Reading Iris Yamashita's debut novel gives me chills. Really! First, there' a chopped-off hand and foot that wash up in an icy inlet. Then there's the isolation of a community that lives in one building. Yes, a whole town in one building -- for doctors, work, groceries, schools. Everything. And there's only one way in and out of the town - a long, cold tunnel. Chilly!
When Cara Kennedy, a distraught detective from Anchorage shows up, she's met with frigid attitudes and eccentric residents.. Gang members from a nearby native village. A woman who walks a moose on a leash. And more! It's a whodunit where everyone is a suspect and all have their own motives, including the detective!

This story is in make believe place based on a real community in Alaska where the people all live in one tall building. The tale is told in 3 voices: Amy, 18 year olf Asian, Lonnie, a released woman from mental health insititute, and Cara, a police officer out on a disablity. There are many other characters of this community who are hiding from their former lives.
A foot in a boot and a hand are found on the beach by Amy. This brings Cora to Point Mattier as she is hoping to find the why of her husband and son's deaths. Lonnie, who has a pet moose, has buried a head.
How do all these events mesh together in this place which is totally isolated be an advantage? A twisted story of secrets and more secrets before a climax happens and some secrets are revealed only to be secret again.

Rating 3.5

City Under One Roof is a locked-room thriller set in a small Alaskan town where just 200+ people reside in one building. A detective from Anchorage arrives in town to investigate the mysterious body parts that have washed ashore. This community is incredibly chilly to non-residents, and our highly uncooperative.

What is this community hiding?

This novel is highly claustrophobic with a wild cast of characters including a moose. It's bitterly cold, theres a blizzard so get cozy with a warm blanket when you read this book. It's a solid debut, but paced very slowly.

Thank you Berkley Publishing for the complimentary copy.

City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita is a thrilling mystery set in a frigid, sinister small town. An urban Alaska detective is tasked with unlocking menacing secrets while struggling to recover from a personal tragedy. As the investigation progresses, several disreputable residents emerge as suspects, and riddles both large and small add to the suspense. With its offbeat and sharply written narrative, this novel is sure to keep readers on the edge of their seats.

When body parts wash up on shore in a small, isolated Alaskan town, Anchorage detective Cara Kennedy travels there to look into the situation. When the tunnel that is the only entrance/exit to the town is closed due to bad weather, she teams up with the local sheriff and his assistant to investigate. Along the way, she encounters the idiosyncratic residents of the town who all live in the same building “under one roof.” Many of them have reasons they chose to live in such a secluded and harsh place. Aside from what they may be hiding, are they all in danger?

Told from three points of view, this atmospheric tale reflects the claustrophobic feeling from living so close together and traversing the underground tunnels to get any place…not to mention the bitter cold and blizzard conditions. You just might want to wrap up in a cozy blanket when you read this book.

I learned a bit about Alaska, although I didn’t check the accuracy of some of the facts. It took a while to get to the climax and then I thought the denouement left some things not fully resolved. Still it was a solid debut novel by the screen writer Iris Yamashita who wrote Letters from Iwo Jima.

Berkeley (Jan. 10), 307 pages, $27

Iris Yamashita's remarkable first novel is inspired by the actual town of Whittier, Alaska, where the few hundred permanent residents live in one condominium building, "City Under One Roof" imagines the town of Mettier, an oddball place (one resident keeps a pet moose) even before body parts wash up on the beach.

Police dismiss it as a "these things happen" scenario. But Anchorage detective Cara Kennedy has a different idea. In town on her own, she wants to learn whether the severed hand and foot have any possible connection to the death of her husband and son, horribly similar.

Once Cara is stranded by a blizzard and blocked tunnel, she is increasingly spooked by the town's secrets. Every character is interesting, and "City Under One Roof" plays out like a satisfying thriller on, say, Hulu. And who better to write it than Yamashita, an Oscar-nominated screenwriter ("Letters From Iow Jima")?

Thanks to Berkley for an advanced copy of City Under One Roof.

This is an atmospheric "locked room" thriller set in a small Alaska town where all 205 full-time residents live in 1 building. When body parts wash up on shore, an investigator from Anchorage arrives and when the only way into town is closed due to a blizzard, Cara finds herself stuck in a town where the people are as icy as the weather. What secrets are they all hiding?

The atmospheric setting of Point Mettier was the best part of this book. It was a little bit of a slower start for me. It is told from the viewpoint of Cara and a few townspeople and I felt that it took me a long time to get invested with so many viewpoints.

