The Guest: A Novel

by B.A. Paris

Overview

New York Times bestselling author B. A. Paris captivated psychological thriller readers everywhere with Behind Closed Doors. Now she invites you into another home full of heart-pounding secrets, in The Guest.

Some secrets never leave.

Iris and Gabriel have just arrived home from a make-or-break holiday. But a shock awaits them. One of their closest friends, Laure, is in their house. The atmosphere quickly becomes tense as she oversteps again and again: sleeping in their bed, wearing Iris' clothes, even rearranging the furniture.

Laure has walked out on her husband—and their good friend—Pierre, over his confession of an affair and a secret child. Iris and Gabriel want to be supportive of their friends, but as Laure's mood becomes increasingly unpredictable, her presence takes its toll.

Iris and Gabriel's only respite comes in the form of a couple new to town. But with them comes their gardener, who has a checkered past.

Soon, secrets from all their pasts will unravel, some more dangerous than they could have known.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250289421
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/20/2024
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	10,572
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

B.A. PARIS is the New York Times bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors, The Breakdown, Bring Me Back, The Dilemma, The Therapist, The Prisoner, and The Guest. Having lived in France for many years, she and her husband now live in the UK. She has worked both in finance and as a teacher, and she has five daughters.

Editorial Reviews

03/04/2024

Bestseller Paris (The Prisoner) orchestrates a symphony of subplots in this creepy domestic thriller. Unhappily married English couple Iris and Gabriel are returning home to the village of Markham after a two-week holiday. During their vacation, Gabriel, a doctor, came across a fatal bike accident while out jogging one morning. The 18-year-old victim was a former player on the youth soccer team Gabriel once coached, and he remains plagued both by his failure to save the young man and by the fact that his final words were “Tell mum I’ll never forgive her.” When the couple arrives home, they’re shocked to discover that their friend, Laure, has moved in. Laure explains that her husband has fathered a child with another woman, and she needs space to clear her head. She vastly overstays her welcome, however, leading Iris and Gabriel to question her motives. Then the couple meet their new neighbors, whose gardener, Joseph, develops a connection with Laure—and whose shady past eventually throws all their complicated entanglements into disarray. Paris deftly juggles the many characters and plot strands on the way toward a wild climax. The results are electrifying. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

A February 2024 LibraryReads Pick (Hall of Fame)

One of Apple’s Best Books of February

One of Woman’s World’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2024”

One of Goodreads’s “96 On-Trend Mysteries and Thrillers”

“Bestseller Paris orchestrates a symphony of subplots in this creepy domestic thriller. Paris deftly juggles the many characters and plot strands on the way toward a wild climax. The results are electrifying.”—Publishers Weekly

“Well-crafted secrets and betrayals abound.”—Booklist

“A tightly woven, character-driven thriller, The Guest shows how secrets can build up into toxic time bombs.”—Apple Books

“This taut, intimate, propulsive domestic thriller is fraught with impulsive bad choices that ordinary people can make.”—Patriot Ledger

“An eerie, chilling page-turner . . . danger lurks around every corner.”—Woman’s World

“By the end, it’s almost possible to figure out the who, as one of the few left standing, if not the why. But Paris thoughtfully fills the gaps with a full confession that will have you saying ‘of course!’”—St. Louis Post-Dispatch

“B.A. Paris once again pushes comfort-zone boundaries in her newest sinister thriller.”—The Big Thrill

“B. A. Paris has become the definitive master of neo-gothic noir and all her talents are front and center in The Guest. I’d forgotten how much fun suburban nightmare thrillers like this can be. The Guest is a terrific tale from the school of Lisa Gardner and Harlan Coben, Paris proving herself to be every bit their equal.”—BookTrib

“I am obsessed with The Guest—and I completely neglected my responsibilities so I could keep reading! I'm surprised the pages didn’t catch fire because I was turning them so fast—I was absolutely riveted and compelled to find out what happened. There is no one—no one—who creates high-wire domestic suspense like the amazing B.A. Paris. Do not miss this, dear readers. Standing ovation to one of my very favorite writers!”—Hank Phillippi Ryan, USA Today bestselling author of One Wrong Word

“A mesmeric, tense and twisting nightmare. Suffocating, controlled and hugely entertaining”—Chris Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author of We Begin at the End

“Expertly plotted and compellingly told—a cautionary tale that will put you off ever having anyone to stay with you again. I raced through it!”—Harriet Tyce, international bestselling author of Blood Orange

From the Publisher