Five years. That is how long Aiden Thomas kept Rachel in a shed after kidnapping her. Was she one of the lucky ones? After all, he killed many women before he took her and several after. After Aiden's wife died, he and his thirteen-year-old daughter, Cecilia, are forced to move and he made the decision to take Rachel with them. He told his daughter they will have a tenant named Rachel who needed a quiet place to stay. Rachel had learned the rules about staying alive while in the shed, but will those rules keep her alive in her new environment? Had the time finally come that she could find a way to escape the horror that has become her life?
THE QUIET TENANT is told by three women: Rachel, Cecilia, and a local woman named Emily who fell in love with Aiden. Of course, neither Cecilia nor Emily knew that Aiden was a monster. Each woman saw him differently. Rachel is a superbly crafted character and she eloquently tells us everything there is to know about her life before the abduction, her life in captivity and what she has learned about herself and survival. Her words make her very real to the reader. Her actions or inactions might frustrate, but there are reasons for this. Having had no control over her life for so long, there were adjustments to be made. Was she up to this and was she strong enough?
Well-plotted and populated with carefully constructed characters, this impeccably detailed narrative moves quickly. The high level of tension never once abates. THE QUIET TENANT by Clemence Michallon is a memorable psychological thriller. Highly recommended.
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“All…of the expected suspense and psychological tension, but offering a story about women—the ones who didn’t know the evil that lurked within, the ones who tried to placate or fight but still perished, the ones who might actually survive. Haunting but never prurient…truly unforgettable.” — Alafair Burke, author of The WifeAidan 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.
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