This book had me hooked from the beginning! Loved it up until the end. Clemence did a wonderful job with her first book and I hope that there is more to come

It has been a minute since I have been so enthralled with a debut novel, and I have Clémence Michallon to thank for getting me out of that slump! The Quiet Tenant is one of my favorite books that I have read so far this year, and I already know it is going to be making my top 10 list for the ENTIRE year. There are so many unique things about this novel, from the chapter titles down to the storyline, and it was a breath of fresh air in a world where many themes and tropes get repeated. Serial killers aren't a new subject, but the approach is different, and I absolutely loved it. There is a ton of suspense throughout the book, and I didn't think there was even a dull moment. I loved every single thing about this, and the end had me on the proverbial edge of my seat.

If you read it or if you listen to it, there is no wrong way to enjoy The Quiet Tenant but throwing this out there - I do believe the audiobook is going to be making my list of all-time favorites. There is an entire cast and every single narrator felt perfectly selected and suited for their role and character. The author even makes an appearance on the audio, and I ended up going back and listening to her chapter again so I could fully appreciate that. There are a lot of viewpoints but never once was it confusing, and the author's writing is absolutely incredible. I would love to see this get turned into something for television, be it a movie, mini-series, or frankly, anything else. It would be a great watch and I just know as incredible as it is as a book, it could be even better if you got to see the characters and story come to life. I do recommend going in as blind as possible, and just letting this baby take you away!

Entertaining but a little slow. It’s written as a thriller but doesn’t have very many nail-biting moments, if at all, or a twist at the end. It’s more about the trauma and Stockholm Syndrome the MC faces as she is held captive. It was a good read but not what I was expecting. Also, there’s no real closure as it just seems to end.

Thank you Clemence Michallon, Penguin Random House, and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC.

The summary of this book drew me in. It was about a serial killer who let one woman live. She was locked in his shed for years until he had to move. Rather than killing her, he decided that she was going to move in with him and his 13 year old daughter.

I liked the storyline. However, I could not get in to the writing style. The entire book was written in second person point of view between the kidnapped woman, Emily (a local restaurant owner with obsessive tendencies who was falling for the serial killer) and Cecilia, the serial killer’s daughter.

The characters made me mad at times. I couldn’t figure out why they did what they did sometimes. Parts of the story felt too unrealistic.

The relationships between certain characters seemed off and a little weak. Maybe it was the second person point of view, but I felt like the relationships between certain characters could have been a little stronger. I think it would have justified the kidnapped woman’s actions a little more.

Also, there wasn’t a twist anywhere in the book. The whole story lead up to what we knew the outcome was going to be.

All in all, the storyline was dark and interesting. But the second person point of view got to me and I struggled to get through it. 3/5 stars.

Yes, yes, yes. This was eerie, fantastic, and so unique. I was SWEATING while reading this and loved it from start to finish. Such a great suspenseful drama, with a touch of "thrill." I read a lot of books and I know it's good when it stays with me for more than 10 minutes-HA. I can't stop thinking about this. So good!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. It was very slow starting and hard for me to get into. The different perspectives were interesting, but it was hard for me to see the connection between them all.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read this ARC and provide an honest review.

The Quiet Tenant was such an interesting premise, the viewpoints of the many women surrounding a serial killer including his daughter, his new love interest, women he had killed in the past, and the one who he kept. It was an enjoyable read that had me on the edge of my seat at the end! It was dark and disturbing and I loved that we never got his POV, as it was more focused on the women. Thank you to aaknopf for the gifted copy, I mainly read from the physical copy, but would switch between that and an audio from prhaudio. The audio was very well done, with an entire cast! I was very pleased with the ending and how everything wrapped up!

This book was flat-out fantastic. It was a bit of a slow burn in the beginning but once the pieces started falling into place, I couldn't put it down. Aidan was such an intriguing character with 2 completely separate sides to himself. The author also dedicated small chapters to each of the victims, which I haven't witnessed in any other book before. They are just as much a part of the story. The chapters about "The Girl in the Shed/House/Etc" are written in second person narration, which kind of threw me off at first. However, after reading "you" so many times, I started putting myself in the position of the girl and it made the book so much more personal. I will rave about this book to everyone!

I was excited to receive a copy of this ARC because the synopsis had me hooked. This was dark but but also quite an easy read. I liked that it was told from the perspective of the woman in the shed, with snippets from the daughter and the other woman in town.

The plot mostly revolves around Rachel (the woman in the shed) and her being kept in captivity by Aidan, the beloved, nice-guy, widower in town everyone loves. But Rachel isn’t his first victim, she’s just the only one he’s kept alive for 5 years. Experiencing the “good guy/father” Aidan vs the psychopathic serial killer Aidan from Rachel’s eyes was great – you really got an idea of just how manipulative and twisted this guy is.

I’d recommend this for any lovers of the crime/thriller genre. I think the story is told in an interesting way, and getting to be in the headspace of these 3 women in Aidan’s life, especially of his victim Rachel’s, really added to my enjoyment of the story.

Excited to read more by this author in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Woman has lived in a serial killer's shed for five years. The killer, Aiden, keeps her like a pet until he can't anymore because his wife dies and he needs to move to a house with fewer unused sheds. Spotting an opportunity, and worried Aiden will just kill her if he can't find a use for her, The Woman offers to move with him. He sets her up in his spare room, somehow hiding from his twelve year old daughter that the tenant who eats dinner with them spends the rest of her time handcuffed to a radiator...or worse. A third woman, Emily, enters into what she thinks is a romance with Aiden. She's probably his next mark, but unluckily for Aiden she's got weird stalker vibes and messes up all of his plans.

