The Couple Upstairs- Book Review

The Couple Upstairs by Shalini Boland

Publication Date: 13th Sep 2021
Genre: Thriller, Drama 

3.7 Stars 

Nina and Zac move into a ground floor flat in Mistletoe Lane. The house is charming and near a beach, a perfect choice to settle down and grow roots, Nina feels. The couple has been in a relationship for five years and considers this move a way to add to their happy relationship. 

Zac is busy with his plumbing business, and Nina is running an online fashion store. They interact a little with the neighbors, and life seems to go on fine more or less. However, the couple upstairs causes mixed feelings in Nina. Why is Chris always rude? Why doesn’t Vanessa talk much? What are those sounds in the middle of the night? Why can’t Zac see what she notices? 

As if that’s not enough, her business starts to collapse. Bad reviews are affecting sales, and the arguments between Zac and Nina have escalated. Someone is doing this on purpose. But who and why? What do they get by ruining Nina and Zac’s lives? 

The premise was intriguing, and the story maintains a good pace. There were quite a few characters introduced, and not all of them are important. Since the note down the names, it wasn’t an issue to remember who was who. 

Though I wasn’t thinking of the twist, I figured it out pretty soon. The ‘why’ was a mystery, though I had a slight inkling. It was fun to read and discover that my guess was right, even if the reason seemed a little too far-fetched and melodramatic. But then, people do all kinds of things, and worse has happened in real life. 

The author did a good job of keeping my interest intact. However, the reveal and the subsequent drama fell flat to me. It was over too soon, followed by a lengthy summary of the events. The solid buildup went for a toss here. 

I also have a few issues with Nina and Zac’s relationship. Yeah, the book is narrated by Nina, and I’m bound to take her side. But it did seem like Zac wasn’t really worth all the stress, and he sure didn’t handle things well (despite being matured). 

Considering these issues, the rating fell to 3.5. Still, I could finish it sooner than planned, and the story didn’t feel boring anywhere. So that’s plus 0.2 stars. 

I remember reading The Wife by the author and thought that ending diluted the book. Looks like the same has happened here (at least for me). Some readers loved the ending, so likely that I’m the odd one out (won’t be a first). 

To sum up, The Couple Upstairs is a decent thriller with a great pace and light twists. Don’t worry about figuring things out in advance. The story is still gripping enough to keep you interested. 

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bookouture. 

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