Enjoyable enough, but the secret tunnels deserved more screen time.
After finishing The Houseguest by L. H. Stacey, I had to do a little internet research to figure out exactly who the “house guest” was supposed to be. Honestly, it could apply to multiple people. The title wasn’t as obvious to me as it probably should’ve been.
From page one, I admit I was judging Madelaine’s decisions. She’s worried about moving into Liam’s house with her little girl, her gut is screaming don’t do it, and… she does it anyway. Predictably, it turns into an almost fatal mistake. Liam gave me psychopath vibes from the start, so even after Maddie finally left, I knew he’d be back.
One thing I really liked was the house itself. Secret tunnels, hidden doors, all the classic Gothic suspense décor. I kept waiting for Liam to start creeping through the walls like some deranged Scooby-Doo villain, but nope. Since this is book one in Stacey’s “House of Secrets” series, maybe she’s saving that for the sequel.
Where the book lost me a little was in its formula: bad guy shows up, girl lands in danger, girl runs for help, good guy swoops in, cue the happily-ever-after. It’s basically the skeleton of a Harlequin Intrigue novel, complete with unnecessary sex scenes. (Yes, I skipped them. Zero contribution to the plot.) The romance was flat-out predictable, but the suspense at least kept me turning the pages.
My final verdict is four out of five stars. It didn’t break the mold, but I still liked it. And I might even check out book two if only to see those secret tunnels finally get the screen time they deserve, ideally without Captain Obvious holding the flashlight.
