But offers that seem too good to be true are usually exactly that, as Millie is about to discover. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden – My Review In Netflix’s series adaptation of the book, which is now streaming, that scene never takes place. In fact, Alex—the show’s main character, a fictional stand-in for Land played by Margaret Qualley—never stays at a conventional homeless shelter at all. This is just the first in a series of differences between the source material and the show. Yet, the picture that emerges out of these modifications is just as tender and lonely and outrageous as Land’s real-life story, which exposes the severity of the poverty crisis in the U.S. Ghost is another word for maid. No matter how close you believe you are to your family, one day you will mean nothing to them. Key to that storyline is Sean’s struggle with alcoholism. From episode to episode, viewers are brought on “this roller coaster ride with Alex where it seems like Sean is getting better, and then he’s not, and then he is, and then he’s not, and then he is, and then he’s not,” says Robinson. Like Alex, Sean is a product of his environment: “He’s in large part traumatized from his upbringing. He came from an abusive household, he was modeling the behavior that he had been taught, and I think he felt just trapped by his own circumstances. He just had a lot of anger and resentment towards the way his life had turned out. It does not excuse his actions, but I can understand why he was angry.” I know we all have different tastes, and do keep that in mind. But to me, this is how a good, captivating thriller should look like.

There are also a few convenient coincidences. (Then again, these are found in almost every thriller, which is why I don’t read much of this genre.) This book completely fulfilled my little Nancy Drew heart. This book took a piece of my heart and gave me something in return. This is the book I didn’t know I needed in 2023. This is the author that I didn’t know I needed to dive into! If you get anything from this review, all you need to know is…. YOU NEED TO PUT DOWN WHATEVER IT IS YOU’RE READING AND GRAB THIS BOOK! My thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Housemaid's Secret”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

I will also try to get the audio copies of them. I listened to The Housemaid on audio (narrated by Lauryn Allman), and in my humble opinion – that’s the way to go about it. I’m sure my enjoyment just wouldn’t be the same if I’ve read it physically. I try to ignore how Nina makes a mess just to watch me clean it up. How she tells strange lies about her own daughter. And how her husband Andrew seems more broken every day. But as I look into Andrew's handsome brown eyes, so full of pain, it's hard not to imagine what it would be like to live Nina's life. The walk-in closet, the fancy car, the perfect husband. She is working in a fabulous penthouse apartment owned by a wealthy man. The home is immaculate, with little cleaning necessary, only cooking, laundry, and shopping for groceries. Her wages are generous. The man of the house has warned her never to enter his wife's room as she is ill. Of course, Millie's curiosity and contrary behaviour causes her to open that door. She encounters a badly beaten and injured wife, who she is anxious to help. my mysterious italian man🦋freida knows how to write a fictional male character😋i won’t say anything else hehe you just gotta read about him😏😏 if you replaced millie with me…the plot would look no different. if you’ve read this book, then please tell me you know exactly what i’m referring to🫣i would’ve 100% fell face first into that trap😩i loved millie’s character a lot. her past is a crazy one…it’s pretty much a mystery throughout the entire book so there’s nothing more i can say about her. this poor girl has been through it😭

As in every contemporary domestic thriller, there were some farfetched plot points that would NEVER occur in real life. A couple of these are left unexplained.First of all, the tagline "From behind closed doors, she sees everything" must have been chosen by someone who never read the book, because it couldn't be farther from the truth: Millie goes through the novel blissfully unaware of everything that happens around her, be it behind closed doors or not. Even the most telegraphed plot twists somehow catch her by surprise, despite all the warning signs and the not-so-cryptic warnings she receives from other characters. The only ones who see everything from behind closed doors are Andrew and Enzo, and how sad it is that a novel written by a woman, with a woman as a protagonist, should depict both its female main characters as such hapless damsels in distress?