Room 706 - Ellie Levenson

ROOM 706

ELLIE LEVENSON

****

Kate stretches her legs and turns on the TV while James washes away the traces of their morning. She watches in horror at the unfolding news: the hotel they are staying in has been taken under siege.

She should be making her way home, working on appearing normal, getting ready to re-enter family life with her loving husband Vic and their two adored children. Instead, she is trapped somewhere she shouldn't be, with a man she definitely doesn't love.

How will she begin to tell Vic what she is doing here? If her body is found, will it give up the secret of what she's been up to? She's been so careful hiding the evidence of her affair: write nothing down, leave no trace. Will he begin to understand why?

For now, Kate can only hide, take a deep breath, and reflect on the series of choices she's made that have brought her to this moment.

What will her marriage and her life look like, if she makes it out?

MY REVIEW

****

Kate is in Room 706 in a high-end hotel in London, when she turns on the news and sees a hostage situation has begun in the lobby of that same hotel. She is now confronted by several problems, particularly as the person she is currently sharing a bed with is not her husband…

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with Room 706, part of me was hoping for a fast paced, action thriller of the siege of the hotel. However, Room 706 is mainly a love story and an in-depth study into our main character Kate and why she finds herself in the situation she is in. The chapters alternate timelines – we have present day, where Kate is trapped in the hotel room with her lover, flashbacks from her past which focus on her husband and their life together and then flashbacks about her lover. The more these chapters progress, the more I felt sorry for husband Vic who seems to be a very sweet and lovely individual and the more annoyed and confused I was at Kate’s actions to cheat on him with the rather boring James!

Other than some very silly decisions, I did like Kate as a character. Ellie Levenson uses the narrative technique that Kate often hears voices or talks to people as if they are with her – whether they are alive or not, which means we get to have a more in-depth look of what is going on in her head. I also liked the little games she plays with herself and the people she loves – the age game in particular was used to great effect in places. She felt like a realistic and quirky person and this made her relatable.

I was worried about the ending to this book, as I’d seen a lot of reviews criticise it. I remember guessing what it might be, and I thought that if it ended the way I thought it would then this book couldn’t be more than a 3 star read. To my complete surprise, although I had correctly guessed the ending, it actually moved me a lot more than I was expecting. I think the fact you become so invested in Vic and Kate’s relationship and so empathetic to Kate, made the ending have a real impact. Although I think some readers will want a more concrete solution, I enjoyed the choice made for the conclusion and I will be thinking about the book for a long time after I turned the final page.

Overall, Room 706 is a love story, by the authors own admission, but it’s a story with real heart and grit which will stay with you long after reading it. Thank you to NetGalley & Headline for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

LINKS TO BUY

Amazon UK

Waterstones