Book Description
I’ve never met her before, but I know who she is. Because our new guest is the spitting image of the daughter I lost. Long blonde hair. Sparkling dark eyes. Perfect pearly-white teeth. And that’s exactly why I invited her into our home.
From the moment our exchange student Tanya arrives, I feel like my daughter has come back to life. With her brown eyes and slender frame, she looks so much like Anabel that sometimes I can almost pretend she didn’t die in that tragic accident.
Tanya really is the perfect guest – kind, polite, and always happy to help me in the kitchen. At last, a member of the family who compliments my beautiful house and enjoys my homemade dinners. And when she asks questions about my life, I feel I’ve finally found someone I can confide in.
My younger teenage daughter, Paige, isn’t so happy about our guest. She thinks it’s strange that Tanya looks like Anabel, and she hates it when she wears her sister’s old clothes. And now she’s convinced herself that Tanya isn’t who she says she is.
But I learnt a long time ago that it’s best not to ask questions you don’t want to know the answer to.
And while I’m growing suspicious that our new guest has a secret, I’m certain that it’s nothing in comparison to mine…
The absolutely unputdownable, page-turning and twisty psychological thriller that will have you guessing until the very last page. Perfect for readers who love gripping suspense and fans of Freida McFadden’s The Housemaid, The Girl on the Train and Colleen Hoover’s Verity.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Family Guest' by Nelle Lamarr.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley Shelf and NetGalley for Elisabeth Carpenter, Bookouture publishers, Bookouture Audio and Bookouture anonymous.
Publication date 21st September 2023.
This is the first book I have read by this author but I'm definitely looking forward to reading more!!
This novel consists of a prologue, 64 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so easy to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
'The Family Guest' discusses some topics that may upset some readers or may not be suitable for others. I like to point this out ahead of time in my reviews so you can judge if this book is for you or not. In this book Nelle discusses mental health, infidelity and cruelty to animals.
This book is very well written and narrated and had me hook, line and sinker from beginning to end. The descriptions were so in depth and vivid that the hair on my arms was standing on the ends and my heart was pounding throughout. The synopsis, title and cover were perfect for the storyline.
A fantastic and fast paced psychological family drama that warns you to be careful who you trust. The storyline is one that is unique to me which is always a bonus as I've read so many psychological thrillers it is getting harder and harder to find a unique storyline. Nelle's fantastic writing skills and Lynn and Cecily's excellent narrative skills ensures your heart races and your on the edge of your seat while being completely immersed in this page turner. It is absolutely rammed full of twists, toxic relationships, family, lies, red herrings, tension, drama, secrets and bombshells. The multiple narrative allows the reader to see what is going on from both Natalie (the mother) and Paige (the daughter) perspectives as well as seeing how they are feeling at different stages throughout the book. It is a captivating book that once I started listening to it I just couldn't stop and I was playing it through my earphones while doing jobs in the house, in the car when out and even through Alexa until I had devoured it in several hours!! There were several twists throughout the book and a massive one at the end which there was no way I would have ever seen coming!!! Another HUGE congratulations Nelle for that jaw dropping moment!! Again, it is getting harder and harder to shock me after reading so many thrillers that it is getting harder to surprise me but you managed to blow my mind!! I am looking forward to seeing what Nelle comes up with next!
It is set over multiple time lines. When books show what has happened in the past and what is happening in the present I find it really helps the reader (if it is well done) understand why things are happening and what has lead to the present activities and decisions. It also shows the bigger picture
This is one of the few books that I have listened 100% on Audiobook. If I listen to a book on audiobook I usually also read the physical book between but I listened to the whole book and I was impressed! I must say a HUGE congratulations to the narrator Lynn Norris and Cecily Bednar Schmidt who both did a great job bringing this story to life. I would listen to it in the car and while walking at any opportunity and Lynn and Cecily did a fantastic job on both male and female characters voices along with accents!!! I'm not only looking forward to reading more books by Nelle but also to listening to more books narrated by Lynn and Cecily!
The characters were all realistic and Nelle's evocative writing skills and Lynn and Cecily's fantastic narration brought each of them to life leaving you feel that you are standing next to each of them as they are telling you their stories. They each had their own unique personalities that I enjoyed getting to know as the story was being told. However, the majority of the characters are most definitely unlikeable!!! This normally puts me off books, when I despise them, but again Nelle surprises me by putting these horrid characters in books yet I was still hooked!!! Natalie and Matt are absolutely horrific people let alone parents!!! Talk about self obsessed, disgraceful and down right horrid!!! I could not stand them along with Tanya we who was an absolute brat from beginning to end!!! Lance, Paige's boyfriend was another absolute plick who was another despicable character. The only characters I liked and felt sorry for were Paige, Will and Bear who were the daughter, son and their dog who I absolutely loved and was brought to tears to by one event!!! These three were the victims of this book but were also strong, likeable and realistic characters that I would happily read more about. Will, especially was such a sweet boy and an amazing younger brother to Paige. Paige gets bonus points for being vegan!!! Go Paige!!! I am a huge animal lover so seeing animals/pets playing such big characters in books are always a huge bonus and Bear was adorable and heroic!! The other character I really liked and wanted to mention is Paige and Will's Grandmother and Matt's mother Marjorie who made me laugh with her attitude and wicked humour!! This is a book filled with lies, twists and one where you have no idea which characters are telling the truth or who are hiding secrets. regardless of whether you love or hate the characters they all work together perfectly to create a tension packed psychological drama that will keep you hooked throughout!
Congratulations Nelle on an absolutely gripping true page turner! I am looking forward to reading more of your books!!
Overall a captivating and tension packed intriguing psychological thriller!!!
374 pages. 9 hours 57 minutes via Audible.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle, free with kindle unlimited, £9.99 in paperback, £16 for the Audiobook and £7.99 for the Audiobook with Audible (at time of review) via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
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Author Bio
Nelle Lamarr is the pen name for Nelle L’Amour, a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, who has sold over 350,000 books worldwide. Her books feature flawed, complex characters and nail-biting twists you won’t see coming. A former executive in the entertainment industry, she lives in Los Angeles with her Prince Charming-ish husband, beautiful twin princesses, and a bevy of royal pain-in-the-butt pets. When she isn’t writing, you can find her reading gripping thrillers by her favorite authors with a cup of coffee or glass of wine.
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