Having really enjoyed The Hunting Party, I was excited to get my hands on this novel by Lucy Foley. I’d decided to give The Guest List a temporary miss, as it seemed a little too similar to THP as far as I was concerned.

Here we have Jess as our main character, who, right from the outset, doesn’t make a great impression. Clearly a bit flakey, somewhat unpredictable, carrying issues from her past, I really struggled to connect with her in any way.

Arriving in Paris, she finds herself faced with a mystery – her half-brother (who we only meet briefly) is missing. With access to his apartment, she sets about trying to find out what’s happened, and is faced with a number of hostile neighbours and an occasionally aggressive cat.

In what appears to be Foley’s chosen style, this story unfolds via various character points of view. This is great from a keeping the story moving perspective, except, it doesn’t really work in this book. The pace is so slow (I was 40% through before I felt anything remotely interesting happened), and none of the characters are interesting enough to make you want to race through to find out more. In fact, there isn’t a likeable character in the book (the cat might win it for me, despite it’s obvious issues, but then, I’m a crazy cat lady).

Generally speaking I was hugely disappointed with this as it just wasn’t interesting. The concept is good, but somehow it didn’t weave together in to something that worked. I can see why some have enjoyed it (I’m clearly a minority voice here), but this is not Foley’s best work.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

Jess needs a fresh start, she’s broke and alone and has just left her job in a local dive bar. She decides to go to Paris to stay with her brother Ben. Only when she arrives Bens not there.

Ben appears to have vanished and the more Jess searches the more questions she has. Ben’s neighbour’s are strange, secretive and not very friendly. Everyone's a suspect and everyone knows something.

This is a completely different style of novel compared to Lucy Foleys previous books. It’s a slow burn with multiple POVS that leaves you guessing right until the end. Throughout the book there was the classic sense of whodunit that left me not wanting to put the book down. The plot the characters everything was just perfection.

5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

There was plenty in this book that I enjoyed and some I didn’t.

Lucy Foley is a very good storyteller and appeals to a wide audience of readers. I am one of them.

Jess is going to stay with her half brother in Paris, fresh start for her.
Things don’t go to plan as you would expect or there wouldn’t be much of a story to tell.
Turning up in Bens apartment is suspect and eerie and darn right problematic. Where is Ben?
And how come he can afford such a luxurious place to live on his money?

12 ru Des Amants Is divided up into several apartments.

The people she encounters when trying to find out where Ben is or if anyone had seen him or knows where he’s gone and when he’s coming back, have no answers.
It’s all very very weird and very oddly strange.
Something doesn’t feel right.

The author has woven a great storyline for us readers, there are lots of characters to keep up with, so that was a job.

Mostly, it wasn’t always clear which part of the timeline I was in. Past? Present?
So I had to keep track of that myself. I think that needs to be addressed as it got confusing at times.

If you are looking for a book that draws you in right away, this isn’t it. It’s more of an ‘easing’ in until you touch base and gradually get on firm footing with what you are reading.

I much preferred reading this in format than audio.
I had to give up part way through audio as one of the females voice was very monotone and irritated me. The others though were spot on and I loved the one who took the French accent!

I stuck with it, and I’m glad I did, with all its faults and some irritation I did enjoy it.

I think it would take a patient reader to enjoy this, someone who doesn’t expect excitement right away.

The respectability of the inhabitants in an expensive and plush apartment building is under question following the disappearance of a British journalist. His sister Jess seeks to find the truth which takes her into a murky world of corruption. There are plenty of secrets, lies and dead ends here and a cast list of almost entirely unlikeable characters. The building is a an extra character and provides plenty of scope for the characters to spy on one another and for Jess to investigate the truth, putting herself in danger in the meantime and dredging unpleasant memories from her past to fuel her resolve.

Thanks to HarperCollins Uk, HarperFiction and Netgalley for a review copy.

Jess arrives in Paris to visit her brother. She arrives at this grand Parisian mansion where he lives to find that he has disappeared. And we are now immersed in this search for him, in this oppressive and claustrophobic atmosphere where everyone living in this house seems to act strange. Who are they? What are they up to? And what happened to Ben? Well, you will be taken through many twists and you will have your suspicions. But you will only find out at the very end, and it will most likely not be what you thought! I loved this brilliant whodunnit novel. It was my first read by Lucy Foley but I will definitely read more.

A claustrophobic thriller, set in a plush Paris apartment that hides a murky inner core.

