👩‍🏫 Let me pick my jaw up off the floor because the twists were twisting at the end of this book! Frieda has a way of making you judge a character before truly knowing the entire story. Caseham High was rocked by a scandal last year and this year is only going to get worse!

This book was super addictive and filled with craziness! Loved the short chapters which made it super binge-able! 🍎

This audio ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

High school math teacher Eve has what seems like a good life, but behind closed doors she feels unloved and unfulfilled by her husband and fellow teacher Nate. High school student Addie is ostracized by her peers after she got a teacher fired the previous year. As Eve and Addie’s lives slowly creep together, secrets and lies begin to unravel that could destroy everyone.

⚠️ Trigger Warning ⚠️

The Teacher by Freida McFadden, narrated by Leslie Howard, is a chilling psychological thriller deep in the world of high school drama through the perspectives of Eve and Addie.

This was my first Freida McFadden (shockingly!), so I think I was expected something more based on the hype around her. But honestly it was a very enjoyable book that contained very shocking moments.

There were quite a few twists that I saw coming, but still a couple I didn’t. The last one honestly felt like it was just shoved in there to tie everything off with a bow. I really like how every single character seems to play an important role, no matter how seemingly small.

I’d highly recommend to anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers with shocking twists, especially with a smaller cast.

Thank you to Dreamscape Select and NetGalley for the audio ARC! ❤️

”Oh what a tangled web we weave/when first we practice to deceive.” A verse straight out of Marmion by Sir Walter Scott.) This should be the tagline for this book. From page one I knew it was going to be a duplicitous ride.

Eve and Nate Bennett have a great marriage, aside from the normal highs and lows of every relationship. They are both teachers at the same high school. A scandal happened with a male teacher last year and the female student involved still attends the school. However, the teacher was let go. This student is Addie and she happens to be in both Eve and Nate’s classes this year.

Addie is a troubled girl, doesn’t have a lot of friends, and has some skeletons in her closet. Nate tries to help her but Eve is a little more strict. She likes Nate Bennett better than Eve Bennett, so problems arise!

I really liked this book. There are a couple of trigger warnings that a reader should be aware of, such as graphic violence and teacher/student sexuality. There isn’t a lot of it but it exists. It is necessary for the story to make sense and shows the intensity of the situations. This is a great book for those who love mystery, murder, sex scandals and domestic thrillers. It truly delivers and will make you want to stay up all night to finish it.

The epilogue was like fastening a ton of loose ends all neatly into one big ball of closure. The narrators, Leslie Howard and Danny Montooth, were great which added to the suspense even more than reading, I’m sure. Pure Perfection!

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

Frieda McFadden rarely misses for me, The Teacher continues that trend and is a thriller that I truly love.

Eve and Nate are married and are both teachers at the same high school. A troubled student Addie is in both of their classes. The year before Addie was part of a scandal that saw a well-respected teacher forced to resign. Eve is very suspicious of Addie but Nate becomes protective of her and tries to bring her out of her shell and get her involved with the school's poetry magazine.

Throughout the story, you learn a lot about the trio and everything keeps getting more interesting and even more crazy. All the way up to the conclusion that was a little far-fetched and convenient but still really worked.

My only complaint is I would have loved to learn a little more about the scandal with Addie but in such a fast-paced book I can understand why we didn’t. I just love the characters and the worlds that McFadden builds and want to get as much as I can.

The reigning queen of popcorn thrillers does it again! Although I didn’t enjoy this one as much as some of her other books, it was still a solid three-star read for me. I think my main issue with this story was how uncomfortable the content made me while reading it. Trigger warnings for inappropriate relations with and grooming of minors. The first half of the book was a bit slow, and it was heavily focused on these themes in a way that I really didn’t like. It just gave me the ick and I didn’t enjoy reading about it. I also never really liked or connected with the two POV characters. I found them both to be insufferable at times. In typical McFadden fashion, it has a wild, twisty ending, if a little far-fetched. Overall, it was just an okay read for me. She has definitely written better ones. If you’re new to the author, I’d recommend starting with something else. If you’re an avid reader of McFadden’s books, then I’d say it’s still worth a read, but I wouldn’t expect a favorite out of it.

