After doing time in jail, Millie is desperate for a job. Fired from her first position as a waitress, rather than disclosing it to the parole board, she takes on the role as housemaid to the seemingly perfect Winchester family.
Quite soon Millie realises that Nina Winchester is a psycho with a record of mental health issues. Together with her small daughter Cecilia, they do their best to make Millie’s life a misery. But why? Is Nina aware of Millie’s past?
Despite her unhappy situation, with no other choice Millie stays on and tries to make the best of it, even though Enzo the gardener tries to warn her about her belligerent employer.
Under constant stress and always in trouble with her boss, the only light in Millie’s life is Nina’s handsome husband Andrew, to whom she is immediately attracted. And when it seems the feelings are reciprocated, things hot up when mother and daughter go away for a few days.
There are two points of view, one from Millie and the other from Nina, giving a double aspect to the story. With elements of surprise running through the novel, though a little far-fetched, the plot is gripping. Would I read another book by this author? Most certainly yes.

Totally enjoyed this book, kept you interested from the very beginning right through to the end. Will definitely be reading more from this author. You think when you read the prologue at the beginning you know where the stories heading but no, plenty of twists and turns. Would highly recommend.

This book that was very addictive and I stayed up very late reading it. I was very concerned re the hype of the book as in my experience it sometimes is a disappointment. This wasn't and worked very well. I do have plot point questions but go with pure escapism which is why you read.


I was given a free copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

Millie is an ex-con, who's on parole and desperate for a permanent job (and a place to stay), when she interviews with filthy rich Nina Winchester for the role of a live-in maid. The Winchesters, Nina and Andrew along with Nina's daughter Cecelia, live in a gated community in a plush Long Island neighbourhood where crime rates are low. However, Millie can smell something fishy from the get go in the house, especially her tiny room in the attic. But her woeful circumstances coerce her to bite her tongue and give the job a good shot. As she works in the household (diligently), she uncovers deep-lying secrets that put her life in danger.

******MILD SPOILERS AHEAD******

The plot is the usual husband/wife/maid love triangle drama sprinkled with jealousy, infatuation, whodunnit suspense and revenge. However, the writing was not up to the mark. The story is told in three parts: the first from Millie's POV; the second from Nina's POV; and the third alternating between the two. My main gripe with the way these parts were written was that there was no difference in the voices of the protagonists. Hell, there wasn't even much tonal deviation in the way the men talked. Basically, Nina and Millie had very similar thought processes, circumstances and goals in life. Therefore, by the time part II began (and part of the suspense was revealed), I was bored and already looking forward to the end.

Now, the end was done well, I will give Ms. McFadden that. And it wasn't rushed, as is par for the course for the few mystery/thrillers I have read. All plot lines are tied up well and epilogue resonated hope for abuse victims, which I think is a very important message to purport.

Thank you Bookouture & Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you @netgalley and @bookture for gifting me this E-ARC of The Housemaid for an unbiased review!

🄰🅄🄳🄸🄾🄱🄾🄾🄺 🅁🄴🅅🄸🄴🅆

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒅
𝙱𝚢: @fizzziatrist
𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
𝙿𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚛: @bookouture
𝙿𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚍 𝙾𝚗: April 26th 2022
@𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚜 𝚂𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚎: 4.26
𝙼𝚢 𝚂𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚎: 🧺 🧼 🧹 🧽 / 5 Cleaning Items

"If I leave this house, it will be in handcuffs. I should have run for it while I had the chance. Now my shot is gone. Now that the police officers are in the house and they've discovered what's upstairs, there's no turning back." ━ Freida McFadden, 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒅

Ⓢⓨⓝⓞⓟⓢⓘⓢ

Every day I clean the Winchesters’ beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor. Working here is my last chance to start fresh. I can pretend to be whoever I like. But I’ll soon learn that the Winchesters’ secrets are far more dangerous than my own…But I reassure myself: the Winchesters don’t know who I really am. They don’t know what I’m capable of…

Ⓜⓨ Ⓣⓗⓞⓤⓖⓗⓣⓢ

I don't know about you but I do love a twisty jaw-dropping psychological thriller! One with clever plot-twists and interesting backstories! This really was an unputdownable story! I like my thrillers fast paced and I don't think you'll be disappointed with this one. I do recall reading a similar book like this sometime ago but I still enjoyed this one just as much because both were different in their own ways. I can definitely see why Freida's books are all so highly rated, I'll be sure to read more of her in the future.

Thank you @netgalley and @bookture for gifting me this E-ARC of The Housemaid for an unbiased review!

