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The Guest
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
A young woman pretends to be someone she isnt in this stunning novel by the New York Times bestselling author of The Girls. Summer is coming to a close on the East End of Long Island, and Alex is no longer welcome. A misstep at a dinner party, and the older man she's been staying with dismisses her with a ride to the train station and a ticket back to the city. With few resources and a waterlogged phone, but gifted with an ability to navigate the desires of others, Alex stays on Long Island and drifts like a ghost through the hedged lanes, gated driveways, and sun-blasted dunes of a rarified world that is, at first, closed to her. Propelled by desperation and a mutable sense of morality, she spends the week leading up to Labor Day moving from one place to the next, a cipher leaving destruction in her wake. Taut, propulsive, and impossible to look away from, Emma Clines The Guest is a spellbinding literary achievement.
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thereadingreference
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Pickpick

My tempered expectations panned out because my first-take opinion is that this is a masterpiece.

The prose is truly phenomenal. The plot is a fever dream. Alex doesn't care whether or not you like her. These characters are unique, but knowable, which makes me think that everyone else is missing something that this author sees. Or maybe I've just been around some messed-up people. Either way -- fascinating.

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thereadingreference
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline

There was no reason to feel anxious--the fear had been transmuted, the way it often was, into excitement, the memory always dissolving until it was only the idea of fear, and when had the idea of fear even been a convincing deterrent?

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Lesliereadsalot
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Pickpick

What is 22 year old Alex to do? Brought to the Hamptons for the month of August and asked to leave about three weeks in. No life in the city, no apartment, and a mysterious man constantly calling and texting for money she stole. How will she survive day after day? Kept me reading to see how she would navigate her life even though she‘s a very unsympathetic character.

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JHSiess
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭 by 𝐄𝐦𝐦𝐚 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 is eloquent & impeccably crafted. A young woman is utterly lost but lacks the self-awareness & life skills required to get her life on track. She constructs a fantasy, determined to make it real. Cline never reveals how her perception of reality became so skewed, her decisions so poor. A sad tale with an ending that leaves readers wondering just what the point of the story is.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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TheBookStacker
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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So I didn‘t like The Girls at all I felt it was overall very meh, but I enjoyed Daddy. And I‘ve heard some good buzz about this so I‘ll give it a shot.

DimeryRene I loved The Girls. I wonder if I‘d like Daddy. But I am also interested in this one! 6d
41 likes1 comment
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daena
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Semester completed. Officially done with all required classes for my DDes and PhD. Now it‘s just research and writing. Going to enjoy this a bit with a book unrelated to anything I‘m doing. I‘m about 74 pages in and hooked. I‘m already rooting for Alex, a testament to Cline‘s writing. Her ability to have us mesmerized by the incredibly flawed characters she creates.

Tamra Enjoy! 😊 7d
merelybookish Congrats and good luck! 7d
thereadingreference Just started & also immersed in the writing! 3d
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Julsmarshall
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Mehso-so

I‘m just not sure about this one. The MC and her point of view was unusual and compelling but also kind of awful. The story felt both too short and too long; might have been better as a short story? Cline is a great writer, the pace and structure is solid, the character development just fell short for me.

squirrelbrain I agree - there was something (or more than one ‘something‘) missing here. 1w
56 likes1 comment
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actualdisneyprincess
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Panpan

Uh…wtf did I even just read? #theguest #emmacline

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batsy
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Pickpick

This is my first Emma Cline, & I'm quite sad that it ends up as a low pick for a book that was so alluring. A Sofia Coppola film in a book, but with a short story ending that felt too easy & didn't pay off for all that went on before. Alex is a sex worker slash grifter, jaded & worn out at 22; self-sabotaging & troubled. Cline builds the sense of dread & anxiety throughout, interspersed with set-pieces simmering with an undercurrent of cruelty.

batsy I was invested in Alex; I thought it was clever how Cline manages the expectations of the reader by always giving us Alex's POV, but when you stop & pull back to gaze at the scene objectively you're like, why is she like this? And there's no backstory, no past trauma to build on; Alex just exists in time & space as a person desperate to outrun both. I see that the media reviews of the book are good; I wonder if I'm being too harsh re: the ending? 1w
batsy But glad we're on the same page about that @squirrelbrain 🙂 1w
jlhammar I tried The Girls a couple of times and just couldn't get into it for some reason. 1w
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squirrelbrain I agree Suba, about the build-up of dread; it was very clever but I felt that the lack of Alex‘s background meant that there wasn‘t enough depth overall. 1w
batsy @jlhammar Oh no, that's unfortunate. I keep putting off reading it, though I am curious about it. 1w
batsy @squirrelbrain I get what you mean, it does feel like this would have been a better short story/novella. 1w
Ruthiella “A Sofia Coppola film of a book.” Perfect! 👌I‘m definitely going to read it. The Girls also had its weaknesses, but overall her portrayal of female adolescence in it was very good, I thought. 1w
batsy @Ruthiella Oh, that's great! I'm happy to hear you liked it—like I mentioned above I'm intrigued by the concept and I think Cline is an interesting writer. 1w
Cathythoughts Great review ♥️ 1w
batsy @Cathythoughts Thank you! 😘 1w
Lesliereadsalot I liked it too. Couldn‘t put it down actually! 4d
batsy @Lesliereadsalot Yes, I felt the same! I have been thinking about the ending... Perhaps no ending would be good enough for a story of this nature, and a resolution would also feel forced. 3d
86 likes3 stack adds12 comments
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squirrelbrain
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Mehso-so

Alex is ‘dismissed‘ as the girlfriend of a wealthy older guy on Long Island and is running from something in her past.

