Wow. Wow. Wow.

Lucy Foley does it again!

I had high expectations after loving #TheHuntingParty and #TheGuestList, and this novel did not disappoint! In keeping with Foley’s modern day Agatha Christie reputation, #TheParisApartment includes a dark and dysfunctional set of characters with a vast array of secrets to hide. You follow Ben and Jess’ quest to find answers from this mysterious bunch of characters, which as a result made it incredibly difficult to put this book down! The sense of place, as in all of Lucy’s novels, is beautiful, raw and creepy in equal measure. The perfect escapism for a crime fiction fan.

If you loved Lucy Foley’s previous work, you will definitely love #TheParisApartment!

Thank you so much to @harpercollinsuk #netgalley for my early read.

Troubled Jess arrives in Paris to stay with her half-brother Ben. He’s living in an exclusive apartment complex but after giving her the address and saying he would be there he ‘s gone missing. Jess soon realises everyone in the small complex is hiding secrets and they get very cagey when she mentions her brother. Soon she is caught up in a web of intrigue in her desperate search for Ben and not sure who she can trust. The book was hard to put down with some lovely little twists, much like Lucy Foley’s other suspense novels, The Hunting Party and The Guest List. There were a few times when it changed point of view a bit abruptly and it bugged that not all the French was translated, leaving one feeling as if you are being left out but it didn’t ruin the enjoyment of the book. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

Wow!wow! wow!!!!!
What a fantastic book!!!
A must read for Lucy Foley fans...I think it's her best yet.
A real good whodunnit which keeps you guessing to the end.
I literally couldn't put it down......the best book I've read in a while.
Highly, highly recommended.

Lucy Foley does it again! I love that she deviated somewhat from her usual 'locked room' - and the reader is rewarded with stunning Parisian details from those characters that do venture outside the gates of The Paris Apartment. This was such a fun, escapist read, and I had absolutely no idea what was going on for most of the book - and I loved every minute of it!

I think I went into this book with overly high expectations because of how much I loved Lucy Foley's two previous novels. This one was good, but I was expecting to really, really love it and I just didn't. Don't get me wrong, I did like it and enjoy reading it but it never quite hit the spot like I wanted it to.

I liked the setting and I always like having multiple points of view. My favourite viewpoint was that of the concierge, I really looked forward to her chapters. I didn't particularly connect with main character Jess, and I think that's a big part of what stopped me from being completely engrossed in the plot. The plot was actually very good, there were lots of layers to uncover and the pacing was just right.

I don't speak any French at all, so for me the French parts interrupted the flow a bit and sometimes the words weren't translated until further down the page, or worse, not translated at all and I was worried that I might have missed something important.

Overall I would recommend the book as it's a decent story, I just didn't love it as much as I hoped I would. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Rating: 4.1/5

Lucy Foley has become one of a number of contemporary mystery writers, along with the likes of Ruth Ware and C.L. Taylor, who can be relied upon to consistently produce high quality, well-plotted, entertaining novels. Her latest offering, "The Paris Apartment" is no exception. If you enjoyed her previous mystery thrillers, "The Hunting Party" and "The Guest List" there is every chance that this will also meet with your approval.

I have seen this described as 'a classic whodunnit', but in common with her previous work, I would suggest that it would perhaps be equally fitting to call it "a whydunnit" or possibly even "a whodunnwhat". There are certainly elements of "The Paris Apartment" that are very much in the classic murder mystery tradition: We have a predominantly enclosed setting and a clearly defined cast of characters. Each of the key protagonists has a hidden history, with secrets that they wish to keep, that could easily serve as their motivation for "doing the deed".

The enclosed setting here is the eponymous Paris apartment - an impressive residence in a desirable and sought-after part of the city. It provides a backdrop that is both suitably atmospheric and in keeping with the essence of a "Golden Age" mystery, but one that simultaneously offers a refreshing alternative to the British country house or secluded hotel.

The dramatis personae are made up of the troubled Jess - who has arrived in Paris to stay with her half-brother, Ben - and the residents of the apartment who are Ben's neighbours. The narrative is presented from the viewpoint of each of the key characters and Lucy Foley generally does a fine job of giving each one a distinct and credible voice.

