The Couple Downstairs

by A.J. Carter

How much are your secrets worth?

Holly Watson has money, a beautiful home, and no one to share it with. So when the charming Danny and his sweet wife Claire move into her ground floor, it feels like the answer to her prayers.

But behind the smiles and the home-cooked dinners, the couple downstairs have dangerous plans for Holly – and so does someone she'd never suspect. By the time she sees through the lies and manipulation, her secrets are already someone else’s weapon.

A gripping domestic thriller full of shocking twists, suspense, and deadly deception – perfect for fans of The Couple Next Door , Behind Closed Doors , and The Woman in the Window .

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “A page-turner I devoured in one sitting. I didn’t trust a single character.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Jaw-dropping psychological suspense. Unputdownable.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “I thought I had it figured out and I was WRONG.”

Genres: Thriller

233 pages, ebook

About the author

AJ Carter is a psychological thriller author from Bristol, England. His first book, The Family Secret, is praised by critics around the world, and he continues to regularly deliver suspenseful novels you can’t put down.

Sign up to his mailing list today and be the first to hear about upcoming releases and hot new deals for existing books. You’ll also receive a FREE digital copy of The Couple Downstairs – an unputdownable domestic thriller you won’t find anywhere else in the world: https://BookHip.com/WAXFLLP

Reviews

[Donna Mallery · Rating 5 out of 5]

This intriguing story has me reading continuously with little breaks in between. Is it ever a good idea to rent out your downstairs? It seems okay at first, but heads up! Never have a one time thing with the husband! And you know what I mean!! The renter soon gets explicit photos and bribery. Renting was NOT a good idea! The story makes you feel the intense emotions throughout. I love A. J. Carter and I love this book!

[Eva Edge · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Couple Downstairs by A.J. Carter is an intense, emotional and frustrating psychological thriller with a good twist at the end!
It's good, so good that I was ready to throw this book in the far corner of my balcony. And I am talking about frustration and emotions while dealing with the main characters. I love it when a book makes me feel; it's a good book for me.
In general, I always feel extra frustrated if any type of blackmail is involved. Seriously, when do people learn that blackmail is not a one-time thing? And there are so many more crazy, frustrating moments, I just don't want to spoil the book, but this is 5-star frustration for me😅 I always say I love emotions, and there is so much of it 😍😍

This story is told from the two women, Holly and Anna's, point of view, so it's easy to follow. It's hard to understand how both storylines are related, and it will come out just with the final twist, so for some time it's like reading 2 books.

When Holly decides to rent out the downstairs of her house to a young couple, Claire and Danny, all she wants is company and a feeling less lonely. She doesn't need money as she owns a business, but she doesn't have many friends or family. Sadly, Holly makes a stupid mistake that will cost a lot...

Chronically ill Anna is isolated at her home, and her husband refuses to call a doctor. Soon Anna noticed that she felt worse after every meal that her husband prepared...

The good news is that you can get this book for free if you sign up for A.J. Carter's newsletter on his website ajcarterbooks (dot) com/books/

As I could not remember when and how I got this book, I needed to check, and I found that you can buy The Big Psychological Thriller Collection (Standalone Psychological Thrillers) for just £0.99 (of course, I bought it!). I liked this book, and I am curious about the other books of this author :)

[Tina Plintz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first book that I have read from AJ Carter. And I can say I will definitely reach for another. I found this book very easy to read and kept you wanting more. A few good twist. Some you kinda saw coming others not at all. But if you want something that can keep your attention and like lots of twists but not something that is long and drawn out this is definitely a book for you.

[Thomas Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the whole I enjoyed this book. However for the majority of the book there were 2 stories that I felt took too long becoming one. When they merged it made the ending rushed.

[Angi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book I’ve read by AJ Carter and I already have another by him downloaded and ready to go on my TBR. This was that good. Each chapter changed between two female main characters. The stories have nothing to do with each other, or do they? This kept me wanting more because I HAD to know what happened next. There wasn’t a boring part and it was a quick enjoyable read. Unique storyline. Very different than any other thrillers I’ve read. Money vs humanity.

Thank you @AJCarterBooks for a free e-book. The opinions are mine alone and not biased in any way.