I have just reviewed another murder mystery which was set in a hotel, and I really love the possibilities that a hotel setting has for exploring human connection and interaction when in an unfamiliar setting, and this is in the same vein, but with the added tension that the central character (though this is told from multiple points of view) is a stranger to the apartment and everyone in it, but they are not. She is watched and monitored, exposed to the other apartments through the courtyard and windows, yet always unwelcome and unfamiliar. I really loved that aspect of it.

The mystery itself unfolds slowly, and , while I don't always enjoy stories told from multiple points of view, I think it worked really well here to slowly unfurl what connects everyone, what they know about each other, and what remains hidden.

I did suspect or figure out quite a few of the twists or reveals before they happened in the book, so some of the suspense was lost in that case, especially the main event at the end, and I was also kind of disappointed with the thing(s) (trying not to spoil anything) that connected some of the characters, I think I would have preferred it if the connection(s) had not been so neat/strong, but then I suppose it would have been an entirely different story.

I read The Guest List and enjoyed it, this one though drove me a bit nutty. Jess needed a fresh start and asks her half brother Ben if she could visit. Ben reluctantly agrees, upon Jess’ arrival Ben is nowhere to be found in his apartment. Days go by and Jess is a bit worried, doesn’t help that she feels unwelcome by the other tenants. They watch her, have awkward conversations, what are they hiding? The story alternates by 6 POVs & a slow burn mystery. Thank you to HarperCollins for a gifted copy.

3.5 stars
I thought the start and ending were pretty strong, with some great twists at the end. However it did drag a little in the middle for me, and the characters and their relationships with each other weren't that interesting, The constant flashbacks were a little annoying, although I did enjoy the big cast of characters. I think the setting could have been used more as well, and I only remembered it was Paris when there were the occasional French words added in to dialogue,

I am a big fan of Lucy Foley’s thrillers and I was delighted that a new one had been unleashed on the world. I had little idea of what to expect from The Paris Apartment going into it but I did get caught up in some of the marketing buzz for it, so it’s safe to say I was excited!

Jess needs to escape London and build a new life for herself. Her half brother Ben offers a place to stay with him in Paris and Jess jumps at the chance. But when she arrives at Ben’s apartment complex, Ben doesn’t appear to be there. He knew she was coming, so where is he? In fact, none of his neighbours seem to know where he could be and they don’t appear to be particularly friendly either.

The apartment building itself is large, imposing and incredibly claustrophobic. It clearly knew all the secrets and truths that were being hidden from Jess and therefore the reader. Although its inhabitants are wealthy people, I didn’t really get any feelings of opulence and excess from the building. I pictured it as an ominous, cold presence, which added to the tension of the book.

Ben’s neighbours all seem to be hiding multiple things and because of that, I had no idea of what was really going on until very near the end. It seemed that everyone genuinely disliked Ben and wanted him to disappear, which made it very tough to figure out the case myself. Of course, that didn’t stop me trying! I didn’t get very far though, so I was always going to be surprised by the twisty final pages.

Ben and Jess are very different people and Jess’ thoughts about their relationship regularly crop up. Ben comes across as a golden child, who has gone on to enjoy a successful career and charmed his way through life. It’s easy to see how it could rub certain people up the wrong way and indeed, even Jess seems to dislike Ben. He seems an easy target for people wanting to exact revenge or get rid of inconveniences.

The Paris Apartment is an exciting, page-turning thriller with deliciously complex characters. It’s a very slow, mind-bending mystery that also manages to touch on real world issues that don’t often get much attention or consideration. There is a lot going on at its heart and is in fact, an intense unravelling of the depravities and true darknesses of our world. Creepy, heartbreaking and very addictive, it’s a book that is very nutritious brain food.

Having read and loved Lucy Foley's two previous novels I was so excited when I saw she had a new book coming out and couldn't wait to read it. Unfortunately this book just didn't grip me in the same way as her previous books. It won't put me off picking up any future books by her but I'm glad this wasn't the first book I read by her. The twists and turns at the end of the book were enjoyable but it felt like a hard read for me to get to that point.

What has Benjamin Daniel's been up to? That is the question travelling around my head as I begin the story and am introduced to the residents of the apartment and Benjamin's half-sister, Jessica.

I love that the chapters are nice and short. It keeps the story flowing well and makes for an easy read. It also makes you desperate to know more because you are only granted small snippets at a time.

I really enjoyed this book. I've been lucky enough to go to Paris once before and I liked reading about a city I've visited.

I really liked this one, it definitely threw some curve balls my way and I didn't see it coming at all. Really liked Jess as a character and was rooting for her to uncover all the secrets. Fabulous. Very very strong thriller in my opinion.

4 strong stars

What’s more disappointing than a disappointing thriller? One by an author whose previous works you’ve liked.

