Book Review: The Christmas Guest by Peter Swanson

 

Book: The Christmas Guest 

Author: Peter Swanson 

Pages: 111

Read on: Kindle 

Read in: ~1 hour 

Plot Summary: When Ashley Smith - a bright-eyed but lonely American studying in London - is invited to spend Christmas with her classmate's family at their Cotswolds manor house, it seems like a perfect country idyll.

And for Ashley - who records it all in her diary - there's the added romantic potential of her friend's twin brother, Adam, who she thinks could be her wildest dream come true.

But is there something strange about the old house, both stately and rundown? What could the motives of the mysterious Chapman family be? And what holiday horrors might be lying in wait?

Things I Liked:

1. The premise of this novella was very interesting. A lonely American girl in London being invited to a friend's home in the country for Christmas. When she gets there, she finds the family and home strange and even stranger when she learns that she resembles a murdered girl in the village. Nice, right? You know from the get-go that things are not as they seem and a sense of dread keeps building as you hurtle through the 100-odd pages of this book. 

2. This is a very atmospheric book. The author brings the rundown Starvewood Manor alive along with the various members of Emma Chapman's family - the cruel father, the resigned mother, loud and fun aunt and uncle, Emma's good-looking twin- Adam. In the short few pages you get a good sense of these people. 

3. The build-up to the mystery is nicely done. Ashley's arrival in the Costwald manor home, her slowly learning about Joanna Davies- her look alike, who was murdered in the village in late September that year. A mysterious man lurking in the woods near Emma's home. There is a growing sense of unease and, as a reader, you really begin to fear for Ashley, who is a total stranger in a strange land. 

4. The first half of the book is told in diary form, which is something I tend to enjoy quite a bit and it was done very nicely here. 

5. Ashley, our American heroine in a moody mansion in the UK just won my heart, I really felt like we got to know her through her diary entries and found myself wishing her well. My heart went out to his awkward American girl trying to find her place in London and making a new life all on her own. 

Things I Didn't Like: 

 The big reveal was so easy to guess. I mean, you'll probably also guess it the moment you read this one line at the 4-5% mark of that book. So, it was not at all surprising or shocking as to what eventually happens. Sigh. A bit disappointing when you can accurately guess the plot of the book so early on in the game. 

Some of the things that happen in the second half, I don't want to spoil things..but some technical things just won't happen in the real world. 80s or not. Life and rules were different in the 80s but not soooooooo different. 

Still this was an enjoyable book we read in one sitting, on a rainy night and enjoyed quite a bit. 

Rating: 3.5/5