[Megan · Rating 1 out of 5]

“the couple downstairs have dangerous plans for Holly- and so does someone she’d never suspect”

The entire plot was given away in the blurb!! How has this book gotten 5 stars. I was expecting there to be more to the story but no just as the blurb says: the mystery blackmail is coming from the couple downstairs and her friend who is the only other character in the book is the person “she’d never suspect”

I skimmed through the last 50% of this book as it was boring and nothing interesting happened. The side story with Anna was even worse- where were her friends/co workers? Surely if your friend wasn’t answering her phone or showing up for work you’d be calling the police?!? Shit book. I am shocked at the 5 stars reviews, I need to stop believing Goodreads reviews 🥲🙄

[Julie Devonald-Cornelius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Page turner

Another great read from A J Carter. Holly let's out a couple of rooms to Danny and Clare. Danny and Holly share a moment. Elsewhere Anna is unwell and Jack is acting like a caring husband. Then things start happening. Really enjoyed this book

[Monica Mil-Homens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Opinião: Não conhecia este autor e passei a conhecer através dele mesmo num grupo de leitores de Thrillers internacional. Ele é que me informou que com a subscrição da sua newsletter tinha direito a este livro gratuito. E que livro! Uau! Como não existe propriamente sinopse, posso desvendar que a estória gira em torno de uma Mulher, Holly que aluga o andar debaixo da sua casa a um casal super amoroso e agradável de se conviver. Tudo corre bem até que o membro feminino do casal, Claire, se sente desanimada e com pouca auto estima e acha que Holly não gosta muito dela. Danny, o seu esposo, intervém de forma a que as duas mulheres se tornem boas amigas. Até que conhecemos Anna e a estória pelo POV dela. São duas estórias distintas ou ambas relacionadas? Será que os segredos se vão revelar todos? Isso cabe-vos a vocês descobrir lendo este Thriller de leitura super rápida, personagens interessantes e bem caracterizadas e não vou ficar por aqui no que diz respeito a leituras deste autor. Gostei mesmo muito dos capítulos curtos, e apesar de não ser nada inédito no que diz respeito à estória, nota-se bem o que o autor quis fazer e fez muito bem. Os outros livros, nesta data em que publico a opinião, estão na Amazon, para o Kindle (e app) a $0,99, valem bem a pena! Só existem em inglês.

Eng Review: I did not have acknowledge of this author and I got to know him through him (thank you for being so nice) in an international Thrillers reader group. He was the one who informed me that by subscribing to his newsletter I was entitled to this free book. And what a book! Wow! As there is no synopsis, I can reveal that the story revolves around a woman, Holly, who rents the floor below her house to a super loving and pleasant couple to live with. Everything goes well until the female member of the couple, Claire, feels discouraged and has little self-esteem and thinks that Holly doesn't like her very much. Danny, her husband, intervenes so that the two women become good friends. Until we got to know Anna and the story from her POV. Are they two distinct stories or are they both related? Will all the secrets be revealed? That's up to you to discover by reading this super fast-paced thriller, with interesting and well-characterized characters, and I won't stop here when it comes to reading this author. I really liked the short chapters, and although it's nothing new when it comes to the story, you can clearly see what the author wanted to do and did very well. The other books, on this date when I publish my opinion, are on Amazon, for the Kindle (and app) at $0.99, they are well worth it! They only exist in English.
@bibliotecamil_insta /bibliotecamil.wordpress.com

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I have read by A J Carter, and definitely won't be the last. It is full of twists and turns.
How much will you pay to keep your secrets a secret?
Mind blowing! Strange how the love of money supersedes the love of our fellow humans. Oh, but that describes a psychopath.

Can't wait to read another book by A J Carter!

[Samantha Curtis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book by aj carter. I’m just addicted now to this author

I didn’t expect that ending

[Allie James · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8/5

The Couple Downstairs is a twisty thriller that gives you the creepy feeling of being watched.

It follows Holly, who is renting out part of her house to a new couple: Danny and Claire. They seem like the have the perfect marriage. That is, until Danny betrays Claire with Holly... and someone was watching...

Holly isn't the most interesting main character in the world, but she wrestles with her own morality enough that it makes the story fascinating. You start wondering, "would *I* do that??" about many things Holly does. She's not a particularly good person or even that likable, but you still root for her because she's being pretty badly wronged.

I didn't really like Danny, either lol. Infidelity is very off-putting in a character for me, so I didn't really swoon or bat my eyelashes when Danny's sweet side would show. Also I just didn't really find his character to have many appealing qualities that would make Holly abandon her integrity.

Claire was sweet but ANNOYING and needy! She's very sweet to Holly's face and then turns around and is like, "why doesn't she like me what did i do wrong what's wrong with me" and it's like YEEEEEESH chill out, lady. Holly was like walking on eggshells around her for a while (partially because of her own doing) but also because Claire's emotions seemed a little unpredictable.

