Scan barcode
A review by isaiahh
The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
The Night Guest was a wild ride of a book! It's short, but it definitely packs a punch.
We follow Iðunn as she wakes up everyday exhausted, no matter what she tries (exercising, eating more, taking vitamins or sleeping pills,...). There's seemingly nothing wrong with her, but after she buys a smart watch and realises she walked 40,000 steps during the night, everything goes downhill. She wakes up sore and with bruises, or with her fingernails ruined and bloody; and she is desperate to understand what is happening to her.
Keeping a brisk pace and told through an unreliable and somewhat detached voice, this is almost a perfect short horror book. I personally thought it suffered from being a tad too short (though I had no problem with the one line chapters-they built the tension wonderfully), I would have liked some more character development; and the ending did nothing for me. I like open endings, but only to a certain point, and this one was past it.
All in all, though, a great quick read if you want some good psychological horror!
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of The Night Guest in exchange for a review.
We follow Iðunn as she wakes up everyday exhausted, no matter what she tries (exercising, eating more, taking vitamins or sleeping pills,...). There's seemingly nothing wrong with her, but after she buys a smart watch and realises she walked 40,000 steps during the night, everything goes downhill. She wakes up sore and with bruises, or with her fingernails ruined and bloody; and she is desperate to understand what is happening to her.
Keeping a brisk pace and told through an unreliable and somewhat detached voice, this is almost a perfect short horror book. I personally thought it suffered from being a tad too short (though I had no problem with the one line chapters-they built the tension wonderfully), I would have liked some more character development; and the ending did nothing for me. I like open endings, but only to a certain point, and this one was past it.
All in all, though, a great quick read if you want some good psychological horror!
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of The Night Guest in exchange for a review.