The Guests by Adriane Leigh | Review

 Thank you to Author Adriane Leigh for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion and review.  

The Guests by Adriane Leigh

Genre(s): Thriller
Release Date: November 19th, 2024
Publisher: Joffe Books
Pages: 277
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 
Spice: Mild 🌶️ 

Plot Synopsis:

Six guests are invited to paradise. Not all of them will survive.

Ryleigh is a struggling artist, still trying to catch her break in theater. Her new best friend offers her a once in a lifetime opportunity — a week on her family’s private island on Lake Michigan.

She doesn’t belong here. She doesn’t know these people at all.

Kerrigan is the housewife with the perfect life. She has a loving husband and a glamorous city apartment. Her life is everything she could ever dream of.

Her husband hates her. Their marriage is a sham.

Cole is the only local on Stonecliffe Island. He’s there to make sure the guests have everything they want. He has to focus on creating the perfect experience.

He can’t afford any distractions after last summer. This is his final chance.

Each guest has their own villa. There are staff on-call to help with every need — a masseuse, a chef to make dinner every night, waiters pouring endless champagne. It’s going to be perfect. But a violent storm looms on the horizon. There’s no way off the island. Then, one of the guests disappears. And they won’t be the last . . .

Review:

“The Guests” is a novel about a group of individuals who are called to gather on a rustic island getaway to hear the reading of a will. Most of the men and women are wealthy, with their family holding shares to the fate of the land. One lone guest does not belong to the same world of glitz and money. Why was she asked to come join the guests? As their connections become known, their stories unwind. Then two women go missing. Everyone is a pawn. Who is the mastermind? What do they want? What will they do to get it? 

The author did an excellent job interweaving a complex web of relationships and lies. I thought I had it figured out and then additional twists to the plot surprised me. I felt that the ending was a little lacklustre and rushed. I would have liked to see a more climactic ending. Otherwise, it’s a really interesting thriller that I would recommend to others!