Trapped in the loft with your best friend, her new boyfriend and your new housemate.
The frustrations, circumstances and history make it a fun read. Very much a here and now story that has nothing to do with Covid.
Enjoy, I did

Rating 3.5/5

It was definitely the cover that caught my attention with this book first and then when I read the tagline I was sure that this would be a book that would be perfect for my summer reading.

I think what I enjoyed the most about this book was that as well as the light-hearted fun that I was expecting I also got a lot of unexpected nostalgia, I had entirely forgotten about MSN until reading this and it just brought back so many funny memories. It also became a whole lot more relatable, I was right there with Ellen, I could completely understand her feelings about that whole scenario because I too was that teenager crushing on boys and trying to catch their attention with crazy song lyrics.

I will admit that until that point in the story I hadn’t quite yet been hooked, I feel like I was waiting for a certain kind of conflict that hadn’t quite materialised. I think because for me the expectation going into the book was that the characters being locked in the attic wasn’t where the excitement of the story was going to come from, so unfortunately for the first part of the book I was waiting for something more exciting to happen. However once Ellen and Ben discover that they have places in common and maybe know each other I felt a lot more involved in the story and was eager to find out how the situation between them would play out.

I felt a connection to Ellen straight away, I too would have (until very recently) not known what to do if I found my kitchen flooding, and could relate to her next day hangover fears. Alexa too was relatable, I liked that she was the de facto leader of the group and that she was the one that everyone else thought would know what to do, even though she was trying just as hard as everyone else to get by. I think the dynamic between Ellen and Alexa was great and I liked that they were a bit opposite to each other but knew how each other worked well enough to handle certain situations.

Jack was an interesting one, admittedly at the start I wasn’t so keen on him, he seemed a little awkward and unsure and I felt his sections drag a little. However then he does something that I thought was rather unexpected and adds another level of tension in the story and I was intrigued to find out what impact that would have on the rest of the group, especially when they made it out of the attic.

I think I had expected a little more tension between the characters when they made it out and whilst I loved how heartwarming the ending was and that it left me on that happy upbeat note, I feel like it would have been sweeter if the consequences of some things were explored a little further.

The Lock In was an enjoyable read, a light-hearted and creative take on a locked room mystery, and I loved the trip down memory lane that it took me on.

This was quite an unusual book but I enjoyed it very much. It was funny and very light-hearted. What a change to read something different. More please. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book-it’s perfect feelgood,light reading material for times when you want to be cheered up and not too challenged by what you read.
It’s about 3 housemates and the new boyfriend of one of them who accidentally end up locked in the attic while their kitchen is flooding.The story moves back and forth as we find out more about each of them, and how they’re linked.
Perfect holiday reading,when we can go on holiday again.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review which reflects my own opinion.

Ironic concept for lockdown. Loved it. Creative and lighthearted with character development and a good plot.

‘The Lock In’ is about three London housemates: Ellen, Alexa, and Jack, who with Ben, Alexa’s overnight guest, get themselves accidentally trapped in the attic of their rented house.

Overall this is a nice light easy read and I liked all the characters. This is something that could very easily happen which makes it relatable.

Thank you.

This was a good contemporary. I enjoyed reading from the different characters’ perspectives and seeing their stories unfold. I also enjoyed the relationships they formed, and how the friendship of the three flat mates developed throughout the book.

The premise of the flatmates and a fourth person being trapped in the attic after the handle falls out of the door is what drew me to this book, and I was surprised at how much happened in such a short time period! I would have liked to have seen more of the ‘after’ but I still think we got a good story of during the lock in and afterwards!

Overall I gave this book 3 stars

Thank you @michaeljbooks for inviting me on the blog tour for THE LOCK IN. Out now on Kindle, out July 22nd in hardcover!

READ THIS IF… you like awkwardly endearing romance, 90s nostalgia, and stories about people in their twenties.

THE STORY… In this ‘locked room romcom’, hungover Ellen discovers that her kitchen is flooding. In search of an off-switch, she ends up locked in the attic with housemates Jack and Alexa, and Alexa’s Hinge date Ben. The four twenty-somethings must seek rescue, while navigating dead mice, weeing in boxes, and Ellen’s feeling that she knows Ben from somewhere...

I… had so much fun reading this book! The book delivers on the hilarity promised by the premise, and it’s incredibly relatable for those in their twenties who don’t know what they’re doing with their life. From navigating dating in the age of Tinder and Hinge, to dealing with evil landlords (their landlord was so true to life, and reminded me of how much I hate renting…), to figuring out careers, all the characters’ experiences were spot on.

This was a character driven book (there’s only so much that can happen with four people trapped in an attic!) and the character dynamics remained fresh and entertaining throughout. I particularly enjoyed Jack: a well-meaning yet largely inept guy, who I’d affectionately refer to as a himbo. His live-tweeting antics were hilarious and definitely something I would do. The only reason I don’t have a book crush on him is that he only baths, never showers….

