The Other Tenant by Lesley Kara BLOG TOUR #TheOtherTenant @LesleyKara @TransworldBooks @RandomTTours #BookReview

Marlow has always lived in unusual places. But when she accepts a position as a live-in property guardian, she finds herself moving somewhere she swore she’d never return to.

Right from the start, she knows it’s a terrible mistake. The elegant Victorian school is due to be turned into luxury apartments, but its eerie, empty corridors are full of Marlow’s worst memories.

And now something sinister is happening on the site. One of the other tenants has disappeared without warning, and Marlow suspects that the nine other guardians know far more than they’re letting on. She’s determined to find out what happened to the missing woman – but which of these strangers can she trust?

And can she uncover the truth before her own past catches up with her?

The Other Tenant by Lesley Kara was published on 25 April 2024 by Bantam. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour 

I have read and enjoyed all of Lesley Kara's novels starting with her debut, The Rumour, back in 2018.

I really love it when I learn something new from a book and The Other Tenant introduced me to property guardians. I wasn't sure if this was something that the author had created for her story and immediately fell down a Google rabbit hole to research. Yes, property guardians exist and are doing a roaring trade. Licences are issued for these short-term lets. A property guardian is someone who has entered into an agreement to live in a building or part of a building that would otherwise be empty for the primary purpose of securing and safeguarding the property. There are currently between five and seven thousand people in the UK living as property guardians.

Marlowe is one of them. She's been living in an old church and has enjoyed her stay there, she's a photographer and there are so many opportunities for excellent images in the old building. However, the let has come to an end and Marlowe is given the opportunity to move into an old school that is earmarked for development. Her only problem about this is that it's the school that she attended and where the biggest tragedy of her life took place. Against her better instincts and with nowhere else to go, Marlowe moves in to one of the old classrooms. 

She'd really love to occupy the room left empty when the last tenant left unexpectedly, but Rob, the head guardian makes it clear that is not possible. The door to that room is locked and Rob claims that there is water damage, making it unsafe for habitation. 

Marlowe is introduced to the other guardians living in the property. A mixed and quite strange bunch of people that are difficult to figure out. They all seem to be hiding something, but Marlowe has many secrets of her own. 

Marlowe becomes obsessed with what happened to Hayley, the last tenant. The other guardians are suprised that she left so quickly, without saying goodbye. As Marlowe explores the building, she discovers things that lead her to believe that Rob's story about Hayley is not true. 

This is a great thriller, the old school itself becomes a major character in the story. The old building, filled with memories for Marlowe, and discarded items from years before is so wonderfully developed, adding an atmosphere that is threatening and eerie. 

Throughout the story, we hear from an unnamed person. Someone who appears bitter and twisted, with long held grudges and will prove to become a danger to Marlowe, along with all of the other things that she discovers as she slowly tries to piece together what is really going on. 

A novel that will keep the reader on their toes, with a mystery at its core that is intriguing. Characters who are all slightly odd, and combined as a group make for an excellent cast. Recommended by me. 

LESLEY KARA is the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Rumour, Who Did You Tell?, The Dare and The Apartment Upstairs. 

The Rumour was the highest selling crime fiction debut of 2019 in the UK, and a Kindle No.1 bestseller. 

Lesley is an alumna of the Faber Academy 'Writing a Novel' course. 

She lives in Kent.

You can follow Lesley on Twitter @LesleyKara or visit her website at www.lesleykara.com