This was a great psychological thriller. It reminded me of Rosemary's Baby and Riley Sager's Lock Every Door. This one kept me guessing until the end. I would definitely recommend this one too thriller lovers!

The Apartment: K.L. Slater

Release Date: 4/28/2020

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Eerie, captivating, and cinematic; a dark psychological thriller.

Down on her luck, Freya Miller needs some help. After her husbands death, she is unable to keep their home and is searching for a way to give her five-year-old daughter, Skye, the security she needs. After nearly hitting rock bottom, she meets charismatic Dr. Marsden who offers her a lovely apartment, located in an expensive area in London, for a mere $500 monthly. Something is too good to be true. As Freya’s attitude from hope and excitement shifts to paranoia, she starts seeing her apartment for what it truly is: a living nightmare.

The Apartment was a perfectly paced, with slow-burn chapters followed by fast-paced excerpts, that I completely devoured in a day. Genuinely could not put the book down. If you are looking for a quick, suspenseful, and all-consuming read, this is it. ALSO, I was a science major during undergrad and took the MCAT. This book covers a controversial topic that all science majors will be aware of and I was thrilled to see the plot thicken because of it. THRILLED.

Overall, LOVED this book. By far my favorite psychological thriller I’ve read this year. It did give off a bit of ‘Lock Every Door’ vibes but as it progressed, it was clearly different in its entirety.

Along with posting on Net Galley, I will be posting my review to Goodreads, Amazon (when it becomes available), my Instagram (which has over a two thousand book review followers) and my blog. Please find the link to my blog post below. I am very grateful for the opportunity to review such a raw and gritty thriller. All opinions and thoughts are my own. Thank you very much.
Link to Blog Post: https://ifyoucanreadthisdotblog.wordpress.com/2020/04/23/the-apartment-k-l-slater/
Link to Instagram Post: https://www.instagram.com/ifyoucan_read_this/
Link to Goodreads Post: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/112342382-chanel-johnson

Respectfully
Chanel Johnson

This was 4.5 stars, raised to 5. Freya is a recent widow under difficult circumstances. Her husband had left her and their young daughter for her “best” friend. Shortly thereafter he died. She is financially strapped and meets a man in a coffee shop who tells her about a small apartment in a very nice part of London that is available to the right person. After seeing it, she takes the apartment and moves into it with her daughter. From then on, nothing will be the same. Going into the details will lead to many spoilers . All the reader needs to know is that this is a very well written psychological thriller and that it will be a most gripping read for most who like that genre. Thanks to Net Galley and Thomas and Mercer for an ARC for an honest review.

The Apartment by K.L Slater is a 4 star read.
Freya’s husband left her for another woman and died a few months later leaving her a single mother, she needs to sell the family home and look for somewhere affordable for her and her daughter to live, she meets Dr Marsden in a coffee shop and he offers her an apartment to rent in Adder house for a price she can afford. It doesn’t take long for weird things to start to happen and the too good to be true apartment turns into a nightmare.
This is the first book from this author I have read and I really enjoyed it, the characters were well thought out and I really felt like I was in Adder house, I am looking forward to reading more from this author. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley.

An entertaining and intriguing read.
The reader feels empathy with Freya as the tension mounts up throughout the book.
I still had a couple of questions at the end but generally it was a quick and easy read, an ideal holiday read.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer/Amazon Publishing, and K.L. Slater for the opportunity to read and review her latest thriller - 4 stars for a quick, entertaining read.

Freya is a single mom to Skye, still reeling from her husband's betrayal and death, and desperate to quickly find an apartment she can afford after selling her home. When a man approaches her in a coffee shop with an offer to rent an apartment near Kensington Palace in a gorgeous building, she is cautious but feels like she has found the answer to all her prayers. But of course some things are really too good to be true!

Another good read by K.L. Slater!

