Published: 28 April 2020
Freya Miller needs a miracle. In the fallout of her husband’s betrayal, she’s about to lose her family home, and with it the security she craves for her five-year-old daughter, Skye. Adrift and alone, she’s on the verge of despair until a chance meeting with the charismatic Dr Marsden changes everything.
Adder House sounds too good to be true… But Freya really can’t afford to be cynical, and Dr Marsden is adamant she and Skye will be a perfect fit with the other residents.
But Adder House has secrets. Even behind a locked front door, Freya feels as if she’s being watched: objects moving, unfamiliar smells, the blinking light of a concealed camera… and it’s not long before she begins to suspect that her dream home is hiding a nightmarish reality. Was it really chance that led her here or something unthinkably dark?
The review
This was one if those psychological thrillers that hooks you from the start before building the tension bit by bit towards.....a disappointingly low-key climax. It doesn't really matter though because it's the build up that makes a thriller and that's good enough to overcome any shortcomings at the end.
The plot was simple but gripping involving a luxury apartment complete with creepy neighbours, unexplained happenings and feelings of being watched. These factors combine and build throughout the pages to create a disturbing atmosphere, plenty of suspense and lots to guess at. In particular the interspersion of a mother's journal detailing her son's participation in a psychology experiment in 1902, with the present day account of Freya's residency in the apartment was intriguing. I was kept guessing until the end how these two seemingly disparate storylines connected.
In terms of the ending, the problem was the lack of thrill factor and feeling that it was rushed/incomplete. For example, the role/significance of the apartment's other residents was never explained, and we were left wondering what had happened to the baby and how the experiment may have affected his life.
Also, whilst I liked that the writing style and book is short and punchy - making it an easy, addictive read - it sadly did mean that majority of the characters didn't have the chance to develop properly so it was difficult to understand their behaviours and motives. That said I did enjoy the mother/daughter relationship between Freya and her five-year-old daughter, along with Skye's childhood innocence.
Overall this was an easy, addictive, entertaining read but one I'd recommend for fans of lighter psychological thrillers.
The author
K. L. Slater is the million-copy bestselling author of nine standalone psychological crime thrillers. Follow @KimLSlater or find out more at klslaterauthor.com
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