughout the book. My opinions changed chapter to chapter and when the twists were revealed, my jaw actually dropped on a couple occasions -- namely Danny’s involvement, Samira’s, as well as Grace’s. I thought each ensemble character was going to be sacrificed for Alfred’s plan at one point or another, cycling through them after something new was revealed as the story progressed. But to say I was shocked when the symbols finally clashed together would be an understatement.

I genuinely did not see the ending coming, and I found myself surprisingly, desperately, wanting more at the end of the book.

I look forward to reading more from Wrobel and I’m glad she continued with this idea she had instead of listening to her husband and writing something else. (I say that all in jest, I promise.)

Thank you again to NetGalley, Berkley, and Stephanie Wrobel.

Rating: 3.5/5
Review: This book is meant for you if you're an Alfred Hitchcock fan. Besides Psycho, l'm not too familiar with his films, but I can imagine l'd appreciate this work a lot more if I were. The thriller and mystery aspects were lacking for me, and I think it could've gone in a different direction. The ending was the best part. It's a fun revenge story with hints of romance, perfect for all readers, I think.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

Alfred Smettle is a HUGE Hitchcock fan. He loves the films and has purchased and renovated a Hitch themed hotel complete with memorabilia from the films or actors. In college, he and a group of friends went through some traumatic events and now 16 years later, he invites them all to his hotel. We as readers don’t yet know the BIG secret that is hanging over the group, but we know Alfred has an agenda, and we know SOMEONE will die!

The storyline was a little slow moving and none of the characters were likeable or seemed to have any redeeming qualities, but I loved the creepiness and suspense factor. There were so many secrets between the group. When I started reading, I instantly pegged who I thought would be the “villain” but didn’t know how/why/what they would do, and their motive and the end game definitely surprised me!

The writing was a little juvenile, but I don’t think this is a Young Adult book. It was definitely suspenseful and had me on the edge of my seat, but it wasn’t terribly gruesome or a horror novel. If you’re a huge Hitch fan and enjoy mysteries, you should give it a go!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing for an advance copy. These are my own opinions.

Alfred has a special project-The Hitchcock Hotel-filled with tributes, including actual props and memorabilia . He invites his former best friends from college to come to the hotel and experience all it has to offer-and then some.

The author plays so well with the creepiness and suspense inherent to anything Hitchcock, while still making the book their own. I had to keep turning pages to know what was going to happen. The ending completely blindsided me, which I loved. I would recommend this book.

I'm officially checking out of The Hitchcock Hotel @ 20%. No rating.

I have never been so bored. All these characters are terrible people and I couldn't care less about their past or whether or not they live to see a future.

Title: The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel
Publication Date- 09/24/24
Publisher- Berkley Publishing
Overall Rating- 5 out of 5 stars

Review copy given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Review: This was a surprisingly good time. I had never watched a Hitchcock film, but this inspired me to and I’m so glad I did.

The Hitchcock Hotel is a well rounded, very enjoyable mystery. The author takes time to build suspense and a wide range of characters. The story goes between past and present, back to their college days. Because of this, we are slowly building a suspenseful narrative one in which you can feel the impending doom coming in the present day.

There is plenty of drama between the characters but it didn’t feel emotionally immature or unrealistic. There were vibes of And Then There Were None and The Secret History. This book was almost like if you mashed those two up and it totally worked.

Something unique and interesting this book adds are these almost interludes where we get literary essays and analysis on how Alfred Hitchcock influenced the genre. They talk about the good, the bad and the ugly of his influence which I really enjoyed learning about.

I highly suggest you pick this book up, it’s great for a fall read, just an all around good time.

This book kept me guessing the whole way through. I really loved it. Fantastic twists! Highly recommend for thriller lovers out there.

This was such a fun and entertaining thriller to read and kick off spooky season! I’ve only seen one Alfred Hitchcock movie but now I definitely want to watch more. I loved the unreliable narrators and that this story kept me guessing until the very end, I had no idea what was going to happen. Overall, it wasn’t my favorite thriller I’ve ever read but it was good and very interesting!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I received a gifted galley of THE HITCHCOCK HOTEL by Stephanie Wrobel for an honest review. Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group, PRH Audio and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

THE HITCHCOCK HOTEL is set at a hotel themed after the suspense movie master. Alfred is a Hitchcock fanatic and a year ago he created the hotel in a Victorian House with a bit of a shady past of its own. For the first anniversary, Alfred has invited a bunch of old friends from his college film club. Something happened sixteen years and he hasn’t seen them since. They seem the perfect group to celebrate the anniversary… and to possibly add some bodies to the horror setting.

I thought this was a really fun twist on a typical thriller with the really fun Hitchcock Hotel setting. The book opens with the POV with a bird which was a fun surprise and the birds do come up throughout the book. I was using this book as part of a bird theme for a vlog so it really worked out well for me!

The friend group here is pretty toxic in a lot of ways, but this makes for a lot of drama. There aren’t so many likable characters in the mix, but I found it fun in this case! The mystery and thriller aspects of this took some twists that I didn’t expect which made for a fun reading experience as well!

This was a fun, bingeable read and one I would recommend!

This book was absolutely incredible. It was a twisty thriller with the perfect build up of suspense leading to a jaw dropping twist. I absolutely loved it and I’ll be reading more from this author!