Oof, this audiobook packs some punches and definitely caught me out at the end with those final twists! This story provides an insight into the disturbing marriage of a pair of high school teachers. Their unhappiness is not clarified to begin with, but we soon discover the root of their troubles. The narrative point of view also encompasses that of troubled teen Addie. Rumours of an affair with a teacher after the death of her dad, had the teacher removed from his job and have left her ostracised at school and from her best friend, who is the only other soul who knows what really happened last year. Disturbing secrets abound in this novel and fester until they all come spilling out. A great listen. #theteacher #freidamcfadden #netgalley #audiobook

Oh, this was my first McFadden book. I'm not sure about her... It was a great story full of twists, until the very, very end. As a former educator, it was a bit disturbing to read parts of it, but that's what's the story is all about, right? I can't wait for others to read it and discuss!

2.5 I rounded up

I am only giving this book 2.5 stars because of the epilogue, sorry about it 🤷🏼‍♀️

The writing: Freida did well in this book bc I think her writing sounds like a 16 year old girl… again, sorry abt it. I will say she did a fantastic job between the three POVs, I loved it

The plot: 95% of this book was so unbearable for me but the last 5% WOW WOW WOW. Unbearable in the sense that i was cringing and it was predictable, this doesn’t necessarily mean bad. But I did think it was SO predictable. The only part that truly surprised me was the Jay plot twist.

The epilogue, I can’t say enough for it. This was phenomenal.. really the last 40 mins of the book (if you’re listening.. if reading, about 87% on) was iconic.

👠 I’m sorry but the shoe fetish thing.. so effing weird and dumb I hated it more than anything

The characters: hated them all. I guess in a good way… Freida does a good job of making every character kind of morally grey ya know???? Just didn’t want happiness for anyone. I’m glad it all worked out for the girls tho

Thanks Freida, NetGalley, and poisoned pen press for an advance copy in exchange for my way too honest review Lmao 📚📚📚🫶🏼

Below : copying my notes that I took live while listening .. enjoy 😂

📝 “The teacher - FM
Omg how many times can she say they only have sex 1x a month jesus

Her writing is so good for a highschool girl bc that’s how she always writes 💀

The shoes/high heel fetish is too much

When they have sex and she thinks “if only mrs Bennett wasn’t around, it would be easier” or whatever, I think she’s abt to kill that bih

The poem from the cop!! Nate totally set her up

Loved when he was at the burial site and and gets whacked

eve after waking up in the grave how fun I loved this scene 🥰

LOVED the twist that eve was his student and the same poem thing

The BABY - jays BABY wow”

Check TW, teacher and student trope, with murder mystery.

W H O A ! W H O A ! PAUSE! Freida McFadden, BIG FREIDA. You did your big one with this one, I enjoyed the housemaid series ; but I LOVE this book because, honestly, this is a realistic story, and Freida did a great job telling it. The audiobook painted the story amazingly. The narrator did a good job, I finished this book in one sitting!
We have 3 different POVs. Eve is the local math teacher at the high school. Addie is a 16 year old student at the high school. Then Nate, (insert cuss word), who is the English teacher at the same local high school. The twist and turn this book takes is mind-blowing. I didn't see the ending coming. The ending is MIND BLOWING!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! I love Freida McFadden! The subject matter on this one was a little rough compared to her other books but it was still a major page turner. I did guess a few of the twists but there were still a few surprises at the end.

Freida McFadden books never fail to disappoint in being quick fast paced thrillers. The Teacher immediately draws you in with how wild and over the top it is. Some parts were honestly a bit cringey, and made me want to roll my eyes at how absurd everything was, but ultimately something about the way Freida writes her thrillers just keeps me wanting to come back for more.

Although this was a quick and fact paced read, the first half was rather slow moving in my opinion with a lot of setup. Things really picked up around the second half though and then I absolutely devoured it. This story was absolutely bonkers and I loved every minute of it. I read this via audiobook and the narrators did a fantastic job ensuring the suspense of the story was captured.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Dreamscape Select, Hollywood Upstairs Press, and the author Freida McFadden for this audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Freida McFadden books always immediately draw me in and are such quick reads/listens. I had the audio and enjoyed the narration.

