ARC BOOK REVIEW // THE HOUSEMAID’S SECRET

3.5/5

Pub Date: February 21, 2023

okay ya’ll…it PAINS me that I didn’t LOVE this one.

After reading The Housemaid last summer, I was OBSESSED and thought this one would follow suit, but unfortunately I was left underwhelmed.

I found Millie’s internal monologue to be extremely redundant and she talked about the same damn thing for like 75% of the book.

There was also a situation that was almost TOO perfect and was a plot hole, in my opinion.

The pacing was very slow and no true “action” happened until the VERY end, and when we got to the “big reveal” it didn’t wow me.

I didn’t think in this case, a sequel was necessary. It didn’t enhance Mille’s story in anyway

In true Frieda fashion, this book was highly entertaining and I am a sucker for ANYTHING that Mrs. McFadden writes!

I just think my expectations were a liiiitle too high, and I don’t think it delivered quite the punch that The Housemaid did.

BUT I am so excited to see everyone’s reviews when this book publishes TOMORROW!

a huge thanks to @netgalley and @bookouture for an advanced e-arc in exchange for honest review!

✨ My Review ✨

SWIPE 4 SYNOPSIS ➡️
•••••
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Title : The Housemaids Secret
Author: Freida McFadden
Genre: Thriller
Edition: NetGalley
Rating: 💊💊💊
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Typical Freida McFadden book.
Very shallow characters (no depth)
Weird, stilted dialogue
Lots of plot holes
Twisty twists galore (unnecessary ones too lol)
Fast paced

Plot: the plot was all right. I pretty much had to figure it out the whole time once the big twist happened, I was like OK I know where this is going and I was not wrong.

Writing: it was all right, decent writing. Just very lack of meat to the story very shallow basic writing. Lots and lots and lots of plot holes.

Ending: the ending was the only satisfying part of the book. I liked that final twist, even though I saw it coming.

Decent book. Took me too long to get into though.
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My Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Yearly Read: 33 out of 200
Category: NetGalley


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Another fantastic psychological suspense that will keep you hooked and holding your breath while waiting for the next shocking twist. Once again, Millie leaps off the page and grabs you by both the throat and the heart. Frieda McFadden is a brilliant, unique voice in this genre. The Housemaid's Secret is not to be missed.

If you liked The Housemaid, read this sequel, The Housemaid’s Secret, and I am certain you will not be disappointed. It was great to catch up with Millie again and to find out what she has been been doing so we left her at the end of the first book. Is she continuing to help women? Will her past catch up with her? Will Millie get the happy ending she deserves?
Freida McFadden has an excellent, style of writing which makes her books so very readable, consuming them greedily, and yet the storylines make the books so very memorable. Can’t wait to read her next one.
Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I saw a sequel was coming out after reading The Housemaid, I knew I HAD to read it! I’m so thankful I got the chance to read this is in advance of its release because I’m obsessed!

3.5 stars

Imagine this: You’ve been invited to a party. You want to impress, but all you have is the one dress, and everyone has seen it before. Sure, it’s stunning and has always attracted compliments, but you want a different look. So, at the last minute, you raise the hem a couple of inches, unpick the ruching on the sleeves, and add a funky belt. Problem is, it’s still the same old dress, and you ain’t fooling nobody.

This is exactly how I felt about The Housemaid’s Secret. That it was a hasty rehash of the first book, but not nearly as stylish and sophisticated as the fabulous original.

We’re back with Millie, who has just landed a lucrative job in a luxury Manhattan penthouse, owned by the wealthy and handsome Douglas Garrick. Mr Garrick has just one rule: that Millie must never disturb his wife Wendy, who is confined to her bedroom due to ill health. A bit fishy, thinks Millie but keeps her suspicions to herself … until she finds a bloody handprint on the bathroom sink.

To be fair, the book begins with a bang, the meaty prologue foreshadowing a tale of deceit, retribution and murder. What follows, though, as we’re transported back three months to where the story starts, is oddly prosaic and laboured; the writing almost juvenile in its simplicity. There are threads — creepy neighbor Xavier and boring boyfriend Brock — that serve no useful purpose and seem to be there just to pad out the narrative.