After her husband betrayal, Freya is in desperate need for a place to live for herself and her five year old daughter Skye.
When she meets Dr. Marsden and he offers her a place at Adder House, it sounds too good to be true. As she settles in, she feels as if the walls have secrets.
Constantly feeling like she is being watched, and after finding a concealed camera, she realizes the home is more a nightmare than a dream.
Because this was a quick read, the characters lacked time to fully develop. The story felt rushed, and the ending seemed confusing to me.


Thank you Netgalley and the publisher, for an ARC and the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wow. I can’t even begin to describe how enjoyable “The Apartment” by K. L. Slater was. I received an e-mail by NetGalley advertising this psychological thriller and was intrigued, so naturally I had to learn more about it. While reading the summary, I was reminded of one of my favorite Riley Sager books called “Lock Every Door” and immediately requested an eARC. I was thrilled to be approved for this, eager to see the similarities and differences of this story compared to “Lock Every Door.” I had high expectations for this storyline going in to reading it, and I absolutely was not disappointed.


“The Apartment” is about a woman named Freya Miller and her daughter Skye, who are going through a really rough time. Freya’s husband has not only recently left her to be with a former friend of hers, but a few months later he suddenly passes away. After his passing, Freya is about to lose their family home and is desperate for a miracle to swoop in and save them. While visiting her local Starbucks, Freya stumbles upon a chance encounter with a gentleman named Dr. Marsden, who happens to be there putting up rental signs for an apartment that is shockingly affordable in an upscale area of London. Convinced that Adder House is too good to be true, Dr. Marsden insists that Freya and Skye come by that evening to look at the apartment, insisting that they would be the perfect tenants. Not being able to afford passing up such an incredible opportunity, she obliges, falls in love with the apartment and is officially moving in to her new home a week later.

Not long after arriving, Freya begins to realize that there is something dark and mysterious about Adder House and that the residents aren’t exactly who they appear to be. Freya and Skye experience a lot of unexplainable things such as hearing voices and crying, feeling like they’re being watched, furniture being moved, cameras suddenly appearing in the apartment, and much more. As all of this is going on, Freya discovers that just a few months ago, a tragic incident occurred involving a woman and her daughter, who happened to reside in the same apartment prior to Freya moving in. Desperate to leave, Freya is left wondering if her encounter with Dr. Marsden at Starbucks was truly by chance, or completely intentional… Will Freya and Skye be able to escape Adder House? Or will they experience the same fate as the previous tenants…


K. L. Slater is a fantastic storyteller. This is the first book I have read by her and after reading, I can easily see why she is the bestselling author of nine psychological crime thrillers. The story plot and buildup was perfect- I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and could not put the book down, finishing the story within 24 hours. The ending happened pretty suddenly (within the last 3-5% of the book), and while it initially raised several questions for me about what was happening, most of them were answered in the epilogue and I feel that I ended up being left with an appropriate amount of wonder upon the story ending. While I really enjoyed the character development of Freya, the Marsden’s, and Lily, I wish that the Watson’s could’ve had a stronger role in the story- it almost felt like they existed for the sole purpose of being later referenced in one sentence at the end of the story. The only other thing that I would have liked to see at the end of the story would have been more specific details about how Skye was adjusting after her experiences at Adder House, especially since we were able to get that closure for other characters mentioned in the story with similar experiences.

I was pleased that while the initial summary of the story reminded me so much of “Lock Every Door,” overall the storylines were totally different. Without giving any details away, I thoroughly enjoyed the psychology experiments that were referenced in this book and was pleasantly surprised by how they were spun into the story line.


If you love psychological thrillers and are a fan of “Lock Every Door” by Riley Sager, I highly recommend checking out “The Apartment.” Thank you so much to Thomas & Mercer for providing me this eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to receiving my preordered copy on Pub Day, April 28th!

'The Apartment,' by K.L. Slater, has a fantastic premise that keeps you turning pages despite some literary weaknesses. The main character and her daughter are endearing and believable. The mystery is teased out in a way that you want to find out how it all plays out! Plus, the cast of characters are somewhere between sinister and quirky - seeing how they piece into the puzzle will keep you reading.

