Audiobook Review

The Gift by Frieda McFadden
My rating:
4/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Stella is working on Christmas Eve. Her and her husband are struggling to make ends meet, but Stella wants to get him a Christmas present. Stella meets a woman who has a shop where they can make a deal and suggests she come down to buy a Christmas gift for her husband.

This was a quick holiday thriller that had me intrigued how the story would go. At the end of the book, I was satisfied with the twist and for such a short book I think the author did a great job with this story. This was only 51 pages, so it took me about 45 minutes to listen to.

The narrator was great and I enjoyed this story. I would recommend for a holiday read, especially with how short it was. Obviously that does leave our room for character development and the story may have been a little ridiculous but for enjoyment levels, this one got a 4 from me!

Thanks netgalley for the ARC!

This short story was the perfect little book to start my holiday reading with. This was a short story but packed a big punch. 

The story is about a woman who is willing to do anything to be able to afford a thoughtful gift for her new husband. It is short, straight to the point and perfectly done. With that little twist that McFadden does so well. 

Really loved this one! Audiobook was perfect.

I did enjoy the story and it was quite interesting, but I believe I have read similar plot line with a same title "The Gift" while growing up in one of my syllabus books...

I don't remember who the author was, even though ending is different... that book had happy ending and this one was more twisted and obviously had a unique 'Freida McFadden' way to it....I felt this made it lose some uniqueness along the way.

This book was ok. I felt like I had read a similar story before though. I liked that it was a novella. I don't think I could have read a whole book with these characters.

short, crisp, exciting
in short: a pleasure for christmans served by Freida Mc Fadden

Thank #NetGalley #Dreamscape Select, Hollywood Upstairs Press for this audiobook

This was a short, quick audiobook to.listen to. Somewhat suspenseful, but it wasn't one of my favorite Frieda books. I felt like the story had already been told in an older story I read as a child but I can't remember the name.

Thank you to NetGalley, Freida McFadden and Dreamscape Select for an ALC.

You can't expect too much from such a short story, but as it was written by Freida McFadden, one of my favorite thriller authors, I guess I still expected a bit more than what I got. This is a quick read and it had several perks, but ultimately there's no time for you to get invested or to truly start to care.

In fact, it's so short, there's not much I can say about it without spoiling something. I can't say it was bad, but it is nothing special.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the audio arc of The Gift by Freida McFadden in exchange for my honest review!

Stella and Justin are celebrating their first Christmas as a married couple but things aren’t perfect for this couple. The couple is currently having financial issues despite Stella working two jobs. But it’s Christmas and Stella wants to buy the perfect gift for her husband.

While working at the diner, Stella encounters Helga a strange shop owner that may have just what she needs for the perfect gift.

But what exactly does Stella have to sacrifice in exchange for this perfect Christmas gift.

This was a super short Christmas thriller with the best plot twist at the end!

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 stars
Happy publication to Freida McFadden and The Gift! Thank you to Freida McFadden, Dreamscape Select, Hollywood Upstairs Press, and NetGalley ( @netgalley ) for allowing me to read an ALC (Advanced Listener 🎧 Copy) for an honest review!

📅 Tuesday, November 7, 2023 was the pub date for The Gift. The narrator🎙️for this audiobook 🎧 was Alyson Krawchuk. 📅

I have to be honest , I didn’t even read the caption for this audiobook before requesting it because Freida McFadden is one of the authors I tend to request no matter what. She always writes a gripping thriller.

I was surprised to hear the narrator say epilogue so quickly into the story. Come
to find out, this book is only fifty three pages long.

Although short, the book was very creepy and kept you guessing about the older female main character. She was intriguing and somewhat an unreliable character. There’s something about her from the very beginning that causes your gut to question her intention…leaving you feeling like she cannot be trusted. But, the reader doesn’t know why until the shocking and unsuspecting ending.

The only thing keeping me from giving this book four stars, is the fact that it left me wanting so much more content and context. It was very well written for such a short novel.

Happy Friday, friends

The Gift by Freida McFadden
Read by: Alyson Krawchuk
Pub date: November 7, 2023
Duration: 1H 4M
Holiday horror

I had no idea when I started this that it was a novella so I was a bit disappointed because I really enjoy Freida’s writing. That being said, she really packed a lot of punch in this short story based on Gift of the Magi.

The character of Stella, a stressed out new wife who is working two jobs to support her student husband is a great one. When she finds the perfect gift under questionable circumstances, well, she’ll go to great lengths to get it for him.

