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Apartment 16
Apartment 16
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Terrifying
Contains spoilers, click to show
Some doors are better left closed—a spine-chilling horror novel from a new talent

In Barrington House, an upmarket block in London, there is an empty apartment. No one goes in and no one comes out, and it's been that way for 50 years, until the night a watchman hears a disturbance after midnight and is drawn to investigate. What he experiences is enough to change his life ...

This was the second book I picked up of Adams and I have to say I loved it! This is my 3rd time reading and I still get totally freaked out by it. The characters are so intense and creepy. He has a way with words that have you seeing things in the dark. Apartment 16 is just terrifying if you love horror I would highly recommend this or any other of his books. Following both Seth and Apryl as they discover the horror behind apartment 16 and the mixed characters at Barrington house gives you chills. He has a way of developing his characters so you are right there with them. This a strange book but so so good!


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Lock Every Door
Lock Every Door
Riley Sager | 2019 | Thriller
8
8.0 (9 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book wasn't what I was expecting, but, pleasantly, in a good way. Jules is hired as an apartment sitter (apparently those exist) at the ritzy Bartholomew in New York City. She's incredibly broke and down on her luck, so getting paid to stay in a beautiful apartment seems like a dream come true. But the job comes with a lot of rules: no overnight guests, spend every night at the apartment, don't bother any of the other residents, and more. Jules finds a friend in another sitter, Ingrid, who tells her everything isn't as it seems at the Bartholomew. Jules figures she's just exaggerating. Until Ingrid disappears. Hunting for her friend, Jules finds out some dark secrets about the Bartholomew--and starts to believe Ingrid was right.

LOCK EVERY DOOR is a total page-turner. Jules is an engaging, if occasionally frustrating protagonist, who is easy to like. The premise of this one is certainly interesting and just when you think it's going off on in one direction, it completely surprises you. Sager nails the creepy atmosphere coupled with the NYC setting, allowing you to get completely lost in the book for a couple of hours. 4 stars.
  
The Crow (1994)
The Crow (1994)
1994 | Action, Sci-Fi
Fantastic movie if you were a fan of Brandon Lee. Though Brandon was killed while filming this movie it's still an enjoyable movie about Eric Draven a young rock star and his fiance Shelly Webster who planned their wedding for Halloween or Devil's Night. Eric returns home to find that nasty people are in the apartment with Shelly. They shoot Eric who falls out the window of the attic apartment to his death. They then rape and seriously wound Shelly. Dr's battled to save her but were unable. A year later on Devil's Night Eric is brought back to life to seek revenge on the ones who hurt and killed Shelly. He is helped along the way by a crow.
  
5 Flights Up (2015)
5 Flights Up (2015)
2015 | Drama
7
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Story: 5 Flights Up starts by introducing our elderly couple Alex (Freeman) and Ruth (Keaton) that have spent their whole life living in Brooklyn but it is finally time for them to move out. Ruth’s niece Lilly (Nixon) is the one trying to sell the house and doing everything she can to make sure they get as much as they can for it. Alex has witnessed how the area has changed over the years and along with his dog Dorothy really is struggling to make it up the 5 flights.

The couple have to deal with the idea that Dorothy needs major surgery to fix a ruptured disc in her back, this means that Alex has to go along with selling the apartment to help fund the operation. The attempts to sell the apartment get put in jeopardy when a terrorist attack happens on the Williamsburg Bridge where a tanker gets abandoned on the bridge and the suspect flees.

The first interested parties turn up before the open house where Alex & Ruth get to meet a collection on colourful characters that all have different opinions on the apartment. Alex & Ruth decide to try and find their own replacement apartment as they continue to battle the idea of trying to pick who to sell the apartment too.couple

5 Flights Up tells such a simple story of a couple trying to move apartments, while dealing with their sick dog. This is putting everything down to the simplest way, the flashbacks show how in love the couple have been through the years but for the most part the film takes place over a couple of days. I will say not everyone will find this appealing and I do think the light hearted comedy makes the film a lot more enjoyable. The performances are all important and the character our couple meet add to the story. This will go under many people’s radar but it is well worth a watch. (7/10)

 

Actor Review

 

Morgan Freeman: Alex is our elderly man reluctantly selling his apartment with his wife. We watch how the relationship has blossomed over the years and the love for their dog helped keep them happy. Morgan gives us a charming performance that shows he age without taking away any of his acting credentials. (7/10)

 

Diane Keaton: Ruth is Alex’s wife who is willing to sell their apartment and falls for another apartment, she tries to convince Alex into buy the new apartment as they both continue to want to buy the new apartment alone. Diane does give a good performance showing she still has what it takes to lead a film. (7/10)

 

Support Cast: 5 Flights Up has a supporting cast that each have their own colourful take on the situation as we see Alex & Ruth react to them all.

 

Director Review: Richard Loncraine – Richard gives us a charming drama that keeps our attention from start to finish. (7/10)

 

Drama: 5 Flights Up puts us into a very real situation off an elderly couple considering moving but as the story unfolds we see how difficult it is to make that decision. (8/10)

Settings: 5 Flights Up keeps the settings easy to identify and gives them all a very homely feel to our couple. (9/10)

Suggestion: 5 Flights Up is one to try I do believe it will be enjoyed but there is part of me that thinks some people will not enjoy this one too much. (Try It)

 

Best Part: Open house.