We meet Eve and Nate who both teach high school. Addie, a student of both, was involved in a scandal last year that ended with another male teacher losing his job. Despite it appearing Eve and Nate have a great marriage, we learn that is not the case. Eve is cheating on him with a guy at the local shoe store. And she has a major show addiction, that she hides from Nate, or so she thinks. Nate is no faithful husband either. Will he be tempted by a student?

This book is filled with secrets, lies, twists and turns. Just when you think you know what's up, there's another twist thrown at you. And the final twist I was not expecting at all.

Filled with a bunch of unlikeable characters and POVs that keep you on the edge of your seat.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select/Hollywood Upstairs Press for an ALC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars rounding down to 3 stars on Goodreads.

Get the popcorn ready because this is THE POPCORN Thriller of all popcorn thriller! I could not look away. Parts of it were cringy but I just had to find out what happened. I will say it lost me in the epilogue (unbelievable) and it dropped down my rating. The epilogue is a gaping plot hole!! Yes it was a normal McTwist that had my head spinning but it just doesn’t work if you think about it.

The narrators did a spectacular job and created an enjoyable atmosphere.

Since I was entertained the whole way through, with the exception of the epilogue, I ended up giving it 3.5 stars.

****Many thanks to Dreamscape Select and NetGalley for the ALC in turn for an honest review.

I love Freida McFadden's books because the suspense and excitement is always top notch, but this is probably my favorite McFadden book. This story starts off as a subtly and beautiful story that reminds me more of a contemporary drama about abuse and grooming. Meanwhile, it also is was subtle and slowly building levels of suspense that you don't even see coming. But once I hit the second half of this book, it became extremely fast-paced and pulse-pounding. I was on the edge of my seat for every moment as the twists and turns came unexpectedly. Even though the setup for suspense was a little slower than McFadden's other books, the suspense hit so much harder for me. I do think that McFadden could have handled some of the sensitive matters a little better.

Wow! Although the topic of teacher/student relationships tend to ick me out. I think this was a very quick read(listen) and I did NOT see the ending coming. I did think it was a little too far fetched that Eve would have escaped death 3 times. Freida Mcfaddne really got me with the ending that Jay was in fact Hudson.

The audio experience was a delight, with narrators skillfully bringing the story to life. Their expressive delivery added depth to the narrative, creating an immersive journey. Unexpected plot twists, though occasionally challenging to grasp, contributed to the overall intrigue.

The narrators' ability to convey emotions and the unpredictable storyline kept me engaged throughout. However, there were instances where the narrative took unexpected turns that required a moment to fully absorb. Despite these occasional complexities, the overall experience was captivating, thanks to the engaging narration and the suspenseful plot.

In the realm of storytelling, surprises can be both intriguing and challenging. While the narrative occasionally introduced elements that demanded careful consideration, the skillful narration ensured a memorable and engaging audio experience.

Freida McFadden is such a solid author. Every book of hers I've read has been completely engaging, with complicated, interesting characters and really fun twists and turns. The Teacher is another fantastic psychological thriller that I could not stop listening to! It was such a fun read, and put an interesting spin on teacher/student relationships. I was truly riveted throughout this book, and was totally shook by the ending, while wishing it could keep going! LOVED it!

Freida Mcfadden proves by this book that she’s simply the queen of psychological thriller. Absolutely unputdownable!
Gripping unexpected plot that kept me on the edge wondering & amazing narration.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC.

Eve and her husband Nate are both teachers at Caseham High School. Eve teaches Math and Nate teaches English. They both have Addie in their classes, a student who was involved in a scandal the previous year that rocked Caseham High. This year their paths all collide in many ways.

Freida McFadden has done it again! I always know I am in for a wild ride when I pick up one of her books. This one did not disappoint. McFadden has written another addictive, shocking, book full of twists. Definitely clear your schedule for this one because once you start it you won’t be able to put it down. Leslie Howard did an excellent job narrating the characters of Eve and Addie. It was easy to tell which character was talking when. I also enjoyed Danny Montooth’s narration of Nate. I highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys thrillers! Please check trigger warnings before reading. I give it 4.5/5 stars.

Every time I read a book by Freida McFadden I get to escape from life for a few hours. There is always a lot going on that wraps up nicely at the end. I thought I had figured out the twists, but not all of them.