The Guest Room

As his younger brother's best man, Richard Chapman thought he was doing a good thing by hosting a bachelor's party at his home. Little did he know that one of his brother's friends would secure "entertainment" for the night, namely stripper/prostitutes. When one of the "entertainers" goes off and kills one of the "bodyguards," Richard's life is turned upside down in The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian.

Richard Chapman considers himself a normal, healthy forty-year-old man. He has a job as an investment banker that he enjoys. He has a wife that he loves and a daughter that he adores. He doesn't consider himself prudish and accepted that there might be strippers at the bachelor's party, but he didn't imagine that his brother or any of his show more brother's friends would be having sex with the strippers in his home. Turns out the stripper/prostitutes were part of a sex trafficking ring and one of the girls feared for her life and struck first. Sonja was always considered a little off and angry, but when her captors kill another one of the captives and learn that she knew a little of the girl's story, she assumed she was next. Her preemptive strike was to secure her life and freedom. Alexandra, another captive, accepted the idea that she might never be free. Alexandra had already spent five years "working" for her abductors and now that her last remaining family was dead, she realized she would never be allowed freedom or to return home. Now Sonja and Alexandra are on the run and Richard is being blackmailed by his brother's friend. Can Sonja and Alexandra truly make lives for themselves after years of torture and sexual brutality? Will Richard ever regain the trust of his wife and daughter?

I found The Guest Room to be a riveting and relatively fast-paced read. Due to the weighty subject matter, namely child abduction, rape, and other brutalities toward children and teenaged girls, I had to stop reading quite a number of times. Mr. Bohjalian has tackled the subject of sex trafficking and provided a realistic face and story to go with it, albeit a fictionalized story. Mr. Bohjalian slowly reveals the story in alternating voices of Richard and Alexandra. The reader gets the chance to learn Alexandra's backstory and it is close to impossible not to feel sympathy and pain at this child's years of torment. Richard is, for all intents and purposes, just as much an innocent in the story as Alexandra. He feels ostracized and stigmatized by hosting a party that ended with attendance by presumed prostitutes, later revealed to be sex slaves, brought into his home as well as for the murders that occurred there. There are truly bad guys in this story, namely the abductors, sex traffickers, and the vast majority of the johns. And there are sleazy guys, namely Richard's brother's friend who tries to blackmail Richard and then plea bargains with the district attorney to avoid any jail time. And finally, there are the innocents, the victims of the sex trafficking, girls held in captivity for years at a time after being raped, drugged, isolated, and mentally abused. No, this isn't a pretty picture, but then neither is sex trafficking. However, Mr. Bohjalian has taken a story that should make us cringe, but instead, it makes us want to do all that we can to rectify this growing problem. The Guest Room may not be a story for the prudish reader, but it is one that this reader can highly recommend as it is a fantastic read that deals with a horrific subject matter in a respectful and responsible manner. show less

Riveting plot but deeply disturbing

Chris Bohjalian delivers a real page turner but that certainly does NOT mean this is an easy read.

Two stories unfold. The first is about a bachelor party that goes seriously wrong. And how that one evening then threatens the lives of an ordinary family -- where each member must suddenly face his/her worst fears. It's a powerful demonstration of how vulnerable we all are because any life can be altered dramatically by a single event. The second story is of a young Armenian girl who, through no fault of her own, becomes a sex slave.

The descriptions of the brutality she is submitted to is so difficult to read that there were times I had to put the book down and take a break. And the psychological show more suffering both she and the family suffer is intense. So, just be ready for it. show less

Riveting plot but deeply disturbing

Chris Bohjalian delivers a real page turner but that certainly does NOT mean this is an easy read.

Two stories unfold. The first is about a bachelor party that goes seriously wrong. And how that one evening then threatens the lives of an ordinary family -- where each member must suddenly face his/her worst fears. It's a powerful demonstration of how vulnerable we all are because any life can be altered dramatically by a single event. The second story is of a young Armenian girl who, through no fault of her own, becomes a sex slave.

The descriptions of the brutality she is submitted to is so difficult to read that there were times I had to put the book down and take a break. And the psychological show more suffering both she and the family suffer is intense. So, just be ready for it. show less

Just when you think Chris Bohjalian cannot possibly write another story that is just as good, if not better, than all of his other works, he produces The Guest Room. In this latest novel, he creates an atmosphere of shock and awe, not only with his sentences but also with the plot of this intricately layered story.

