The Quiet Tenant

With his family and upstanding position in society, Aidan has crafted an excellent disguise to conceal the truth of his murderous activities: one that serves him well for over two decades before his decision to kidnap “Rachel” eventually brings his whole world crashing down. Long before his capture, however, he successfully fools everyone in his immediate orbit, for even his wife, Caroline, has no idea what Aidan is doing out in his shed during the final five years of her life. From “Rachel’s” recollections, it becomes clear that whenever Aidan commits a murder, he is typically gone at least overnight, suggesting that he is traveling some distance to avoid connections being drawn between his public persona and his hidden crimes. He has also attempted to prevent “Rachel” from learning anything about his wife and daughter; it takes five years for him to reveal his daughter’s name, and he only does so because “Rachel” will soon be living with her. When Aidan lies about having cameras surveilling his entire house, he doesn’t realize that “Rachel” will eventually uncover evidence that contradicts his claim and undermines his illusion of total control. Thus, he is successful as a criminal only insofar as he can maintain the strategic compartmentalization of his life, keeping his criminal activities strictly separated from the people whose cohabitation constitutes his disguise. By indulging his dark compulsions so far as to keep “Rachel” a captive in his house, he runs the risk that truths of his carefully arranged life will be revealed.

According to Michallon, Aidan believes that “Rachel” is “too brainwashed to try to escape,” but he vastly underestimates her tenacity and courage, and her ability to compartmentalize her own emotions in order to assess him and react in ways that will influence his behavior in her favor (“Turning Crime Fiction on Its Head with Clemence Michallon.” YouTube, uploaded by Dabble, 28 June 2023). Like Aidan, “Rachel” also tries to conceal personal information; she doesn’t want to reveal her connection to the Marine Corps, and she especially does not want him to know that she used to run marathons. She knows that there are several additional precautions he might take if he knew she had once been capable of endurance running and combat. Aidan believes that with the extent of control he has managed to attain, there is nothing about “Rachel” that is not part of his domain. However, he does not anticipate the rich inner world she develops to sustain her own sanity and plot her eventual escape.

It is also important to note that Aidan does not exert nearly as much control over the other women in his life as he thinks he does; his compartmentalization is built partially on hubris and misogyny. For example, Cecilia has also begun hiding things from her father: a typical trait of adolescent self-discovery. She and “Rachel” bond over their shared secret of excursions into the basement, Aidan’s most private and damning archive, while he doesn’t even know that they have gained access or formed a budding friendship. Likewise, Emily is perhaps the most deceptive character of the novel after Aidan. She portrays her interactions with Aidan as organic and spontaneous, but in reality, she spends hours editing and curating her responses and orchestrating their interactions. She even goes so far as to break into Aidan’s house, and although she later confesses to him, she still upholds her original lie about smelling smoke and being concerned for his property. She also manipulates the judge and pretends that her idea for a Christmas party is for Cecilia’s benefit, when in fact she is just trying to gain legitimate access to Aidan, in a place where he cannot readily escape her. Her behavior intensifies when she sneaks into his house again and tries to enlist “Rachel” to uphold her lie, and she lies again when she is caught in his basement. Thus, even though Aidan’s covert behaviors conceal horrific acts while Emily’s transgressions are more innocuous, neither character presents an authentic front to the other, despite the ostensibly romantic tone of their early interactions.