Firstly a big thank you to the publishers for approving my request to read on netgalley. Ive recently discovered this author and really need to read all her books. She is a master at writing psychological thrillers!

This was so unique and compelling. Ive been studying psychology for years and there is mention of a classic study so i geeked out somewhat.

Can the offer be too good to be true or is it that Freya and skye have landed on their feet.

Disturbing and chilling as you begin to realise not all is as it seems. Spooky happenings and a feeling your being watched. Who can be trusted and are they safe?

I sped through this as i needed to know what was happening.

I cant recommend enough and im off to read her back catalogue of books.

I really had high hopes for this one but it ended up being an average read for me. I didn't want to stop reading merely because I thought the book would get better. The main downside to this was the stupidity of the main character. Red flags were raised often yet she kept making poor choices. I do have another TBR book by this author and I do plan on reading it even though this was a bit of a let down.

Freya has lost her husband, and as a result she is forced to find a new home for her and her daughter to move to and time is running out to find the right place.

The old adage, "If something is too good to be true, it usually is", definitely applies to the story line. While searching a bulletin board for apartment vacancies at a local coffee shop, the reader is asked to believe that Freya, the mother of 5 year old Skye, is approached by a strange man offering her an apartment on a fabulous estate that just so happens to be in her meager price range. Being as naive as Freya is of course she dismisses any likelihood that something sinister could be ahead and jumps at the opportunity.

Before even settling in it becomes apparent that her new landlords are pushy and controlling. Creepy things begin to happen and even though Freya is unsettled she continues to overlook these episodes make excuses in her own mind.

The plot was predictable, the pace sometimes slow, however I decided to finish until the end to see if things picked up or if there was a surprise waiting for me. Neither happened. In fact, I felt like this would be geared more toward a middle-school aged preteen.

I have not read anything from this author before, and I'm not sure if I would like to give her another chance.

I have read all of this authors books and loved every one, however, I found this one totally different to all her others and not in a good way! It was extremely far fetched with a very unbelievable storyline but saying that I did finish the book which I don’t normally do if I find the storyline ‘unbelievable’ as I needed to know what happened!! I also noticed there were quite a few typos too

Book Title: The Apartment

Author: K.L.Slater

Genre: Thriller/psychology thriller

Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ /5 ⭐

This is my first book by K.L Slater and I am definitely impressed! From the beginning this book made me chase the pages! The very first chapter dragged me into the plot and made me felt “something bad is going to happen and it’s going to be very disturbing”. As I felt, when things started to go wrong I was on the edge to find answers. The story starts with a stranger who met a recently widowed woman at a coffee shop and offered a luxurious apartment for rent for a very little price. The reason behind that cunning generous offer is the remaining story of the entire book. The author made clear of the sufferings of the female lead and the child. When she hopes she is going to be happy in the “new” place, our heart also wants that to happen. But when things going downward whirl, with the characters we too feel mad and sad. And the anonymous POV is giving some pointers about the story, by which we could predict what is going on and that made my heart skipped its beat. I have my mere doubt about a person behind all the troubles but nothing solid. And suddenly when I couldn’t take it anymore the story comes to an end with a great twist! Thanks for that! Great psychological thriller! I recommend it for a one-sitting read!

My thoughts while reading:

This section has some subtle spoilers.

The thing with psychological thrillers is the possibility of its real-time happenings, unlike the haunted stories. And the same made a chill ran down my spine.
One thing that made my heart cry is the way the children being beaten emotionally in every possible way(both Albert & Freya )! Couldn’t bear to read it! To my horror, the “Little Albert” experiment is not a fiction!
I like the way the story ends suddenly! Yes, it felt all of a sudden we came to an end which I appreciate! I would have not liked it if the scenes repeated it’s pattern until Freya became insane!
The climax scenes are one whirlwind of events on which we couldn’t grip on any doubts we have throughout the book about the villain ! the point which Freya doubted about Mark’s arrival, made us doubt her insanity for a second! It’s brilliant!
There is no reasonable explanation given for Dr.Mardsen’s actions. Why should he support and did all these even after the death of Sophie Taylor?
Overall I like this book, definitely a non-putdownable read!


