May 2019 Indie Next List

“I began The Guest Book expecting an excellent family saga set, in part, on an island in Maine. The magic of the family home is palpable as three generations build loyalty, identity, and memories there. But what I read was far, far more. This is a history of our country’s evolution through matters of race, class, and politics, and it relates compellingly to our current struggles with those topics as the characters grapple with the underpinnings of privilege, familial love, and morality. Sarah Blake has written a stunning and complex novel that lingers in your mind long after the last page.”
— Dana Brigham, Brookline Booksmith, Brookline, MA

Summer 2020 Reading Group Indie Next List

“A cozy-chair, cup-of-tea, wrapped-in-a-blanket kind of novel, The Guest Book takes the reader through three generations. As you delve into the lives and personalities of the Milton family’s seemingly perfectly ordered and charmed world, the cracks gradually begin to show. Through the denial of the news in Nazi Germany, the taboo of speaking of one’s illness or someone’s homosexuality, or the hiding of a friend that is of a different skin color or religion, we see through the eyes of this family that history does repeat itself and lessons are hard learned. If you enjoyed The Postmistress, you will enjoy this. Lots of discussion for reading groups.”
— Nona Camuel, CoffeeTree Books, Morehead, KY