The read is easy and quick. If you are prone to skimming it will be simple to keep up with. The ending does play out. However, overall the story has some loose ends that could have been tied up more neatly. The ending was a bit rushed and the explanations a bit too loose for what I like in a thriller. If you are a fan of psychological thrillers you will want to read this one. If this is not your main genre you will probably find those deficits extremely irksome.

This book is excellent for a bit of escapism.

It’s super easy to read and quite short so it’s punchy and there’s no unnecessary detail or information. It’s well written and for a thriller, it’s comforting in its predictability. This is not a bad thing though, I enjoyed the story and the premise is unusual and it keeps you hooked til the end.

It doesn’t drag on at the end either which I like, sometimes I find myself stopping reading books after the ‘big reveal’ because it’s all a bit extraneous after that but this doesn’t do that!

3.5 up to 4 stars

Freya's husband left her for another but died before they could get divorced. Freya has to sell their house but with nowhere to go she doesn't know where to take her daughter, Skye to live. Along comes Dr Marsden, Mr too good to be true, with the perfect solution to her problem. From here this creepy psychological drama (not really a thriller for me) moves at a comfortable pace but has a fairly predictable plot. The character development is good enough to make me interested in Freya and Skye's situation but I never felt a real connection. It's well written with just enough tension and suspense to keep me turning the pages, but then it ended and left me thinking "well that was nice, now on to my next book!"

Thank you Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for granting me a copy to read, review and enjoy.

A Real Page Turner...

I was perpetually on the edge of my seat. It was terribly hard to put it down. Even when I had to absolutely put it down to fulfill some personal task, oh, boy oh boy, it occupied my mind, could hardly wait to get back to it. And when I do, I imagine myself feeling like I'm teetering on a precipice. The author is brilliant, it is so well written it made me vacillate between believing and at the same time doubting the heroine, Freya, that she's over imagining things and losing her mind. It was so compelling it constantly made me feel something foreboding and frightful is about to happen, I was in a constant state of comprehension, waiting for something with anxiety and fear. I highly recommend this book, something to take your mind off of fear from the Covid-19 pandemic. It'll save you from being bored quarantining yourself.
This is my first read of this author and it will not be the last. What a great read it is!

Freya needs a miracle. Following her husband’s betrayal she’s about to lose her family home and needs some kind of stability and security for her daughter Skye. After meeting Dr Marsden she’s given an opportunity she can’t afford to pass up. A luxurious apartment in a wealthy part of London for peppercorn rent - she’d be a fool to pass that up. Dr Marsden is adamant she’ll be a perfect fit for the property and the other residents but is it all just a little too good to be true?

With a sense of being watched and items moving is this her dream home or the start of a nightmare?

The Apartment was just the kind of psychological thriller to get under your skin that I was craving. In fact I quite simply loved it! Thank you to NetGalley, Amazon Publishing Group and the author for the chance to review.

Freya’s life is one hot and complicated mess!

K.L. Slater has an engaging writing style and I became an instant fan after reading “Closer”, which was amazing. I wish I could say that I was as impressed with this one. I’m not sure why, but this one just didn’t do it for me.

I’ve read so many good books lately, maybe my expectations were too high.

<b>My Rating:</b> 3 ⭐️’s
<b>Published:</b> April 28th 2020 by Amazon Publishing UK
<b>Pages:</b> 270

Thank you to NetGalley, Amazon Publishing UK and K.L. Slater for this digital ARC, in exchange for my honest opinion!

#MysteryThriller #TheApartment #NetGalley

Although I wanted to keep reading and find out what was going to happen next, I feel there was something missing. I think there needed to be more to the back story. I feel the story ended to quickly with a brief explanation of what was happening in Adder House. I believe this could have been a better story if there was more detail with regards to the other tenants and to the history that led to the current situation at Adder House.

