The Apartment,

by K.L. Slater

Publication: Amazon Publishing UK; April 28, 2020

apartment About the book:

It’s an opportunity she can’t refuse. The woman before her tried…

Freya Miller needs a miracle. In the fallout of her husband’s betrayal, she’s about to lose her family home, and with it the security she craves for her five-year-old daughter, Skye. Adrift and alone, she’s on the verge of despair until a chance meeting with the charismatic Dr. Marsden changes everything. He’s seeking a new tenant for a shockingly affordable flat in a fashionable area of London.

Adder House sounds too good to be true… But Freya really can’t afford to be cynical, and Dr. Marsden is adamant she and Skye will be a perfect fit with the other residents.

But Adder House has secrets. Even behind a locked front door, Freya feels as if she’s being watched: objects moving, unfamiliar smells, the blinking light of a concealed camera… and it’s not long before she begins to suspect that her dream home is hiding a nightmarish reality. Was it really chance that led her here—or something unthinkably dark?

As the truth about Adder House starts to unravel, can Freya and Skye get out—or will they be locked in forever?

My Review

Do you ever read a book and although you like the main character, you spend most of the time frustrated out of your mind with them? This is my overall feeling after finishing The Apartment, an upcoming psychological thriller by K.L. Slater. As the blurb states, Freya is at her wit’s end emotionally and financially after her husband’s death, desperately searching for an apartment for her and her five-year-old daughter Skye. One day in a coffee shop she randomly meets Dr. Marsden who is posting a flyer for an available apartment to rent. When he tells Freya about the place and its location, she assures him that it is well above her budget. However, after showing her the beautiful apartment in Adder House, he agrees to a ridiculously low rent that she can afford. You know how they say, if something is too good to be true, then it probably is? This was certainly the case with Freya and her new place at Adder House.

Here is what I enjoyed about this novel. The plot and subplots were unique and interesting. I won’t go into the core topic behind everything for fear of spoilers, but you will realize what’s going on not far into the novel. I loved K.L. Slater’s characterization and how she expertly brought each and every character to life. Whether it was one of the residents or a classmate of Skye’s, I was able to vividly picture each character, imagine their voices, and picture their movements – especially when it came to Audrey. Also, kudos to the author for some really creepy moments, especially involving a gift to a classroom and other events that Freya was sure she hadn’t done, but then started to doubt herself and wonder.

Unfortunately, I have some real issues with this one. First of all, Freya drove me insane for about 80% of the book. I liked her character overall, but I felt that she turned a blind eye way too frequently. School incidents with Skye, creepy behaviors of the Marsdens and the other residents, cameras in her apartment, and so on. She was lucky enough to have two really good friends that had offered her a place to stay for a while and there were about 1000 times where she should have shoved what she could into some suitcases and high-tailed it out of there – but she didn’t. Secondly, I don’t feel as if the entire story was wrapped up how it should have been. There were so many questions left unanswered and inconsistencies that never made sense. How did Freya’s husband die? What was making Freya randomly fall asleep at the oddest times? Why was her best friend not concerned about the creepy landlord getting her number and calling her about Freya? Why weren’t the teachers monitoring the children better on the playground?

So, overall, this was an o.k. read for me. I hung in there without skimming just in case I missed something super exciting and/or important. I liked the premise of The Apartment, but something was missing for me. I’m thinking that this is about a 3-star read for me. It’s not bad, but not great.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!