NOW… I’d recommend this to any romcom fan, and will be looking out for what Phoebe Luckhurst does next.

“Three flatmates. Two best friends. One old flame. And a very stuck door…” - cover tag line.

My thanks to Penguin Michael Joseph for an eARC via NetGalley, of ‘The Lock In’ by Phoebe Luckhurst in exchange for an honest review.

Before reading this I had wondered if it was about someone with agoraphobia, the pandemic, an escape room or a locked room mystery. Yet none of these speculations were right.

‘The Lock In’ is about three London housemates: Ellen, Alexa, and Jack, who with Ben, Alexa’s overnight guest, get themselves accidentally trapped in the attic of their rented house. Oops!

While they seek to find a way out including trying to attract a passerby’s attention, Jack gets an intermittent signal on his phone and posts of their dilemma on Twitter. It goes viral with amusing results.

Meanwhile, as the hours tick by Ellen, who is nursing a massive hangover, has the horrible realisation that Ben, her best friend’s new love interest, is someone from her past. Ben doesn’t seem to recognise her making things very awkward.

Having left the hijinks of my singleton house sharing days in South London long behind, the characters and situations didn’t particularly resonate with me though I still found it a pleasant romantic comedy that provided a few hours of pure escapism.

Overall, a frothy and light-hearted novel that is perfect for summertime reading.

When I first heard about The Lock In, I was so excited to read it. I thought this is going to be hysterical but sadly it all felt a little flat for me.

In this story we have Ellen and Alexa who are best friends they live together along with their housemate Jack. It all begins with Alexa waking up with the hangover from hell to find the kitchen in their rented home flooded. Being clueless, they search the attic for the stopcock but once Alexas date from last night (Ben) walks into the attic, the door slams shut, the handle falls off, trapping all four of them inside. This leads to a lot of awkward moments over the space of the next 5 hours.

The story is told from the 4 POV which I liked because we got the insights into everyones thoughts but sadly, I just didn't warm to any of them.

What I enjoyed most about this book was the nostalgic conversations about chatting on MSN messenger. It brought back some lovely memories for me being in high school and chatting to loads of friends for hours on end.

I've given this book 3 stars because I wanted it to be funny and I honestly think it could have been. I wanted to see hilarious attempts at escape!! I enjoyed reading it, it just didn't live up to my expectations.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the advanced copy.

I’m a fan of romantic comedies but this missed the mark for me. Although the set-up and location is different (attic, a combination of relationships, a twist in their history etc.) and could’ve made for a fun tale, the characters lacked depth and it didn’t keep me turning the page for more. For such a concentrated amount of dialogue between characters that were difficult to like, I think it really needed to be more dynamic. The introduction to the landlord seems a completely unnecessary addition when we could’ve explored the main characters reflections and aftermath of the event much more.

Some quips were quite funny and as a late twenty-something I enjoyed the millennial references to MSN messenger. Overall, I think this would be an easy holiday read but there are plenty of others I would recommend beforehand.

The start of the book was really fan! The setting was frantic and fun. I did enjoy reading The Lock I and would read books by the author again.

A good summer holiday read.

The Lock In 💚🗝

Ad - thanks to NetGalley and @penguinukbooks @michaeljbooks for the e-arc!

Exactly the kind of fun escapism I needed! I raced through this and it was the perfect book to get lost in for a few hours at a time.

The characters are perfectly flawed and you can’t help but warm to them and their growing friendships.

It was also so so so relatable at times. I couldn’t cope with the MSN memories, it was like reading my past!

You’re sure to love this if you enjoy Beth O’Leary’s books!

4⭐️

The idea of this book is what drew me in. I was expecting a hilarious tale of the housemates’ attempts to escape the attic whilst battling a hangover and the awkward ‘morning after the night before’ situation. There were many different ideas or directions the author could have taken that would have made this a laugh out loud read (trying different ways to bust down the door, exploring the attic contents, trying to climb out the window), but sadly the book didn’t quite hit the mark for me. It did have humorous moments like the need to pee issue, the Twitter feed that went viral and the eventual rescue but overall it just wasn’t as funny as I’d hoped.

I liked that the story was told from multiple points of view as we got to see each of the housemates reactions to the situation and it also allowed for the multi-media format (as well as the standard format the book includes emails, texts and MSN messages). This also gave us the chance to get to know each of the characters better.

I can’t say I loved any of the characters as I just didn’t find them that interesting but I did want to see how Alexa and Ben would work out. Their romance was the most interesting part of the story for me and they were the main reason I wanted to continue reading. Ellen’s character was one I didn’t particularly like. She came across as self-absorbed, selfish and quite annoying.