Worst Part: The characters the couple meet are slightly generic.

 

Believability: The moving idea is a very real idea that people will find themselves in and the indecision about it too. (8/10)

Chances of Tears: No (0/10)

Chances of Sequel: No

Post Credits Scene: No

 

Oscar Chances: Unlikely

Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes

Tagline: A coming of age story

 

Overall: Charmingly enjoyable film about life and the difficulties with change.

https://moviesreview101.com/2015/05/18/5-flights-up-2015/
  
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Miles Teller recommended Big (1988) in Movies (curated)

 
Big (1988)
Big (1988)
1988 | Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi

"Tom Hanks remains one of my favorite actors. I remember seeing that movie at a very impressionable age. It was such a cool storyline, and Tom Hanks is a brilliant actor… and I always wanted to have an apartment with my own vending machine in it, after that. That was the coolest thing. And the trampoline."

Source
  
The Apartment
The Apartment
K.L. Slater | 2020 | Thriller
7
6.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Apartment by K.L. Slater is a creepy novel that shows if something is too good to be true then it is.

I am a fan of K.L. Slater. If you have not read any of Kim's work, start with her most well-known work, Blink. All of her novels average between 3.69 and 4.00 on Goodreads.

While I did enjoy this fast-reading story, it was not an original one. However, that does not make it inferior to those that have come before. Many reviewers compared this to Riley Sager's Lock Every Door. They both are mysteries involving an apartment building where people have been known to disappear. If Sager's novel had not been released so close to this book, I do not think as many people would make the comparison.

Slater's The Apartment is a slow burn. Many reviewers want instant gratification, instant suspense, instant terrors, etc. Not all books are going slam you in the face. Not all books should.

It is those differences that make this book, and any book, worth reading. You can take the view of Mark Hunter in Pump Up the Volume or you can embrace both the similarities and differences in an author's work.
  
Sheer Window
Sheer Window
Diane Vallere | 2024 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Poly Would Be Thankful to Learn What Is Happening Across the Street
This Thanksgiving, Poly Monroe is hosting a few friends for the day in the apartment over her fabric store. When she learns that someone has moved into the apartment over the bar across the street, she decides to invite them to join the festivities. However, not only does she not get a response when she goes over there, but she manages to twist her ankle. Now injured in her apartment, she finds herself watching what is happening across the street. She thinks something strange is going on. Is she right? Can she get anyone to believe her?

This is a fun novella to get us in the Thanksgiving mood. Obviously, it is a loving homage to Rear Window, and the story really leans into that with several references and nods to the film. The story is strong and pulled me in. It’s also the perfect length for this novella. We still get to see quite a few of the series regulars, which I enjoyed as well. Since it’s a novella, it will be easier to slip this into a busy holiday season. And when you pick it up, you’ll find it is sheer delight.
  
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ClareR (5884 KP) rated Fourteen Days in Books

Sep 22, 2024  
Fourteen Days
Fourteen Days
Margaret Atwood, Douglas Preston | 2024 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I enjoyed Fourteen Days, and it was a very handy book to read at the time. I was hanging around a hospital (my mum was ill, but recovered now), and the short story style was just what I needed to distract myself when I couldn’t really concentrate.

This is set in New York, and is based around an apartment block during the Covid 19 lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic. The inhabitants meet on the roof, keeping the required distance from one another, and tell stories of their lives pre-Covid.

A constant background is the noise from the ambulances delivering sick people to the nearby hospital.

Fourteen Days was written by several authors, each telling the story of a different inhabitant of the apartment block. The reader isn’t aware of who has written which story until the end. I liked this, because it didn’t give me any preconceived ideas of what the stories would be like - and there are some very different writing styles. The janitor runs throughout the novel, collecting all of the stories, telling her own story and trying to solve an ever-present mystery within the walls of the apartment block.

An enjoyable book, and I can definitely say that its a great book to dip in and out of when you’re short on time (or read all one one go if you can!).
  
The Complete Chi's Sweet Home Vol. 1: Vol. 1
The Complete Chi's Sweet Home Vol. 1: Vol. 1
Kanata Konami | 2015 | Comics & Graphic Novels, Fiction & Poetry
10
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
This first volume of Chi's Sweet Home is absolutely adorable. It's no secret, I love cats. Basically, it's a kitten, doing kitten things, learning stuff, and making friends with a fat black cat. Throughout this volume, Chi's new family is hiding the fact they have a kitten in a no-pets-allowed apartment. I've been through that before, so I could relate. I smiled the entire time while reading it.
  
The Break-Up (2006)
The Break-Up (2006)
2006 | Comedy, Drama, Romance
8
6.6 (16 Ratings)
Movie Rating
A very funny Rom-com without being too soppy. A lot of funny scenes that both sexes should enjoy as a couple try to get back at each other over their break up. A film many will relate to as the plans to out do each other keep escalating all the time as neither want to leave their apartment. Similar to War of the roses, What happens in Vegas.