Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - The Paris Apartment

I finished this in just 2 days, which is pretty quick for me especially in the summer! It took a bit to get into the story but once I did, I did not want to put it down 🤭

I loved the switching POVs and getting to know the characters. At first it was a little difficult to keep track of everyone but it got easier over time! It also helped having such a large cast that I was constantly trying to guess the suspect.

Writing can be a little too much telling over showing at times. It was harder to get into compared to Foley’s other books. There are also quite a few pop culture/brand name dropping references which I don’t love, it’s a pet peeve of mine that will make the book feel dated in years to come😂

I only guessed one of the smaller reveals/twists. Absolutely shocked at the big reveals and watching the secrets come to light!! My jaw was on the floor, as always Foley has done it once again and continues to be one of my favorite thriller authors ❤️

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angorarabbit's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

Context: I wish I could remember the review that made me want to read this, I thought it was going to be more mystery and less thriller.

TLDR: I got hung-up on the foster care stuff, your mileage may vary.

The plotting was pretty tight for the most part with a few plot holes that didn’t matter very much. The central mystery was interesting and fresh. Most plot twists were a surprise.

My main problem came with the characterisation. The foster care system does heavy lifting in explaining Jess and Ben. Which wouldn’t have been so bad if there weren’t some important plot points that for someone somewhat familiar with the system are just plain unbelievable. I don’t know how much experience Ms Foley has had with the system but she might have benefited from an experienced beta reader.It’s rather like a non-Roma writer with a main character who is Roma and not having some Roma readers to advise them on Roma life. Just saying, “oh, they were in foster care so they are like this” is lazy.

The ending felt like Ms Foley found her deadline approaching and her editor wanted a happy ending for all rewrite. Anyone surviving foster care could tell you that there never is a happy ending for everyone.

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