I LOVE this author. None of her books disappoint, including this one. I could not pick the ending and it kept me guessing right up to the end. 5 star read for sure.

Even though some bits were a bit out there and hard to believe I loved this, the writing style just makes her books sooooo easy and quick to read and I love it

When you finish The Inmate by Frieda McFadden your head will be spinning from all the twists in the book and I mean this as a compliment! Wow, this book is incredible. I thought I had it all figured out, but I was so wrong! Trust me when I say, you need to read this book! Brooke moves back to her hometown when both of her parents are killed in a car accident. Brooke's ten year old son, Josh, has been getting bullied at school in New York City and it's time for a change. They lived in a small apartment in the city and will now live in the house Brooke grew up in. Josh will have a yard and a chance to start over and be happy in school.

Brooke is a nurse practitioner and sends her resume' to all of the doctor's offices in town. She only hears back from the maximum security prison and they want to hire her right away. She really doesn't want to work at the prison because of what happened over 10 years ago. Shane Nelson is in the prison and he's there because of Brooke's testimony! Shane was Brooke's high school sweetheart until the night it all went wrong. What are the chances that Brooke will run into Shane? She's hoping slim to none, but things rarely work out like that. Shane seems so nice and genuinely happy to see Brooke. Is he really?

I don't want to say more about this book because it is so good, you need to experience it for yourself. Just when you think you have it all figured out, trust me when I say, you don't! This book will blow your mind as only the best thrillers can! I rate The Inmate 5 stars with my very highest recommendation! I'd like to thank NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an advanced copy of The Inmate in exchange for a fair review. The book is now available in paperback and should not be missed! #TheInmate

The Inmate was yet another great thrill ride by Freida McFadden. Her books hook you from the beginning and have you in a death grip until you finish…literally can’t put them down. I always finish her books in record time and this was no different!

This is a dual timeline thriller switching back and forth between the past and present. 10 years earlier Brooke Sullivan was nearly murdered by her then boyfriend. She immediately leaves town and never returns…until now.

She is now back in her hometown and accepts a job as an NP at a maximum security prison. She does so knowing that the man that tried to murder her is an inmate there. Brooke is simply living on a hope and a prayer that she won’t run into him…but she does so much sooner than expected and begins to question absolutely everything about that night.

Is her memory accurate? Was he really the one that tried to kill her or did she put an innocent man behind bars? Buckle up because you’ll be getting whiplash trying to figure this one out. I was suspicious of literally everyone while reading this!

The ending was a bit far fetched for me but I still really enjoyed it and would recommend to anyone who enjoys fast-paced thrillers that keep you guessing.

4/5⭐️

In the Inmate by Freida McFadden, Brooke Sullivan, a recent addition to the nursing team in a high-security prison, is instructed on how to interact with the prisoners safely. However, unbeknownst to everyone, Brooke has already violated this advice. Concealed from her colleagues is her deeply personal tie to Shane Nelson, one of the facility's most infamous and dangerous convicts.
What remains a secret is that Shane was Brooke's high school sweetheart—an esteemed quarterback turned convicted murderer serving a life sentence due to Brooke's damning testimony. Yet, Shane holds this knowledge alone, more intimately acquainted with Brooke's past than anyone else, harboring it with unwavering memory and resolve.

The Inmate" is a gripping psychological thriller where trust is a scarce commodity, leaving readers guessing until the final pages. The novel unfolds at a rapid pace, drawing readers into its intriguing premise from start to finish. Despite its quick tempo, however, I found myself somewhat frustrated with the protagonist, Brooke. Her actions often felt implausible, as she seemed to overlook glaring warning signs until it was too late, detracting from the believability of her character.

Moreover, the tone of the narrative occasionally veered towards a young adult style, especially in Brooke's behavior in certain situations. Many plot points felt disjointed, and the resolution only came together in the closing chapters, leaving little room for anticipation or coherence. The final reveal itself proved to be confusing and failed to tie up loose ends effectively.

In spite of these shortcomings, I did find "The Inmate" to be an engaging and swift read, prompting me to consider exploring more of Freida's work. However, I believe that more robust character development and a more meticulously crafted revelation would have significantly enhanced my overall impression of the novel.

I simply could not get into this novel so did not finish. I found the writing uninspiring and the premise very cliché. I will not be leaving any public reviews for Frieda McFadden's 'The Inmate.' I had thought I'd read a book I enjoyed by this author, which is why I requested this one. But, now, upon searching for the books she's written, I cannot find one I've read before, so I must be mistaken. I am just not the audience for these types of not very well written psychological thrillers that are shallow and clichéd.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for my advance reader’s copy. I am a huge fan of Freida’s popcorn thrillers so I was over the moon to receive this ARC. I was not disappointed! This was another well-executed psychological thriller that turned into a twisty who-dunnit murder mystery… Pacing was excellent and each new "clue" along the way left me guessing from start to finish.

I thought this book was good. It was fast paced and I didn’t know where the story would go.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book.