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley, Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

City Under One Roof caught my eye as being a bit different than usual. There are many aspects to the story. We get the point of view of three female characters. Cara is a widow and detective from Anchorage on disability leave. Amy is a teenager who has lived in Point Mettier, Alaska her whole life with her mother. Lonnie is a young women with some mental issues.

Over the story, we learn more about each woman over time. Cara is actively investigating a current homicide with body parts turning up. She thinks it might be related to her loss of her husband and son about a year ago. The locals are very quirky and have their secrets. She ends up stranded when the tunnel to the mainland closes in a blizzard.

Amy is nearing high school graduation and looking at more than her lifelong world. She is opening her eyes to more adult aspects of the world and what she might do after high school. She is in a teenage rebellion of sorts with her mother. When out with friends, they discovered the body parts.

Lonnie was put into a mental institute for a bit as a child, when her mother was murdered by an abusive boyfriend. She has some PTSD from the murder as well as from the "Institute." She adopted a baby moose whose mother was also violently killed and they have a symbiotic life, providing each other with purpose.

Nothing is quite what it seems with these women or any other character. Cara teams up with a young police office and they do begin to gather some evidence. Everything comes to a head when some thieving drug dealers arrive to hunt for something they want. No one is really safe and most of them didn't trust anyone from the beginning.

I enjoyed the characters and the odd, yet realistic quirks and secrets gradually revealed. The pace was well handled and I was engaged in the mysteries and the action. The main mysteries were resolved but a few loose ends remained which make me wonder if there will be a sequel or continuation of this world.

A quick easy mystery to curl up with on a cold winter night. Locale: Alaska, winter time. Best characters: Lonnie who hears voices, Cara the grieving detective, JB the local cop healing from being dumped, and Denny the motherless moose. Plot: character-driven, fast-paced, stretches the bounds of plausibility in places. The introduction of a whole new set of characters later in the novel felt intrusive; perhaps tying one or two into the story earlier would have felt more inclusive.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley/Penguin Random House for the ARC to read and review.

A fast paced, escape from reality read perfect for a cold winter day. Quick chapters make it good for short reads in between other daily tasks. A bit of paranormal tossed in with murder, mayhem and a very secretive town.

#cityunderoneroof #berkeley #netgalley #first2023read

Thanks to #netgalley and #berkleypublishing for this free copy - the opinions are my own.

This debut novel is a version of a locked room mystery except it's a town contained in a single building. An Anchorage cop with issues gets stranded by a storm in this little village. While she's waiting for the roads to clear, she gets involved in a murder mystery and it seems everyone in the building has secrets, including her. It's a good police procedural with plenty of interesting characters. Each chapter alternates between the various characters and I quickly identified them each by their quirks. A solid mystery, good characters, fast paced, a very good debut. I'll be reading more.

City Under One Roof is an ominous locked room thriller with a fantastic Alaskan setting. The stories dark atmosphere continues to close in as the book progresses. It was clear from the beginning that the people that live in the small town of Point Mettier are very private. Each of the characters seems to have a past and some also have secrets that they want to keep hidden. The thriller is told by Amy, a local teenager, Cara, a detective from Anchorage, and Joe, a town police officer. The thriller progressed slowly with a steady pace. I was connected from the beginning and wanted to keep reading to find out what really happened.

The author has painted a vivid picture of the location and the characters. The twists and reveals were rewarding and unexpected. I will look forward to reading more of the authors books in the future. This is a great debut.

Thank you NetGalley, and Berkley Publishing Group for the arc.

Overall I enjoyed The City Under One Roof. My favorite part of the story was the very unusual location: a large apartment building where everyone in a small Alaksa town lives. (Yes, Only Murders in the Building, Alaska style!)

When a body part washes up on shore, a detective from out of town arrives. Then a storm traps everyone in the building. (Well. sort of....)

City Under One Roof had three narrators, which for me was at least one too many. The plot did drag a bit in the middle, but the end was filled with suspense and action.

City Under One Roof was pretty much a cozy (heavy on quirky small town characters) but also had some gory/police procedural elements, making it a little tough to characterize.

But it was a fun read and I look forward to the author's next book!

The debut novel, CITY UNDER ONE ROOF, is an atmospheric murder mystery centered in a small Alaskan town. Yamashita developed a detective crime story with such unique characters that the reader cannot help but want to read what will happen when the investigation comes to a close.

