I loved Shari Lapena's previous books "The Couple Next Door" and "A Stranger In The House" and couldn't wait to start reading this, her latest thriller "An Unwanted Guest". It didn't disappoint and I have to admit that this one is actually my favourite of the three and in my opinion her best yet.The intriguing plot echoes an Agatha Christie style murder mystery and is set during a freezing cold and violent ice storm that leaves the guests at an isolated hotel stranded without power. As the guest...

An Unwanted Guest gave me all the Agatha Christie feels! It's been so long since I've read a locked room (err... hotel) mystery, and while I had my doubts going in, I found this book clever and witty. The character development was pretty darn good for a book that rolled in at less than 300 pages; in fact, this is mostly a character driven thriller, using the tension between the cast to ratchet up the suspense for those brief moments of action. I'll definitely need to check out Lapena's backlist

**3.5-stars rounded up**An Unwanted Guest has redeemed Shari Lapena in my eyes. I feel so relieved I don't have to write her off completely!Sort of joking, but not really. To say I hated was less than enthusiastic about, The Couple Next Door, would be putting it mildly. ((cough)) Very mildly.I have some really great Book Buds who love her work, so I said I would give her another shot. You know, in the spirit of friendship.After reading An Unwanted Guest, I am glad that I did. I knew going in tha...

4 stars! Eerie. Suspenseful. Haunting. Mysterious. Captivating. This was a gripping, addictive and highly atmospheric thriller that had me flying through the pages! The setting is a remote, old fashioned luxury hotel where guests arrive to spend a relaxing weekend in vintage lavishness. They arrive just as a brutal winter storm hits, cutting off electricity to the hotel along with any possible contact with the outside world. The plot unfolds as a whodunit murder mystery – is the killer among the...

3.5 Atmospheric and entertaining. A diverse group of people arrive at a small in, just in time to find themselves snowed in, and with no electricity to boot. In short order, they find themselves in danger as the bodies begin to mount. But which one of them is the killer? Or is it someone hiding in one of the empty rooms.Thematically similar to Christie's, And then there were none, it was interesting to try to figure out who was the killer. I had in mind one of three, and it turned out to be one

Well that was underwhelming. An odd ball cast of characters decide to spend the weekend at Mitchell's Inn. This decision they will all soon regret when the guests start dropping like flies. Reminiscent of Agatha Christie but not nearly as impressive we've got a whodunnit where every one becomes a suspect. Something about Lapena's writing style just didn't work for me here. It's safe to say that it is ME and not the BOOK this time around. This should have been so up my ally but I just felt it lac...

An instant classic! Lapena has completely stolen my focus—I loved this book!! There is something magical about this book that is hard to describe without having read it. An Unwanted Guest has a vintage feel, like watching a film noir mystery late on a cozy evening in. The kind of film where you’re so engrossed, you lose track of everything happening around you, only to jump at the clanging of the gate outdoors in a gust of wind.I absolutely loved this book, and most of my Traveling Sisters agree...

A quiet weekend in the country, far away from the stress of the outside world sounds like a dream getaway! Mitchell Inn is a warm and inviting Inn which is nestled deep in the forest. Snow is covering the ground adding to the Inn's beauty and charm. It's a place for lovers to enjoy time together, a place where an Author can work on her book, a man can enjoy some alone time, friends can re-connect, and for a couple in an unhappy marriage can take a look at their marriage in a beautiful setting. B...

Mitchell's Inn is a quiet resort, tucked away in the Catskill Mountains. Guests are checking in, but will they all check out? The hotel is three stories with a grand staircase, reminiscent of Gone with the Wind.  A forest surrounds the hotel and it has a grand lawn which is all covered in pure white snow. This should be the perfect setting for a quiet, relaxing weekend, but it will not be .The hotel isn't full. Six rooms will be occupied out of the twelve available. Some folks seem to have

4 Stars.A good old fashioned “Whodunit” Set in the Catskill Mountains, during a bitter cold, stormy weekend when the guests at an Inn get snowed in during a power outage. This is one mystery / suspense that is not to be missed!Ten guests arrive for the weekend, and one by one, they drop like flies. Are the guests’ deaths an accident or are they being been murdered? The roads are closed because of the snow and since the Inn has no power, no one can call the police. Everyone is frightened and susp...

