The Invisibe Host is a 1930 mystery/thriller novel written by the husband-wife team of Gwen Bristow

Gwen Bristow

Gwen Bristow was an American author and journalist.Bristow became interested in writing while reporting junior high school functions for her local newspaper. After studying at Columbia University, she wrote for a number of literary magazines and journals...

 and Bruce Manning

Bruce Manning

Bruce Manning was a Hollywood filmmaker who entered the movie business following the publication of several novels that he co-wrote with wife Gwen Bristow. Their first novel together, 1930's The Invisible Host, was adapted to the screen in 1934 as The Ninth Guest...

. It was published by The Mystery League, Inc. Though little remembered today, it did well enough in its own time for Hollywood to adapt it into a feature film, 1934's The Ninth Guest (which is also the name that would be utilized for subsequent editions of the book). It could be considered an example of the "old dark house" type of thriller.

Some have noted that Agatha Christie's much more famous tale, 1939's Ten Little Indians, bears striking similarities to this novel. Predating Christie's text by almost a decade, The Invisible Host tells the story of eight people who are summoned to a deserted, well-appointed New Orleans penthouse by an anonymous invitation. Once there the guests, who are all known to each other, are served a fabulous dinner. But soon thereafter they are accused by a voice over the radio that they are all going to die before the night is out. The unseen host has meticulously prepared the demise of each guest, and has booby-trapped the penthouse to prevent anyone from escaping. As they steadily succumb to the murderer's devices, some begin to suspect that the killer may be one of them.