The Other Guest

The latest from Cooper (The Downstairs Neighbor) features a niece drowned in suspicious circumstances; two players, not one, with false identities; a family torn apart but it’s not clear why; and everybody hiding something. There are two story lines, with separate characters, and they connect only at the end of the book. A year ago, Joanna (a counselor) was headed for marriage. It fell apart and now she’s met a bartender, Callum. He’s appealing but elusive about his past –well, about everything. After a mysterious accident, he ends up in her apartment because he has nowhere else to go but she catches him out in lie after lie. Should she tell him to leave? The second story line features Leah (a lawyer) who is trying to come to terms with the death of her niece. She visits her sister’s and brother-in-law’s luxury holiday village in Italy and something’s off. Her sister has migraines, her brother-in-law (whom she’s never trusted) is secretive and controlling, her remaining niece is visibly falling apart. Eventually, Joanna’s and Leah’s stories connect, but how, when they’ve never even met before?