The story is told from multiple POVs. The chapters were short which made it a fast paced read. The pace was perfect. It looked at grief so well

This story is told from two viewpoints and two locations - Leah in Italy and Joanna in England. It soon becomes clear what the link is between these two strangers, but not exactly why this is the case.

I loved the way the author conjured up the beauty of the Lake Garda setting and yet gave it a dark undertone as well.

The characters were well described and easy to keep clear in my head.

Definitely a case of all that glitters is not gold for the Wynne family, who are all keeping secrets for the sake of the family brand - or is there more to it than that?!

Thanks to the author, Hodder and Stoughton, and NetGalley for the eARC of this book.

Cover: Pretty nice.

This is the book I dubbed as ‘Too Much’. Too much misplaced trust. Too much idealism. Too much time before the actual story starts. Just, too much all around.

First of all, the povs. We have three, two thirds (Joanna and Leah) and a first (Amy), and… why? The constant back and forth gave me a mental whiplash. It’s a shame, because both Joanna and Leah’s parts flow rather well; sticking to them would have improved the story. Amy’s reads too mechanical, instead—one of the major risks of first pov, granted, but still.

Flow aside, the other problem I have with The Other Guest has to do with the plot itself. 50% in, it all starts coming together, yes, but the downside is that Joanna’s side of the story reads like a prologue. Why didn’t anyone suggest Cooper to trim her pov, at least in the first half of the book?

To add insult to injury, some characters behave in a weird way. I get Amy’s idealism. It rings true and believable, even more so given her age. From her, I would have bought the decision to let Callum stay without batting an eye. From Joanna, though? No. Joanna isn’t so naïve. She’s bound to figure out that such a decision would backfire in zero point three, because that’s the way she’s been introduced. Caring, in pain, but smart.

The grammar is good. It’s also not enough to salvage a novel.

2.5 stars on GR, rounded up to 3.

The Other Guest is an addictive, twisty thriller that is sure to hook readers from start to finish. The story follows Leah returning to Italy for the first time since her 21 year old niece drowned under mysterious circumstances at their family-owned luxury resort. Everyone seems to forgot that it happened, but Leah is determined to find out what actually happened years ago. If you enjoy fast-paced, unpredictable thrillers, The Other Guest is one that cannot be missed. Highly recommended!

I really enjoyed this book! It was very fast paced, and gripping. It was predictable in parts, but nonetheless very enjoyable. Highly recommend!

Will keep the reader guessing right through to the end as they try to work out how the players in the story come together. And even then it will keep them guessing a little bit more. Throughout the book, there is an underlying feeling of threat as each stage of the plot is revealed and opens up yet another level of menace in its place.

The Other Guest, has bestseller written all over it.

Helen Cooper, is a natural storyteller and knows how to engage with her readers at first sentence. Never in my life have I been so sure of a book on the first page as I was while reading The Other Guest.

The narration of the storyline was executed with perfection, the characters were all layered and multi-dimensional. The amount of detail that went into this book shows on every page. Not once was I bored or even counting pages to the next chapter. I could not get enough!

I will be recommending The Other Guest for years to come!

Five Stars

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. The storyline here is good and well developed with good writing and characters. With plenty of twists and turns this is a page turner to the end. Well worth a read!

A good read
A great mystery which will keep you reading
It’s told by three points of view
Will read more by this author
Thanks NetGalley

My Thoughts:
This book takes time telling the story about two women who become intertwined by Leahs niece death. When Leah goes to visit Amy’s family she feels something not right so she sets out to learn more about Amy’s death but she soon is meant with threats and no one wants to talk about it. Soon her life becomes intertwined with Joannas and the story takes off just when I thought I figured the ending out I didn’t.

This is the perfect book to take on your summer break. The book follows two main parallel stories – one of Leah who has travelled to a beautiful island in Italy after her niece mysteriously drowned in the surrounding sea and one of Joanna who is struggling with work as a counsellor at a University, with a recent failed relationship, when a handsome young man enters her life.

The writing is very tight and the plot is well paced, which made it a pleasure to read and I went through it at great speed. There is quite a bit of tension as you are unsure who the main characters are able to trust and who is lying to them. Like any good thriller is keeps you guessing up until very close to the end. The book shows how easy it can be to be influenced by money and status but that family and friends are the things of real value.

I look forward to seeing Cooper’s next book.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with ebook access via Netgalley.
TW: suicide

It was a pleasant book. Who does not like puzzling? Perfect for summer I guess. Thank you the publishers for letting me read this unique and twisty, interesting story

Thank you for the publisher for sending me a copy of this book and inviting me to be part of the tour
In this book; we are introduced to Leah and Joanna. At first; there seems to be absolutely no connection between the two women and the book almost feels like two separate books. I was wondering for a while how they were going to come together and link together
the book is quite a slow burner. The majority of it is set in Italy, which the author describes amazing and makes you feel as if you really want to be there. The author is great at setting the scene
I enjoyed the multiple point of view throughout the book and the short chapters
However, I did prefer the authors first book. That could have been because I have read books very similar to the premise.
I absolutely loved the way the author brought the two women together and really enjoyed the book overall
Looking forward to the authors next book

Two storylines are happening in Italy - one in the past following the last days of doomed, dead Amy at her family's swanky resort, one in the present, a year later from the perspective of her aunt Leah visiting for the first time since the tragedy. The third storyline is happening in the UK with Joanna, newly single after a breakup with boyfriend Luke and her encounters with a hunky, friendly bartender.

