whitneydaniell

by: Riley Sager
published: Jul 2, 2019
genre: Thriller, Murder Mystery, Fiction
400 Pages, Paperback
GoodReads Link

I was doing so good then, I picked up this book and I was instantly bored. I struggled getting through this book and it took me many days to finally power through and finish. Let’s jump right in.

No visitors. No nights spent away from the apartment. No disturbing the other residents, all of whom are rich or famous or both. These are the only rules for Jules Larsen’s new job as an apartment sitter at the Bartholomew, one of Manhattan’s most high-profile and mysterious buildings. Recently heartbroken and just plain broke, Jules is taken in by the splendor of her surroundings and accepts the terms, ready to leave her past life behind.

As she gets to know the residents and staff of the Bartholomew, Jules finds herself drawn to fellow apartment sitter Ingrid, who comfortingly reminds her of the sister she lost eight years ago. When Ingrid confides that the Bartholomew is not what it seems and the dark history hidden beneath its gleaming facade is starting to frighten her, Jules brushes it off as a harmless ghost story…until the next day, when Ingrid disappears.

Searching for the truth about Ingrid’s disappearance, Jules digs deeper into the Bartholomew’s sordid past and into the secrets kept within its walls. What she discovers pits Jules against the clock as she races to unmask a killer, expose the building’s hidden past, and escape the Bartholomew before her temporary status becomes permanent.

GoodReads

I. Characters

The story is told from the point of view of our protagonist, Jules who is down on all of her luck with no where to go. Jules’ bad luck started when she was laid off from her job and when returning home early as a result of her job ending, to the apartment that she shared with her boyfriend Andrew, she finds him sleeping with another woman, in their shared living room! With no job, no home, and only the belongings that she could fit into a few boxes she heads out into New York City on her own.

Jules was well meaning but very naïve about the world and the people in it. She was also too trusting of strangers – Dr. Nick – I didn’t trust him or Leslie the minute they entered the scene. Chole was the only person with good sense but, its always the ones with good sense that others don’t want to listen to.

Also, when the main characters suddenly become lone vigilantes, it really escapes reality for me and I find a hard time connecting with the story. Jules wanted to save everyone when she should have been focused on saving herself. Self-preservation is number one.

Everyone inside The Bartholomew was strange and I didn’t trust a single person who called that place “home” or who called it their “work”.

II. The Story / Plot

Trap doors, secret passage ways, and unmarked doors – duh. Everything about this plot was so obvious and spelled out very early in the story, you just had to read between the lines.

I think this book was hard for me to get through because it was so slow in the beginning. The pace does not pick up until you’re almost 60% through the book. Jules is exposing herself by asking all the wrong people all the right questions, I knew that wasn’t going to end well. Why are you asking the residents about Ingrid?! Those are the first people that I’m not going to trust.

Then, Jules letting everyone gaslight her and play in her face. They’re telling you that you didn’t hear what you know you heard – red flag, number 1,023,437! The premise of this story reminds me of Jordan Peele’s 2017 movie, Get Out. I would even go as far as assuming that, this book was inspired by the film considering the release date of the film and the publish date of this book – they’re eerily similar. And like in the movie, Chole, Jules’ best friend, is a carbon-copy of the best friend in the movie played by Lil Rel Howery, Rod.

III. The Writing

This is my second Riley Sager book and despite the story and plot, I enjoyed the writing. I have nothing bad to say about the writing or the dialogue. My only criticism would be that, the first-half of this book moved very slowly, not that that had to do with the writing but, I do think there was a lot of explanation and very descriptive writing that could have been used in other areas of the book.

My Final Thought: It’s not a bad book but it wouldn’t make a top 5 list for the month. After reading, The House Across The Lake I had higher expectations for other Sager books but, I think I jumped the gun a bit. Not to say I won’t pick up another Riley Sager book — I will because I want to read, The Only One Left — but this one just wasn’t my favorite so far. Would I recommend it? Yeah, sure.