Hey everyone, welcome to the show. Great to be
diving in again. So, have you ever had that feeling
like the walls are closing in, but it's not just
the space. It's maybe the people in the space.
That feeling they might be hiding something,
something really dark. That unsettling thought,
yeah. It's close to home, literally. Well, today
we're diving right into that feeling with Frida
McFadden's psychological thriller, The Tenet.
It's all about how the comfort of your own home
can turn into, well... Something much more sinister.
Ah, yes, that genre. It really knows how to tap
into those deep -seated fears about trust, doesn't
it? Especially with people you live with. Totally.
So in The Tenant, we meet Blake and Krista. They're
having a rough time financially, really struggling.
So they decide, kind of reluctantly, to rent
out their spare room. A decision born out of
necessity, which often leads to interesting complications
in these stories. Oh, it does. Their new tenant
is Whitney. She seems okay at first, you know,
normal. But then... Weird things start happening.
Little things, then bigger things. And it all
spirals into suspicion, paranoia. It really unravels
the trust between Blake and Krista. We see most
of it through Blake's eyes and things get intense.
And using that shared house setting, it just
ramps up the claustrophobia, right? The idea
that the danger isn't just outside. It could
be right down the hallway. Exactly. Now, look,
no spoilers, promise. But a couple of things
I really loved. First, the way the suspense builds.
It's not immediate jump scares. It's this slow
burn, little incidents that just pile up and
create this like suffocating feeling of unease.
That creeping. red. Very effective. Yeah. And
second, the unreliable narrator thing with Blake
is just brilliant. You're constantly thinking,
is he seeing things clearly? Is he the problem?
It really pulls you in. Keeps you off balance
as a reader. You're trying to piece it together
alongside him or maybe despite him. Right. And
the third thing was how these tiny everyday things
like, I don't know, missing cereal or a weird
smell, they become huge red flags. It feels very
grounded, even as it gets creepy. Using the mundane
to signal something sinister. Yeah. That makes
it feel plausible, relatable even. Makes the
scary stuff hit harder. Okay. But on the flip
side, just a couple of things that maybe bug
me a little. Sometimes, sometimes Blake makes
decisions where you just want to, you know, reach
into the book and stop it. Like, dude, no. Yeah.
That don't go in there feeling. It means you're
invested though. True. True. And maybe occasionally
I felt some characters were being a little. deliberately
blind. You know, a bit frustrating, but maybe
that's part of the point. Could be. Amplifies
the protagonist's isolation if nobody else seems
to see what they see. Yeah, maybe. So overall,
look, The Tenant definitely sucked me in. Kept
me guessing right up to the end. I'm giving it
a solid four out of five stars. Really unsettling,
compelling read. Definitely a strong contender
in the genre. That four stars feels right. It
delivers on the thrills. Okay, so let's get into
it. For our deep dive today, we're going to unpack...
how this whole tense manipulative situation gets
set up in the tenant. We'll look at Blake and
Krista's money troubles, you know, the reason
they even need a tenant. The catalyst, yeah.
Then Whitney's arrival, how she seems at first
versus maybe some underlying... And those first
few strange events, specifically from Blake's
point of view, as his suspicion starts to grow,
we're going to pull from the early chapters to
see how McFadden lays that groundwork. And it's
key to remember, like you said, we're mostly
in Blake's head for a lot of this. So his reliability,
his biases, his own anxieties, they're all coloring
what we, the readers, experience. Absolutely.
So it kicks off. Blake's just lost his job. And
it wasn't just any job. He was a VP. Riding high,
then bam, it's gone. He reflects on that, how
fast things can just change. That financial hit
is huge. Right, that sudden loss of status and
security creates this vulnerability, this pressure
cooker situation for the couple. Makes them desperate.
And Krista's job at the dry cleaner, it just,
it doesn't cut it. Not for their mortgage on
this Upper West Side brownstone they have, which,
you know. Probably felt like success, and now
it's the source of major stress. That pressure
is really why they even think about renting a
room. And the house itself, that shared space,
it's almost like another character, isn't it?
It's the setting for all the drama, and just
keeping it becomes part of the stress. Totally.
So they put up the ad. Single upstairs bedroom
available immediately. Sounds normal enough.
Quiet street, shared spaces, no pets, no parking.
Standard stuff. Pretty straightforward. But even
before anyone answers the ad, Krista is visibly
anxious. Blake notices. She's worried about a
stranger, sure, but also seems worried about,
like, how Blake will act around a guest. Hence,
maybe things weren't perfect between them before
all this started. That's an interesting detail.
Her initial anxiety might seem normal, but it
could also suggest something deeper, maybe foreshadowing
her own state of mind or intentions later. Then
the interviews start, and wow, the first one
is memorable. Coolizabeth. Claims she's psychic.
