The Apartment is the latest thriller from K. L. Slater. The reader quickly learns the direction this story is heading, but there are enough twists and turns to make it an interesting read. I want to thank Net Galley and Amazon Publishing UK for the early copy to review.

Hmm... I feel like this was an ok book. It was so far out there that I kept thinking, just get the hell out!! It was a bit far fetched for me. You knew something wasn’t right from the get go. Thank you to Netgalley EU for the early read.

In exchange for an honest review, I received an advance copy from NetGalley. I am sure that this will be billed as a “psychological thriller” and it is much more of one than many I have read in the past. Freya and her daughter Skye get to move into a wonderful apartment. This is good new for them as Freya’s husband has died, after leaving her for another woman, and she is has virtually no money. Of course, weird things happen in the apartment. And there was a suspicious death. And a cute guy. All these things make it a little formulaic for me. It’s not bad, but sometimes I’d just like an unusual ending. Read this book. It’s a nice, light read.

From the moment Freya Miller meets Dr. Michael Marsden, I had the same feeling I get when watching one of those final girl type movies. My spidey sense was on high alert, much higher than Freya's. She is thinking that today is her lucky day and I am thinking, run! Freya is, unfortunately, intrigued.
Michael offers her an apartment at Adder House, located in an upscale neighborhood and someplace Freya can not afford. Another lucky break, as Michael states the rent is negotiable based on the tenant's financial situation. The only caveat is that the person must be the right tenant, and Michael knows that Freya will be perfect. Did I mention my spidey sense, run Freya!
In the blink of an eye, Freya and her five-year-old daughter Skye are moving from their old house into this new apartment. I think they had about five minutes of peace before their good luck ran out. Skye starts behaving strangely, Freya hears and sees things that may or may not be real, and if Michael seems odd, well the other tenants are not far behind. While Freya starts to question what is going on, she continues to believe there must be something wrong with her, not Adder House. Again Freya, I implore you, run!
But I suppose luck was with me today, as Freya doesn't listen to me. This was a quick read, only 266 pages, and my self isolating, sleepless nights are my new normal self finished The Apartment in a few hours. The characters are well written and if you think you know what is going on, you might, like me, have to think again. A page flipper and I was reminded on Riley Sager's Lock Every Door more than once.

Thank you Angela @readinginhouston for setting up our buddy read with this one!
This psychological thriller was a fun, fast read, but it left me with many unanswered questions.
Freya Miller is the mother of five year old daughter Skye.
After her husband left her for another woman and then died, she must sell the family home to settle their debts.
Now she is desperate to find a new, affordable place to live.
While at a coffee shop, a chance meeting with a charming, but slightly creepy retired doctor, offers an opportunity to live in a high quality apartment at Adder House in Kensington, an exclusive neighborhood. The rent is cheap, an offer that might be too good to be true, but she overcomes her doubts.
After Freya and Skye move in, strange things begin to happen. She meets the eccentric neighbors and becomes unnerved and distraught at the sinister happenings in the house.
The author kept up the tension till the end. Then I felt disappointment at the reveal and thought some of the story lines were left dangling.
Thank you Thomas & Mercer for the e-ARC via NetGalley.
3.5 stars, rounding down to 3 stars.

Wow when I tell you this was a good one. I don't like giving too much away in my review so I'll keep it simple. A woman and her five-year-old daughter get the opportunity of a lifetime to move into this beautiful apartment building for a very limited amount of money. The landlord's not only give them this apartment but other gifts as well. But some things are not right with this house even though it's beautiful and big ... something is going on with the tenants here as well as the landlord. But are Freya and her daughter Skye in danger or if she just being paranoid??... also what I loved about this book is that it references an experiment done by scientists and Doctor many many years ago I don't want to give too much away but the baby was named little Albert. So if anyone is familiar with that experiment this ties in with the book. That's what me this book way different than the other ones that was a really good twist that I never saw coming.

This was a very interesting book, especially in this age of pandemic. I read it in a day, and enjoyed the twist at the end, I feel a bit disappointed that there are quite a few unanswered questions and I had some difficulty with understanding why some tidbits of information were necessary to the story line. I did some research on my own after finishing the book, which is a good thing. I kept thinking that it might make a good "made for tv movie", which is not a compliment or a good thing. I received an advance copy of this book from Netgalley.

This book had an unsettling vibe from the very beginning. You just knew something wasn't right. I was guessing until the end and while the ending felt a bit rushed, overall I enjoyed the book. The writing was well done and the characters, even the creepier. ones were interesting. It was fairly easy to connect with Freya, a newly single mother, trying to do the best for her daughter. I read this book in less than a day - it's a page turner for sure.

This was my first K.L. Slater book and definitely will not be my last. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the gifted copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

I will be posting the full review for this book on. my blog and will update the link then.

This was a great psychological thriller. It reminded me of Rosemary's Baby and Riley Sager's Lock Every Door. This one kept me guessing until the end. I would definitely recommend this one too thriller lovers!

