The Quiet Tenant

“This man: young, strong, groomed. You think back to the day you met, to that brief moment before he revealed his true nature, and here’s what you see: a man who knows his neighbors. Who always takes out the recycling on time. Who stood in the delivery room the day his child was born, a steady presence against the evils of the world. […] Through it all, he never looks at you. This isn’t about you. This is about all the women and all the girls. This is about him and the things boiling inside his head. When it’s over, he never lingers. He’s a man in the world, with responsibilities calling out to him. […] There are items on his to-do list beyond you and your little existence, all demanding to be crossed out.”

When Clémence Michallon introduces “Rachel” and her captor, the two characters are on the cusp of significant lifestyle changes that will affect their dynamic over the course of the novel. For five years, “Rachel” has been living according to a strict routine, governed by his merciless obsession with control. All the decisions that “Rachel” will make in the coming chapters are a direct result of the isolation and deprivation she has been subjected to, and subsequent interactions will reveal her ongoing survival-driven analysis of Aidan, which has allowed her to develop an algorithm for navigating the moods of this sadistic sexual predator.

“Here is this beautiful man, who has done so much for our town. Who lost his wife a month ago. Sitting at my bar, alone, even though he doesn’t drink. I have to think that if there is a gaping hole at the center of his life, then maybe maintaining this habit has brought him some form of solace. I have to think this—our shared silences, our silent routine—means something to him, too. Everyone in town has an Aidan Thomas story. If you’re a kid, he saved your ass moments before the Christmas parade. He showed up when you needed him, tool belt cinched around his hips, to fix your wobbly sleigh, right your reindeer’s antlers.”

In keeping with many of the documented commonalities manifested by serial murderers, Michallon has created in Aidan the embodiment of an aphorism often uttered in disbelief by friends and acquaintances after a murderer’s crimes are uncovered: “But he seemed like such a nice guy!” In an interview, Michallon recalled that while composing Emily’s chapters, she felt as if she were writing a romance novel instead of a work of suspense (“Chapters & Chat: QUIET TENANT with Clemence Michallon.” YouTube, uploaded by Kelly Hook Reads Books, 20 July 2023). This