While reading, I was struck by how distinctive this narrative was. Having never read much set in Alaska, it was fascinating to see how the setting as well as the fact the town all lived in one complex gave the plot even more richness. The cold weather, the icy landscape, the tunnels of the building, and the hidden corners of the building all add a level of tension and intrigue. The author captures a claustrophobic feeling while still managing to explore the scope of the murder through the eyes of multiple narrators. Amy, Cara, and Joe’s voices propel the story forward as elements of the mystery unfold. The twists and turns are perfectly set up. And the ending, spine chilling and oh so good!

CITY UNDER ONE ROOF is the first in what I hope will be many more thrillers from Yamashita. Her extraordinary writing style and fast-paced storytelling made this a must-read for the winter months.

This book was really good.

I chose it because I love stories that are basically "stranded where you are". This is what attracted me to this book. Everyone living in a same high rise with borders closed.

Yes, the town is very weird and the "gangs" that are plotting add to the weirdness. I had no idea where this author was going with this story, but the pace was excellent and the characters are basically all wounded in one way or another.

I don't want to give anything away, but this was such a good read.

This was a quick, enjoyable crime drama set in a isolated area of Alaska. Well developed characters, a fast moving plot and an unexpected ending kept me reading straight through in one setting. Strongly recommended

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Books for an advanced reader copy.

Great location..all of the city lives in one building. However teenagers manage to find a body, and the police officer from out of town isn't what she seems. Very enjoyable, and the location details really adds to the scene.

The majority of year round residents of Point Mettier, Alaska live in the same building - with a small population of over two hundred, everyone knows everyone. Mettier has a reputation of being a safe place for women - survivors of abuse, attempting to escape. With only a tunnel to provide access to Anchorage, the ferryman keeps a list of those to refuse.
Amy and her Ma have lived in Mettier for years - longer than the average person stays, only a few years. While hanging out with a group of friends, Amy stumbles upon a shiny object. Turns out to be a hand and foot.
Though the case is closed, Cara can't let it go. A year earlier, her husband and son had been found - in pieces. Hoping the cases are linked, Cara goes against Anchorage PD orders to investigate for herself.
Without releasing small towns have large secrets - the community protects their own.

Short synopsis: In a small city Port Mettier Alaska, the long term residents live in the same high rise building. In essence it’s a “city under one roof.” When a high school girl Amy finds a severed hand in the sand, and a storm closed the pass back to Anchorage Detective Cara Kennedy is determined to find answers.

My thoughts: What a page turning “locked room” situation this thriller was! Being stuck in a storm, in a high rise building where everyone knows everyone. Cara, being the outcast gave a great point of view as she worked through the case.

Lonnie’s Character was such a great input into the story. First off Ask she has a pet moose named Denny that she walks on a leash, but she also has some sort of mental issues resulting from childhood trauma she endured. It was refreshing to get her perspective and see the things she tried to do to protect the people in this town.

Then we have Amy, who finds out some secrets king buried by her mother that she’s terrified will come to light if the police question her after finding severed body parts.

I’d definitely call this a pretty fast paced thriller that kept me guessing until the very end.

Read if you love:
- Claustrophobic thriller
- Small town mystery
- Multiple POV
- Strange pets
- Strong female protagonist
- Hidden secrets

Thank you so much to Berkley for the advanced copy of this book! Publication date is January 10, 2023 so be sure to watch for it!

I received a gifted galley of CITY UNDER ONE ROOF by Iris Yamashita for an honest review. Thank you to PRH Audio, Berkley Publishing Group, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

CITY UNDER ONE ROOF is set in a small, isolated town in Alaska which can only be accessed via a single tunnel. Everyone in the town lives in a single high-rise building, literally a city living under one roof. When a teenaged girl discovers some body parts washed up on the shore, Cara is called in from Anchorage to investigate.

Weather shuts down the tunnel and Cara’s only possible means of departure and she finds herself joining the rest of the town under that single roof. She has reasons of her own for wanting to investigate and sharing a building with the entire town gives her a unique opportunity for an inside look. It is quickly apparent that Cara isn’t the only one with a past and secrets to hide.

I loved the unique setting for this one – a place I can not imagine living. Having all 200ish people in town, all of your shopping, pretty much all of your life under one roof delivers a very claustrophobic feeling that I enjoy in a book (not so much in real life). We get to follow a couple different POVs in addition to the detective Cara and I thought each brought a different voice and a unique take on the mystery at the center of the story. Each person has their own secrets and story lines to unfold as well.

This was a solid mystery and a quick read. According to the author bio on Goodreads, this is meant to be book one in a new series, so I will be looking forward to more. Though this came to a satisfying ending, I can see where it would be interesting to dig into more.