The Apartment: K.L. Slater

Release Date: 4/28/2020

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Eerie, captivating, and cinematic; a dark psychological thriller.

Down on her luck, Freya Miller needs some help. After her husbands death, she is unable to keep their home and is searching for a way to give her five-year-old daughter, Skye, the security she needs. After nearly hitting rock bottom, she meets charismatic Dr. Marsden who offers her a lovely apartment, located in an expensive area in London, for a mere $500 monthly. Something is too good to be true. As Freya’s attitude from hope and excitement shifts to paranoia, she starts seeing her apartment for what it truly is: a living nightmare.

The Apartment was a perfectly paced, with slow-burn chapters followed by fast-paced excerpts, that I completely devoured in a day. Genuinely could not put the book down. If you are looking for a quick, suspenseful, and all-consuming read, this is it. ALSO, I was a science major during undergrad and took the MCAT. This book covers a controversial topic that all science majors will be aware of and I was thrilled to see the plot thicken because of it. THRILLED.

Overall, LOVED this book. By far my favorite psychological thriller I’ve read this year. It did give off a bit of ‘Lock Every Door’ vibes but as it progressed, it was clearly different in its entirety.

Along with posting on Net Galley, I will be posting my review to Goodreads, Amazon (when it becomes available), my Instagram (which has over a two thousand book review followers) and my blog. Please find the link to my blog post below. I am very grateful for the opportunity to review such a raw and gritty thriller. All opinions and thoughts are my own. Thank you very much.
Link to Blog Post: https://ifyoucanreadthisdotblog.wordpress.com/2020/04/23/the-apartment-k-l-slater/
Link to Instagram Post: https://www.instagram.com/ifyoucan_read_this/
Link to Goodreads Post: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/112342382-chanel-johnson

Respectfully
Chanel Johnson

This was 4.5 stars, raised to 5. Freya is a recent widow under difficult circumstances. Her husband had left her and their young daughter for her “best” friend. Shortly thereafter he died. She is financially strapped and meets a man in a coffee shop who tells her about a small apartment in a very nice part of London that is available to the right person. After seeing it, she takes the apartment and moves into it with her daughter. From then on, nothing will be the same. Going into the details will lead to many spoilers . All the reader needs to know is that this is a very well written psychological thriller and that it will be a most gripping read for most who like that genre. Thanks to Net Galley and Thomas and Mercer for an ARC for an honest review.

The Apartment by K.L Slater is a 4 star read.
Freya’s husband left her for another woman and died a few months later leaving her a single mother, she needs to sell the family home and look for somewhere affordable for her and her daughter to live, she meets Dr Marsden in a coffee shop and he offers her an apartment to rent in Adder house for a price she can afford. It doesn’t take long for weird things to start to happen and the too good to be true apartment turns into a nightmare.
This is the first book from this author I have read and I really enjoyed it, the characters were well thought out and I really felt like I was in Adder house, I am looking forward to reading more from this author. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley.

An entertaining and intriguing read.
The reader feels empathy with Freya as the tension mounts up throughout the book.
I still had a couple of questions at the end but generally it was a quick and easy read, an ideal holiday read.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer/Amazon Publishing, and K.L. Slater for the opportunity to read and review her latest thriller - 4 stars for a quick, entertaining read.

Freya is a single mom to Skye, still reeling from her husband's betrayal and death, and desperate to quickly find an apartment she can afford after selling her home. When a man approaches her in a coffee shop with an offer to rent an apartment near Kensington Palace in a gorgeous building, she is cautious but feels like she has found the answer to all her prayers. But of course some things are really too good to be true!

Another good read by K.L. Slater!

After her husband betrayal, Freya is in desperate need for a place to live for herself and her five year old daughter Skye.
When she meets Dr. Marsden and he offers her a place at Adder House, it sounds too good to be true. As she settles in, she feels as if the walls have secrets.
Constantly feeling like she is being watched, and after finding a concealed camera, she realizes the home is more a nightmare than a dream.
Because this was a quick read, the characters lacked time to fully develop. The story felt rushed, and the ending seemed confusing to me.


Thank you Netgalley and the publisher, for an ARC and the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wow. I can’t even begin to describe how enjoyable “The Apartment” by K. L. Slater was. I received an e-mail by NetGalley advertising this psychological thriller and was intrigued, so naturally I had to learn more about it. While reading the summary, I was reminded of one of my favorite Riley Sager books called “Lock Every Door” and immediately requested an eARC. I was thrilled to be approved for this, eager to see the similarities and differences of this story compared to “Lock Every Door.” I had high expectations for this storyline going in to reading it, and I absolutely was not disappointed.


