The Paris Apartment
Ratings324
Average rating3.4
I was so disappointed with this one, after enjoying the guest list so much I thought this was also going to be a 5 star read, but unfortunately it was not. It was fast paced, and the atmosphere was superb, but those were the only positives I managed to find. I guessed some of the reveals (which rarely happens as I am horrible at figuring things out), and even the ones I didn't see coming did not shock me one bit. I appreciate it trying to be more complex and not a straight forward mystery, but it just did not work for me. I can't really pinpoint what about it didn't work for me, I'm not sure if its because to me it felt very telenovela at times, or because the characters were so unlikable, or maybe I'm the problem. I'm not sure, but it wasn't a fun reading experience. I still can't get over Ben as a character, I've met my few share of overly charismatic people but I still couldn't help but roll my eyes when Ben once again was able to charm another person. He felt very mary sue and Jess felt like “im not like other girls” type of character which took me out of the story several times. If you end up picking this one up I'd recommend reading it on a cold gloomy/rainy day to really set the mood.
Spoiler of what happens in this book:
Turns out that Nick, Mimi, Sophie, Jaques (the husband), are a family (also add Nick and Mimi's other violent brother, who I can't for the life of me remember his name). But wait, there's more. This family is rich because of their supposed wine business left behind by Jaques first wife after she passed away. She is also the biological mother of Nick and the violent brother, making Sophie the step mother of those two. Ben actually finds out that this wine business is actually a front for this sex slave ring, where immigrant women are forced to dance and do sexual acts on gross rich men. Each wine represents a type of girl that a man wants to purchase, either for the evening or forever.Sophie is not actually a high born french woman but actually from Russia and was originally one of the women in this sex ring. Jaques took an interest in her and bought her out so she could become his wife. The concierge's daughter ended up being one of these girls and ended up getting pregnant, but dies while giving birth. Sophie really wanting children of her own ends up taking this baby and with the help of Jaques forges documents so 'legally' this child is theirs. Who is this child you may ask? Mimi. Ben charms his way to living in this apartment because Nick fell in love with him during this European trip and thought having him around would be like old times. Then he charms his way to becoming BFF's with Jaques, and even Sophie who loathed him ends up sleeping with him, multiple times. Mimi also ends up becoming enamored with him and believes he feels the same way about her. Basically, this is entire family, minus violent brother is in love with Ben. But Ben is only interested in finding out more about their dark secret to expose them and become the amazing journalist he thrives to be. Jaques finds out that Ben knows and is obviously pissed so he comes to his apartment and starts beating him up and I believe he stabs him as well. Mimi who sees this through her window decides to stop her dad because she loves Ben. When she arrives she ends up killing her own dad to save Ben. Sophie walks in on this and to protect her daughter ends up masking Jaques body and making her step sons believe it's actually Ben, so they bury him. Sophie puts Ben's body up in the attic where she tries to take care of him because he was in critical condition. Everyone eventually finds out about everything and Jess takes her brother to the hospital because somehow he was still alive even after all these months. She exposes this family but lets Sophie escape to a different country because she felt bad for her. Oh and the concierge you may ask? Violent brother pushed her down the stairs and she dies from the impact. Violent brother also commits suicide after the exposé. Things turn out fine for Jess and Ben. Mimi goes to a boarding school to escape this mess and Nick well truthfully I don't remember and it doesn't really matter. And that's all.
DNF 21%
It shouldn't come as a surprise, given that I hated Foley's previous book, but oh my god I can not find it in myself to care for any of these characters so uh. Pass.
I've eyed this beauty of cover since before it came out in Feb and I'm happy to say I got on reading it sooner than I would. It's a great claustrophobic, spooky mystery with hidden secrets and characters written and interwoven with mastery. Foley's ability to create such a concrete setting and distinguishable characters is one that dwarfs many authors, specifically in the purely mystery genre. The thrills and chills and mysteriousness of this novel caught me up, and I'll proudly say that I knew this was going to be a great book from page 1. Maybe even before that, because I mean...I'm loving this cover. And that's a big thing for me.
My biggest pet peeve is when English speaking writers think that every bilingual person casually tosses in words from their native language into their sentences.
The Paris Apartment: Lights Dimmed, Drama Maxed
I've been on a serious reading streak lately and loving it. It's been ages since I had the time (and focus) to actually finish all the books I started months ago. The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley was one of them. And... I liked it. Didn't love it. Just liked it.
This book is classic Foley: atmospheric, full of tension, and dripping with drama. Jess shows up at her half-brother Ben’s Paris apartment, only to find him missing and the building full of sketchy, secretive neighbors. As she starts poking around, things get weird fast. You know the drill—everyone’s hiding something, and nothing is what it seems. Cue the ominous music.
Foley is great at building suspense. Every scene is thick with moody shadows, eerie noises, and dramatic pauses. But after a while, it becomes too much. The tone never lets up. It’s all tension, all the time. No room to breathe, no contrast. Just constant dread.
And the characters? Every single one is dialed up to eleven. They're jumpy, paranoid, and weirdly intense—even when nothing’s happening. It starts to feel cartoonish. Like, who attacks a bush just to smell it? And who watches that and decides it’s "presumptuous"? If you can get through that scene without rolling your eyes, you deserve a medal.