🄰🅄🄳🄸🄾🄱🄾🄾🄺 🅁🄴🅅🄸🄴🅆

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒅
𝙱𝚢: @fizzziatrist
𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
𝙿𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚛: @bookouture
𝙿𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚍 𝙾𝚗: April 26th 2022
@𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚜 𝚂𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚎: 4.26
𝙼𝚢 𝚂𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚎: 🧺 🧼 🧹 🧽 / 5 Cleaning Items

"If I leave this house, it will be in handcuffs. I should have run for it while I had the chance. Now my shot is gone. Now that the police officers are in the house and they've discovered what's upstairs, there's no turning back." ━ Freida McFadden, 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒅

Ⓢⓨⓝⓞⓟⓢⓘⓢ

Every day I clean the Winchesters’ beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor. Working here is my last chance to start fresh. I can pretend to be whoever I like. But I’ll soon learn that the Winchesters’ secrets are far more dangerous than my own…But I reassure myself: the Winchesters don’t know who I really am. They don’t know what I’m capable of…

Ⓜⓨ Ⓣⓗⓞⓤⓖⓗⓣⓢ

I don't know about you but I do love a twisty jaw-dropping psychological thriller! One with clever plot-twists and interesting backstories! This really was an unputdownable story! I like my thrillers fast paced and I don't think you'll be disappointed with this one. I do recall reading a similar book like this sometime ago but I still enjoyed this one just as much because both were different in their own ways. I can definitely see why Freida's books are all so highly rated, I'll be sure to read more of her in the future.

All too often the burb can be the best part of a book, but not in this instance!
What a rollercoaster ride this was! It was impossible to put down, deliciously decadent and just what you need on a lovely sunny day!
When ex con Millie applies for a job as a maid/babysitter/general dogs body for wealthy couple Nina and Andrew, she really doesn’t know what she is getting herself into! Nina is rude, obnoxious, a liar and as everyone is quick to tell Millie, a little bit cuckoo!!
However, all is not as it seems, for any of the people in this story! With a familiar theme, not unlike the last Mrs Parrish, the housemaid has its own sinister twists, making it totally unique!
There isn’t a single thing that I can say I didn’t like about this book - except finishing it - I did not like finishing it!! This is a must have for anyone who loves a dark, domestic thriller!! Brilliant!

I found this book to have a similar vibe to a few others I have read recently, however, that didn't stop me from reading it every chance I got. Great thriller, a killer plot, and strong female characters. Definitely recommend!

This was my first book by Freida McFadden, but I can’t wait to read more! This was a character driven, twist filled story, with strong female characters, and kept me reading long past my bedtime!

As what seems to keep happening, I have waited much MUCH too long to read a book by Freida McFadden and I am glad I chose to remedy that with The Housemaid. This book absolutely blew me away and say what you will about plot holes and whatever else, I could not put it down nor did any of that matter to me in the slightest. I think I probably should have predicted at least a touch of what was to come, but as per my usual, I didn't at all. This definitely added to the shock factor for me, and the story takes quite the dark and twisted turn. It always makes me nervous when the cover of a book says something about jaw-dropping twists, but thankfully that was not wrong for me in terms of The Housemaid. The pacing was whip quick, and I found myself easily drawn into the story and did not want to put it down.

I actually started out reading it, but then switched to the audiobook which is narrated by Lauryn Allman. I quite enjoyed her for this book, and I thought she was able to bring Millie's character to life in the best possible way. I was literally unable to stop reading The Housemaid, and I really enjoyed the way McFadden wove this story into something both shocking and entirely engaging. The short chapters also really helped with the pacing, and you can't help but hate Nina as the book goes on. I'm still not really sure about my feelings for all of the characters, but I absolutely adored the ending and it ventured into The Equalizer territory (the first movie) which I couldn't have loved more. I did that little thing where you shake your legs and squeal (just me?) at the very end because I loved it so much. McFadden has immediately become an autobuy author for me and I can't wait to read her whole backlist now!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to Bookouture, Freida McFadden, and Netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review. This book is definitely a fast read so be prepared to lose some sleep. With a twist you won’t see coming at the end, I give this a solid🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating!

Wow, wow and WOW! Incredible! Unputdownable!

Millie is down on her luck, just released from prison, fired from her job, and sleeping in her car and then she sees a job for a housemaid. She can’t believe her luck when she is offered the live in position, no more sleeping in her car! Nina and Andrew Winchester initially appear as a happily married couple but then cracks start to show, Millie can’t help but notice how attractive Andrew is and when she starts to see how badly Nina treats him, she starts to feel so sorry for him especially as soon after accepting the position Nina seems to suddenly want to make life hell for Millie. As Millie and Andrew get closer, Andrew and Nina get further apart, will Millie get a life she couldn’t ever even dreamed of when she took on the role of housemaid?! You’ll have to read this to find out.

Wow again, what a read! Chilling but addictive. Freida McFadden really knows how to write a baddie. This is the first book that I wish my star rating went higher than 5 because this book certainly deserves it! I was completely led down the path that the author wanted me to follow, and I loved it 😉. I wanted to read every spare minute I had, and I honestly don’t know why I hadn’t heard of this magnificent author before. I thought around halfway I had the twist worked out, but I was so wrong which was great.

Utterly brilliant and I can’t recommend this book highly enough especially for fans of psychological thrillers. Honestly you won’t regret reading this.

I have now bought another two books by this author, and I can’t wait to read them!!