This book had me in a chokehold from the very beginning! I was back and forth so much as to who I thought did what and where I thought the story was going, only for McFadden to get me in the end anyway!

I loved this book so much, and I may or may not have stayed up until 4am trying to finish it. It definitely took me less than 24 hours to read this and it’s definitely a five star read for me.

The Inmate, by Freida McFadden, is a murder mystery filled with unexpected twists. While this one grabbed my attention from the beginning and kept me reading well into the night, it fell a bit short regarding everything being believable. Even with all that had happened, the mom seemed to be way too trusting, all the way to the end. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook that I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

The Inmate, by Freida McFadden, is a fast-paced psychological thriller, with short chapters.

I got this book on NetGalley, as an ARC, but from what I see, it's actually an old book that's been republished. So I'm a little late to the game, but here I am! Hahaha

It's not the first Freida McFadden book I read, and like the others, it reads very easily. The writing is nice and keeps you entertained.

I enjoyed the book overall, but I guessed most of the plot twists. Not all of them though, that's why it's still a 3.5. BUT, I have to say that some plot twists were unrealistic and a bit far-fetched. Even if I didn't get all the plot twists right, it wasn't all that surprising.

The main character was super naive, and may I even say, stupid 😅 I really didn't care much for or about her.

Brooke moves back to her hometown after her parents death along with her 10 year old son. She takes a job at the local prison, even though her son's father is in prisoned there and she is the one that put him there. She runs into her old best friend Tim, and they begin to date even though Shane from prison told her not to. When things start to turn around and Shane is released from prison and Tim is put in prison, is she safter than before or not.

This is a fast page turner that keeps you guessing. It is my first Freida McFadden book, but will definitely be reading more from her.

3/5 ⭐️s
The Inmate by Freida McFadden is a twisty murder mystery/thriller. It kept my attention for sure and just like all of Freida’s books, I wasn’t able to figure out “who did it” from the get go. The MC was pretty dumb and the situation was definitely unrealistic. It’s a fun read, but don’t expect to be blown away.

So good! This was like popcorn- I couldn’t put it down. The Inmate was twisty and turny and just went I thought I had it figured out bam!

Although this book was written in McFadden's typical rudimentary writing style, it did make the book easy to read. So many questions with how a protagonist could be so unbelievably naive. Some things just didn't make sense with the character relationships and twists in the plot, other things added up a little too perfectly. Overall a quick, entertaining read.

Oh Frieda, another good one! Following her hit formula Freida takes us on a trip to max security prison where a killer is incarcerated . Our narrator knows this as she was the survivor of the murderous encounter as a teenager. Mix in twists, turns and surprises and you can read this one in two or three elongated sittings and feel weirdly satisfied at the end.

I was a little let down by this one, I have to be honest. I found it very obvious, and there wasn't much of a plot twist. I practically guessed this book from within the first 50 pages, which is a shame as I'm not normally one for being able to guess how it will end. I found the fmc a little naive for my liking, and the story as a whole read more like a YA thriller. That being said I really enjoyed the pacing, as with all Freida books it was fast paced and I flew through it relatively quickly. Overall I did enjoy it for the most part but not one of my favourites of Frieda's books.

What can I say? I love Freida McFadden. But this book? Slightly disappointing. There are some books by this author that I cannot put down, but this book wasn’t the case. I think the plot was kind of predictable. The main character Brooke was simply dumb and very naive, which made her unlikable and it was hard to get by when reading. I would, despite some drawbacks, recommend this book to others who want to get into the mystery and thriller genre. The short chapters and writing style are bonuses that make reading McFadden novels so addicting!

Thank you so much @PoisonedPenPress for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 05 March 2024)

SYNOPSIS | Brooke is a nurse practitioner who has recently returned to the town she grew up in with her 10-year-old son (Josh). She is working at a men's maximum security prison, but what she failed to disclose when she accepted the job is that her ex-boyfriend (Shane) is also there serving a life sentence for murder.

WHAT I LIKED:
- this author knows how to write a good bingeable popcorn thriller
- red flag after red flag after red flag
- fast pacing throughout kept me flipping the pages
- the epilogue!

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- Brooke just didn't seem very intelligent & kept making the same naive terrible decisions. She was a very frustrating perspective to read from & ultimately really hampered by ability to enjoy this story.
- the flip flopping between who was the murderer
- overall the plot felt quite farfetched compared to some of her other stories

Entertaining in a trashy TV kind of way. Compulsively readable but not a lot there to sink your teeth into. And the main character’s gullible-ness had me face palming several times throughout this one.

Brooke put her high school boyfriend away for life after he tried to murder her. Eleven years later she’s back in their hometown after the death of her parents with her secret ten year old son in tow, having recently gotten a nurse practitioner job at the same prison Shane is housed in. As she starts getting closer to the only other living witness from that night, her childhood best friend Tim, she starts to question her recollections of that night — and which man she should trust. Both are telling her the other is dangerous and choosing the wrong one could have fatal consequences.

A fine read if you don’t need your FMC to be the smartest tool in the shed and you don’t dwell too long on some pretty big plot holes.