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The Guest Room

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The Guest Room

January 2016

In Chris Bohjalian’s THE GUEST ROOM, a couple’s life is upended when the husband hosts a bachelor party for his brother at their home. Things get out of hand when the “adult entertainment” turns out to be two Russian women who are victims of human trafficking. The party turns ugly fast when the girls see a moment to free themselves from their captors --- and take it --- and those at the house find themselves wondering just what they were a party to.

I flew though this book; it reads like a thriller with escapes and chases, and I did not see the end coming. Chris does a terrific job of exploring the very dark side of this trafficking and the women who are preyed on. There was one point when I was reading where I found myself deeply saddened, as I know this fiction of these women’s lives is deeply rooted in fact.

At the same time, it’s a look at a marriage that has been tested. How will the couple change? What will endure? Will the scars fracture the life this young family knew?

THE GUEST ROOM leaves you with lots to discuss, and book clubs should take note.

The Guest Room
by Chris Bohjalian

  • Publication Date: October 25, 2016
  • Genres: Fiction
  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Doubleday
  • ISBN-10: 0804170983
  • ISBN-13: 9780804170987