The plot of "The Quiet Tenant" really caught my eye, the story of a woman who has been imprisoned by a serial killer for the last several years. I enjoyed how it was told through multiple perspectives. Through the imprisoned woman, the daughter of the killer, and the new love interest of the killer. I thought this made the story more compelling, and put me at more of an edge as I was reading through. Ultimately I found the overall story to be a bit of a let down. I was really drawn in easy and sped through the book wondering what would happen next, but the ending just sort of happened and there wasn't any big wow factor to it. The book is marketed as a mystery and suspense, but I didn't find much mystery to the book. Everything just sort of happened, in a thrilling way don't get me wrong, but there was no big catch, reveal, nothing that really added that shock factor. I think the book would have benefitted from having a chapter or chapters from the killers perspective to get a glimpse of why he did what he did. I felt there was also more to be explored from his daughter's perspective as well. I did enjoy this book and found it to be very fast paced, but I was not a huge fan of how it all wrapped up.

I'm always on the lookout for a good thriller I could sink into and the synopsis for this one was very intriguing. The whole idea of living a secret life is an interesting one and then there's the endless question of how they get away with it and what eventually trips them up.

The Quiet Tenant is told from the point of view of the victims in the story and how their relationship with the serial-killer-hiding-in-plain-sight molds and shapes them and their actions. There is no happy ending here for anyone, although there is hope, which I was thankful for.

The three pov's in this story are a victim that the killer keeps around, the killer's daughter and a women he's involved with. While I didn't always like the "voice" of the writing, I did like the choice of these three woman in telling the story. They have three unique perspectives and they each bring a piece of the story to the reader. Emily, the girlfriend is particularly interesting in the way that she needs Aidan.

I'm not about to give any spoilers, although I didn't experience any surprises in this story. It's not about suspense or mystery or solving a crime. What I liked most was that the author created a certain atmosphere here that evoked a number of tension-filled emotions, and that was good.

Overall, I did enjoy this psychological thriller and will be looking for more from this author in the future.

A disturbing story of a serial killer and his captive, the one he didn't kill. How can such evil be a well liked man and father? Such a controlling person. The story will well told.

The Quiet Tenant is one of the best books I've read this year. Gripping, fast-paced, tense from the first page. The rotation in narration between the Woman, Emily, and Cecelia adds depth and fullness to the story in a unique way. Though you never hear directly from Aidan, you get a full sense of who he is by piecing together how he is seen by the three narrators. As I neared the end, I could feel my heart pounding as I raced through the final chapters, literally feeling the urgency in the pit of my stomach. Easily 5 out of 5 stars.

I received an advanced digital copy via NetGalley and Knopf.

The Quiet Tenant by Clemence Michallon is so crazy good. I would read a lot more thrillers if they were all written like this. Rather than a fast pace book filled with twists and turns, this is a slow burn psychological thriller and character study. Told from three points of view as well as statements from past victims, this book has a creepy feeling that runs throughout. This is the story of a serial killer, his hostage, his daughter, and a dumb woman who becomes obsessed with him.

Thank you Knopf and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My rating is a 4.5.

I want to start off with the positive first. I really enjoyed the multiple perspectives of the women who surrounded Aiden, our bad guy. It allowed the reader to see that there is so much more to a person than just evil, but also allowed us to see the extent of his evil deeds.

The characters were all very fleshed out, so I easily connected to these women. I cheered, hurt, and grieved with all of them. Even with the multiple perspectives, I would still say that Rachel's POV was the strongest one since the story heavily revolves around her.

Lastly, I did notice that the sentence structures were pretty short. I honestly didn't mind because it was still easy to read and process the story. When I read thrillers I mostly focus on the plot and storyline, so I don't care of the writing isn't top tier. The writing was again is not BAD. I think the author did a great job!

One other thing is that one of the characters did some actions that just felt off and wrong. It just didn't add up with who that character was and would throw me out of the story for a couple of seconds.

Overall, I thought that the author did a phenomenal job bringing this story to life. I cannot wait to read more thrillers from this author. This was a quick read that kept me entertained the whole time!

Aiden is beloved in town but he has a deep secret. We learn about him through three voices: his daughter, his crush, and the woman he kidnapped.

If anything can be said for this one it’s that it will keep your attention on every single page from the beginning to the end. There’s really not one dull moment and you HAVE to read to know how it ends. It’s really a straight suspense story, without any crazy or wild twists which makes it feel even more real. I thought Emily’s character was a bit odd, but it worked in the context of the story.