The most enticing part of the story is that there's another story going on at the same time and you're wondering how and when these two stories will connect. They're both really interesting stories, so tying them together was a great idea and satisfying in the end.

Very little of this story is presented at face value. You feel like you're set up to trust certain individuals that maybe you shouldn't be trusting. While Holly tries to get to the bottom of who saw her misdeeds, I kept wondering if she had blinders on to some very important people in her life.

My biggest criticism is there aren't enough suspects. Holly has a very small circle of people she actually talks to, which means "ok it must be one of the people they've introduced us to, right?" Which succeeds in making you suspicious of everyone, but it doesn't succeed in building a large world where any number of people could be trying to hurt Holly.

So when the end came, I was kinda like, "yep, I thought so." Not all the details, but some of the major points were kind of like duh!

The second story is actually my favorite part of the book, but I won't give anything away about it. It sets up an interesting ending, but I wish we hadn't been following Holly's side of things through the end because the other character was up to all sorts of good stuff that I would have liked to have witnessed. But oh, well!

Overall, this is an enjoyable thriller with enough mysterious aspects to keep you engaged throughout.

[Philip Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

English woman renting part of her house is about to be fleeced -3.5 stars

Claire and Tony show up to start a long-term rental of the downstairs area of Holly's English country estate. Things don't go as expected. At about the same time, a recently married couple start to deal with the wife's illness. The connections, if any, are not clear.

I was confused, thinking that I misread the character's names. I had not realized that there were overlapping stories. Guilt and uncertainty was spread liberally throughout for the first half of the story/stories. Clarity comes late and is incomplete.

The raw and rainy English countryside in late fall is a fitting background for depression and guilt which eventually leads to extreme violence. Victims keep trying to review their situation while the perpetrators successfully mask their part in the drama. This is an odd mystery--multiple mysteries actually. Flashes of hope surface for a different ending as well as an expectation that victims learned a lesson.

The dark and gloomy psychological mystery could easily contribute to a reader's sense of depression.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Couple Downstairs by AJ Carter

This book was a free download on Amazon! Followed some fb group and was told this was free so of course I downloaded it! Been sitting in my kindle fore more than a year when I finally read all my Freida and John Marrs books. So i really wanted an easy read and tried to open this.

Did not disappoint! Was a really quick two day read. Really page turning. Also a bit freaky and scary at times.

The story is actually two stories. Told by two women who are totally irrelevant. It wasnr until the very last few chapters where the two stories merged. To be honest Holly’s story was easy to guess and Anna’s story was just a scary straight forward plot. So I knew the twist should be how the two stories merged. The reason for their merge wasnt too surprising honestly, but nonetheless still good enough.


Would give this a 3.5⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

#thecoupledownstairs #ajcarter #amazonfreebook #kindle #bookreview #kindlebooks #psychologicalthriller

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of two women, Holly and Anna. Holly decides to rent out the downstairs of her house to a young couple. Why she did this baffled me as she certainly didn't need the money. Anna too is well off and living in a beautiful house with her new husband.

Holly is enjoying the company of Claire and Danny until one night she makes the mistake of sleeping with Danny. Big mistake as someone took photos and she is soon being blackmailed.

Anna is isolated at home as she's feeling desperately ill and her husband refuses to call a doctor and has taken Anna's phone. It eventually dawns on Anna that she is only ill after eating food prepared by her husband.

Told in alternate chapters by Holly and Anna this is a very enjoyable read with quite a few twists, some of which I anticipated but I didn't foresee the big twist at the end

I look forward to reading more from this author.

[Arvilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holly Watson has plenty of money and a beautiful house, but she's lonely. When Danny and Claire take her up on the offer to rent her downstairs, she jumps on the chance. The story switches back and forth between Holly and Anna -- and Anna is married to a wonderful man, who is taking care of her while she is sick. She has no idea what has caused her illness, but she can't seem to keep food down, and she's losing strength. Her husband insists she must stay in bed and get better, but something seems off to Anna. This is a fast-paced book, and I raced through the pages! I gave it four stars instead of five because all of the male characters are complete schmucks & Holly's character is a bit too unbelievable when it comes to attracting men. Just my take. It's still a great read, though.

[Tierra Chappel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I accidentally stumbled across this author, and he has not disappointed me yet. He ALWAYS surprises me with surprise curve balls and plot twist that I do not see coming. This book was a bit more predictable than his other books and I was able to guess the culprit(s) who were up to no good. A.J. Carter really develops the characters and make you care about them. He wrote from the point of view of the two main characters: Anna and Holly. You want them to thrive and figure out who, what, when, where, and why. You really feel like you are a part of the story and are on the end of your seat the entire ride. I highly recommend this author.

