NPR's Book of the Day In 'Room 706,' a woman confronts her extramarital affair during a hostage crisis
Feb 9, 2026
Ellie Levenson, journalist-turned-novelist, discusses her novel Room 706. She frames a secret affair set against a hotel hostage crisis. Conversations cover why confinement forces reassessment, using extreme circumstances to explore modern womanhood and motherhood, and unexpected influences like Die Hard.
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Affair Interrupted By Hostage Crisis
- Ellie Levinson opens Room 706 with Kate hiding in a hotel room with her married lover when gunmen take over the building.
- The hostage setup forces Kate into slow, extended reflection about her life, choices, and mortality.
Slow Introspection Over Flashbacks
- The crisis gives Kate prolonged time to reassess her life so memories don't flash but unfold slowly.
- That slow introspection lets the novel examine complicated moral ambiguity rather than tidy judgments.
Unseen Threats As A Story Device
- Levinson deliberately keeps the terrorists unnamed and unseen to reflect shifting personal fears across generations.
- The unseen threat becomes a vehicle to explore how little control people have over events and their lives.