“I remember realizing, while he killed me: if he gets away with this, he’ll think he can get away with anything.”

The Quiet Tenant comes out 6/27.

This is a gripping psychological thriller. Told mostly from the point of view of a female victim “Rachel”. Aiden is the helpful guy in a small town who is hiding dangerous secrets. The author keeps readers on the edge of their seat as they anticipate what will happen next. With characters that will capture your attention. Every page leads to more revelations.

Absolutely loved this debut thriller by Clémence Michallon! I could not put it down. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

I got this as an ARC from Net Galley and was so pumped when I did! This book sucked me in right from the beginning.

I loved the alternate view points. We didn’t know one characters name and their chapters were written so interestingly.

I do wish we could have gotten into the mind of the psycho a little more, but this was a really enjoyable book. Dark, tense and twisty

I loved this book!! It was so good!! I couldn’t put this down!! I always had to know what was going to happen. I really really enjoyed this book!!!

Thank you Clemence Michallon, Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC e-book. Alright... WOW this book may be one of my favorite new books I have read this year. This was such an absolute mind trip. A kidnapper and murderers life told through the eyes of his victim, his new crush and his daughter and how they come together and find strength in each other that none of them knew they needed... I cant even explain how quickly this book sucked me in and held my attention. Such an amazing psychological thriller.

If you like psychological thrillers, please RUN to get this! The Quiet Tenant reinvents the serial killer thriller in that it takes away the voice from the killer entirely. Told between the POV of the killer’s daughter, his girlfriend, and the only victim that he spared this book kept me up all night reading. It was equal parts sinister and eerie and there’s no doubt I’ll be thinking about this for the foreseeable future!

Thank you @netgalley and Knopf for the arc of THE QUIET TENANT. While I had high hopes, this one was not for me and I think a big part of that is just preference. I will say this is NOT a thriller and not really even a mystery. It’s more of a psychological crime read (which I typically love) with some suspense thrown in towards the end.

𝐌𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:
-started off not sure what was going on, but intrigued
-not a fan of the second person POV
-it didn’t make sense to me why some chapters (a POV I don’t want to give away) were included

I was waiting for a shocking end or a big twist or honestly just any kind of twist, but the ending seemed abrupt to me and I was left wanting more.

The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon: A psychological thriller about a serial killer as told by one of his victims, his daughter and woman who wants to have a relationship with him. Unique, compelling and a bit of a slow burn, this debut novel will grab your attention and have you flipping the pages.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, Knopf and author Clémence Michallon for the advance read copy of this book.

Happy Pub Day to The Quiet Tenant!

This was such a unique book. I loved the premise and how the story was told from the alternating perspectives of the three women. As I often do with books told from multiple perspectives, there was one (i.e., Emily’s) that I enjoyed less than the others. I found her tiring and didn’t think her backstory sufficiently explained her strange behavior. Conversely, I really enjoyed the chapters told from Rachel and Cecilia’s points of view. Additionally, I appreciated how likable Ms. Michallon made Aiden. It made him scarier, and I found myself questioning how well we can really know someone. Overall, I found the book enjoyable and think it will especially appeal to seasoned thriller readers as it offers a fresh and unique approach.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was the best thriller I have read in years. Truly. I could not turn the pages fast enough! A serial killer, his 13-year-old daughter, his girlfriend, and "Rachel", the one he decided not to kill but keep in his backyard shed for 5 years. He is an upstanding, respected man in their small town. No one would ever guess his deep, dark secrets.
I feel like I've been in a race for my life over the last couple of days. I felt like I was right there beside Rachel through the whole experience. I rated it 4 1/2 stars rounded up to 5. I would have picked a slightly different ending and am wondering if others feel the same. It would be a great read for book clubs!
The author, Clemence Michallon, is French, and the book was translated into English. She is truly amazing, and I can't wait for her next book!
Sincere thanks go to Knof Publishing and NetGalley for the Advance Reader Copy and to Cindy @Thoughtsfromapage Podcast who made it possible for me to read this early!

This book was such a wild ride and I was hooked from the start. I loved the shifts in perspective and especially enjoyed the second person narrative from the perspective of the woman being held captive and the captor’s other victims.

It was creepy, unsettling, and had me on the edge of my seat. The chapters are short and it’s a pretty quick read. I’d definitely recommend it, but also recommend checking out the trigger warnings before diving in. This would make an excellent movie.