I received this free ARC from #NetGalley and the publisher, and this review is straight from my heart!! HONEST AND UNBIASED.

This is my first book by K.L. Slater and it will not be my last! What a great read!

Freya and her young daughter Skye have just suffered a great loss and are trying to start anew. Freya has sold her house and must find a new place to live quickly. In comes Dr. Marsden with an offer that sounds too good to be true.... is it? Freya and her daughter end up moving to the upscale, yet affordable Adder House apartments. Strange things start happening and have Freya questioning herself and her decision to move in.

This creepy psychological thriller had me on the edge of my seat throughout. I loved the characters and the writing style of the author. I am looking forward to reading other books by K.L. Slater!

A Dream Apartment Becomes a House of Horrors

Freya is desperate. The husband who betrayed her is dead. She’s had to sell her house and now she and her daughter, Skye, have no place to go. When Dr. Marsden shows her the flier on the apartment he is planning to rent in Adder House, it seems like a miracle.

Marsden tells her she and Skye will be a good fit for the other residents, so the rent will be what she can afford. The apartment is perfect, exactly what she wants, but once she and Skye move in things start to happen. Strange noises and smells are the most innocent. When Freya discovers a security camera in the ceiling, she suspects something is very wrong. Now she wonders if she’s made a terrible mistake.

The novel moves from a fairy tale to creepy. Adder House is described in lavish detail, but from the start Freya thinks something is off. She puts her feelings aside because she needs the apartment and wants it to be perfect for the new start she and Skye need.

Although the story was creepy, it was also rather slow. The strange occurrences build slowly making the end feel rushed. The problems are building, but suddenly the characters are in a full blown disaster.

I enjoyed Freya, but I thought she was very slow to see the evil in the other characters. The saving grace is Skye. A five-year-old, she is delightful and very attuned to the problems, but unable to express them.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

I was intrigued by the beginning of the book. Freya and her daughter, Skye, must move out of their home after Freya's husband dies. Dr. Marsden approaches her for her to live in Adder House, but he seems pretty pushy about moving her into the place. Of course, the secrets of Adder House all start coming to light after Skye and Freya move in. The climax was great, but then the ending just didn't do it for me. This is a quick read and thriller lovers may thoroughly enjoy it. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the early copy.

Everybody wants to believe in the good of other people unfortunately that belief can get you in trouble. There is really nothing too remarkable about Freya. I would have loved to see a bit more pizazz to her character but maybe that’s not how the author saw her. She just didn’t seem like the sharpest tool in the shed. I thought the story was good if not a bit far fetched but it is fiction we are reading. I did enjoy the story and thought it was a fast read.

Freya is at the end of her rope. She has been recently widowed by the husband who cheated and left her. She is desperately looking for an apartment she can afford for herself and her young daughter Skye. Freya makes the acquaintance of Dr. Marsden who coincidentally is looking for a tenant in his lovely large home. He explains that the apartment price is not as important to him as finding a tenant that will “fit in” with the rest of the tenants. While a little wary, Freya moves them into the beautiful old house. Right in the beginning things seem very creepy but are easily explained away by the Marsdens. Freya is suspicious but she does not want to admit she may have made a mistake. Things keep getting stranger as the book goes along. It was a good story and well laid out. I was completely surprised at the ending although I wish that it had been drawn out a little more. I did enjoy this book.

Also reviewed at Kobo

Freya and her young daughter, Skye, just found the perfect place to live after the death of her husband. Things turn out to be too good to be true. The rent in this part of London is dirt cheap for such a posh location. Skye got into a top-notch school with a waitlist. However, things started to go wrong in their life. Skye becomes lethargic, and Freya is starting to see and hear things.

Sometimes life is scarier than any story you might read. The scary experiment that Freya and Skye are in, is quite apparent. However, I don't see a mother who has been through so much in her adolescent life to have not done anything to investigate in that length of time. The story seems to woven Freya's husband's death into something of a mystery and yet it was hardly touched upon. The experiment that was done on Freya and her daughter also do not follow the rule of those that were before them. The story was very enjoyable, but the storyline seems rushed.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this fabulous ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The apartment is a quick read that thriller lovers will devour in one or two sittings. The book follows the main character Freya as she recovers from tragedy and attempts to get her life and her daughter's life back into a positive light. While not overly thriller-like, there are several parts that are so creepy they will make your skin crawl. I held my breath through a lot of this but was sadly disappointed by the ending. It was almost "to clean".

