Book Review: The Locked Attic by BP Walter

“There’s something in my neighbour’s attic.”

Set to be released on 24th November, The Locked Attic by BP Walter follows recently widowed Stephanie who lost both her husband and son in a car accident. Now, she knows there’s more to the story, as her neighbour stands by window, watching her. Her son is dead, by her neighbour is not, and Stephanie is determined to find out the truth.

Rating:

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

A well-structured and compelling domestic thriller, The Locked Attic is a brilliantly layered story about family secrets, coming of age, grief, and loss.

At only 263 pages long, I read this in a matter of hours. The quick pace suits the story really well, and the multiple narratives between the past and Stephanie’s present really keep you on your toes.

But what let me down was that, had it not been for the book’s title and synopsis, I wouldn’t have had any clue about the attic meaning anything. When I read the book’s synopsis, I was immediately curious about what was going on here. But as soon as I started reading, the thought of the attic left my mind completely.

What I needed was for the attic to be at the centre of this story, for the characters to be more curious about what’s in the attic, and for more of a sinister atmosphere to be built up around it. Because with little mention, the eventual revelation of what’s inside the attic felt completely underwhelming to me, when a plot twist like that really should have had more of an impact.

The domestic thriller going on around this, however, is very intriguing. I liked the characters, and felt compelled by Stephanie’s situation. I especially liked the friendship between Danny and Jonathan and was shocked by the turn of events surrounding them.

For me, The Locked Attic lacked the suspense that a mystery centred around a locked attic should. But there’s still a lot that I enjoyed about this book, and I always find Walter’s writing very engaging.