February 2022

THE OVERNIGHT GUEST by Heather Gudenkauf has a chilling setting, literally and figuratively. Wylie Lark, a true crime writer, is snowed in while finishing her new book in a house where, decades earlier, two people were murdered and a young girl disappeared. As a blizzard swirls outside, she finds a child in the snow --- which begins her reckoning that the story she is writing may not end up the way she thinks.

There are so many genuinely thrilling moments in this book. You can feel the tension as doors are jiggled open and slammed shut. The story works well in both the past and present sections; they are equally strong, so when you move between them, your attention does not wane. Heather reels you in with tight prose and great pacing.

I admit to being very glad that I was not home alone reading as I reached the end. I did not guess what the final pages would reveal.

My previous favorite book of Heather’s was THE WEIGHT OF SILENCE. This one is right up there with that. It is so, so well done.

» Watch my "Bookreporter Talks To" interview with Heather Gudenkauf and listen to the podcast.