The main flaw of this book, other than it wasn’t that funny, was the pacing. We got to the locked in part of the story pretty quickly but everything else just felt so slow. Too much time was spent on the MSN storyline and not enough on the actual stuck in an attic situation for my liking. I would have preferred to see most hilarious attempts to escape and more awkward moments in the confines of a warm attic with 3 other people and a hangover!

Overall this wasn’t a bad read, it just wasn’t what I was expecting. I wanted more humour and craziness.

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher (Penguin Michael Joseph UK) for providing a copy of the book for review. All opinions are my own and provided willingly.

Such a lovely book, very light hearted and funny. It was a super easy read and the time and pages just flew by.

I found this book a little hard to get into. I loved the premise but found it didn't quite live up to what I thought it would do. If you like rom com's, give it a go

The Lock In is about housemates who get locked in their rented house. They have a leak in the kitchen and whilst searching for the stop tap they get stuck in the attic. With dying phone batteries, no signal and a few sneaky tweets the story continues.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

The Lock In is a funny, entertaining story about three housemates and a boyfriend who accidentally get locked in the attic. It’s the morning after a a heavy night of drinking, and Ellen wakes up to find the kitchen is flooding - and she doesn’t know how to turn the water off. She assumes the stopcock is somewhere in the attic, because hey - that’s where everything is, isn’t it? Now this concept may seem far-fetched, unlikely even, but I have lived with people when I was a student, who would have thought that this was the logical place to put the stopcock. After all, everything important is in the attic, isn’t it?! 🤷🏼‍♀️

One thing leads to another, and the three housemates (Ellen, Alexa and Jack) along with Ellen’s date from the previous night (Ben), end up locked in the attic with no way out, and no phone signal! Their only chance of attracting attention, is by shouting out of the sky light to passers-by. Which would be great if someone actually walked down their street!

And as for the toilet situation (because out of everything, this was my first though - it’s very important, actually!), Ellen finds herself having to use a box!

They’re all funny, interesting and engaging characters, and when Ellen realises that she and Ben have ‘met’ before and things become very awkward, they still remain nice people that I’d be happy to spend time with (just not in a locked room, thanks!)

This is an ideal pick-me-up book: I think I smiled and laughed from beginning to end!

This was a quick read that was easy to follow. It was written in multiple POV but I did find I ended up skim reading Jack’s the most! It was also mixed media; emails, texts, tweets etc which also helped to break up the story.

I found the premise interesting and the MSN storyline nostalgic but I found it very predictable and I didn’t have any really amusing moments for me.

I felt it could have been executed a little better, or have a bit more to it maybe?

Wasn’t bad but also wasn’t great...

This is a fun rom-com and one of those deceptively slight novels, that’s actually very difficult to write. It feels light and restricts the characters to one space - an attic within their shared home. I need a wee every five minutes, so I’d have ransacked every box in the attic for something to force the door open! I can’t wee in a room with strangers. On a more serious note, the attic is a great dramatic device because it heightens tensions and seeing how that affects characters, is so interesting.

To create a good sense of the shifting perspectives in the room, the author gave each character their own narrative in the novel. It worked brilliantly because we could get a sense of how the existing relationships in the house worked, and how Ben’s presence changed that dynamic. It gave us different perspectives on what was happening too - who is panicking, who is a natural leader in a group, who comes up with creative solutions to the situation they’re in? It also showed how Alex’s presence with a man, a man she seems to be falling for, affects the others. When friends fall in love we’re happy for them, it’s a good thing, but will it change our relationship with them? Is the beginning of their relationship, necessarily the end of an era as single twenty-somethings sharing a home? I felt for Jack, who feels like an outsider in the house. Everything about him told me he was a warm-hearted and kind. Yet he seemed shy and a little bit awkward to. My heart went out to him.

There were some times I felt so old and I’m also completely out of touch with urban Iiving. I’m 47 years old and I’ve lived in a rural county my whole life. There were many references lost on me. Their teenage years may well have been spent on MSN messenger, mine was spent drinking on a riverbank and dancing in a psychedelic hoody to the Happy Mondays. My teenage years are pre-internet, which makes me feel prehistoric. I enjoyed the stories of internet dating, but my dates had to run the gauntlet of my Dad and suffer stifled, anxious, phone calls taking place in our living room with my whole family listening. I’ve heard stories of terrible landlords from friends who have lived in London, but here no one can afford to rent anything till they’re in their thirties. So I had to enjoy this as an amused older generation, learning about the world as it is now or might be for my stepdaughters (although that’s slightly worrying).
This is a great summer read, if you’re looking for something light-hearted with characters you’ll enjoy stuck in a very awkward situation. It’s a very modern room-com, bringing the genre bang up to date with some good laughs along the way.