Let me start by saying I received this book as an ARC - THANK YOU FREDIA!!

This is by far one of my favorite books she has written. I wasn’t sure who I was rooting for, and frankly i’m still not sure. One think I love about this book (as well as other Freida books) is that she doesn’t one one mega twists, but rather several medium sized twists where you least expect them. 10/10 would read again

Also, if you like turtles, this is the book for you.

Wow, just got to the end and read about the author. Freida McFadden is a practicing physician who self published fifteen books and kept it a secret from most coworkers for years. I may have been picking apart some of the over-telling and simple narrating as a read, but overall it was a very solid thriller and page turner. The fact that she wrote it and her other novels on the side as a practicing physician with no real crafting lessons is awe inspiring!

Now, to the story. Natalie discovers her coworker missing and finds herself as the prime suspect. I loved the use of turtles throughout; first to create suspense, then to give an insight into Dawn’s quirky mind. It was hard not being able to trust any character from the beginning. I wanted desperately to latch onto the heroine but the reader is meant to be untrusting throughout. I couldn’t quite jump on the Caleb ship either. It did not seem possible he could attract two entirely different females. Overall, great page turner. Buckle up when you hit Part II; you will not want to put the book down.

Thank you Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Yet again, Freida does not disappoint. This book led me on a journey of deceit, lies, manipulation and love all at that same time. I really enjoyed how she has included questions at the end of the book for book clubs to discuss, So helpful

Closed-ish door
Not a lot of cursing

Very fun thriller! Freida always writes fun stories that you’re bound to finish in like 2 days!

Very twisty! Didn’t see a lot of things coming, which is fun! Was a little underwhelmed with the ending, but maybe that’s just me! Felt like the characters were undeveloped, too.

I usually really like FM’s books but this one didn’t do it for me. I wasn’t a fan of any of the characters. I did not like the way that Dawn’s neurodivergent traits were portrayed as weird and odd. It was so slow I kept finding myself wanting to skip through parts. This book won’t stop me from reading Freida in the future but it just wasn’t the quality I’ve come to expect from her books.

Dawn is considered odd by her coworkers with her awkwardness, strange communications skills, OCD, and obsession for all things turtles.

Natalie is that girl at work, you know, the one that excels at her job, is thin and beautiful, and everyone loves her.

Everyone is concerned when Dawn doesn't show up for work. She is always at her desk at 8:45 sharp. After she receives a strange phone call, Natalie, her coworker, gets worried and goes to her house, where she finds an alarming amount of blood and calls the police. They determine Dawn is missing and presumably dead. The police soon find emails from Dawn to her best friend, Mia, describing the way Natalie has been bullying her for months. Natalie soon becomes their no. 1 suspect.

Can it be true that Dawn hated her enough to brutally kill her?

💭My thoughts:

True to her style, Freida McFadden @fmcfaddenauthor has written yet another great thriller with twists and turns throughout. While I wasn't as blown away by this as I have been with her past books, it was well written and intriguing. Every character had a secret, which made it even more interesting.

3.5/5 — This was a fun mystery with twists I didn’t expect even when I thought I had it all figured out. I found the beginning a bit boring and some parts dragged on. I enjoyed the characters, especially their unreliable narration, and the use of emails to move the story along. My ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly this was the first Freida McFadden book that didn't throw me for a loop! I found this to be extremely predictable. It was still an enjoyable read, but didn't have the heart rate inducing twists and turns I have come to expect from her.

Dawn and Natalie work for the same nutritional company. Dawn is autistic but Natalie is not. Dawn is always on time but doesn't show up for work one morning. Natalie is surprised and receives a phone call that changes everything. Natalie is irrevocably tied to Dawn as she finds herself caught in a twisted game of cat and mouse that leaves her wondering: who's the real victim? But one thing is incredibly clear: somebody hated Dawn Schiff. Enough to kill. This is another great psychological thriller by Freida McFadden. As the plot thickens, Natalie is arrested for her murder. Turns and twists galore and Freida has me guessing to the very end. I am now looking forward to the next McFadden book as she is an excellent writer. If you like mystery with your psychological thrillers then you will love this book.

