The Last Guest

Praise

“With a knowing, satirical eye, Tess Little skillfully weaves a page-turner full of satisfying twists and turns. What starts as a murder mystery soon turns into a carnival of L.A. parties, blending and bleeding into each other as time doubles over on itself. Ultimately, The Last Guest is a moving story of power, cruelty, and one woman’s quest to reclaim her daughter, her past, and ultimately herself.”—Kyle McCarthy, author of Everyone Knows How Much I Love You

“Tess Little is a modern Agatha Christie, setting up her eight suspects, locking them in a sprawling Los Angeles mansion, and knocking them down one by one over the course of a decadent, stomach-turning dinner party. In trying to understand who murdered Richard, Elspeth begins a kind of katabasis—and what she finds down there in the dark with Persephone might destroy her. The Last Guest kept me guessing until the very last.”—Tanen Jones, author of The Better Liar

“A mystery that lures you into its dark depths and won’t let you go, and a mesmerizing meditation on the silences we keep and why we keep them.”—Tiffany Tsao, author of The Majesties

“Dark, compelling Hollywood intrigue and a diverse cast of well-drawn characters make The Last Guest a unique locked-room mystery that readers will simply devour! It’s perfect for fans of Lucy Foley.”—Wendy Walker, author of Don’t Look for Me

“With skewering intensity and taut, unsettling prose, Tess Little plunges us into the kaleidoscopic glamour of Hollywood, where the eccentric birthday party of a brilliant, sadistic director forces the eruption of long-buried pain. The Last Guest is a sharp, unshrinking look at the costs of submission—to power and control, to ambition and desire, even to the wish to protect those we love by forcing memory underground. It’s timely, smart, and satisfying.”—Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife and When the Stars Go Dark

“Little intercuts the party’s aftermath with flashbacks to Elspeth’s past and the soiree itself, imparting tension, heft, and drive. . . . Elspeth’s emotional journey both grips and gratifies. Little is a writer to watch.”—Publishers Weekly