3.5 stars rounded up

The Good:
I was entertained.
It was an easy to gobble up thriller.
I didn’t see the twist coming.

The Bad:
That epilogue was not it for me.

The Ugly:
I’m sorry but the main character Brooke was dumb. She was like a child at times. You know when you tell a child not to touch something and they immediately touch it anyway. That’s Brooke in a nutshell. I’m supposed to believe her trauma is so bad she loses her shit over a necklace but is just fine being around her attempted murderer? I got whiplash from how quickly she changed direction on her feelings.

Overall this book is good but not great. I will definitely read more books from this author.

HUGE Thank you to NetGalley, Freida McFadden and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC!

So, this definitely wasn't what I was expecting, but I can't say I'm disappointed. I'm just not sure this is the right title? But I'm no author so... LOL This is not my favorite book by Freida, but it was really good. Unlike her other books I have read, I wasn't surprised by the twists. I knew there was something I couldn't figure out, but I wasn't surprised when it was revealed. The epilogue was what really got me. She kills it with the epilogues, every time!

Brooke has started her new nurse job at the local maximum security prison. There are many rules to follow, including don’t get close with the inmates. No one knows that one inmate, Shane Nelson, was her high school boyfriend and she is the reason he’s there.

For a while while reading this, I was thinking “this is not my favorite of hers”.I thought it was becoming predictable. I should have kept my faith in Freida. Everything changed up and turns out it wasn’t predictable at all. I really enjoyed it when I turned the final page. If you aren’t loving it in the beginning (as I always have with her books), keep at it.

“I was there that night. If it were up to him, I would be dead right now. I can never forget that. And I will never forgive him.”

The Inmate comes out on paperback 3/5.

Sometimes you choose a book from the genre or the title. Others it's the author, as was this case with The Inmate by Freida McFadden. What an absolute treasure! I've adored all her books, and I see such growth in each one. Queen of the Plot Twist! Visiting a prison to see how her ex is doing, wondering if she put him behind bars incorrectly, risking her life as a nurse when some of the inmates just want to mess with her. Lots to deal with, and at times, I thought the books was brilliant. But, sadly, there were moments of "why is she doing this?" and "why did the killer murder the first person?" and well, I'll stop there because it's the kind of book where you have to forget logic and go for the ride. Tensions. Thrills. Suspense. And some drama that couldn't actually happen. But it's a book, and it made me eagerly turn the pages, so win win!

After ten years away from her hometown, Brooke Sullivan returns there when her estranged parents are killed in an auto accident and she inherits the family home. Hoping to make a fresh start with her ten year old son, the only job this nurse practitioner can find is in a maximum security penitentiary. She is not looking forward to the job as the man who tried to kill her ten years ago is imprisoned there; it was her testimony that sent him to this institution.

I chose this book because McFadden’s books are such best sellers and I had never read one. I can see why she is so popular…she weaves a heck of a story. There were the requisite twists, turns, and red herrings. There also were cliches, the story was a bit over the top, there were times I wanted to shake Brooke for her naiveté, and I thought there were a few unanswered questions. Yet, I couldn’t put this book down. Told in two timelines, it was a fast, engrossing read and my life stopped until I finished it. I loved the epilogue.

It is what I would describe as a popcorn thriller.

Oh my god this book was AMAZING. I absolutely inhaled it in two sittings, which with a 6 month old baby at home is pretty damn good going. Freida Mcfadden very quickly became an auto buy author for me and possibly my favourite author of 2024 so far. This was honestly just mind-blowing good. I can't wait to read her other work!

Another great book by Freida McFadden with the usual twists and turns that make for a great story. However, it was incomprehensible to me how Brooke could easily ignore such huge red flags- especially given the trauma of her past. Still made for a fun read that kept me turning the page!

As always Freida keeps you guessing and gives a giant twist at the end. The male main characters are easy to like and fall in love with. Brooke has a tragic pasted and questions her own gut instincts leading to even more tragedy!

4.5⭐️/5⭐️
I really enjoyed this book!
Brooke starts her new job as a nurse practitioner in a maximum security prison. This was the only place that accepted her resume without much questions when she decided to move back to her home town after the death of her parent. Shane Nelson is one of the inmates of the prison she works in, also her ex and the father of her 10 year old son but most importantly he is the one who tried to kill her 11 years ago and she’s the one who put him in prison for the rest of his life.
She also has a best friend, Tim Reese, who testified that Shane killed their friends that night 11 years ago and tried to kill Brooke.
While living back in her hometown she started seeing Tim more and more often, Tim always been in love with Brooke but his love sometimes was overwhelming and through the book I had many questions while Shane seemed to be sweet and understanding while seeing Brooke in prison for medical seek. Brooke was warned that Shane can be very manipulative but she couldn’t understand why because all she could see was that he’s been nice and sweet with her. Even Marcus Hunt, a prison worker who shows much hate towards Shane, also who went with them in the same high school ( witch he hides) tried to warn her about Shane but in the same time he is showing interest toward her and seems like he knows a lot about her personal life with Tim and warns her to be very careful!
So, can she fully trust Tim? What Marcus Hunt tried to warn her about? Was Shane actually the one who tried to kill her that night?
Brooke gave me an impression of a very naive and “I’ll ignore all the signs/warnings” woman. After what she had experienced you’d think she’ll be more cautious, but no, she was very easy to manipulate with.
I have to admit, I’ve been going back and forth about the killer, the suspense was there!
The last chapter was my favorite! The ending…. Loved it!!!
This is my first Freida McFadden book and I really liked it. I keep hearing good things about her writing and her books so I’m definitely going to check out her other works.
Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book.