I love books by this author so I was very excited to get my hands on an early edition of her newest work. It was fast paced and I finished it within 24 hours. Unfortunately, I guessed the main plot twist so that was disappointing but it was still very well written. I can see how others would really love it if they didn’t see the twist coming. And there were other smaller twists I didn’t expect so those were still fun! Not my favorite by this author but still an excellent book.

"Two women. An office filled with secrets. One terrible crime that can't be taken back.
Dawn Schiff is strange. At least, everyone thinks so at Vixed, the nutritional supplement company where Dawn works as an accountant. She never says the right thing. She has no friends. And she is always at her desk at precisely 8:45 a.m. So when Dawn doesn't show up to the office one morning, her coworker Natalie Farrell―beautiful, popular, top sales rep five years running―is surprised. Then she receives an unsettling, anonymous phone call that changes everything... It turns out Dawn wasn't just an awkward outsider―she was being targeted by someone close. And now Natalie is irrevocably tied to Dawn as she finds herself caught in a twisted game of cat and mouse that leaves her wondering: who's the real victim? But one thing is incredibly clear: somebody hated Dawn Schiff. Enough to kill."
This was a crazy ride, if you follow the author Facebook page you will probably relate to the book a little bit, you think someone else did it but then twist after twist in this crazy book. Want to know who did what or if anybody did anything you will have to read the book to find out :) . I give this book 4 stars.
Thanks to netgalley, poisonedpenpress, and the author in exchange for a review.

When Dawn does not show up to work one day, Natalie is a little concerned. While the two are not close friends, they do sit side by side and Natalie knows Dawn well enough to know how rigidly punctual she is. When a full day passes and still no word from Dawn, Natalie stops by to check on her, but is instead greeted with a pool of blood in Dawn's living room. What happened to Dawn? Could someone wanted to harm her?

This was my first book by this author. Her books are very hyped on the internet, so I was hoping for some crazy twists and turns, but unfortunately it fell a bit flat. I found it to be super predictable, though it was an overall decent story. Some parts were a bit farfetched, but still in a predictable way. That said. I loved the build of Natalie and Dawn's characters and finding out more and more about who they really were. It was fun trying to determine if they were reliable narrators and how much of their stories were true.

Thanks NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

The queen of twists is here with a workplace thriller!

I was on cloud nine to receive a widget for this! It’s such an honor to be invited to read Frieda‘s books! Thanks Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

Synopsis. -

Dawn Schiff and Natalie Farrell are co-workers at a nutritional supplement company. These two women couldn’t be more different from one another. When Dawn who is punctual to the T, doesn’t show up to work one morning, Natalie receives a phone call that’s about open a can of worms.

Review -

Like always with Freida’s books, the plot sucked me right in. Beginning with Natalie’s POV, she goes on to detail Dawn’s personality, the working relationship they share and the strange circumstances of her being a no-show at the office. The more Natalie digs in, she begins to uncover even more bizarre things happening around her and that’s when the momentum picks up.

Soon doubt begins to creep into our minds. I couldn’t help but find Natalie herself suspicious and declared her unreliable. In no time I even began suspecting everyone, without a about clue whom to trust or what was going on.

Sure enough, Freida starts firing her weapon of twists and the plot makes a sharp 180 degree turn, at break neck speed by mid-way. I suggest you hold on tight, gritting your teeth so as not to get a sprain while trying to keep up with the riveting pace!

I loved how the author portrays the characters of two unique women, dealing with their quirks, fantasies and obsessions. She also handles matters of cerebral palsy, bullying and suicide - incorporating these into the storyline with a sensitive and impactful approach.

Although a couple of my guesses turned out correct, I was utterly engrossed until the very end. There are salacious mind games at play, juicy secrets to be revealed, white lies that unravel and twists with enough shock factor to widen your eyes in disbelief.

The cherry on top is of course what I’d call the ‘wicked’ ending. I am positive you will smile devilishly, punching your hand in the air saying “I knew it”, and yet it is all so unbelievably crazy!

Definitely a must read for thriller lovers!