Bohjalian does not shy away from difficult topics or uncomfortable situations, and The Guest Room is the type of novel that will push readers to the edge of squirminess. From the disheartening glimpse into the male mind to Alexandra’s gut-wrenching story, there is much to disturb. Shame is a recurring theme, as it is what imprisons all of the characters mentally and, in some instances, physically. The fact that some of this show more shame in misguided only adds to the intensity of the novel.

As in Bohjalian’s other novels, his characters are not necessarily admirable or very likeable. What they are is real. Who wouldn’t be furious and highly doubtful of Richard’s fidelity after the sordid details of the bachelor party come to light? Just what options did Alexandra have other than to do as she was told, no matter how sleazy the request? You may not like their actions or their rationale but you cannot argue that their actions and rationale are not genuine.

The Guest Room is a sensational novel that will gut you emotionally while raising awareness of the very real and too frequent sex slave trade that exists around the globe. It will make you rethink the idea of innocence and make you feel guilty for every time you judged someone based on their profession. It is a stellar story written by one of today’s best writers. In other words, it is a book you must read as soon as possible because it is just that good. show less

I recommend you read this book.

It may not be entirely enjoyable. In fact, you might feel rather uncomfortable at times (I certainly did). But if you're uncomfortable, that means Bohjalian's story is striking a nerve.

In [b:The Guest Room|25430584|The Guest Room|Chris Bohjalian|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1432679414s/25430584.jpg|45105520] Chris Bohjalian tells the story of a bachelor party gone very, very wrong (might this book do for bachelor parties what the movie "Fatal Attraction" did for affairs?...) It's a book about poor judgement, bad decisions, and worst case scenarios. It's a book about facing up to the consequences of one's actions, a loss of innocence, and acceptance. But layered on top of Bohjalian's excellent writing and show more thriller-like plot development, "The Guest Room" is really a book about the horrors of sexual slavery.

Through the characters of Alexandra and Sonia -- Armenian girls kidnapped in their very early teens-- Bohjalian delivers a heart wrenching tale about the very dark side of human trafficking. It's not easy to read -- and unfortunately it's all too real.

Bohjalian also requires the reader to think deeply about sexual politics. What is acceptable male behavior? Female behavior? " Tell me -- what is worse? The man who sells a girl, or the man who buys one?"

"And even if they hadn't been abducted and coerced into the work, the truth is no one becomes a prostitute because she wants to. It's always the occupation of last resort."

For those looking for more information, Bohjalian has resources on his website about human trafficking (scroll to the bottom of the page)

And how sadly apropos that I finished this book just days before the latest scandal involving a sexual assault on campus -- where once again a perpetrator is given a wrist-slap and can't see that he did anything wrong during his "20 minutes of action."

4.5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Doubleday for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Note: although I was given a galley, I listened to the audio version of this book, which was excellent. show less

If you think prostitution is a victimless crime, read this book. It is about how sex slavery - to call it what it is - upends the life of a nice middle class American family, to say nothing of the life of the slave.

Richard is a staid investment banker and a "nice guy" who throws a bachelor party for his creepy brother. One of the guests hires "strippers," and it's all a boozy orgy that goes awry when the strippers go crazy and kill their Russian companions (guards). Naturally, it becomes a big news story which threatens Richard's career and his marriage. What a shame. My heart bleeds.

Richard's story alternates with that of Alexandra, one of the two murderous prostitutes at the party. Before her career as a "stripper," she was a young show more Armenian girl whose dreams of being a dancer were exploited by lying thugs who essentially kidnapped and enslaved her. Her story is truly heartbreaking, and makes Richard's career problems seem pathetic. The narrative gives us enough insight into Richard's viewpoint that the reader can understand, if not forgive him, but the rest of the men in this novel come off as truly awful. If the shoe fits... show less

Easy prediction: THE GUEST ROOM will be on many, even most best-of-2016 lists.

The story begins with a bachelor's party given by Richard for his immature younger brother and his friends.The unexpected occurs when the girls who Richard thought were just strippers offer sexual favors to the drunk partiers. It gets worse: there is a murder and it is soon discovered that the girls are sex slaves from Russia.

The majority of this book then examines how Richard, his wife, and his nine-year-old daughter deal with the aftermath. Alternate chapters, written in first person by one of the girls, explain how she was trapped into the sex trade and brought to America.

These chapters are difficult to read; all chapters are careful and thoughtful. The show more story is riveting, and I hated for it to end. show less