The Quiet Tenant
Clémence Michallon
Knopf
Mystery/Thriller
Pub Date: 20 Jun 2023
DESCRIPTION/SYNOPSIS:
A PULSE-POUNDING PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER ABOUT A SERIAL KILLER NARRATED BY THOSE CLOSEST TO HIM: HIS 13-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER, HIS GIRLFRIEND—AND THE ONE VICTIM HE HAS SPARED
Aidan Thomas is a hard-working family man and a somewhat beloved figure in the small upstate New York town where he lives. He’s the kind of man who always lends a hand and has a good word for everyone. But Aidan has a dark secret he’s been keeping from everyone in town and those closest to him. He’s a kidnapper and serial killer. Aidan has murdered eight women and there’s a ninth he has earmarked for death: Rachel, imprisoned in a backyard shed, fearing for her life.
When Aidan’s wife dies, he and his thirteen-year-old daughter Cecilia are forced to move. Aidan has no choice but to bring Rachel along, introducing her to Cecilia as a “family friend” who needs a place to stay. Aidan is betting on Rachel, after five years of captivity, being too brainwashed and fearful to attempt to escape. But Rachel is a fighter and survivor, and recognizes Cecilia might just be the lifeline she has waited for all these years. As Rachel tests the boundaries of her new living situation, she begins to form a tenuous connection with Cecilia. And when Emily, a local restaurant owner, develops a crush on the handsome widower, she finds herself drawn into Rachel and Cecilia’s orbit, coming dangerously close to discovering Aidan’s secret.
Told through the perspectives of Rachel, Cecilia, and Emily, The Quiet Tenant explores the psychological impact of Aidan’s crimes on the women in his life—and the bonds between those women that give them the strength to fight back. Both a searing thriller and an astute study of trauma, survival, and the dynamics of power, The Quiet Tenant is an electrifying debut thriller by a major talent.
REVIEW:
The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon is a dark tale of psychological suspense about Aiden, a widowed serial killer told from the perspectives of his 13-year-old daughter, his potential love interest (next victim?), and the one victim “Rachel” he has not killed, but rather has kept captive for the past five years, first in a shed then, after a move, alternately handcuffed to a radiator and a bed frame in a guest bedroom. The heart of this story and most of the suspense comes from the victim’s viewpoint, which is told in the second person making the sense of suffocating dread even more effective.
Rachel has discovered, via trial and error, rules for survival that she adapts over time and through differing circumstances, learning which behaviors will trigger the wrath of her captor and which will ensure her continued survival in precarious circumstances. Aiden exerts unwavering control over his captive, forcing her to suppress her own identity and memories, lest she give in to despair. Even when there is a glimmer of hope of escape, Rachel fears to make the attempt for fear that it is a trap, destined to trick her into giving Aiden an excuse to finally kill her.
The story and the suspense kicks into a high gear once Aiden moves Rachel from the backyard shed of his old home (through a subtle manipulation by Rachel based upon her years-long psychological study of her captor’s motivations) into the guest bedroom of his new home, describing her as a down-on-her-luck room renter to his oblivious daughter, and when Aiden’s new love interest becomes curious about what is going on in Aiden’s home.
The Quiet Tenant is a well-written study of a victim enduring unspeakable treatment for years yet keeping a glimmer of hope alive enough to attempt a final act of bravery that will either doom her to a quick death or grant her freedom at last. While the story is psychologically disturbing, you won’t be overwhelmed by gore or violence. But it will keep you breathless through the final pages.
Note: I received a free eGalley of The Quiet Tenant from Net Galley in consideration of an unbiased review.
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