First of all thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read this book in exchange for an honest review. This was such an easy and fast paced book just like every book by this author. I really enjoyed the storyline it was defiantly a page turner making you guess what was going to happen next!!!

A twisting, turning thriller that kept me guessing right to the end. I thought I knew exactly what the outcome would be but I was completely wrong. A great thriller that you can devour in a day.

Freida McFadden has become an author I go to for a fun time. Are the plots far out there? Of course. Are there plot holes or gaps in logic? Definitely. Is the thriller a fun time? Hell yeah!
THE INMATE is Freida McFadden's up-next release, following this month's THE TEACHER. It is about a nurse named Brooke Sullivan who is hired to work for a maximum-security prison, the same one that her high school boyfriend is now serving a life-sentence. Nearly eleven years ago, he was accused of murdering several of Brooke's classmates and nearly killed her.
As Brooke begins to question her memory of that night, and as she gets closer to the only other survivor of that night, we are left wondering if the wrong man is behind bars.
This is a cotton-candy thriller. It is a fun and easy read filled with twists and turns and high-stakes. If you pick up this book and expect anything other than a breezy, twisty ride--you probably will hate it. This isn't Karin Slaughter, or Tana French, or Gillian Flynn. Freida McFadden is always a good time. If you can suspend your disbelief and you pick-up one of her books for a good time, THE INMATE is a sure-fire hit. If you judge it by any other standard than entertaining as hell, you will come away from the reading experience with a less-than-satisfied disposition.
Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
If you liked the books The Housemaid and The Housemaids Secret, put in your calendar March 4 for this one. And you’ll need to be ready for a WILD ride! I was so excited I was able to read and review this book early. She has been a new favorite author of mine, and I can’t wait to read more of her books. I hope this book becomes a movie- it kept me on the edge, and I was totally blindsided! Such great writing all the way through.

Review: A young mom with a son, desperate for a job, takes the first available- a nurse in a prison. They tell her from the start “Do not get close to any of the inmates”, but little did they know she put one of them there. Her story is heartbreaking, and you just empathize with her so deeply. Each chapter goes back to high school, a party that turned deadly, her family divided, and her second guessing if she put the right person behind bars. The nightmares of that night, the current events and people she runs into while returning to her home town were that night in high school happened. So many twists, turns, and shocking new details come out each chapter. One minute you think you know for sure, and you’re totally blindsided the next- over and over! My husband even enjoyed this one (as I kept updating him on plot changes) and couldn’t believe the ending either. Add it to your TBR!

THIS. BOOK. literally left me guessing until the very end. Freida is the queen of twists. Love this read and will be recommending it to all of my friends and family!

Freida has done it again, every single book she writes is absolutely incredible!!

This book was so addictive and I could not put it down. The plot twists were so incredibly thought out and so unexpected, when you think you know what’s going to happen next, everything changes and really you have no idea what’s going to happen!

This book was so well written, Freida’s writing is amazing. This is a must read for everyone!

Wow! What a twisty ride! I did not know who was trustworthy. Did Shane really commit those murders eleven years ago? Or was it Tim and was Brooke wrong in accusing Shane. Someone is a liar and I couldn’t put this book down until all was revealed at the end. Did Brooke make some poor choices? Yes. She should not have gone to work at the prison in the first place. In fact, she should have not come back to Raker at all, despite doing it to protect her son from those awful bullies. But then it would have been a boring book. And this definitely was not. Many twists abound and I really liked reading this story. I am going to have to read more of her books now!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book to read and review.

I've heard a lot of great things about Freida McFadden's books, so I was very excited to receive a copy! The premise was interesting - Brooke, a nurse practitioner, takes a job at a maximum security prison which houses her ex-boyfriend, Shane, who attempted to murder her 10 years ago.

Unfortunately, I was not a fan. There were way too many unbelievable plot holes and most of the decisions that the FMC made were absolutely ridiculous. I found myself flipping pages just to get to the end.

I have higher hopes for McFadden's other works, but this was not the read for me.

The Inmate was a quick read with some twists and turns. It was a little predictable and I had no love for the MC. It felt like I was reading a young adult book. Not my favorite Freida McFadden book.

the concept immediately drew me in as a psychological thriller girlie ✌🏼 the newest doctor in a prison is one of the inmate’s ex … and she’s the one who put him there.. like first of all, girl are you crazy? should you be committed too? you could not pay me millions of dollars for me to work at a prison where my ex-boyfriend is committed for murdering my best friends …

other than the clear bonk on the head the MC desperately needs, this story projected just the way I expected. the boyfriend pleads his innocence and suddenly, the MC is doubting everything she saw and experienced that night 👀 and it really had me doubting every single character too!!!

when it came to the ending, though, it completely fizzled out. I knew exactly what was coming and how this entire situation would resolve, and it was seriously the MC’s own stupidity that led this entire story to begin with.

I wished I was more surprised and gut punched like I have been with freida’s other books, but this one was still a fast-paced invested thriller for me!

thank you to netgalley and poisoned pen press for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review !!

rating: 3 stars
wine pairing: napa valley zinfandel

When I say this book had me in a chokehold… I am not kidding😳 I honestly could not put it down! The chapters were short and filled with drama and cliffhangers, making it so easy to carry on reading.

I could not have foreseen the twists and turns thrown at me throughout this book and they just kept coming.

I would recommend this book purely for the jaw dropping epilogue😳 This is when I knew it was a 5 star read for me.