A traditional "Golden Age" mystery would tend to see the crime committed in the first half of the book, with the remainder concerning itself with solving the mystery and working out who the perpetrator may be. However, as was the case with her previous novel, "The Guest List", the actual deed does not come to light until much deeper into the telling of the story. Far more time is devoted to the idea of who may have done "something" and why certain individuals may have had motive to do various "somethings" depending upon events and developments. Lucy Foley is becoming increasingly adept at this, as she gradually allows backstories to emerge and reveal their relevance to later events.

The only aspect of the book that I found slightly disappointing was the closing section. I felt that the impressive foundation that had been established and built upon throughout the novel warranted a stronger finish, but other readers may feel differently. Nonetheless, this is another fine piece of work from the pen of Lucy Foley that I would happily recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

I have read Lucy Foley's previous two thrillers and although I loved The Hunting Party I was disappointed with the follow up, The Guest List. The Paris Apartment follows a similar theme to Foley's previous thrillers but is set in an apartment block in Paris, where nothing is as it seems. Jess arrives in Paris to stay with her brother Ben but on her arrival she finds he has disappeared. Her search for Ben introduces us to the building's residents and we discover their relationship with Ben and the secrets they are hiding.
I found the setting original and Foley's descriptions of the city and the apartment evocative but I never became completely immersed or invested in the plot or the characters. I lost interest as the novel progressed and felt it lacked pace and flow.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

Once again I was completely hooked by this gripping thriller that Lucy Foley never fails to deliver. I loved the writing, the characters, the storyline and the setting. I couldnt put it down and I didnt want it to end.
It was suspenseful and twisty and unpredictable, I loved it

The Paris Apartment reads like a modern day Agatha Christie, a suspense filled whodunnit narrated by an untrustworthy bunch of characters.Welcome to 12 Rue des Amants, central Paris. A beautiful, ancient apartment block, steeped in history and mystery. When Jess arrives at her brother Ben’s apartment, the luxurious flat is empty, and Ben is missing. Nothing goes unseen. And every tenant has a story to unlock. What secrets are the tenants hiding? Who's telling the truth? What mystery lies behind the door of apartment three? This book will keep you guessing all the way to the shocking conclusion, with well placed red herrings and misdirection at every twisted turn.

The Paris Apartment is all about the characters, they're an eclectic group, each one is fascinating in their own right, some more likeable than others, but each one is perfectly depicted. One of the thing I loved about this book is the element of suspicious that grows as the plot unfolds, The watchful concierge. The scorned lover. The prying journalist.The naïve student.The unwanted guest. Who should the reader trust? I found myself constantly questioning and looking for inconsistencies in their narration. It’s one of the things that made this book such an exciting psychological thriller to read.

Although I wouldn’t consider this book to be a fast-paced read, it’s the quest for answers that keeps the reader turning the pages. The sense of foreboding intensifies as the secrets of 12 Rue des Amants, are deftly revealed. The plot grows darker and far more sinister in its telling. Lucy Foley is a natural born storyteller. This book has everything you could hope for in a psychological thriller, twists, mystery, unreliable narrators and so much more! I’m sure this book will be a HUGE success on its release in March 2022.

Review will be posted to my Instagram account & goodreads

I blitzed through this book over the weekend as I just could not get enough. I enjoyed every second. I never knew what was going to happen next and with a multitude of twists and turns I just could not guess the ending. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have come to expect a certain calibre of story from Lucy Foley and The Paris Apartment does not disappoint! Like The Hunting Party and The Guest List, The Paris Apartment is twisty and mysterious and surprising, the story couched in a setting so vivid it will make you think you are really in Paris - a definite must read.

