A review by ristretto
The Hotel by Emily Shiner

adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

An isolated hotel overlooking a cliff cut off from from the world during a snowstorm. When the hosts and guests are trapped together and secrets threaten to come to light tensions rise and dangers escalate. 

This should have been right up my alley but unfortunately it was a miss for me. There was definitely potential though and I do think there is an audience for it. My biggest issue was with the characters. They were all incredibly unlikeable and unhinged in an odd over dramatic way.

One moment that really stuck out to me in early on in the novel was when the guests are driving up to the B&B and the mother starts panicking to herself about how the balconies are icy and someone could easily fall and how she should have warned her daughter about it. But, the whole family is still in the car.. She could say something right then and there, it’s not something to freak out about. (Also the icy balconies never even come into play.) That’s just one example of the baffling melodramatic behavior these characters exhibit throughout the novel. I wondered if there was a dark humor we were supposed to read into (maybe it was supposed to be satire??) but that wasn’t the impression I got.

About a quarter in, I decided to overlook the characters and just follow what was happening in the story. The actual plot and twists and turns were pretty fun. Was there some conflicting elements through the character povs and some plots holes? Yes there was. Putting everything aside, it had it’s entertaining moments.

I think I would recommend this to someone who is looking for something quick to read while traveling, who enjoys some melodrama and who likes a fast paced suspense mystery that can be read in one sitting.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.