Londoner Kate Priddy's last romance was a disaster. Her boyfriend George was pathologically jealous, and - after they broke up - showed up at her borrowed cottage with a gun. George terrorized Kate for hours, then locked her in a closet and shot himself. Kate was found two days later, suffering from shock and claustrophobia.
After recovering at her parents' home for months Kate resumed her life, but was plagued by anxiety and panic attacks.
It's now several years later and Kate, a talented art student, gets a tempting offer. Her Boston-based cousin Corbin Dell, whom Kate has never met, is being transferred to London for six months - and offers an apartment exchange.
He'll gladly occupy Kate's small London flat and she can live in his luxurious Beacon Hill digs. With much trepidation, Kate accepts, and temporarily transfers to a Boston art school.
The cousins pass in the air (so to speak), and take up residence in each other's homes. Just as Kate is moving into her new place, she sees a woman pounding on the door of the adjacent apartment - looking for her 'missing' friend.
Kate, who's always expecting the worst, gets a bad feeling.....which turns out to be prophetic.
On the day Kate moves in she meets several of the building's residents as well as Sanders the cat, a congenial feline who regularly calls on the tenants.
The next morning Corbin's next door neighbor - an attractive woman named Audrey Marshall - is found murdered in her apartment.
Corbin, who left town around the time of the killing, naturally becomes a person of interest. Detective Roberta James, who's in charge of the Marshall case, asks Kate about Corbin.....and requests permission to search his home.
Kate agrees, but - before the cops arrive - does her own quick reconnaissance. A couple of days later, Kate looks through Corbin's basement storage unit and makes a shocking discovery.
Long story short, Corbin starts to look like a likely suspect, to both Kate and the police.
While the police are investigating Audrey's murder, Kate - though nervous - gets on with her life. She familiarizes herself with the neighborhood; buys bread, cheese, and wine (the fridge is already stocked with frozen meals from Trader Joe's. LOL); gets ready to attend her new art school; and sketches the people she meets. Kate also becomes friendly with Sanders, who periodically scratches on her door to be allowed in for a visit.
Before long Kate meets two young men: Alan Cherney - who lives on the other side of the building;
and Jack Ludovico - an old friend of Audrey's.
Kate appears to have faulty 'man radar' because - though both of these guys seem a bit off - Kate is quite friendly to them.
Within a couple of days Kate starts to get a creepy feeling in her apartment, and Sanders begins to appear and disappear without her opening the door. Hmmmmm.....food for thought.
The story is told from the points of view of several characters, and the author quietly sneaks in some surprising plot twists. That's all I can say without spoilers.
The book is a well-constructed novel of psychological suspense, but the middle parts are too slow and repetitive for my taste. Moreover, certain plot points don't ring true. I can't believe a normal, intelligent person becomes a homicidal maniac in the blink of an eye.....and then behaves very stupidly. There's more that bothers me but I don't want to give away too much.
Nevertheless, this is an enjoyable thriller, recommended to fans of the genre.
Rating: 3 stars
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