book review: The Apartment by Greg Baxter

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The basics: Set on a wintry day in an unnamed eastern European city, The Apartment is the story of an American expat looking for an apartment with the help of local Saskia.

 My thoughts: The Apartment has so much I love: a European setting, a mysterious expat, a narrator who is clearly withholding information, and a setting of a single day in the life (with a length making it possible to read in a single setting.) And Beth loved it. Sadly, I didn't. I had trouble connecting to the narrative and I never quite bought in to the novel itself. It felt forced. When the narrator withheld information, I wanted to be wowed as the truths were slowly revealed. Instead of feeling mysterious, I felt Baxter trying too hard behind the scenes. Instead of feeling like I was exploring this city along with the narrator and Saskia, I never felt they were real people. I found the character of Saskia particularly troubling, as she felt like a caricature of a person rather than a real person.

 Favorite passage: "I get a lot of pleasure out of the secrecy of this city. This is something Saskia and I have in common."

 The verdict: I'm not a reader who needs a lot of plot or action, but in the absence of those things, I need a character who feels like a person I'm getting to know. Or I need to be wowed by the author's use of language and construction of sentences. Or I need a big moment that makes the journey worth it in the end. For me, The Apartment  had none of these. I loved the idea of this novel, but I did not enjoy its execution. It wasn't awful, and there were sections and passages I did enjoy, but as a whole, it didn't work for me.

 Rating: 3 out of 5
Length: 209 pages
Publication date: December 3, 2013
Source: purchased

 Convinced? Treat yourself! Buy The Apartment from Amazon (Kindle edition.)

Want more? Greg Baxter's next novel, Munich Airport, comes out January 27, 2015.

As an affiliate, I receive a small commission when you make a purchase through any of the above links. Thank you for helping to support my book habits that bring more content to this blog!

Comments

  1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaDecember 28, 2014 at 9:38 AM

    That's about the same rating I gave this one when I listened to it --just ok:( Have a Happy New Year.

    ReplyDelete

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