Darkly chilling and perfectly twisted!

Alyson Krawchuk narrates this one beautifully! Well done!


My thanks to @Dreamscape_Media

» Synopsis
It’s Christmas Eve. Stella is broke, working two jobs & still can't afford to buy her new husband a gift for their first Christmas as a married couple. While working at a diner, she meets a mysterious shop owner who offers Stella a trade. When she finds the perfect gift under questionable circumstances, she'll go to great lengths to get it for him.

» My Thoughts
Ok Freida lovers, don’t come at me 🙈 this is entirely my opinion - if you loved this one that’s great! But for me, the only reason I didn’t DNF this was because it was only about an hour on audio. To be frank, it felt cringy to listen to & it was quite obvious it was a retelling. It ends very abruptly with little to no resolution. The most interesting thing I learned was the definition of novelette 😂 (a short story with a word count between 7,500 & 19,000)

I would say if you usually enjoy McFadden’s work & are looking for a super quick listen with a Christmas theme, go for it!

Thanks so much to Netgalley & dreamscape select for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook ◡̈

I was hooked and was hoping for me when the book ended! It was so good!! Now my mind is just filling in the gaps to what happens next.
I would love to read more but it was such a good short story and I feel like there was some Alanis Morissette lines in there too that just made me laugh.
The narrator, Alyson Krawchuk was just fantastic. I really enjoyed her performance. I was hooked from the beginning.

This was a short book, but super crazy. I can't say that I was all that upset with the outcome though... 3.5 stars.

When I read that this was inspired by The Gift of the Magi, I was all in for reading it. I definitely wasn't disappointed as the author's storyline was a clever and original spin on an old classic tale. I relished it. It's a quick read even as far as novellas go but it didn't hold back on intrigue or plot. I was hooked for the brief amount of time that it took for me to listen to the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley for the early copy of this audiobook. I chose to listen to it and review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

Thank you Netgalley and Dreamscape Select for the ALC.

Story: 🌟🌟🌟
Narration: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Overall: 🌟🌟🌟

A fun, unhinged thriller by Freida McFadden! Perfect for the Winter season, this mystery is a dark Christmas tale with excellent narration. Overall, an entertaining and quick listen!

ALC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

This just reminded me of like an old-school Tales from the Crypt or Creepshows! I loved this. However, I would have loved like another 20 pages.

Thank you to Hollywood Upstairs Press and NetGalley for the audio book listen.

I went into this one with very little expectations. At the very least, I expected it to be a thriller. Having this low-bar expectation, I was failed. This wasn’t really a thriller at all. I actually laughed out loud multiple times. This book was a bizarre comedy, in my opinion.

**might be spoilers below**

I was immediately aggravated when I was told a million times that the main character is broke. We get it. You don’t have to pound it into us. The premise was completely ridiculous. A young woman lets a stranger shave her head bald in exchange for a Christmas gift to her newlywed husband? Come on! That. Is. Ridiculous. And then the bizarre fight that breaks out because his gift to her wasn’t good enough?? What the heck did you expect from someone that doesn’t have a job??

**SPOILERS BELOW FOR SURE**

This girl KILLED her husband because he was unappreciative of her gift she gave him and he decided to give her some burnt brownies. Yes, I probably would have been upset. But then again, he probably doesn’t know how to cook and he is BROKE WITH NO JOB. She KILLED him. Then, decided to take his pocket watch back to the lady in exchange for a wig. The lady noticed some blood on the watch. What is her excuse??? Ketchup. KETCHUP. GIRL. STOP.

This whole thing was bizarre. It gets two stars because I was able to get into the story and it was a very quick read.

A dark, creepy, entertaining Christmas novella.

Stella is working two jobs to make ends meet. It’s her first Christmas with her husband and she just wants to get home to him.

A mysterious lady is the last to leave the diner and she invites Stella over to find a cheap Christmas gift for her hubby which she’s still to buy.

I don’t want to say too much here other than its a quick, witty creepy read. I’d love to know how Freida comes up with the stuff she does!

Many thanks to @netgalley and Dreamscape media for an ALC 🎧
Available on KU now.

This holiday novella was fast-paced, compelling, and unexpected. I didn't see that final twist coming.

Pick this one up when you're feeling a little festive but want a creepy vibe.

The audiobook was easy to listen to. The narrator's voice was smooth and her tone mmediately pulled me in.