Right. Says the house has bad energy. Drafts
from past owners. Offers to do a channeling ceremony.
Okay, definitely not your average tenant application.
Not at all. And she warns Krista about Blake.
Says he's dangerous. Gonna harm her. It's intense.
Well, it certainly throws a wrench into things
immediately. Plants a seed of doubt, whether
you believe her or not. Introduces that theme
of danger inside the house right away. Blake
just writes her off as, you know, totally nuts.
But Krista? Blake sees she's actually kind of
freaked out by the warning, which makes you wonder
about Krista, right? What's going on with her?
Yeah, it shows a potential vulnerability there.
Maybe she's more susceptible to suggestion or
maybe there's a reason that warning resonates
with her. Then Whitney Cross shows up and she
seems totally normal. Lease ended, saw the ad
at Cosmos Diner where she works. Krista likes
her right away. Even Blake thinks, OK, this is
way better than the psychic. The relief candidate.
Seems perfect after the first one. Whitney's
polite, makes a good impression, offers the rent
and deposit quickly. Seems straightforward. Almost
too straightforward, perhaps. The contrast itself
could be a subtle warning sign, if you're looking
for one. Well, Blake feels something. Despite
her seeming okay, he gets this, like, nagging
feeling. A gut instinct telling him to be careful,
get rid of her while he can. But he can't really
explain why. Ah, that internal conflict. His
rational mind sees nothing wrong, but his intuition
is screaming. That's great for building suspense
for us, the audience. Makes us uneasy, too. So,
yeah, despite that feeling, Whitney moves in,
they run a background check, it comes back clean,
nothing. It's legit on paper. Initial interactions
are fine. Whitney even compliments their fish,
Goldie. Blake's telling himself, you know, focus
on Krista, don't mess things up. But then the
weird stuff starts. And remember, we're seeing
this all through Blake's eyes now. Right, that
limited perspective kicks in hard. Is he paranoid
or is something really going on? That's the question
McFadden forces us to ask. First, it's his cereal.
It goes missing. Seems small, right? But Blake
kind of flips out about it. Then Krista's like,
just talk to Whitney, but he doesn't want to.
Avoidance. Communication breakdown starting already.
Then fruit flies appear. Out of nowhere, supposedly.
Blake instantly thinks it's Whitney. She's doing
this. Jumping to conclusions, maybe. Or is his
suspicion warranted? Then he gets this allergic
reaction. He thinks it's Limon, maybe from her
laundry detergent. And suddenly he can't even
wash his own clothes without reacting. Each little
thing just adds fuel to his fire. It's like these
small everyday annoyances are being weaponized.
Or at least that's how he perceives it. Disrupting
his basic comfort in his own home. Exactly. Then
they start arguing about noise at night. Blake
is convinced she's doing it on purpose, stomping
around just to bother him. The intent becomes
the focus for him. Not just noise, but malicious
noise. And then he finds it. Rotting food. In
a paper bag hidden behind the fridge. For Blake,
that's it. That's the proof. This isn't accidental.
She's deliberately trying to make his life hell.
That discovery feels like a turning point, doesn't
it? It shifts from maybe misunderstanding or
minor conflicts to something that seems undeniably
intentional and frankly disgusting. It solidifies
his view of her. It really does. And it leads
him to do something kind of petty himself. He
messes with her waste paper basket, just dumps
it out. It shows how he's going to drag down,
reacting in ways he probably normally wouldn't.
Yeah, the paranoia is starting to warp his own
behavior. He's no longer just observing. He's
reacting, engaging in this weird battle. But
oh, look at the time. We're going to have to
pause there for today's deep dive. We've really
only just set the stage for all the paranoia
and suspicion. We have. But it's a fascinating
setup, isn't it? You can see how McFadden carefully
lays. all these little pieces that are going
to explode later. Absolutely. So if you like
this first look into the unsettling world of
The Tenet, hey, please do like and subscribe.
We'd appreciate it. And there's an Amazon link
for the book down in the description if you want
to grab it. Yeah, definitely recommend reading
it to see all these threads play out. It gets
much wilder. Oh, it does. And hey, let us know
in the comments, what did you think of these
early moments? Did you trust Blake? What were
your first impressions or theories about Whitney?
We'd love to hear what you think. Always great
to see different interpretations. It really is.
And, you know, it leaves us with this final thought
for you to chew on. How easily can our own fears,
our own anxieties kind of twist how we see the
people closest to us, especially the ones we
share a space with? How well do we really know
anyone? Something to think about. Definitely.
Thanks for joining us on The Deep Dive. See you
next time.