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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
LOVED the 3 POVs in this book.
4/5 stars - a real page-turner that kept me guessing until the end.
4/5 stars - a real page-turner that kept me guessing until the end.
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
sad
tense
Written in second person which I hated! It was very repetitive and robotic. Rachel was annoying, Cecilia was naive, and Aidan was irritating. This book was too long for what it was. There really wasn’t anything thrilling or twisty.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I enjoyed this book. It kept me engaged, wanting to know what was going to happen. I do however, have some qualms.
I found the multi-POVs unnecessary. Why do we need to hear from the daughter? Why do we need to hear from the several women he's killed? Other than helping us keep track of Aiden's life story, they don't add anything to the narrative. The changing prose between Rachel, Emily, and Cecilia was a nice stylistic choice, but I found it to be distracting at times. I understand we don't know Rachel's true name and that is why we likely get called "you" throughout her chapters, but maybe that should have ended in her last chapters when her name is revealed at the end? Didn't seem like a good enough reason for such bumpy, choppy writing.
Emily is an infuriating character. There are lots of parallels drawn between her and Aiden, but they don't lead to anything or go anywhere. She even decides to buy a trapper hat, Aiden's signature piece, at the end of the book. Why? She is obsessive as girls can be when they have a crush, but I hate how stupid she is despite this. She is a grown woman. She has been keeping an eye on Aiden since her teenage years. There is no commentary on their age gap. All of Emily's coworkers are weightless side characters. Even Emily has no personality traits aside from obsessing over Aiden. She owns a restaurant. She has parent problems. She's a bartender. I think this lack of dimension is what makes her come across as so dumb on page.
Rachel's ending is predictable, so for such a predictable plot I needed better execution. She is not a terrible character to be in the mind of for most of the book. She's in survival mode, and her plot armor is THICK. Her family and past get talked about a lot, but these also don't seem to contribute to the story or provide much context. What happened with her brother? We never find out. What about the almost-boyfriend? IDK. It's all fluff. I like her and Cece's relationship because all women know what it's like to be a thirteen-year-old girl, but I wish they could have had better, deeper conversations with each other.
It's a wonderful idea to make Aiden such a well-loved community figure, as this is something that happens in real-life all to often. He is calculating, charismatic, and controlling; a textbook psychopath. I wish there was more emphasis on Cecilia's experience being his daughter, as her POV does not add much to this idea. Overall, Cecilia felt like a way to add believability to Aiden's charm, as well as side-mission material for Rachel. As for Aiden's abuse towards Rachel, I appreciate the light hand in description of these scenes. There's a lot left out and I like it that way. Any more description would feel like glorification and that speaks to the author's respect for victims.
I did a lot of highlighting in this book. There are some wonderful sections that tell me a woman wrote this, and for that I'm appreciative. The pacing was excellent. I saw a lot of folks saying it wasn't super thrilling or suspenseful, but I certainly was hooked despite my predictions for the ending. It felt like this book was holding my hand and quietly leading me through a deep dark forest. As with any book, it doesn't need to be good to keep me entertained, but this book is certainly not the worst thing I've ever read. Four stars for The Quiet Tenant.
I found the multi-POVs unnecessary. Why do we need to hear from the daughter? Why do we need to hear from the several women he's killed? Other than helping us keep track of Aiden's life story, they don't add anything to the narrative. The changing prose between Rachel, Emily, and Cecilia was a nice stylistic choice, but I found it to be distracting at times. I understand we don't know Rachel's true name and that is why we likely get called "you" throughout her chapters, but maybe that should have ended in her last chapters when her name is revealed at the end? Didn't seem like a good enough reason for such bumpy, choppy writing.
Emily is an infuriating character. There are lots of parallels drawn between her and Aiden, but they don't lead to anything or go anywhere. She even decides to buy a trapper hat, Aiden's signature piece, at the end of the book. Why? She is obsessive as girls can be when they have a crush, but I hate how stupid she is despite this. She is a grown woman. She has been keeping an eye on Aiden since her teenage years. There is no commentary on their age gap. All of Emily's coworkers are weightless side characters. Even Emily has no personality traits aside from obsessing over Aiden. She owns a restaurant. She has parent problems. She's a bartender. I think this lack of dimension is what makes her come across as so dumb on page.
Rachel's ending is predictable, so for such a predictable plot I needed better execution. She is not a terrible character to be in the mind of for most of the book. She's in survival mode, and her plot armor is THICK. Her family and past get talked about a lot, but these also don't seem to contribute to the story or provide much context. What happened with her brother? We never find out. What about the almost-boyfriend? IDK. It's all fluff. I like her and Cece's relationship because all women know what it's like to be a thirteen-year-old girl, but I wish they could have had better, deeper conversations with each other.
It's a wonderful idea to make Aiden such a well-loved community figure, as this is something that happens in real-life all to often. He is calculating, charismatic, and controlling; a textbook psychopath. I wish there was more emphasis on Cecilia's experience being his daughter, as her POV does not add much to this idea. Overall, Cecilia felt like a way to add believability to Aiden's charm, as well as side-mission material for Rachel. As for Aiden's abuse towards Rachel, I appreciate the light hand in description of these scenes. There's a lot left out and I like it that way. Any more description would feel like glorification and that speaks to the author's respect for victims.
I did a lot of highlighting in this book. There are some wonderful sections that tell me a woman wrote this, and for that I'm appreciative. The pacing was excellent. I saw a lot of folks saying it wasn't super thrilling or suspenseful, but I certainly was hooked despite my predictions for the ending. It felt like this book was holding my hand and quietly leading me through a deep dark forest. As with any book, it doesn't need to be good to keep me entertained, but this book is certainly not the worst thing I've ever read. Four stars for The Quiet Tenant.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A