“The Apartment” is about a woman named Freya Miller and her daughter Skye, who are going through a really rough time. Freya’s husband has not only recently left her to be with a former friend of hers, but a few months later he suddenly passes away. After his passing, Freya is about to lose their family home and is desperate for a miracle to swoop in and save them. While visiting her local Starbucks, Freya stumbles upon a chance encounter with a gentleman named Dr. Marsden, who happens to be there putting up rental signs for an apartment that is shockingly affordable in an upscale area of London. Convinced that Adder House is too good to be true, Dr. Marsden insists that Freya and Skye come by that evening to look at the apartment, insisting that they would be the perfect tenants. Not being able to afford passing up such an incredible opportunity, she obliges, falls in love with the apartment and is officially moving in to her new home a week later.

Not long after arriving, Freya begins to realize that there is something dark and mysterious about Adder House and that the residents aren’t exactly who they appear to be. Freya and Skye experience a lot of unexplainable things such as hearing voices and crying, feeling like they’re being watched, furniture being moved, cameras suddenly appearing in the apartment, and much more. As all of this is going on, Freya discovers that just a few months ago, a tragic incident occurred involving a woman and her daughter, who happened to reside in the same apartment prior to Freya moving in. Desperate to leave, Freya is left wondering if her encounter with Dr. Marsden at Starbucks was truly by chance, or completely intentional… Will Freya and Skye be able to escape Adder House? Or will they experience the same fate as the previous tenants…


K. L. Slater is a fantastic storyteller. This is the first book I have read by her and after reading, I can easily see why she is the bestselling author of nine psychological crime thrillers. The story plot and buildup was perfect- I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and could not put the book down, finishing the story within 24 hours. The ending happened pretty suddenly (within the last 3-5% of the book), and while it initially raised several questions for me about what was happening, most of them were answered in the epilogue and I feel that I ended up being left with an appropriate amount of wonder upon the story ending. While I really enjoyed the character development of Freya, the Marsden’s, and Lily, I wish that the Watson’s could’ve had a stronger role in the story- it almost felt like they existed for the sole purpose of being later referenced in one sentence at the end of the story. The only other thing that I would have liked to see at the end of the story would have been more specific details about how Skye was adjusting after her experiences at Adder House, especially since we were able to get that closure for other characters mentioned in the story with similar experiences.

I was pleased that while the initial summary of the story reminded me so much of “Lock Every Door,” overall the storylines were totally different. Without giving any details away, I thoroughly enjoyed the psychology experiments that were referenced in this book and was pleasantly surprised by how they were spun into the story line.


If you love psychological thrillers and are a fan of “Lock Every Door” by Riley Sager, I highly recommend checking out “The Apartment.” Thank you so much to Thomas & Mercer for providing me this eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to receiving my preordered copy on Pub Day, April 28th!

'The Apartment,' by K.L. Slater, has a fantastic premise that keeps you turning pages despite some literary weaknesses. The main character and her daughter are endearing and believable. The mystery is teased out in a way that you want to find out how it all plays out! Plus, the cast of characters are somewhere between sinister and quirky - seeing how they piece into the puzzle will keep you reading.

The read is easy and quick. If you are prone to skimming it will be simple to keep up with. The ending does play out. However, overall the story has some loose ends that could have been tied up more neatly. The ending was a bit rushed and the explanations a bit too loose for what I like in a thriller. If you are a fan of psychological thrillers you will want to read this one. If this is not your main genre you will probably find those deficits extremely irksome.

This book is excellent for a bit of escapism.

It’s super easy to read and quite short so it’s punchy and there’s no unnecessary detail or information. It’s well written and for a thriller, it’s comforting in its predictability. This is not a bad thing though, I enjoyed the story and the premise is unusual and it keeps you hooked til the end.

It doesn’t drag on at the end either which I like, sometimes I find myself stopping reading books after the ‘big reveal’ because it’s all a bit extraneous after that but this doesn’t do that!

3.5 up to 4 stars

Freya's husband left her for another but died before they could get divorced. Freya has to sell their house but with nowhere to go she doesn't know where to take her daughter, Skye to live. Along comes Dr Marsden, Mr too good to be true, with the perfect solution to her problem. From here this creepy psychological drama (not really a thriller for me) moves at a comfortable pace but has a fairly predictable plot. The character development is good enough to make me interested in Freya and Skye's situation but I never felt a real connection. It's well written with just enough tension and suspense to keep me turning the pages, but then it ended and left me thinking "well that was nice, now on to my next book!"

Thank you Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for granting me a copy to read, review and enjoy.

A Real Page Turner...

I was perpetually on the edge of my seat. It was terribly hard to put it down. Even when I had to absolutely put it down to fulfill some personal task, oh, boy oh boy, it occupied my mind, could hardly wait to get back to it. And when I do, I imagine myself feeling like I'm teetering on a precipice. The author is brilliant, it is so well written it made me vacillate between believing and at the same time doubting the heroine, Freya, that she's over imagining things and losing her mind. It was so compelling it constantly made me feel something foreboding and frightful is about to happen, I was in a constant state of comprehension, waiting for something with anxiety and fear. I highly recommend this book, something to take your mind off of fear from the Covid-19 pandemic. It'll save you from being bored quarantining yourself.
This is my first read of this author and it will not be the last. What a great read it is!