Then, suddenly, at almost exactly half way through, BOOM! The plot takes an astonishing twist, the POV switches, the whole story is turned on its head, and we’re off on a discombobulating, rollicking ride to the finish.

But here’s the thing. We’ve read this tale before. And what’s more, a far more credible version of it.

What can I say? Perhaps Freida should have splashed out on a new frock.

4.5 stars (rounded up)!

"The Housemaid's Secret" by Freida McFadden is the follow-up to her wildly successful book "The Housemaid," which I just finished in preparation for this sequel (so I was on a high from its twists and turns!). I absolutely consumed and devoured both of these books and finished them in one afternoon. You can expect more of the same from this fast-paced, page-turning follow-up! I am absolutely shocked this book was just as good as the first one. Usually, sequels take a steep dip in quality...not where Freida McFadden is concerned! In my opinion, while you *can* read this book as a standalone novel, you really need to read both books to get the full big-picture context about who Millie is as a character and so you can understand why she does the things she does. They are both really fast, well-paced reads, so it shouldn't be too big of an issue. More context is always better, right?

This book is full of more similarly horrible characters. This time around, they might even be worse in some aspects. There are jaw-dropping reveals, shady goings on, and a main character that you both love to hate and hate to love. There is even a bit of humor here that breaks up the thrills, deceptions, and sleuthing. I love how McFadden starts her stories from one person's point of view and eventually turns them around so we see the other person's point of view, opening up an entirely new, shocking narrative!

I have a feeling this will be a thriller classic in no time! If you even slightly liked "The Housemaid," you're going to want to check out "The Housemaid's Secret" ASAP!

Thank you to NetGalley, Freida McFadden, and Bookouture for providing me with an ARC copy of this book! All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for my review.

Freida McFadden has proven to be a master of the twisty turny psychological thriller. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I’ve enjoyed all of her backlist as well. Highly recommend for fans of this genre.

The first book, The Housemaid, was just okay for me. It was a complete rip off of The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine. But it did keep me hooked so I decided to give the sequel a try. This author’s books just aren’t for me.

What I liked: it is faced-paced and a quick read. Once part one was over, I was interested to see what the twist was and what was really going on.

What I didn’t like: simplistic writing, the twists were not shocking, feels similar to other books I’ve read, Millie is unlikeable and makes horrible decisions. Millie’s explanation for everything is “but I always help people no matter what” and that’s just not a good enough reason for all the things she does. It’s so unrealistic; if Millie wants to help abused women and be a social worker then how about call social services when you suspect Wendy is being hurt? This book is also so repetitive. I swear entire lines/paragraphs were basically identical. Like we get it, you and Brock need to have an important talk and will have it soon! Just have it or stop referencing it.

Overall, the book wasn’t for me.

Review to be posted on Instagram @readwithkendall on 2/20/23.

The Housemaid's Secret Freida McFadden
In preparation for reading this book, I bought The Housemaid on kindle and audio, and I am sooooo glad I did. I devoured it, and as soon as I finished it, I went straight into this book. I'm glad I read The Housemaid first, to get a real understanding of Millie. You could read the Housemaid's Secret as a standalone, but do yourself a favour and read both books in order.
Not many authors make me smirk when I'm reading, but Frieda does, and that's a huge testament to this author. Thoroughly enjoyed every page of both books, and I will be thinking about them for a long time. Already think these will make my top ten this year.

The sequel was even better than the first book!
I read the pages in a fury because I had so many questions about the story.
The betrayed gets backstabbed by the betrayer who is also betrayed by the betrayed who supposed to help. And she does, in a covert, smeaky way.
I did feel sorry for Brock because I think he was genuine.
Beware of the cleaner and don’t ever, ever become complacent.

The Housemaid's Secret is the sequel to the phenomenal book The Housemaid. I'm not quite sure how Freida McFadden has done it but this one is even better. The Housemaid's secret kept me on the edge of my seat throughout with all its twists and turns and I just could not put it down until the last page. I highly recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for my ARC.

