Book Review: The Last House Guest

The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda 

Goodreads Summary:

The summer after a wealthy young summer guest dies under suspicious circumstances, her best friend lives under a cloud of grief and suspicion.
Littleport, Maine, has always felt like two separate towns: an ideal vacation enclave for the wealthy, whose summer homes line the coastline; and a simple harbor community for the year-round residents whose livelihoods rely on service to the visitors.

Typically, fierce friendships never develop between a local and a summer girl—but that’s just what happens with visitor Sadie Loman and Littleport resident Avery Greer. Each summer for almost a decade, the girls are inseparable—until Sadie is found dead. While the police rule the death a suicide, Avery can’t help but feel there are those in the community, including a local detective and Sadie’s brother, Parker, who blame her. Someone knows more than they’re saying, and Avery is intent on clearing her name, before the facts get twisted against her.

The Last House Guest is a smart, twisty read that brilliantly explores the elusive nature of memory and the complexities of female friendships.

My Review:
4/5 stars

The Last House Guest is full of suspense, told from the viewpoint of Avery, Sadie's best friend who was found dead of an apparent suicide. The book is told with time lapses from the summer Sadie died and the next summer. The concurrent timelines often were confusing to follow which year we were in.

Avery is not convinced that Sadie wouldn't commit suicide, so she sets out to uncover the truth. Secrets are uncovered as we learn more about each character spending the summer in Littleport, residents and vacationers. This leads to ultimate revelations at the end which picked up the excitement in the last few chapters.

This was my first book by Megan Miranda, I'm looking forward to reading more from her. Highly recommend The Last House Guest as a quick, twisty, suspenseful novel.