Meh, I had such high hopes for this. I thought it would be very clever, but there was only the old glimmer. It was fairly gripping in places, but you never really fully got in the head of the MC. The ending just really wound me up; it felt lazy to me, like the author had run out of steam. Very frustrating.

thereadingreference Nooo 🙈 ... I love The Girls so much & this is one I've been dying to get my hands on! 1w
batsy I just finished this and am mulling it over. I felt like the ending was a cop out, too... 1w
squirrelbrain I‘m glad you felt the same about the ending @batsy - makes me feel better! 😁 Looking forward to seeing your review. 1w
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squirrelbrain @thereadingreference - hopefully you‘ll like it; don‘t let me put you off. 😬 1w
BarbaraBB I am now definitely not going to read this one. I wasn‘t really up for it because of The Girls and now I‘m sure it‘s not for me! 1w
Megabooks Glad I decided to go library, but I‘m still interested enough to read. Great review! 1w
Hooked_on_books Very interesting! Nothing winds me up as much as a poorly done ending. I have the audio from my library and should probably get to it next week, so now I‘m more curious about what I‘ll think. 1w
squirrelbrain @BarbaraBB @Megabooks @Hooked_on_books - it just didn‘t feel ‘special‘ to me; rather like a Megan Miranda book. Nothing wrong with that author but I understood it to be so much more. 1w
Caroline2 Oh no, how disappointing. I was looking forward to this one. Meh 😒 1w
76 likes9 comments
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Cinfhen
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Pickpick

The newest release from Emma Cline did not disappoint at all! It‘s a gritty look at wealth, power, sexuality and deception. Alex is only 22 but she‘s already hardened by life, a grifter who manages to land on her feet using her body and seduction. She‘s truly awful yet I was mesmerized by her ability & manipulation. A ruthless character you can‘t help rooting for. Would love to discuss this one!! #NetGalley #ARC

BarbaraBB I‘m glad it worked for you. Maybe I‘ll read it one day! 3w
Cinfhen I don‘t think you need to #RushToRead @BarbaraBB 💖😘 3w
rockpools 🌺🌼🌺🌼🌺 3w
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Cinfhen @rockpools 🥰😘 3w
Cathythoughts Great review 👍🏻I have it stacked already. 3w
sarahbarnes Can‘t wait to read this one! Great review! 3w
squirrelbrain Great review! I‘ll get to it soon…. 3w
Cinfhen Excited to hear what you think about this one @squirrelbrain @sarahbarnes @Cathythoughts 3w
Megabooks So excited for this one!! 2w
Cinfhen I‘ll be curious to hear your thoughts @Megabooks I feel like we‘ve been out of sync with our book choices lately 😘 2w
Megabooks So true! It‘s just weird that‘s happened recently. I‘m in the middle of this and you gave it 3.75⭐️ on the storygraph. I‘m feeling about the same. 2w
Cinfhen Some parts of Half Moon were really great but large chunks of the story seemed repetitive @Megabooks 2w
L_auren Lucky ARC! Will def be reading this one asap 2w
Cinfhen It was a LUCKY ARC @L_auren every so often those NetGalley Gods smile upon me ☺️ 2w
84 likes1 stack add14 comments
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Cinfhen
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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SOOOOO GOOD!!!! I‘m hooked!! It‘s definitely giving me @KarenUK vibes!!!! And I know you disliked The Girls @BarbaraBB but im thinking you might enjoy this one from Cline. #ARC #NetGalley

TheBookHippie I hated the girls 😵‍💫😂 So you think this is better written and not stolen history? 😂😵‍💫😅🤣 3w
Cinfhen Ouch!! I thought The Girls was inspired by history 😉 @TheBookHippie 😜 (edited) 3w
Cinfhen I am loving this one, is it 💯 unique… probably not but it‘s not the Manson‘s 😂😂😂 3w
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BarbaraBB I‘m with you @TheBookHippie I hated it for similar reasons. But if Cindy says this one‘s better we might give her another chance 😉 and it almost made #CampLitsy23! (edited) 3w
TheBookHippie @Cinfhen used as voyeurism is not my cup of tea. 3w
Cinfhen I‘m thinking @TheBookHippie might not be a fan of this book @BarbaraBB and it might be a #BorrowNotBuy for you BUT I‘m sticking with my initial instincts and I‘m sure it‘s totally a pick for @KarenUK 😗 (edited) 3w
KarenUK I loved the girls, so I am totally in! 💯 sounds my vibe. Think I have an Arc somewhere?! 😂 3w
TheBookHippie @Cinfhen I‘m a problem 😂 3w
squirrelbrain I‘m looking forward to this; I have an ARC. 3w
ashw21 Really looking forward to this 3w
Cinfhen It was really good @squirrelbrain @ashw21 @KarenUK can‘t wait to hear your thoughts as well 🩷 You‘re my favorite kind of problem @TheBookHippie an opinionated woman xxxx 3w
77 likes2 stack adds13 comments
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Kappadeemom
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Today‘s reading

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KarenUK
The Guest: A Novel | Emma Cline
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Keep saying I‘m not going to request more ARCs until I‘m completely up to date…. But then shiny new things catch my eye! 💕

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