Thus was a really good book. It kept my interest, and I totally guessed wrong about some of the characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

A page turner book
About a woman who loses her husband in an accident, but he was leaving her for an older woman.
The wife was selling the house and had to move.
Freya was in a coffee shop and a guy offered her an apartment for cheap rent.
Psychological thriller

“The Apartment”—K.L. Slater [3.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫] This was my first read by this author and I quite enjoyed this fast-paced thriller. Freya Miller has not had much luck recently with the loss of her husband, and she’s about to lose her home and the security it provides for her and her five year old daughter Skye. Worried about what her next move is going to be, she’s in a coffee shop and meets the charismatic Dr. Marsden who offers her an amazing opportunity to live in an affordable apartment in the fancy Adder House in London. He is quite sure that Freya and her daughter will be a great fit there and will get along great with the residents. She thinks this will be a great chance for a fresh start for her and Skye. Freya starts to realize that the Adder House has some secrets. Odd things start occurring and she feels like she is being watched, and her hopes for a promising new start start to become a nightmare. As we learn more of the truth, will Freya and Skye be able to leave the apartment, or will they be trapped there? This book only fell short of 4 stars for me because I was expecting a little more from the ending and I had a few unanswered questions. I would definitely recommend checking out this book if you like a good thriller 👍🏼 *Thank you to @netgalley and @amazonpublishinguk for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review*

“The Apartment” is a mildly entertaining, fast read that is competently written with a well-developed main character. However, it fails to deliver on the “thriller” aspect as explained more fully below.

In this book, Freya is desperately trying to find an apartment that she can afford to live in with her 5 year old daughter, Sky, since she must move out of the heavily mortgaged house she recently sold. She had lived in the house with her estranged husband, who moved in with another woman, and then was killed, leaving Freya a very small life insurance policy that will only last her about 6 months. While in a Starbucks searching apartment listings, a Dr. Marsden approaches Freya and offers to rent her an apartment in a house in a wealthy section of Kensington at a very low rate. The offer appears too good to be true, but Freya needs to find something soon and can’t resist the offer. Freya soon learns that her instincts to distrust the generous offer were well founded.

Although the story was competently written in such a way that you sympathize with Freya and somewhat feel her anxiety over the experiences she has at the house, the story nevertheless feels a bit dull. Specifically, a lot of the story is focused on her child care responsibilities (moving her daughter from her old school to a new one, helping her daughter cope with the changes, etc.) which are somewhat tedious. Moreover, nothing that happens at the house is all that scary.

Overall, the book is a quick average read that will keep the reader mildly entertained but does not rise to the level of a “psychological thriller.”

I had mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I liked the premise a lot and found the old psychological writings interspersed with the narrative intriguing. On the other hand, I felt there was too little of that, and too much time spend on everyday aspects of a mother and child who are moving to a new apartment. The beginning of the story moved a bit slowly for my taste, and I felt that a pivotal event/discovery about 50 percent of the way through could have been made earlier in the the book for more suspense.

In retrospect, I think this is a "don't judge a book by its cover" situation. I'm a big fan of B.A. Paris, and the cover of this book was a lot like hers, which put me in mind to expect a fast-paced, high octane type thriller that I was excited to read. Instead, I agree with a previous reviewer that this book was a bit "flowery" and took quite a bit of time to get to the scary part. Ultimately, not a lot happened to the main character and her daughter until the very end, and there just wasn't enough mystery in the previous case to draw me in.

The ending of the book, though, was good, but a little abrupt - I wish I'd seen more hints and details and scariness about what was ultimately happening in the house before the end of the book.

I think if the description and marketing of this book painted it as less of a psychological thriller, or if I had been expecting less of a fast paced book, I might have enjoyed it more if I read it in a different mood. But as a psychological thriller it lacked some action and scariness for me. The author is a good writer, but I would have liked a little more octane.