Thank you to Netgalley, Freida McFadden and Bookouture for my advanced reading copy. Out now.

This was a crazy mixed up story and I loved it.

That old saying that you never can tell what goes on behind closed doors certainly applies here.

This was fast paced and had me hooked from the outset. A change from my usual murder genre and I'm so glad I deviated.

4.5 stars

Excellent thriller! I loved the ending to this book so much! I cannot wait to read the next book by this Author

4.5 ⭐

Freida McFadden’s The Housemaid was the first book I’ve read by this author but it surely won’t be the last. It made me keep guessing and it kept me glued to the page the whole time.

I loved how twisted and intriguing the story was. It reminded me a bit of some other psychological thrillers I’ve read, but I didn’t enjoy it any less because of that.

The writing was simple and effective. The book was well paced, with short chapters – perfect to keep your attention. The revelation was a bit farfetched, but surprising and just what I’d expect from a good thriller.

All in all – I’m really happy with this read.

If you want to see my much more in depth review, you can check it out on my book blog NovelOnMyMind.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of The Housemaid by Freida McFadden in exchange for an honest review.

I seem to spend more time shopping for new books, reading reviews and recommendations than actually reading the books so when The Housemaid started appearing regularly on my online book club I bumped it to the top of my TBR pile and started to read it. I am often wary of these “over hyped” books that everyone tells me I must read because it’s brilliant etc… but in the case of The Housemaid it’s 100% true.

This is the first book I’ve read by Freida McFadden and I’m delighted to see that she has a huge back catalogue of psychological thrillers so I will definitely be buying them.

Millie has recently been released from prison where she served a long sentence for a crime which isn’t revealed at first. Now living in her car, she applies for a job as a live-in housemaid for a rich couple, Nina and Andrew and their 9 year old daughter, Cecelia.

Millie is delighted to be given the job and moves in to the family’s huge house immediately. However, not everything is quite as it seemed at the interview as Nina, who was immaculately dressed, friendly and houseproud seems to have had a personality transplant and becomes more and more unhinged thoughout the story. She starts to show some serious bat-sh*t crazy behaviour towards Millie, making Millie’s life a living hell, however as Millie isn’t prepared to go back to sleeping in her car with no job she puts up with Nina and her spiralling demands especially as she starts to develop feelings for Andrew.

I do love a twisty jaw-dropping psychological thriller and this book ticks every single one of my requirements for a 5 star read. I didn’t see any of the clever plot-twists coming and genuinely had no idea where the book was going as all I cared about was turning those pages and devouring the storyline.

This really was an unputdownable book and one that I will be recommending for a long time. 5 shiny stars and a place in my Top Ten Books of 2022.

Having not read any McFadden books until now, I was excited to try this new author and see how I like writting.

Let me start by saying that the things happening in this book would never happen "in real life" (I think personaly), but the book was still engaging and entertaining. A fun read. The characters are strong and I never felt like the story was dragging, so that is amazing.

This is a fast-paced novel, with strong plot and a very suspenseful read that had me glued to the pages.

It began three months ago. Looking for a fresh start Millie accepts a job as a housekeeper for the Winchesters. Millie spent the last ten years in prison and finding a job hasn’t been easy.

The Housemaid is set on Long Island, in the Winchesters home, where Millie, the nanny, resides in the attic. The attic has a history. The attic is small with a slanting roof, a window that’s painted shut, and a door that locks from the outside.

What happened at the Winchester house? The Housemaid is a three part story where Freida McFadden shares the secrets of the Winchester family.

Freida McFadden created some crazy scenarios. Was is plausible for these circumstances to take place? It’s a tad over-the-top.

I’m certain readers have heard this premise before. The idea for the Housemaid isn’t new. A poor woman with a criminal past, takes a job as a live in housekeeper in a lavish home, an attractive businessman whose wife tries to get pregnant grows suspicious of her husbands interest in the nanny.

McFadden used her unique writing voice to recreate a story that has been written by a few authors. She put her own twist on a familiar storyline. McFadden has an interesting yet odd sense of humor. She leaves footprints of her personality in her books. I must admit this was different than I expected. It was definitely weird. Some parts were predictable but not what took place in that attic. That was an unexpected surprise. I’ve got to give props to McFadden for her unique take on The Housemaid.

I requested both the audiobook and ebook versions. I enjoy following along while the narrator plays out the scenes. I listened using the Netgalley app. Lauryn Allman narrates and performs the entirety of The Housemaid. Lauryn gave a solid performance.

Wow!!! I absolutely loved this book, and read it so quickly because I couldn't put it down. The characters were so well written, and the plot was very fast paced and kept my interest the whole time. I certainly didn't expect the twist, and it was definitely worth the wait. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Although this book is a roller coaster of a thriller, it a kind of macarb way, I also found it fun. Does that make me seem weird? Maybe but the few main characters are so larger than life and really quite extreme to make the story work so you really have to read or listen (if it's the audio version, which by the way I recommend) with an open mind. Nobody is quite what they seem! A good read and recommended.