[Tina Lincoln · Rating 5 out of 5]

Renting out part of a house can be a great thing... or not.
This story had me wondering if I had completely missed something, and then I realized I had not, it was just very well written! To like the couple you rent to is a great thing, especially when you are also in the same house, just upstairs. To sleep with one of them, well.... that is kind of crossing the line, especially when a person has a guilty conscience and a history that has hidden something!
I loved the complex-simplicity of this story.
Thank you, A J Carter for a good story!
I received a complimentary copy of this story and this is my honest review.

[Greg D · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest, I cannot fathom how anyone can give this book over 2 stars - there were simply way too many ludicrous and unbelievable occurrences. The lack of any realistic and obvious actions by the dual protagonists was so aggravating that it had me shaking my head over and over! Any reasonable individual being violently threatened or being pushed unrelentingly into a corner is going to react viciously like any animal would, whereas the actions of the protagonists were nothing short of pathetic! I had 90% of the story figured out after barely a third of the book, and only a somewhat more interesting ending raised my rating to two stars. First and last time for this author.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you, AJ Carter for the book The Couple Downstairs. I loved the writing, and it drew me right into the story and kept me reading. I liked the two POVs but it was frustrating not knowing how they were connected for so long because they seemed so distant. The big reveal wasn't shocking to me because I had suspected most of it. There were more reveals to come, but felt anticlimactic, as if all of the effort had been into the big reveal and everything else was filler. Even so, the book was an enjoyable read and I would certainly read other books by Carter.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a fan of A.J. Carter and have read many of his books. Some are great, some so-so. I kind of place this one in the so-so file. It was a decent story for the most part and certainly had it's twists and turns, but I felt in was predictable quite a few times and I guessed what the deal was before it was revealed. It also required me to suspend disbelief a few times, which I know most books do, but there were instances here where I was like, "Come on... really? You can't figure this out?" But I did get the book free as a promotion so I am grateful for another Carter novel.

[karin whitehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Picked this up from ARC. This is my review. We have two couples throughout the book. Jack and Anna and Holly and Danny (married to Claire} A tightly written story, that is full of twists, thankfully the author kept them straight by the titles of each couple. Fast moving, great character development an edge of my seat gripping story. Very enjoyable read.

[courtney small · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Couple Downstairs by: AJ Carter……This book 📖 is about a lady who is lonely so she rents out the downstairs part of her house to a lovely couple. Friendships begin…maybe even more! But then she’s being blackmailed for her secrets. Will she just tell them herself or pay up? This book 📖 also has another twist to it that I just can’t speak on, but when you figure it out 🤯

[Cecilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic psychological thriller. It is almost two stories in one book with excellent character development and where their humanity plays a huge role. The twists and turns keep you on the edge of your seat constantly and the end is totally unexpected. Some really good moral choices and consequences to consider.

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Couple Downstairs by A.J. Carter is an enjoyable psychological thriller with plenty of mystery and suspense. The story was interesting, although I felt it was a bit too long and became slow in the middle. The twists kept me reading, and I wanted to find out how everything would end. Despite the slower pace, it was still a good read that thriller fans will enjoy.

[Tina Fulcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. I had my suspicions regarding how the stories linked, but some brilliant twists. Very well written and I was invested from page one, throughout. Highly recommended. This was the first book I've read by this author and certainly won't be the last.

[Donna Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a suspense filled novel involving 2 alternating situations. It is difficult for me to write a review because I don’t want to give away any plots and spoilers. I will simply say I have a new favorite psychological thriller author.

Thank you A.J. Carter

[Terry M · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written, psycholigical thriller with a good storyline. Two lives, two totally different existences, but paths that cross with unexpected twists. Highly recommended. I received a complimentary copy and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Deni Tipuric · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tiny bit dragged out but good book! I tried so hard to figure it out n almost did. Would have been better if there was 1-2 more characters for extra suspense and suspects. Good twists, shocked me at end. Don’t think too much of it and just enjoy it. Fast quick read

[Winter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two seemingly distinct storylines with one that was extremely repetitive. Took too long to get where it needed to go and the "aftermath" required too much suspension of disbelief. Knocked a star off for not ending the book after the arrest.

[Rachelle finn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book , it has a good story line although I guessed some of it the last couple of twists were unexpected. Definitely recommend this title x