Book Review: The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley

“Only you – and the killer – hold the key…”

Set to be published on 3rd March, The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley is set in No.12 Rue des Amants, a beautiful old apartment block, far from the glittering lights of the Eiffel Tower and the bustling banks of the Seine. Here, n nothing goes unseen. And everyone has a story to unlock. Meet the watchful concierge, the scorned lover, the prying journalist, the naïve student, and the unwanted guest. Something terrible happened here last night. A mystery lies behind the door of apartment three. Only you – and the killer – hold the key…

Rating:

Thank you to NetGalley for a free digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Guest List is one of my favourite thrillers so I was really excited to read Foley’s latest. And The Paris Apartment is another solid mystery thriller with strong characters, an alluring atmosphere, and plenty of unpredictable twists.

The setting of Paris instantly adds more atmosphere to the story and Foley’s writing easily allows you to immerse yourself in this elegant but elusive city. It took me a while to figure out how the tenants on different floors could watch their neighbours from their windows, but a quick Google image search of a Parisian apartment quickly gave me a better feel for the surroundings, although I do think that a floor plan would have really helped.

In the same way as The Guest List and The Hunting Party, the story is told from various points of view as we get to know each character and their possible motives in both the past and present to find out why Ben has gone missing and who’s behind his disappearance.

I really enjoyed how the story unfolded in this way, as I questioned every character’s involvement and kept my eye out for the smallest of clues to see if I could uncover what had happened. But I couldn’t guess any of what was to come. And just like in her other books, everything waits until the final minute to come undone, and it was a lot of fun to witness.

The only negative I really have is that I didn’t find any of the characters compelling. In The Guest List, I loved so many of the characters that this added another level to the story for me. But with The Paris Apartment, while I did like the characters and believe that they were developed well, I just didn’t have the same bond with them.

There were a couple of things that I would have liked more clarification/background on (such as Jess and Ben’s parents), but overall, I really enjoyed this one and I will always be on the lookout for what Foley writes next!