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In 1988, Beth’s aunt takes her to stay at Raven Hall, a large manor in the East Anglian fens of England. Her parents and brother have both died, and her aunt’s work keeps her on the road most of the time, so it makes sense when the homeowners, the Averells, offer to foster 14-year-old Beth for a while. Their daughter Nina is excited to have a new friend, and the family is very welcoming, so Beth feels mostly comfortable at Raven Hall. But then when the parents ask Beth to play along in a seemingly harmless game, things start to go off the rails.
In 2019, actress Sadie is trying to pay her bills when she gets an unusual but very well-paying job offer: She just has to play a part as a weekend-party guest at an old manor called Raven Hall. She is given a suitcase with clothes to wear and information about her role and is driven in a limousine to the manor. It seems the old manor is being made into a location for murder-mystery parties, and she and others have been given roles to play while a photographer takes pictures for advertising.
It’s a fun and unusual gig, and the money is great, so Sadie wants to do her best for the event. But as the afternoon and evening wear on, things don’t seem so straightforward, and Sadie is at turns concerned and confused. The unknown host may be playing some kind of game with everyone there. She and the other guests try to figure out the real reason they are at Raven Hall, before things get dangerous for them all.
The Perfect Guests is a delightfully twisty story that goes back and forth between two time periods, and it’s not clear for a while what the connection is between Beth and Sadie. What happened to Beth and the family who hosted her? What were they playing at, and why? What is the connection among the guests at Raven Hall, and why are they there? It’s all tied together, and I couldn’t put the book down until the very last detail was revealed at the end. It may seem a bit too convoluted at times, but I had no quibbles with the plot myself. It was just fun to watch the whole puzzle come together. Bonus: it’s a pretty clean book.
Rated: Mild. There’s basically no profanity and very little sexual content. There are attempted murders by poison. A character was raped years before but there are no details, just allusions to it having happened.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
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