The Apartment is a creepy slow burn thriller in which we see Frey and her young daughter, Skye, move in to a new apartment that seems too good to be true. They are in the process of flat hunting and Freya by chance meets the charming Dr Marsden who happens to be searching for new tenants for a flat he is letting out. The flat is in a large beautiful house near Kensington Palace and normally Freya wouldn't be able to afford a flat like that but she is offered it at a fantastic price and can't believe her luck. However, once they move in there they meet some odd residents and start to experience some bizarre things.
I was expecting to really enjoy this thriller but for me it was just a little to slow in pace. I was around 75% in to the book before the first bizarre event happened and then around 85% before the story started to become 'thrilling'. And then after that it felt the ending came very fast and felt rushed. So unfortunately this didn't hit the mark for me but others may enjoy the gradual build up.
I had some issues with Freya's relationship with another character, Mark. He was a builder working on a local house and she had spoken to him once in passing but then later started to think of him as reliable and sensible and someone who she could speak to about her troubles at her new apartment. It just seemed an odd way of thinking of someone who she had only very briefly spoken to. I genuinely didn't understand how he suddenly became such a big part of the story when he did.
I did really enjoy the second timeline that appears every so often of a doctor many years ago undertaking what is now a famous psychology experiment and how that became tied in to the current story of Freya and her Daughter. It was definitely a unique aspect to the book and was woven in well.
Overall the book just felt a bit average when I was hoping it would be so much more.

Sorry to say I was not enthralled with this book. Characters were underdeveloped. Plot lacked depth. Ended too abruptly. On the bright side it added another book to help me reach my 2020 reading goal!

As posted on Goodreads:

I enjoyed this very much. I thought it was a fascinating premise and I eagerly read through to the end, wondering what would happen. I thought the characterization was well done. I'm not entirely sure *everything* worked, but I still was happy I went along for the ride.

The beginning of this book had my full interest. Freya is targeted at Starbucks with an unreal deal to live in the Adder House after just losing her husband and needing to find a new home for her and her 5 year old daughter, Skye.

This book reminded me quite a bit of Lock Every Door by Riley Sager: both had quirky and specific resident who had to be approved prior to moving in, weird and unexplained things occurring in their apartments and of course both of the main characters felt like they were going crazy during their stay at their “perfect new residence”.

I felt like there was a lot of background and build up on the relationship between Freya and Skye and for the most part I enjoyed it since it was keeping me engaged in the story and kept me guessing on what was going to happen next.

It took a while for “the big reveal” to happen and once I hit the end I was just annoyed. The ending left so many questions unanswered and it all seemed so unlikely. Needless to say I wish the ending would’ve been completely different and I probably would’ve enjoyed this book more.

I enjoyed reading this book. The setting is sooo creepy. It kinda reminds me of Riley Sager's Lock Every Door because of the too good to be true plot. The ending didn't work for me. However, it was a good read. Totally page turner.

I was expecting an easy-to-read thriller but I didn't enjoy this much. While I understand that you have to suspend your disbelief for a good story, this was just too far-fetched. The main character was ridiculously naive, the dialogue was painfully bad, and the short length made it seem like it had just been churned out by the author.

This is my first K L Slater book and I really enjoyed it. I really liked the character of Freya. And Skye was adorable. I felt that I wanted to protect them. There was a good sense of paranoia in this. And the flashback were interesting.

Although I’ve only read a handful of Miss Slater’s books so far, I’ve liked them all. She’s definitely a talented writer . This book seemed a bit different than those I’ve read , as it’s more of a mystery than thriller or domestic drama? While it was good, it wasn’t my favorite out of those I’ve read. It had quite a confusing start, so it took awhile to get the story straight of who is who and how they connect. Anyhow, this is was a decent read but not great...the writing is worth 3.5 stars.

If you want an excellent K.L. Slater book, I recommend The Silent Ones or Single.