Review By Gabrielle
The Hotel Guest had me turning the pages late into the night.
Favourite Quote:
In front of Kit, the water was like a pool of liquid metal, exactly as it had been before. It never changed, as if the lake were somehow uncoupled from time, though she, herself, felt changed beyond recognition.
Book Synopsis:
Kit’s summer position at the Abbaye de Saint Maurice, an upscale hotel in the French Alps, was meant to be a new start. But after she became entangled with a mysterious group of guests, the estate came to hold her darkest secret, and she had no choice but to flee.
A decade later, Kit receives an invitation to return to the hotel for the first time since she left. But who is calling her back? And why, when they had all promised to stay away?
Despite unanswered questions, Kit can’t resist the pull of the Abbaye and the chance to finally find closure. But upon arrival, she learns that JP, her former lover, is writing a book that could expose the group’s shared secret, and the others need her help to stop him.
How far will they go to protect themselves? And will Kit be able to betray the man she once loved for the good of the rest? When new details surface about that summer, Kit is forced to question the story she’s told herself all these years about its disturbing ending, and she’ll have to race to uncover the truth before everything comes crashing down…
Review:
Rosemary Hennigan is a new author to me, and once I read The Hotel Guest, I immediately looked into her back catalogue. Luckily, there are two other books for me to try. In case that isn’t clear enough, I really enjoyed this book.
I’ve been on a bit of a reading slump lately, finding myself struggling to connect with the characters or the story, so I was so pleased to get sucked into this one straight away. Is there any better feeling than getting drawn into a story so completely that the world around you melts away? Not to me. I think that’s the “high” that most bookworms are seeking, and this book delivered.
The setting is really great. A small village in the French Alps. Beautiful and isolated. That isolation is key in setting the stage for the story. It’s mentioned many times how the village feels so far from ordinary life. So removed it’s almost like a fantasy. Of course, that is what draws Kit there in the first place. She needs a bit of a hideaway and a reset.
The entire story is told from Kit’s perspective. We don’t really get into the heads of the other characters. It was absolutely a solid choice for this book. Kit is an interesting character. Surprisingly hard to get to know, given that we’re reading from her perspective. She holds back quite a lot. There is a wonderful parallel between our experience of her and the other characters’ experience of her. She only reveals parts of herself.
The pacing was pretty perfect. Slow enough for the tension to build, but quick enough to keep me furiously turning the pages and wanting to know what would happen next. Just enough details are revealed to keep you interested and guessing.
A fun read for fans of psychological thrillers, The Hotel Guest did not disappoint.
Thank you, Harlequin Trade, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
