I did not finish this novel. While the story had a great deal of potential, I found the narrator to be infuriatingly naive, to the point her blindness to the men in her life and what was happening around her was unbelievable and completely ruined the story. I really struggled to make it to the end of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC of this book!

I gotta say I wasn’t impressed through the first three quarters of the book. It felt very predictable and I was almost sure I had it figured out. I was definitely ready to give it a three star review for “good writing but not great execution of the thriller promise”.

I was totally wrong - the last portion not only surprised me, but it also wrapped everything up in a way that felt believable, shocking, and interesting. McFadden is clearly an expert of the genre and I commend her for committing to a bunch of red herrings.

Definitely 5/5 for the thriller genre. Would highly recommend.

This is the fourth book I have read by Freida McFadden so I have come to expect a gripping psychological thriller with some unexpected twists in the tale and I wasn’t disappointed.
Brooke, the main character returns to her hometown after an 11 year absence to work as a nurse practitioner in a maximum security prison, where one of the inmates happens to be her ex and her 10 year old son’s father, Shane, who she testified against to put him away.
The plot flits from the present day to the fateful and tragic night 11 years before, when six young people went to a house party for fun, fun which quickly turned into a nightmare, resulting in Shane being jailed and Brooke leaving town. Now she is back, she has opened up a can of worms.
The book is fast paced and thunders along to a thrilling climax. There are many red flags, but Brooke is painfully slow on the uptake, I was expecting some twists, Freida McFadden is the queen of the twisty thriller, I will certainly want to read more of her other books as she writes twists like no other!
Thank you Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book, I leave this my honest review voluntarily.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is my first Freida McFadden book. There were tons of twists and turns. Some that I expected but some that I would have never guessed! I’ll have to read more from her.

Oh wow, this book certainly had me on the edge of my seat throughout! So many twists and turns that had me guessing right to the last minute. I’ve read a few of Freida’s books so I knew I was in for a treat with this. Just a fabulous, gripping read. I’ll be recommending this to everyone.

I’m new to the Freida McFadden trend. This is the second book of hers I’ve read. It was an edge of your seat thriller. Lots of exciting twists and turns.

BROOKE she's a mother fr, i was BIG mad when i started feeling bad for Shane, but he's a menace so whatever. One thing about Mrs McFadden, she can write an epilogue! This book was as twisty as it was enjoyable!

This book was so good, I read it in one sitting. I thought I had it figured out and then I didn’t several times throughout the book. The twist at the end got me. I was not expecting that. I definitely would recommend this and all Freida McFadden books!

✨Book Review: The Inmate by Freida McFadden✨

I was kindly sent this book prior to release date by Poisoned Pen Press in exchange for an honest review. I have read quite a few Freida McFadden books in the past and absolutely love her thrillers so was super excited to read this one. The Inmate follows our main character Brooke who went through an extremely traumatic event years ago and has returned to the town of Raker and begins working at the prison where she comes face to face with her past. This book is dual time-line so you are following the story in present day and eleven years ago. I had a few theories on how this book was going to go and one of my theories was right but then turned out to be wrong😂🙈I was not expecting the plot twist at the end and (there is a further plot twist in the epilogue that I promise you will not see coming). Overall if you are in the mood for a psychological thriller to keep you guessing until the end, then definitely giving this book a go! Rating is ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of The Inmate by Frieda McFadden.
Brooke moves home to her childhood home after her parents die in an accident with her 10 year old son. She is a NP and get a job at the Prison where her baby daddy is for murder and trying to murder her 11 years ago.

It starts out well but goes down hill after a while. Has some unbelievable things happen and Brooke just seems stupid.

While the ending was disappointing the epilogue was f$?;:ed up and creepy.

This novel held my attention the entire way. I can’t believe I started to actually feel sorry for Shane. Freida did not disappoint yet again.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I loved the fast pace of the book and never got bored while reading. There were a couple of genuinely surprising moments and I like when I don't see a twist coming.I did find the main character a little gullible at times and questionable with her decision making. I also found some aspects of the plot to be a little over the top, an overall enjoyable read for me and I would definitely want to read more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc! The Inmate was a great thriller that has an ending you won't expect. If you are a fan of Frieda McFadden this will not disappoint!