4.5 stars
Ever since I heard that Lucy Foley was releasing a new book I have been counting down the days until I would get a chance to read it. So I was very excited to be approved to read The Paris Apartment.
I really enjoyed both of Lucy Foley's previous books (The Hunting Party and The Guest List). And I was hooked from the very beginning with this one.
It had me guessing as to what had happened to Ben and what could possibly be going on at the exclusive apartment building.
I thought I had some clue as to what was going on but in the end, I really didn't.
I enjoyed the use of different perspectives for each chapter, that Lucy Foley does so well.
I also liked Jess as a protagonist. I could really get behind her quest to find out what had happened to her brother.
The way in which it continued to build and the world in which the characters inhabited, was so well described that I actually felt like I was there with them in Paris.
I also liked that even though any of the characters could have been responsible, something that Lucy Foley does in her work, not every single person hated Ben so much as to have been the one behind everything. That was something that irked me a bit about The Guest List, the fact that basically everyone hated that one person at such a strong level.
This is definitely my favourite of the three Lucy Foley books that I've read so far. And I can't wait to see what she does next.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A sophisticated set of Paris apartments built around a courtyard, each inhabitant watching one another whilst hiding their own secrets, not least the concierge who watches them all in plain sight. Jess turns up to stay there with her half-brother Ben, but he's not there when she arrives despite the plans they made together. Jess begins digging into Ben's disappearance, all the time under the watchful eye of the other inhabitants.

Such a great read, tightly plotted, mysterious characters with shady pasts, even Jess herself isnt squeaky clean.

The story is told by various residents in turn, and the storyline captures you and keeps you hooked, desperate to find out what has happened not only to Ben but the hidden stories that the other residents are keeping quiet.

Lucy Foley continues to deliver what she writes best in The Paris Apartment: a pacey, mysterious multi-character narrative set in a claustrophobic environment. In this case, the story is based around an gated apartment block in a wealthy neighbourhood in Paris. It feels like a separate world that the noise, smells and civil unrest of Paris barely touches. When the sister of one of its residents, Ben, arrives and realises her brother has disappeared it becomes apparent that not is all as it seems in this apartment block and an almost gothic atmosphere and sense of foreboding permeates the whole story. Whilst I did not enjoy this as much as The Hunting Party or The Guest List and found the conclusion quite unsurprising, this is a solid whodunnit that is very easy to race through and enjoy.

What secrets does number 12, Rue des Amants hold? Oh, there are many and Jess will discover them all.

When Jess arrives at her brother Ben’s Paris apartment, the luxurious flat is empty. Ben is missing. The other tenants of the building, a trophy wife, a secretive concierge, a disturbed young woman and her promiscuous roommate, an alcoholic and a wealthy student/investor, are less than helpful. In fact, they all seem to want her to leave. Why?

That question will be answered in the last pages of The Paris Apartment. Narrated in alternating chapters by the residents of number 12, this is a multilayered, deftly plotted, well written mystery. Jess, with past personal problems, is a sympathetic, determined character but the missing Ben is the dominating force that links the characters. They each have a unique relationship with him and describe him differently. He’s a chameleon in this excellent thriller by Lucy Foley. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction and Lucy Foley for this ARC.

The Paris apartment by Lucy Foley.
Wow. A brilliant read. I read this in one sitting. I loved Jess and Ben. Wasn't sure about Sophie Mimi Nick or the Concierge. I was sure they were guilty. 5*.

Stupendous…
12 Rue des Amants, central Paris. A beautiful, ancient apartment block, steeped in history and glorious decadence. What secrets are hiding here? Something deadly? Perhaps so, but the main certainty is that everybody is watching and there’s a story to be told. Much more than a whodunnit, this is a well observed psychological suspense with a very sharp edge and a twisting and turning, often breathless plot. The cast of characters is beautifully drawn, entirely credible and the narrative superb. One to devour entirely in one delicious sitting, as I did. Stupendous.

#TheParisApartment #NetGalley
Masterful.
Jess needs a fresh start. She’s broke and alone, and she’s just left her job under less than ideal circumstances. Her half-brother Ben didn’t sound thrilled when she asked if she could crash with him for a bit, but he didn’t say no, and surely everything will look better from Paris. Only when she shows up – to find a very nice apartment, could Ben really have afforded this? – he’s not there. The longer Ben stays missing, the more Jess starts to dig into her brother’s situation, and the more questions she has. Ben’s neighbors are an eclectic bunch, and not particularly friendly. Jess may have come to Paris to escape her past, but it’s starting to look like it’s Ben’s future that’s in question. The socialite – The nice guy – The alcoholic – The girl on the verge – The concierge Everyone's a neighbor. Everyone's a suspect. And everyone knows something they’re not telling.
I loved the twists and turns that were coming one after another. Lucy Foley knows how to write an excellent novel.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK Harper Fiction for giving me an advance copy.