You know what they say: Go big or go home. Clemence Michallon, who hasn’t written a thriller before or a novel in English before, certainly seems to have taken that saying to heart by writing this absolutely riveting, heartbreaking, intense, page-turning thriller that will now make me look as closely at white trucks as I did white vans when I was a child and remind readers that sometimes we don’t even truly know the people closest to us. The people we love and who love us.

This book is so carefully crafted by Michallon. You can tell this was a passion project for her. It’s mainly the story of the everyday life of a serial killer named Aidan who’s also a recent widower (cancer) and a single dad who’s having a hard time keeping his carefully constructed life under control since his former in-laws decided to sell the house he, his wife, and their daughter used to live in and he was forced to move everything closer to town–including the woman he had been keeping captive in a secure shed on the old property for five years he insisted on calling “Rachel”. Meticulous in nature, Aidan needs to be in control of everything and everyone, and living too close to the city allows for too many variables. The story of Aidan’s carefully constructed facade and how he loses control of all of it is told mainly from the POV of three women in his life: “Rachel” (who is moved into the new house, given a room and can move around, but has a GPS tracker she can’t removed and is chained to her radiator or bed every night even as Aidan continues to assault her in various ways), his daughter Cecilia (who loves her dad but doesn’t like him and is angry at him for not seeming to grieve her mother more), and a local restaurant owner named Emily who’s had a crush on Aidan since she was a teenager and since it looks like he’s finally giving her the time of day she’s going to go for it and shoot her shot. Little does she know Aidan’s been watching her for a while now. Slotted in here and there are little vignettes told from the POV of Aidan’s victims, their names disappearing just like their bodies do.

There is so much hopelessness and helplessness in this book when it comes to the triangle between Aidan, “Rachel”, and Cecilia. They say you have to find something redeeming about the antagonist in the story for it to truly work, and I actually did find myself sympathizing with Aidan a little bit. It was the control freak in me recognizing the control freak in him. I have to be in control of everything, mainly because that’s been my essential function for most of my life. If I’m not in control, or if I’m in control and something happens to upset the apple cart, I lose it. I certainly don’t need to do what he does to regain control, but there’s no doubt I’ve had panic attacks when everything starts to even feel like it’s not going to plan. The anger at putting so much planning and time and consideration into something only to have it only go to pot? Yeah, the anger, frustration, and feeling of genuine helplessness is real. Of course “Rachel” feels helpless and often hopeless, being held captive for all this time. She doesn’t even recognize herself when she looks in the mirror. She doesn’t know what combination of words will set Aidan off on one day and make him not horrible the next. Then there’s Cecilia, who feels helpless because she can’t make friends at her new school and hopeless because she can see her dad is going to move on and she can’t believe he’d do that. He doesn’t like to talk about her mom or let her look at her mom’s things. She’s still grieving and can’t understand why he isn’t.

The pacing is so nice and organically tense. There’s no artificial propulsion to this story. There is a little give here and there, but it’s just enough to let you take a breath because most of the time while you’re reading this book you’ll find you’re holding it. You’re not going to want to put it down, because you might even not think to. I know I didn’t. I picked it up and only put it down long enough to put together cheese and crackers for lunch to eat…while I kept reading.

The climax of this story will make your heart race and will have your eyes glued to the page. My heart was even racing a little. It’s a serious case of life or death and will she? Will she? Can she? Can she?

I feel utterly spoiled by this book. I’m officially a Clemence Michallon fan girl and I need more from her.

I was provided a copy of the eARC of this title by NetGalley and the author and provided a finished copy by the folks over at Knopf Publishing. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: 5 Star Review/Kidnapping/Murder Thriller/Psychological Thriller/Serial Killers/Suspense Thriller/Thriller

As soon as I read the synopsis for The Quiet Tenant I had a feeling that this was going to be a book that I had to read. I devoured this book in just a couple of days, and honestly it's one of my top 5 for the year that I've read so far.

Looking at Aidan from the outside he's a pillar of the community, he's always happy to help those in need in his neighborhood, and they love him. They don't know the monster that he is, and about the woman Rachel he keeps locked up. It's always the ones we least expect, and that, is the true horror of it all.

I loved the different perspectives from each of the women, and how they interacted, either negatively or positively with Aidan throughout the book. It gave insight to the mind of a killer/kidnapper, and was truly captivating.

I'd definitely recommend this to anyone that's looking for an edge of your seat thriller that will have you rooting for the woman in the shed with every fiber of your being.

Big thank you to Netgalley and Knopf Publishing Group for sending me a digital copy to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.