PRO: the story is told in a unique way, from the POV of the three women in Aiden's life. Attacks on The Woman are described as something like 'he did to me what he had decided he needed to do to somebody' give insight into the attacker without the reader being forced to witness any details. CON: this POV choice means that every bit of their thoughts revolve around Aiden, making him the star of a novel that is supposed to be about women surviving. There's something so yuck about the way everyone makes allowances for him, even The Woman. And Emily is absolutely insufferable. There are plenty of patrons who will be happy to read The Quiet Tenant and I will recommend it to them, but personally I just feel a bit dirty having read it.

💭Thoughts:
This book is pure psychological thriller. The way the story is told from the view point of the victim is fascinating. What really got me freaked out was the POV of the multiple murdered victims. A very interesting and moving way to tell a story. The story was fragmented, but it worked well with the way it all unfolded.

The book did slow a bit in the middle, but I kept pushing through. If you are looking for a fast paced thriller with lots of twists, just know that is not this book. This is a very slow burn. I wanted a bit more from the ending. I won’t go into detail about that. I think the less the reader knows going into the book the better.

Overall, a dark and moving look at a serial killer through the eyes of his victims, his daughter, and his love interest. Don’t read this one alone at night and expect to fall asleep!

🏠 BOOK / REVIEW 🏠

WOW. The #thequiettenant was so creepy 😳 And I absolutely loved it 😏.

I was shocked to see so many wish washy reviews, but this was a fantastic book. I found out that this was actually written in the author, @clemencemichallon, 2nd language, which blew me away.

The fact that this was written in 3 separate POV's that all played a different role in this book was SO unique and helped captivate me the entire time. I couldn't flip through the pages quickly enough, and the ending had me hyperventilating!!

I would read another book by her in a heartbeat. It was compelling, chilling, and totally wicked. Highly recommend!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🌟

I read this book in one afternoon. It was incredibly gripping and definitely a page turner. My only critique is that while it was a page turner, I realized everything at the end turned out the way I thought it would end which is not the case in a five star thriller.

I can absolutely see why The Quiet Tenant has been called one of the most anticipated novels of 2023. While those predictions sometimes don't live up to the hype, The Quiet Tenant does. I love that Clemence Mechallon lets us learn about Aidan Thomas through multiple narrators, one of them being his own daughter, giving us the true all-around picture of the live of a serial killer. He's violent, living a secret life, but he's also a dad, a neighbor, a friend, which makes me wonder, how well do we ever know someone?

Thanks so much for the opportunity to review this riveting page turner that is sure to be a hit!

Aiden Thomas is a crazy man. The poor women who were brutally murdered, to the mans own wife dying, and now Rachel, the girl he keeps in the shed, they are all manipulated by this man. Aiden's house is being taken from him by his wife's parents, so now he has to murder Rachel. Rachel is living in the shed scared to death of this man. Somehow she influences him enough to allow her to move into the new home with him and his daughter. Rachel must play the sweet and definitely quiet roommate that everyone will think is his cousin.

As Aiden makes more relationships in the community and possibly begins dating a restaurant owner, things start to change around his home. Rachel has to find a way out and his mistakes may just be the way to do it. But, can she actually save herself? And should she bring his daughter with her?

The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Aiden Thomas is skilled at keeping secrets. In this town, and to the local bartender Emily, Aiden is a hero, a guy you can count on for anything you need, a sweet man who has recently lost his wife and is raising his daughter Cecelia alone. Behind closed doors, Aiden is a serial killer with 8 victims and a woman named “Rachel” who has been trapped in his shed for five years.

The Quiet Tenant is definitely one to add to your TBR. Some may not enjoy the pacing and think the story moves too slowly, but I enjoyed the slow build up and I couldn’t stop reading when I would pick it up. I could see this being a book you’d read in a day. The terror of Rachel’s situation and the fear you’ll have for Emily and Cecelia will keep you reading, and the focus on trauma and survival in a hopeless situation will stay with you when you’re done. I loved this one and it’s a fantastic thriller.

Thank you to @netgalley and @aaknopf for the arc!

PS
as soon as I finished reading this, I immediately thought of: “He was the best guy arooooounddd!!” 😍
“What about the people he murdered?!” 🤨
“What murdaaaaa?!” 😱

There is nothing I love more than a dark thriller told through multiple perspectives. This debut thriller delivered. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. It makes you question everyone you think you know...who is capable of evil things and being a good family man?? This is the perfect book for your summer beach bag.

This book! A suspenseful, original psychological thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat, The Quiet Tenant is everything a reader wants in a book. The characters were well developed and complex, the plot fast-moving and intriguing and the ending satisfying. This is the best thriller I've read in 2023 and I will highly recommend it!

Wow, talk about a slow burn. A good slow burn though, one that you will not be able to put down! The author's writing style was so unique, and I honestly loved it. This book is very, very dark and sinister and while some might not love the bone chilling thriller, others will absolutely devour this. This book is full of disturbing layers and it's honestly haunting. Stick this one out because I think you will love the ending!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. The premise of this book was chilling, and so was the entire book. I thought this was a fresh take on the thriller genre, and so compelling to learn about this serial killer from the perspective of his past, present, and future victims. I was gripped, the writing was excellent!