Narrators: Brittany Pressley,
Stacey Glemboski
Harlequin Audio
ISBN: 9781525809804
Publisher: Graydon House
Publication Date: 04/09/2024
Format: Paperback
My Rating: 5 Stars ++ (ARC)
The Paris Apartment meets The Wrong Family in this thrilling tale of crime, passion and murder set in a run-down apartment complex packed with shady characters willing to go to deadly lengths to keep their darkest secrets from the stranger in their midst.
When Anna Hartley’s husband, Henry, calls her with a terrible, guilty confession, she can’t believe what she hears. It has to be a bad joke—the mild, predictable artist she married would never hurt a fly, let alone commit murder. But her confusion turns to horror when police find his body washed up on the banks of the Rio Grande.
Desperate for answers to the millions of questions his untimely death has raised, Anna checks in to The Sycamores, the run-down motel turned apartment Henry rented as an art studio. As she absorbs every bit of gossip the eclectic mix of residents are willing to share about her husband and each other, she begins to piece together a picture of a very different man than the one she married, and the life he led behind her back. The more she learns, and the less sense things seem to make, she finds herself wondering: Did she ever really know Henry at all?
But Henry’s secrets aren’t the only ones; as Anna’s search for clues expands, Cass, the mysterious, jaded motel manager, seems more and more determined to keep Anna in the dark. And when threatening letters start appearing at her door, Anna has to decide what’s more important—the truth, or her own safety.
My Review
THE VACANCY IN ROOM 10 is Schitt's Creek on steroids! It's a thriller with heart, highly entertaining with wit, grit, mystery, suspense, action, and a rollicking fun cast of well-developed characters you will come to care for. A TOP thriller of 2024!
This is my first book by the talented author Seraphina Nova Glass, and I cannot wait to read more. THE VACANCY IS ROOM 10 is prime for the big or small screen—with everything you want in a thriller and checks ALL THE boxes.
Set on the outskirts of Santa Fe, New Mexico, told from two women's POVs: Anna and Cass. Both desire more out of life; however, they may have a real family and friends before them, but they have not realized it yet.
THE SYCAMORES APARTMENT is the focus of this stand-out exceptional thriller and the center of all the action, a character in itself. Formerly, an old motel with three strips of two-story buildings in a T-shape and a dumpy pool in the middle. There is no A/C unless the tenant chooses to buy one or someone left a half-working one in the unit. Across the street, you have a dive bar and a gentleman's club. There is a liquor store, an Arby's, a strip mall, a diner, a Chinese buffet, etc.
The Sycamores is a home for people and misfits with nowhere else to go down on their luck. It is cheap and comes with a long list of maintenance problems, from stained ceilings, rats, leaky toilets, and shady characters.
CASS: Unfortunately, Cass has landed a job here as the caretaker.
When her rich realtor boyfriend, Reid, kicked her to the curb for a younger replacement, Kimmy model, and her beautiful home, she was stuck with no degree, no money, and only a set of skills to land her this job. She wanted marriage, stability, and children. He did not share her feelings. He was all about ego. His photo was plastered on the sides of buses.
With Cass' maintenance job, comes a dumpy small apartment (Room 10) next to the boiler room that has seen better days and a small stipend. This is where broken people live. Everyone seems to be filling a void or mourning a profound loss.
Her dad taught her handyman skills, and she followed him everywhere until her mom died and her dad turned into an alcoholic. When she married Reid, they were supposed to be a team buying old houses; she could remodel them, and he would flip them. But his ego would not allow her to be a handyman. She quit to keep the house for him, and then he had all the control. After the split, he kept the friends and everything else.
She has tried to find other work with no luck, so she has turned to blackmailing married men who are cheating as a side hustle until she gets in over her head. They deserved it.
ANNA, a journalist between jobs, is married to Henry, a school teacher (who lost his job). He is also an artist, and Cal (a fellow teacher) at his school recommended The Sycamores, a cheap place to rent for his art studio, to get back to painting. He loved painting the grunge, homeless, and tenants at the motel apartments. He was always a happy man, and everyone loved him at the apartment complex. He sold his paintings and was doing well with his art, but suddenly, he seemed sad and withdrawn.
Then Anna receives a desperate call from Henry (age 36) one night, saying he killed someone. When she tries to find him, she is notified he committed suicide and was found in shallow water on a bank of the Rio Grande south of Santa Fe. Authorities ruled it as a suicide. However, was it suicide or murder? Who did he kill, and why was he so sad?
Did he have another life at the apartments she knew nothing about?
Grieving, Anna knows the cops are not doing anything, so she decides to move into Henry's old studio apartment and conducts some investigating of her own. She wants answers. The more she digs, the more shocking secrets she uncovers about Henry. She finds a journal, and he speaks of painting a woman, someone he loves. Who is the woman, and where are the hundred paintings?
Callum (Cal) still lives at The Sycamores. When he and his wife lost everything due to her extensive medical bills, they moved into the complex. Lily, the wife, later died of cancer. This is the first place she starts since he was a teacher at the school with Henry.
CAST OF CHARACTERS: This is where the fun, murder, and mayhem begin at The Sycamores with a colorful cast of characters!