Jess herself doesn’t really solve the mystery so much as bumble her way through it. She snoops, steals, blurts out awkward questions, and generally acts like she’s in way over her head. The rest of the cast isn’t much better—mostly unpleasant, sweaty, and oddly obsessed with bad breath.
As for the twists? They’re fine. Nothing shocking. If you’ve read a few thrillers, you’ll probably see most of them coming. It all feels a bit over-the-top by the end, but somehow I still wanted to keep reading. So I guess it did its job—just not exceptionally well.
I was super excited to read The Paris Apartment after hearing a lot of good things about Lucy Foley's stuff, and I did enjoy most of the book - memorable characters and a lot of plot twists. But I was somewhat underwhelmed by the ending, and it kind of felt rushed to me. I would still like to read more of Lucy Foley's stuff.
3.5. A fast read for sure but the entire premise was honestly a bit predictable and most of the twists I had figured out early on.
The Paris Apartment is a riveting read. Dark, claustrophobic and with a cast of odious characters, all with secrets, and all compulsive liars.
Short, sharp chapters and a slow build up all lead to a jaw dropping denouement. I loved it.
It was a good book, the twists were great. I just was pretty bored until the first twist that came almost middle of the book. The ending wasn’t everything I wanted. It felt a bit rushed compared to the rest of the story however it was enjoyable just not something I would praise and get everyone to read.
I thought that the storylines in this novel were so interesting and dynamic for a thriller. I felt like I was learning so much as it went, with new things being revealed so often. Often times thriller falls in the same category to me as romance that I enjoy them but they're never incredible. but this hit it out of the park!! I listen to the audiobook, and there were different voice actors doing different accents and it was just like so fun and suspenseful. I think I might read more of these loll
3.9
This is one of the best books I have read! I absolutely loved the suspenseful pull this book had over me. I loved how it was written with the different characters perspectives. The twist were exciting and realistic. The story came to a very satisfying ending. This was my first Lucy Foley book, but I can't wait to read more of her books! I highly recommend.
One of my absolute favorite reads this year!! Each chapter told from another perspective, each with their own secrets kept me on my toes not knowing who to trust. My theories of what happened to the main character's missing brother must have changed with just about every chapter. There were so many twists and turns throughout this book it kept me gripped!
Stick with this book as it builds up because the ride down is so worth it! Having a man missing was also such a refreshing switch up from the overdone missing girl/ woman narrative. And the author did such an amazing job tying in all of the moving pieces so I left with complete closure, which a lot of books I've read in this genre have not accomplished.
Highly recommend this read!!
How odd that I neglected to mark this one as read. I checked it out via hoopla in late October and probably finished it in November. It was okay, I recall some of it, but I do remember not loving the main character and thinking the survival of her brother and that everyone seemed to be attracted to him was a bit far fetched, but eh, it's fiction.
Like a proper mystery, it had a lot of characters, many of whom were interconnected.
I could see it becoming a mini-series produced by Netflix, haha.
I listened to the audiobook for this, and having a full cast and a different narrator for each character made the experience much more fun - the cast did a phenomenal job with their roles.
The book itself is slow, and I wish it were more fast paced.
All of the characters are flawed in some way, and not many of them are likable, but it was fun to do character analysises on them and theorize what happened and who played what part
This book was interesting. It's not that I didn't enjoy it, but more so that I think I discovered this isn't my genre.
The trust was good and the characters were decent, but for me it just didn't quite do it.
As a re-reader, this isn't one I'll be revisiting, hence the three stars.
It's worth reading if you're into the genre, though.
I fail to comprehend the purpose behind this book. It introduces a bunch of characters, but the explanation it provides is shallow. Many side characters come and go in the story without serving any real purpose. They appear briefly in a few chapters and then vanish without contributing much to the plot. I did manage to finish it quickly, but not because I enjoyed it. I just wanted to be done with it. ☹️
My guy Ben really seduced three members of the same family thats some incredible rizz
I got this through the library easily last weekend, and it has kept me listening for several days of errand running and chore doing. I appreciated the twists and turns, but the storyline is pretty dark without much of the Paris environment to entice or soften those sharp edges. I don't think it was as fun as her first book because of the different gloomy apartment setting, but definitely enjoyable and interesting.
Just sorta meh. Felt like 95% setup for the payout in the final 5%. I was expecting one final plot reveal that Nick was Mimi's father (after all, Nick would've been having his “birthday experience” at the club about the time of Mimi's mother's/caretaker's daughter's tenure at the club). Alas, no.
A bit of a slow burn but damn L.F. knows how to get you with the twists. The gloomy atmosphere was immaculate but the main character got a bit tedious at times. Or maybe she just felt a bit dumb at times.
I would give it a solid 3.5 stars: it has some problems but still worth a read!
Enjoyed this one. I got hunting party and guest list on kindle to read of hers also.
I go between 1-2 kindle books and 3 paperbacks all depends on mode
Can do a book week if nothing gets in way or one a month is why planning