This was an excellent thriller, one of those where I enjoyed every minute of it.The story takes place at Mitchell’s Inn in upstate New York. It’s the weekend and guests start arriving at the lodge for a short getaway. They are looking forward to spending a wonderful time in this charming and cozy inn.What the guests don’t expect is a blizzard that leaves them with no power or outside communication, no way to leave the hotel, and with a murderer among them.This novel was great, it had a classic f...

Shari Lapena writes a crime fiction mystery in the style of the classic golden age of crime. In the beautiful snowy Catskill mountains and forests, beside the Hudson River, is the location of Mitchell's Inn. The snow has brought its problems as many of the staff at the Inn have been unable to get to work, leaving owner and chef, James Harwood, with only his son, Bradley, to help look after the guests who have managed to arrive. However, the weather deteriorates even further as the place is gripp...

My first read of the year. And it was not good. Shari Lapena is not for me. After I read, The Couple Next Door, which I immensely disliked, I didn't think I would ever read another book from this author. I was wrong. I gave An Unwanted Guest, another chance because the premise sounded promising, and believable.... too good to be true....boooooyyyyyy....The writing was what threw me off. It was.....really bland. And made the whole experience really slow and plodding...uninteresting. The character...

Norma and I were lost in a Coulee reading An Unwanted Guest with seven of our Traveling Sisters and overall we all had very similar thoughts on this one. A few twists here with this story and one especially that left us with something to talk about and left us completely satisfied in the end. Right from the start, Shari Lapena pulled us into this story with a very chilling setting here with a hotel snowed in. We all loved the feeling we got from the storm and the spooky feeling of being trapped

4.5 Stars! A weekend getaway at a cozy mountain lodge I would say is my ideal getaway but if I’m snowed in with no power and a murderer amongst the midst with no way out…...I’d be totally scared right out of my wits! AN UNWANTED GUEST by SHARI LAPENA is a fast-paced, tension-filled, compelling, suspenseful, and a chilling read that immediately grabbed my attention and kept me pretty much guessing right to the very end. Although, there are a few clues that I did pick up on, it did not spoil the a...

For a murder mystery, An Unwanted Guest gets the setting perfectly right: A cozy lodge nestled deep in the wood, during peak weather and in the midst of a snowstorm, with many interesting characters. When the weather takes a turn for the worse, and a blizzard cuts off the electricity--and all contact with the outside world--the guests settle in for the long haul. Soon, the weekend getaway turns deadly, as some unknown killer starts killing the guests one by one. The plot may remind you of And T...

Welcome to your weekend getaway... A group of unsuspecting guests arrive to a snowy, mountain inn for a weekend away from everyone and everything. Each has their own personal reasons for being there. Re-kindle a faltering romance, repair a once close friendship. Maybe even a working weekend. Whatever the reason, it was going to be a pleasant getaway.But by early the next morning, things take a drastic turn. A body has been found at the bottom of the staircase at the Inn. And that's only the begi...

A very entertaining whodunnit!This murder mystery gave me all the CLUE vibes and I loved it so much! A large cast of characters trapped in a remote hotel during a snowstorm with no electricity or cell service? Yeah, sign me up. This one has a large cast of characters - it definitely also reminded me of an Agatha Christie novel, some reviewers have compared it to And Then There Were None which I can totally se as well. I generally get lost when a bunch of characters are introduced all at once, bu...

I started reading An Unwanted Guest on 11/3/18 and finished it on 11/17/18 at 3:36am. This book is an excellent read! I love how the story slowly reveals each person having a secret they want to keep hidden but at the same time very much wanting to unravel their peers' secrets. I enjoy reading each character's personal thoughts a lot. Lauren likes to size up other guests and right away decide who she likes and dislikes. Candace pays close attention to people's demeanor and Beverly notices body l...

3.5 starsWith heat indexes soaring into the triple digits for the past week, the thought of being snowed in at a remote cabin sounded romantic, delightful and cozy. That is, until the dead bodies started piling up.Reminiscent of the locked door mysteries of Agatha Christie, where there is a limited number of suspects, this was an entertaining dive into the lives and the psyches of the guests at the lodge. I loved the atmosphere of the inn, and the eccentric characters. Unlike Christie, the clues...