Natalie works at Vixed, a health supplement company. I’m the cubicle next to her is Dawn, a woman who you can set your watch by. She always takes her breaks at exactly the same time, leaves at 5 on the dot and is never late. Until she is. Something that only Natalie seems concerned about. What happened to Dawn?

I was hooked from the start of this story. Natalie is our narrator but we get emails from earlier in the timeline that reveal more about both Natalie and Dawn. Things are not as they first appear, Natalie isn’t quite as she first seems.
This is the first novel by McFadden that I’ve read but I’ll definitely be looking for more from her.

Freida does it YET AGAIN! She never fails to write an amazing book. There are so many twists you won’t see coming. I’m talking jaw droppers! The ending was WOW. Another book I just could not put down. I was so into it that my eyes started burning from being tired.. I had to keep putting eye droppers in my eyes so I can keep reading 😂.

I probably should start with the disclaimer that I'm a Freida Readah and I've loved every Freida McFadden book I've read to date. This was no exception!

It's the story of two co-workers. Dawn is the socially awkward, weird girl accountant reminiscent of Angela from The Office. She's definitely quirky with her fascination with and her love for collecting and talking about turtles. Natalie is the mean girl in the office. She's the beautiful, popular sales rep. She's the party planner who manages to leave certain co-workers off the guest lists. Shes definitely the office bully. When Dawn goes missing and appears to have been murdered, Natalie becomes the number one suspect.

As with most McFadden books, there's twists and turns up until the very end that I wasn't able to predict. You should definitely plan to stay up the whole night reading!

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Freida McFadden for the ARC. This book was just published on August 31, 2023. Happy reading!

A thriller with so many twists and turns. This wasn't my favorite book by Freida; however, it was still twisty and hard to figure out. As always up until the final page she has surprises. The coworker is about workplace bullying, I feel like with all of her books Freida does an amazing job with her research. Freida writes with passion, and you get lost in the book every time. I can't wait to read the next book!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4.5 stars rounded up
Frieda McFadden is one of my most favorite thriller/suspense authors, and her newest novel, The Coworker, did not disappoint! This was a book that I could not put down! I actually didn’t put it down until I had finished it in one sitting, bleary eyed and all.

I really felt a connection to both main characters. Dawn was such a lovable character. Her obsession with turtles, her numerous follow up emails to her boss, and just her overall quirkiness had me cracking up all throughout the book. Natalie was her polar opposite. Beautiful, successful, a perfectionist, the complete antithesis to Dawn. As much as I wanted to dislike her, I just couldn’t.

The Coworker, like all of Frieda’s books, was a twisty, turn-y, psychological manipulation that kept me wondering all throughout the book who was actually being truthful. There was a moment right before the climax where I had a big “aha!” moment, and thoroughly enjoyed how all the pieces at the end fell into place.

I highly recommend this book and author to anyone who loves a thrilling, suspenseful roller coaster ride! Frieda McFadden won’t let you down!

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advanced copy that was gifted to me. All opinions are 100% my own.

Thank you, NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC! I enjoyed it very much. It was a fast-paced thriller with a twist I didn't see coming, but that definitely fell together just right.

Dawn is a strange lady obsessed with turtles. She works with Natalie, a pretty woman who seems to always get what she wants.

Then, one day, Dawn goes missing and all the evidence is pointing to Natalie.

This book will suck you in and have you not wanting to put it down until you find out what happened! I can't wait to read more of Freida McFadden's books!

Thank You to NetGalley for the free digital e-book.

I have read Freida McFadden before and liked her books. The storyline feel a little flat and bleh. McFadden tells the story from different points of view, which I appreciated. I also liked that the chapters were short. There were a lot of twists and turns and although I did figure some out before they happened, it was still a pleasant read. The storyline is basically told backwards with the ending wrapping up everything.

One day at work, Natalie answers a coworker's phone and thinks she hears the word HELP. Thus starts the murder mystery, where is Dawn? Is she dead? Did Natalie do it? She is the main suspect, but something just doesn't feel right. Worth a read if you like Freida McFadden.