Intensely, compulsively readable, I finished this in one afternoon because I could not stop reading it. This is Millie's followup story to tell you what happens to her after The Housemaid. Other than that it's best to go in blind, and just enjoy all the surprises. I read some of the early reviews of this book and didn't see how it could possibly be even better than the first one, but they were right, it's fantastic! So many great twists! You can read this as a standalone book as it's a completely separate story, but it's worth reading the Housemaid first, as there's lots of little subtle references to it that will make you laugh out loud. I am now on a mission to read all of Freida McFadden's backlist, and can't wait until her next book comes out this fall.

If you are looking for a fun, unputdownable book that will keep you on your toes, then you are in luck because The Housemaid's Secret by Freida Mcfadden delivers!

It's the follow up to the Housemaid and is just as good, maybe dare I say it....better! I thoroughly enjoyed going on another eye rolling adventure with Millie. She is the character who you want to scream at, shake but still will root for with everything you've got.

Set some time aside, grab this book and enjoy. With the short chapters that pack a punch, you will be saying "Just one more chapter" until you reach the end.

Happy Reading

Thank you Net Galley and Bookouture for offering me a copy of this book for my honest review.

"Don't go in the guest bedroom." Millie is back again to clean yet another home for yet another rich family. However, this time, she's told not to engage with the wife. In this psychological thriller, you will want to keep reading to figure out what is going on. Just when you think you have it figured out, another wrench is thrown into the plot. Freida McFadden has such a unique writing style that continuously keeps me wanting more.

I was very excited to see Millie back in this story as well as Enzo our favorite lover. However, there are different characters introduced in this tale. Lets start with Brock.. I really felt kinda meh about him as a character. He just didn't get it for me. Millie is complex, but in a way that is different than that of the Law. I think he was too square to be able to understand her. That's why it makes it so easy to not really love him.

Additionally, we get introduced to Mr. Garrick who is quite the rich prick. I didn't love his strange behaviors or this whole secret of keeping his wife locked up. Then again, he isn't really meant to be loved here. Lastly, we have Mrs. Garrick. She is a brat. She was so dislikable but like manipulative in the best way for this plot. I was absolutely shocked at the end of part 1/beginning of part 2. I was nervous when going into this story on how this could differentiate from the first book. However, it has done just that. Everything is the complete opposite of what I thought I knew and I truly had no idea leading up to the end, none of my guesses were correct.

I was very very pleased with the way this story ended. I think every loose end got tied up in such a great way that made the story feel complete. Each of the Garricks got what they deserved. Our side characters got what they deserved. One interesting factor that I think Freida really tried to do was to keep the storyline separate from the first. What I mean by that is that you don't necessarily need to read book 1 in order to understand this book. She does a great job of recapping without giving anything away from book one and without being too repetitive. My only question going forward is.. after this tale, will Millie continue to be a housemaid again??

I love everything McFadden touches, and this was no exception. What a fun story and I am hopeful for a third book in the series

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. Another Freida McFadden classic that absolutely deserves as high a rating as possible and recognition for the mind of Freida which just throws out classic dark thriller one after the other. So glad to hear more from Millie after the rollercoaster of The Housemaid!

I cannot get enough of Millie! I LOVED this story. I wasn't sure if it could compare to the first novel and I was floored. It was so good in a different way but with surprising twists and turns!

Freida knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat and this is novel is no exception. I didn't want to put it down.

What is with the garricks? Wendy never comes out of her room at first. All Millie has seen is a crack through the door. Something isn't quite right here. Then Millie sees the bruises. How can Douglas treat his wife this way? Poor Wendy!! Millie must help her escape from the abusive situation she is in. Can they do it without being caught?

I love how Freida tells the story from Millie's point of view then it switches to Wendy's. This novel will have you guessing with an ending you won't see coming. You NEED to go and read this book!

Thank you to netgalley and Bookouture for this read I'll be thinking about till her next book comes out!

Great sequel, wonderful follow-up to THE HOUSEMAID . I highly recommend to read The Housemaid first . Thanks netgalley.

Oh WoW! I couldn't put this down, I certainly hope to see more of Millie in the future. Sometimes, when there is a series, the second book falls short....that is definitely not the case with this book. Twists and turns galore!
Thank to netgalley, bookouture, and mostly the author for the chance to read this advanced copy for a fair review.