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The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley
What could be superior to the traditional locked-room mystery? Some people might find the inherent urgency and magician-like performances of the criminals to be attractive, but I always find the originality and difficulty of the puzzle to be captivating. With the help of this method (The Hunting Party, The Guest List), Lucy Foley has recently achieved success. She merely updated it for the twenty-first century.
Many genre tropes are used by the author in her most recent book, The Paris Apartment, including an evocatively rendered historical building in a posh neighbourhood that seems to be a world away from the otherwise gritty streets of modern Paris, a feeling of claustrophobic confinement inside of it, a language barrier and cultural isolation outside of it, power imbalances (both financial and familial), swirling suspicion, and shifting alliances among an eclectic cast of characters with plenty of baggage. Although it is a lovely structure, something is wrong with it. Now that he is aware of it, he can smell its foul odour everywhere.
Notably though, she has combined a multi-character revolving first-person narrative framework and the voyeuristic potential of the traditional French apartment building courtyard formation to heighten watchful suspense and give this novel a dark, Hitchcockian atmosphere. In the concierge’s cabin, the lights are on. Of course, that nosy old git is always on the lookout for a trick. creeping out of dark places. Always keeping an eye on things. She looks at you as if she is aware of all your secrets.
Written or Audiobook Format?
Regular readers will know that I prefer alternating first-person narratives to most others, but when I initially started reading this book, I found it difficult to get into it and become interested in the stories of all the individuals. So I switched to that format when I realised The Paris Apartment audiobook is performed by a cast of narrators. That added degree of difference was exactly what I needed at the time to get my bearings, and I soon lost myself in the mystery. I obviously did not return to the text after that.
Satisfying Denouement
While I’ve made an effort to avoid giving away Lucy Foley’s deft red herrings and strategically placed discoveries in The Paris Apartment, I feel compelled to point out that this mystery spends a lot of time wandering down dark and twisted psychological lanes. And therefore, for some, this can be triggering. But for the most, listening to the audiobook version of this Parisian trip from darkness to light will be worthwhile because of the satisfying but nevertheless grounded conclusion.
About The Book
A lovely old apartment building, far from the Eiffel Tower’s sparkling lights and the busy Seine River banks. where no detail is overlooked and each person has a mystery to solve.
The watchful concierge
The scorned lover
The prying journalist
The naïve student
The unwanted guest
There was a murder here last night.
A mystery lies behind the door of apartment three.
Who holds the key?
The Review
The Paris Apartment
9 Score
The writing and story are superb. It's written from different points of view, which if I'd known ahead of time I wouldn't have purchased the book, but that's because I have never enjoyed a book written from different points of view. It's normally too hard to become engrossed in the characters.
PROS
- Another Great Lisa Foley Whodunnit!
- Spellbinding and recommend Highly!
- Wow! A masterpiece of suspense and great writing.
- Wonderful read!
CONS
- The Worst Book..
- Incredibly Ridiculous.
- Terrible waste of time and money.
- Bad concept. Boring read.
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