I loved Lucy Foley’s The Hunting Party, I enjoyed her Guest List but her latest, The Paris Apartment, fell flat for me. Despite using the same blueprint of multiple POVs, flashbacks and everyone having a motive as before, it just didn’t do it for me.

The premise was an interesting one: Jess arrives in Paris to stay with her brother Ben, but he seems to have disappeared. Suddenly every resident in the grand old apartment building is a suspect. Everyone has a secret or more to hide in a classic whodunit tale.

But that’s where it ends for me. None of the characters were likeable (which they don’t have to be for me in order to enjoy a book) but they also failed to spark my interest in them, their traits and demons all a bit too cliché and predictable, while the location didn’t really add to the plot, other than having a lot of gratuitous French thrown in.

The only redeeming factor was the last 15% of the book, when the pace finally picked up and the various strands were neatly woven back together, so at least it made for a satisfying end. But unfortunately that was all a bit too little, too late for me. A real shame as I’d had such high hopes for this book.

N.B. I really, really dislike writing non-glowing book reviews and take no pleasure in it. As a writer and editor I KNOW how much blood, sweat and tears go into the process of writing a book. But we’re all here for an honest review so honest you’ll get…

Loved this! It's tightly plotted and full of suspense. I devoured it as fast as I could. Great characters and a really interesting setup.

I loved this whodunnit by Lucy Foley, who is writing at the top of her game. A great, twisty thriller.

I had been looking forward to reading this book for ages and I was excited to have the chance to take part in the tandem readalong.

I loved the way this was written with the chapters alternating between Jess and the other residents. I couldn’t figure out who to to trust.

The chapters were short too which meant I kept reading as I was wanting to find out what was happening next.

I didn’t see the twists coming at all. I had no idea what was going to happen.

This was my first Lucy Foley novel and I will definitely be reading my by this author.

My thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review. I have also previously read and enjoyed her other books: The Hunting Party and The Guest List, which are both reviewed on my blog.

Wow looking at the reviews on Goodreads, this is definitely a marmite book. I have to admit this one didn't grab me as much as the previous ones of hers that I have read. With a list of characters who all reside in an apartment block, it's a great whodunit as the reader tries to figure out what the heck has happened to missing resident Ben. As Jess tries to unravel the mystery who can she trust if anyone and is she safe?

Told in short chapters and all from a different characters perspective, trying to feed you info along the way trying to help you work out has happened and possibly the reasons why it's happened. This is quite a well written story, but it just failed to engage me as much as her previous books have done.

A fantastic novel with an unexpected twist. I loved the Paris setting and the claustrophobic atmospehere. Foley continues to enthral with sure fire hits.

'The Paris Apartment' to be honest is not quite what I was expecting. It is in essence a nuts-and-bolts thriller in a traditional/classic mould: a murder has (likely) been committed, a restricted number of characters in a closed environment are involved, and one of the group has taken it upon themselves to uncover the truth. It is in effect the traditional ‘country house’ mystery dressed in Parisienne couture and told with a modern twist. But to be fair, that is my type of thing, and it is certainly none the worse for it.

There is also no doubt that Lucy Foley can write a good thriller. Her pacing is consistently good and her method of revealing the plot in short bursts from many characters’ perspective definitely works and has been very successful. But really, this format it is starting to grate with me. Don’t get me wrong, 'The Paris Apartment' is a well written, nail-biting thriller but one has to simply accept the ‘conceit’ of the first-person narrator presented as personal thoughts but reading as if a perspective of a story is being told to the reader. This format and the constant shifting from narrator to narrator, literally every few pages, drip-feeding the story, does draw the reader in but it can become a little irritating after a while.
It is a relatively unusual device in literature and Lucy Foley certainly has made it her own – maybe it is too soon for me since finishing ‘The Guest List’ (her previous novel) but the style of narrative was putting me round the bend – but then again, maybe that is why it is a relatively unusual device…

Still, it is a good yarn told at a page-turning rate, and had it been the first Lucy Foley novel I had read I may have got along better with the style choice but for me, this slightly spoiled a good story well told.

The Paris Apartment is a new crime drama from Lucy Foley. I enjoyed her first book The Hunting Party and was disappointed by the second one - The Guest List. Therefore, the jury was out on this third one. It was more of a slow burner than I usual like and the characters were too much of a cliche (spoilt rich unhappy and useless son, cruel and nasty rich father; a protagonist who overcame adversities etc). The secrets were also obvious and held no major surprises. I listened to the audio version and its excellent narration saved the day, otherwise I am not sure I would have finished.
I won’t be in a rush to preorder the author’s next book.