The atmosphere is moody, the threatening weather often signaling danger. Amy is in danger. Leah pokes her nose in it and is in danger. Joanna, unclear (but probably danger). It takes a LONG time for the storylines to merge. [My notes: FINALLY!] It's obvious that the characters are all hiding something (both in Italy and the UK), they're acting weird and cagey. Some editing might have trimmed some of the 400 pages and given the reader a more compelling mystery. A lot of clunky prose: "She met Olivia's eyes over the top of the iPad: they were like glinting pebbles in the combination of flashes from the storm and the glow of the ground-level spotlights" didn't help move the story along.

Based on other reviews it looks like Cooper's "The Downstairs Neighbor" should get added to the TBR pile!

My thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the ARC. The Other Guest is scheduled to be published on July 26, 2022.

The Other Guest by Helen Cooper was a fantastic book I loved it. I found this book a slow-burn mystery. Till about 3/4 the way through this book and then Bang I could turn my kindle pages fast enough. What a great book, full of twists and turns throughout that just had me wanting more.

I highly recommend this book.

Big thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A big thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for the opportunity to read and review this book. I haven't read a book by Helen Cooper before so had no expectations.

However, having read the blurb, was very interested to give this book a try as seemed right up my street and was really glad I did. Superb psychological thriller

Great characters, great location, great writing, and clearly a great author. Am sure this book will do really well and an author I would definitely look to read more of.

A super summer read!!

Il Mandrino is an exclusive vacation spot conceptualized by Leah's brother-in-law, and nestled on the shores of Lake Garda, Italy. It's also the place where her niece, Amy, met her untimely death, taking a boat out on the lake at night. Everyone said it was an accident.

Was it?

Leah proceeds to ruffle many feathers when she attempts to find out the truth. There are many things that don't add up, and the closer to the truth she gets, the more in danger she is. Why does everyone, including her other niece, Olivia, refuse to talk about Amy's death? What happened to the bartender who might have been privy to Amy's last moments? Why does she feel threatened by her brother-in-law and what's up with her sister, who seems to be isolating herself with migraines?

In a parallel story, we have Joanna, who is in England, and recovering from a breakup. When she meets the friendly and good looking Nate, she feels seen. But after he's involved in an accident, she feels sorry for him and impulsively offers to look after him at her place....not stopping to think that she barely knows him!

Helen Cooper deftly ties the two narratives together to create a beautifully written and suspenseful book about the consequences of family loyalty, misperceptions, and secrets.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a reader's copy for review.

I received this book on Netgalley in exchange of an honest review, and this book has been an exhilarating, action packed and exciting journey. I love reading, I read romance novels, crime/detective stories and then I always return to thrillers. They might just be my favourite and so is this book.
I knew right from the beginning that this book is a 5 star read. It was a joy to read with plenty of ‘Well, I did not see it coming’ moments.
I loved the plot, the main characters, the locations and the story! I recommend this book wholeheartedly to all thriller fans! A thrilling read!

Leah is returning to her sister’s luxury resort on Lake Garda after the tragic death of her niece, Amy, a year earlier. It quickly becomes evident that the family are very damaged by her death and equally that Leah is not being told the whole truth.
Joanna is a university counsellor in Derby dealing with the break up of her long term relationship and some momentous issues with her job.
As Leah tries to investigate the suspicious circumstances surrounding Amy’s death, Joanna is drawn into a relationship with a young bartender. What connects these two women is the basis for this intriguing novel.
I really enjoyed The Other Guest, Helen Cooper allows the story to develop slowly, drawing you in with a reveal here and there so you think you know what is going on, while much is left unexplained. Switching between the different POVs of Leah and Joanna builds tension and the ultimate reveal is rather clever and unexpected . Under all this is a serious examination into how grief and perceived guilt can affect someone, making this a rather thoughtful read in the end. I enjoyed the last section of the book where the characters come to terms with what has gone before, it’s not tied up with a neat little bow, which is exactly as it should be.

It has been a year since Leah lost her niece Amy in a tragic drowning accident near the family-owned luxury holiday resort on Lake Garda. She hadn't been back for the funeral and is shocked to find that her sister and the rest of the family seem to have erased most of the evidence that Amy even existed. Despite some very suspicious circumstances around the drowning they insist that it was an accident. When Leah starts to dig a little deeper she doesn't realise how many toes she is treading on. Upsetting people who will do anything to keep the truth under wraps.

In Derby a university councillor called Joanna leads a quiet life following a surprise break up with her partner late last year. She hasn't been ready to throw herself back into the dating pool again but a handsome bartender persuades her to give him a chance. After a hit and run accident where he is seriously injured she invites him to recover at her home. It is only when he is sharing her small terraced house that Joanna realises that she really doesn't know him at all.

The Other Guest is the first book that I've read by Helen Cooper and I don't know what I was expecting but this is a very atmospheric rollercoaster ride switching between three different points of view: Joanna in Derby; Leah in Italy and also Amy in Italy in the run up to her death. It does mean that it can take a little while to get your head round who is who and what exactly is happening. It is definitely worth persevering though as once Leah starts to unravel the truth about the uber luxury holiday resort all the threads come together and you realise what has really happened. Pack it in your suitcase now for a twisty sinister holiday read.

Supplied by Net Galley and Hodder & Stoughton in exchange for an honest review.