BOOKISH FRIDAY: “THE DOWNSTAIRS NEIGHBOR”

 

Welcome to another Bookish Friday, in which we  share excerpts from books…and connect with other bloggers who do the same.

Let’s begin the celebration by sharing Book Beginnings, hosted by Rose City Reader; and let’s showcase The Friday 56 with Freda’s Voice.

To join in, just grab a book and share the opening lines…along with any thoughts you wish to give us; then turn to page 56 and excerpt anything on the page.

Then give us the title of the book, so others can add it to their lists! What a great way to spend a Friday.

Today’s feature is my current read:  The Downstairs Neighbor, by Helen Cooper.

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Book Beginning:

(Emma)

If it hadn’t been for a disruptive hamster and three nights of insomnia, Emma might not have found herself crouched in her understairs cupboard that night.  She might not have heard the fear-pinched voice from overhead.

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Friday 56:

(Kate)

I know it’s not the right moment to bring it up, but Nick’s been here all weekend, so this is the first time I’ve managed to get Mum on her own.  As she’s flinging things into her handbag, I ask, “Were you ill last week?”

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Synopsis:

One House. Three Families. Countless Secrets.

From her downstairs apartment in suburban London, Emma has often overheard the everyday life of the seemingly perfect family upstairs–Steph, Paul and teenage daughter Freya–but has never got to know them. Until one day, she hears something that seizes her attention: Freya has vanished and the police are questioning Steph and Paul about their life. Do either of you have any enemies? Anyone who might want to harm or threaten you?

The effects of Freya’s disappearance ripple outward, affecting not just her parents, but everyone who lives in the building, including Emma and local driving instructor Chris, who was the last person to see the teenager before she went missing. Each character’s life is thrown into sharp focus as devastating mistakes and long-held secrets are picked apart and other crimes come to light–including a child gone missing twenty-five years earlier, and a shocking murder–that make clear that the past never stays where we leave it, and that homes can be built on foundations of lies.

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I am almost finished with this book, and I’m loving the alternating narrators and short chapters, keeping up a nice pace.  Would you keep reading?

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