The Vacancy in Room 10 is a mystery thriller that follows Anna as she tries to uncover the truth about what happened to her husband after he stayed at a rundown motel that has since been converted into apartments.
The story is told through two points of view. The first is Anna, whose husband, Henry, has recently died. Just before his death, he called her and claimed that he had killed someone. After learning that his death may not have been what it seemed, Anna moves into the apartment complex to investigate what really happened while also trying to cope with her grief.
The second perspective belongs to Cass, the apartment complex’s “handyma’am,” as she likes to call herself. She fixes everything around the building in exchange for free rent. Cass is also dealing with her own struggles after accidentally killing someone.
This book had a very slow start for me. It didn’t really grab my attention until around Chapter 15. The beginning spends a lot of time introducing the residents of the apartment complex and explaining everyone’s backstories. While I understand the setup was necessary, it made it difficult to get invested right away.
As for the residents, I honestly loved them. I really liked the pool girls and their children. However, as the story progressed, I appreciated the sense of community that developed within the apartment complex. Even though I wasn’t initially invested in the “found family” dynamic, I liked seeing how everyone protected one another and stood by each other when things became dangerous.
One of the biggest twists was discovering that Henry had actually been murdered rather than dying by suicide. As Anna digs deeper into the mystery, she begins receiving threatening letters warning her to leave before she uncovers the truth. At the same time, Cass starts receiving threats as well, adding another layer of tension to the story.
Cass ended up being one of my favorite characters. She was intelligent, resourceful, and after learning everything she had endured with Reid, I couldn’t help but root for her throughout the novel.
The mystery itself kept me guessing for a while. I was completely convinced Henry was having an affair with Cass. At one point, I even suspected Anna’s friend Monica. The actual person he was involved with genuinely surprised me, and I definitely have to give the author credit for that reveal.
That being said, once I figured out who the affair was with, everything else fell into place. From that point on, I was able to correctly predict who the killer was before the big reveal. Because of that, the suspense faded quite a bit for me.
I wouldn’t necessarily call this an edge-of-your-seat thriller. For me, the biggest mystery wasn’t identifying the killer—it was discovering who Henry had been having the affair with. Once that secret came out, the rest of the mystery became fairly predictable.
One aspect I really enjoyed was the ending. I loved seeing Anna and Cass come together, support one another, and finally find freedom from everything they had been through. Even though they each went on to live separate lives, I appreciated that they maintained the bond they had built throughout the story.
The setting was also one of the novel’s strongest elements. A run-down motel converted into apartments already creates an eerie atmosphere, and the threatening letters, hidden secrets, and constant feeling that someone was watching only made it creepier.
Overall, I gave The Vacancy in Room 10 3 out of 5 stars. While the pacing was slow and I found the mystery fairly predictable after one major reveal, it was still an enjoyable read. If you’re looking for a light mystery with an intriguing setting, dual perspectives, and a few surprising twists along the way, this is definitely worth picking up.