This twisty story is McFadden at her best!
Brooke Sullivan is a new nurse practitioner at a maximum-security prison, but she is there for more than a job.
She is there to speak to Shane Nelson, a notorious and dangerous inmate. Once her boyfriend, now a convicted killer, Brooke needs to know the truth of what happened that fateful night. But first, she has to get access to him.
#poisonpenpress #theinmate #freidamcfadden

📖 The Inmate
Author: Freida McFadden
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Genre: thriller
Format: Kindle
Pages: 388
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟
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As always, Freida McFadden sucks you into the book and you can't stop reading until you're done with it. This is the sixth book I read by McFadden and I always think I know how it's going to end but no. She throws in a twist or turn, and I am shocked all over again. LOVED the epilogue!!

This book had by far the most insane ending I have read in a long time! It follows Brook, a registered nurse who moves back home after the death of her parents. She struggles to find a job, but finally lands one at the local men's prison. There, she must conform to the rules--never tell the prisoners details of your personal life. But, there is one prisoner there who already knows everything. Shane, Brook's highschool ex-boyfriend, is a prisoner, locked up due to Brook's testimony. Brook hasn't spoken to Shane since the night in highschool when he attempted to murder her at a party, but as the two begin to interact due to close proximity, she realizes that may not be the truth after all.

While I find the writing to be a little elementary and certain elements of the plot a little ridiculous/unbelievable, I still flew through this book! The short chapters, pacing, and plot twists were perfect. I can see why so many readers rave about this author!

I thought I had this mystery figured out fairly early, but there's a hard flip towards the end that changes everything. Great story!

Downloaded this arc thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley. This book was pretty much everything you would expect from a suspense/thriller. Eleven years earlier, a teenage Brooke witnesses multiple murders and is almost strangled to death herself, while spending the night with friends at her boyfriend Shane's house. The only survivors are Brooke, Shane, and Brooke's long-time neighborhood friend, Tim. After the car accident that kills both her parents, Brooke returns to her hometown with her 10 year old son, conceived the night of the murders. Brooke takes the only job available to her at the time as a nurse practitioner in the prison where Shane is serving time for the murders thanks to Brooke's testimony 11 years earlier. And so you have the two separate timelines between what happened that fateful night and present day. When neighbor Tim gets involved with Brooke after she moves back home, her memory of the night of the murders starts to blur and she doesn't know quite what to believe. Could she have made a mistake and sent the wrong man to prison? With a few interesting twists at the end, this was a fun and quick read with a dumbass narrator and a couple of seedy side characters.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
Wow! Wow! I was shocked!
Shane has a party at his house and Brooke is almost killed. She never saw her attacker but could smell his cologne. She testified and her boyfriend was put in jail- but was he guilty? Ten years later she moves home and takes a job at the prison and runs into Shane. Her neighbor Tim who she grew up with hated Shane. When Tim visited smelling the cologne she smelled when she was almost killed she is left wondering if she made a mistake. Shane has been in jail 10 years never knowing he had a son and he won’t forget being locked up! Who really tried to kill Brooke and why?

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic copy of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Eleven years ago, Brooke Sullivan testified against her boyfriend, Shane Nelson, sending him to jail for life for almost killing her. Now, after the death of her parents, Brooke has returned to her hometown with her son and has taken the only job she could get- a nurse practitioner at the local jail, the jail, of course, where Shane Nelson is being housed for his crimes. Brooke hopes that after so much time, Shane will have forgiven Brooke for testifying against him and sending him to jail even though, eleven years later, Shane still claims to be innocent of the crime. But Shane does remember and Brooke starts to reconsider her testimony from years ago- did she put an innocent man behind bars?
Freida McFadden has delivered another gripping, suspenseful thriller with her new novel, “The Inmate”. Told in two timelines, both eleven years ago and today, from Brooke’s perspective, McFadden unveils the truth about what happened the night in a slow and tantalizing way, scattering twists and turns throughout.
Brooke is a single mother who had a falling out with her parents after deciding to give birth to her beloved son, Josh, and, now that her parents are dead, Josh is the only thing Brooke has. Half of her hometown hates her for sending Shane away, and the other half just want to forget that part of the past. Brooke herself is smart and resilient as the result of so much personal trauma, and she is an easy character to root for.
There are many possible outcomes for this novel and McFadden teases a few alternatives, but she definitely chose the right one. Shane? Brooke’s long-time neighbour and best friend Tim? Someone else entirely? McFadden doesn’t give it away that easily, and it was thrilling ride to uncover the truth.
I have read a few of McFadden’s novels (although not nearly as many as I want to), and “The Inmate” was definitely one of my favourites. It has everything fans of this genre could want, and I can’t wait to see what McFadden has for us next!