There, we meet all the tenants! A diverse group. The POOL GALS (Jackie, Crystal, Rosa) spend time at the pool with their children, swimming, eating, smoking, drinking booze, playing cards, and gossiping about all the tenants. Rosa is the quiet one with the abusive husband. Each Friday, there is a BBQ by the pool with potluck and grilling and lots of booze, music, and games, and all the tenants are invited.
Between Cass's escapades, the horrific maintenance issues, and all the secrets of the tenants, there is a murder. How will Cass, Anna, and the crew become partners in crime?
Along the way, there is a charity ball when Cass's new friends at the motel/apartment collide with Reid, his latest squeeze, and her pretentious old friends, which lands her in jail (hilarious!). In the meantime, Mary's grandson (tenant) Frank Sinatra (little boy) is engrossed with Cass and her tools, and she becomes his mentor (priceless). Then there is the body, to be hidden, and Anna is getting close to finding the identity of Henry's mystery woman and his killer.
BOOM! What a book—truly BLOWN AWAY! If I had known this book was this good, I would have read it the minute I received it! I loved every minute of The cast at THE SYCAMORES. I could not put it down. I finished at 5 am, and it was worth it. Be prepared to burn the midnight oil and set aside the time. The unexpected twists will have your jaw-dropping.
SMASHING! The author has outdone herself and dazzles! THE VACANCY IN ROOM 10 is wild, crazy, fun, suspenseful, full of action, and fast-paced. The characters are stellar and come alive on the page. You have the good, the crazy, and the evil.
At its heart, it is heartwarming and endearing. The two main characters learn some wise life lessons, gain insights, and the true meaning of family that is not always blood-related. I loved the satisfying ending. WELL DONE! I want to visit.
Get this gem on your TBR list now! I cannot wait to listen to the audiobook narrated by my favorite, Brittany Pressley and Stacey Glemboski. This is an auto-buy for the home library. 5 Stars ++
Fans of Schitt's Creek and Freida McFadden's Do Not Disturb will devour.
Sequel, PLEASE! There are many more adventures to be had.
Thanks to Graydon House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read (and devour) an advanced copy for an honest opinion.
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My rating; 5 Stars ++
Top Books of 2024
Pub Date: April 8, 2024
Praise
“[An] entertaining thriller [that] maintain[s] tension and intrigue through to the satisfying end. The author’s fans will devour this.” —Publishers Weekly
The Most Anticipated 2024 Book Releases by Nerd Daily
Most Anticipated Crime Fiction Novels of 2024 by Novel Suspects
"Weaves an interesting plot that keeps readers intrigued until the end. Recommended for fans of murder mysteries."
—Booklist on The Vacancy in Room 10
"Seraphina has once again proven she’s a master of domestic suspense. No one weaves a twisty, dark tale quite like her...I highly recommend this propulsive thriller."
- Amber Garza, author of When I Was You on The Vanishing Hour
In Such a Good Wife, Seraphina Nova Glass weaves a deliciously dark tale starring Melanie, a loving and overworked mother and wife having an affair with the handsome Luke…until he turns up dead. If you think you've figured out the culprit, think again. A sly and pulse-pounding murder mystery set in steamy Louisiana."
— Kimberly Belle, internationally bestselling author of Stranger in the Lake
“Seraphina Nova Glass’s twisty...thriller plunges the reader into a dark, compelling world of lies, adultery and murder. Bold, racy and masterfully plotted, Such a Good Wife kept me guessing from the very first page to the scorching, jaw-dropping conclusion.”
— Rose Carlyle, #1 internationally bestselling author of The Girl in the Mirror
“Seraphina Nova Glass’s twisty...thriller plunges the reader into a dark, compelling world of lies, adultery and murder. Bold, racy and masterfully plotted, Such a Good Wife kept me guessing from the very first page to the scorching, jaw-dropping conclusion.”
— Rose Carlyle, #1 internationally bestselling author of The Girl in the Mirror
"Get this book when it comes out, read it, then ask everyone you know to make it into a movie! In case you can't tell, I am EXCITED ABOUT THIS BOOK!"
— Imogen Church, audiobook narrator
"A twisty thriller in the vein of The Girl on the Train."
—Bustle
About the Author
Seraphina Nova Glass is an Edgar Award-nominated author published by HarperCollins and is represented by Folio Literary Management in New York. Her fifth book, The Vacancy in Room 10, will release in April 2024.
Named a New York Times Book Review Summer Read and an Amazon Editor’s Pick in Mystery & Thrillers, her last book, On A Quiet Street, earned her #1 bestselling status in the Thriller category on Amazon. It was also hailed by Bustle as one of “10 Must-Read Books” and one of “10 Top Thrillers To Read On Your Summer Vacation” in the Boston Globe.
Publisher’s Weekly has named her “a writer to watch” and Emmy-nominated producer Michael Terence quoted her writing as “page-turning and cinematic.” Five-time Golden Globe-Winner Ed Asner starred in a short film she wrote, and called her an “exceedingly talented writer. Poignant, engrossing."
She recently sold the film rights for On A Quiet Street to Marvista Entertainment for a limited series. She is currently working on her sixth novel, The Oleanders, and is also an Assistant professor and Playwright-In-Residence at the University of Texas, Arlington. WEBSITE
