Book Review: Want to Know a Secret? by Freida McFadden

Title: Want to Know a Secret?
Author: Freida McFadden
Pages: 398
Published: Jan 2021
My Rating: 3.5/5
Find it on Amazon here

Book Blurb:

Everyone has secrets.

YouTube baking sensation April Masterson knows the secret to the perfect gooey brownies. Or how to make key lime squares that will melt in your mouth. But if you keep watching her offline, you may find out some other secrets about April. Secrets she’d rather you didn’t know.

Like where did her son go when he snuck out of the house? What was she doing with the local soccer coach behind fogged windows? And what’s buried in her backyard?

Everyone has secrets. Some are worse than others. April’s secrets are enough to destroy her.

I’ll make sure of that.

My Thoughts:

Yes, yes, I know. I’m on a Freida McFadden roll! What do I say? Some days I’m running on energy fuelled by pure stress and overwhelm, and just want to have a parallel distraction I can engage in on the side. For some reason, Netflix is just not it. These days, it’s a fast-paced, bite sized, easy-to-read mystery that I can look forward to. So here we are! 

And that’s the tough bit about “reviewing” a book - I can only talk about how it made me feel and why. What do I think of the story and the writing - it does not make a book good or bad, just what my experience with it was. For these Freida books, I have a hard time putting it in words, because they do everything I want them to do - they’re the perfect distraction, have the perfect amount of mystery, they don’t stress me out (I appreciate the trigger warnings and the notes about making the book more family-friendly). Are they the perfect thrillers? Mostly not but they do somehow check boxes for what I NEED and that’s huge for me. 

Now coming to the actual book! It starts with April’s POV. April is a YouTuber where she posts baking secrets. Her new next door neighbour is friendly, has a hot husband, but April feels something is off. Soon enough, Maria feels like someone not to be messed with. April starts receiving sinister text messages from an unknown number, messages about her family and threatening to expose her secrets. After about half the book, the POV shifts to another character, and the entire story gets re-narrated from this new viewpoint. It is unique in concept, and kind of like a trademark of Freida’s (gave very ‘The Housemaid’ vibes). Unreliable narrator, twists and turns, and a shock reveal at the end. The writing style is engaging - you can run through the entire book in a (fairly long) sitting. I stayed up way past my bedtime to finish this one! It was a bit hard to connect with the story at the beginning because I found April REALLY ANNOYING. It might be her narration, or her dumb thoughts, I’m not sure. But I just could not see things from her point of view. 

And I have to talk about the husbands. Was it just for the story or is that a reality nowadays? All the husbands depicted were so… useless. Not caring much for their kids, having affairs, working late, not showing up, etc. Sean (Maria’s husband) seemed to be an exception (and apparently he was also incredibly hot, so yay Maria), but overall, everyone else had a partner that was almost non-existent. 

The twists and turns were entertaining. The final twist was completely unexpected for sure, and the author did a good job incorporating emotions into the story through April’s mother and their relationship. Some things were also quite obvious so didn’t feel exactly shocking but I still enjoyed the reading experience overall. I would recommend it if you’re looking for a fun, light mystery. Would I read it again? Most likely not, but if when I’m old and bored and find this book, I would not say no. So see you again in 50 years! Cheers.

Book Review: Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden

Author: Freida McFadden
Published: Jan 2026
Pages: 327
Find it at Amazon here
My Rating: 4/5

Book Blurb:

Sometimes, enough is enough…

Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction.

Or at least, she did.

These days, Debbie’s life seems to be spiraling out of control. She just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters. And her husband is keeping secrets, according to the tracking app she installed on his phone. Now, Debbie’s done being the bigger person. She’s done being reasonable and practical. It’s time to take her own advice.

And now it’s time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most.

My Thoughts!

At this point, I'm picking and finishing Freida's books like a McDonald's meal - a decent quick fix that acts as a break in between "heavier" books. Dear Debbie was a surprisingly entertaining read and ended up being exactly the kind of book I needed between more emotionally demanding books.

The story follows Debbie Mullen, a suburban wife, mother, and advice columnist whose life appears fairly ordinary on the surface. But from the very beginning, there is something unsettling simmering beneath that picture-perfect exterior. Debbie has recently lost her job, her family relationships seem strained, her husband Cooper is acting suspiciously, and strange things keep happening around her. Some things become obvious, like we know who is behind the petty revenge actions, but there's a constant, nagging, annoying feeling about WHY and how is it relevant. This is not majorly a murder mystery - for most of the book it felt like I kept waiting for something to happen, that this is not just a clever woman's daily journal, or at least understand the motive behind her actions. 

Debbie herself is an interesting protagonist. At first, she comes across as petty, judgmental, and honestly not all that likeable. But she also has an incredibly sharp mind, and watching her navigate situations was one of the most engaging parts of the book. She’s the kind of character you don’t necessarily root for, yet you can’t stop reading about. The story gradually reveals more layers to her personality, and while I never fully warmed up to her, I was definitely invested in seeing how everything would play out. The Dear Debbie column angle was also interesting, and used in a way to further throw off the reader - like, what do you mean Debbie's going around responding to questions in her newspaper column with ideas to kill their husbands?

What was constant was the sense of discomfort that runs throughout the book. This isn’t a fast-paced, twist-every-chapter thriller. Instead, it’s more of a slow-burn domestic thriller with a creepy undertone that never really goes away. Freida McFadden does a great job of making you feel like something is off, even when nothing particularly dramatic is happening.  There are ongoing mysteries surrounding several characters and their secrets, and I found myself continuously questioning everyone’s motives. The book finally picks up pace in the later half and I have to admit - the classic sharp turn/twist, characteristic of Freida's style, did come and for a change, was not that surprising to me! 

The writing style is classic Freida McFadden - simple, accessible, and very easy to binge. I flew through it in just a few hours (THE best therapy). The chapters are short, the narrative keeps moving, and even when not much is happening, the atmosphere keeps you turning pages.

That said, I wouldn’t necessarily classify this as a strong mystery. The mystery element is there, but it felt secondary to the character dynamics and the growing sense that something was deeply wrong beneath the surface. Some plot points also required a fair amount of suspension of disbelief, and there were moments that felt a little unrealistic. The ending, however, was satisfying and tied things together in a way that worked for the story. (Go Debbie!) Major themes that this book is centred around includes moral ambiguity, revenge, and taking justice into your own hands.

Overall, I think Dear Debbie is best approached as a fun, slightly dark, domestic thriller rather than a complex mystery. It’s the literary equivalent of a palate cleanser—a quick, engaging read that scratches the reading itch without demanding too much from you. Not every book needs to be groundbreaking, and sometimes that’s exactly what you’re in the mood for.

Would I recommend it? Yes—if you’re looking for a lightweight thriller with an unsettling atmosphere, an unconventional protagonist, and a story you can finish in an afternoon. Just don’t go in expecting an intricate whodunit. This one is more about the creeping discomfort, the morally messy characters, and the entertaining ride along the way.

Review: The Housemaid (The Housemaid #1)

Author: Frieda McFadden

Published: April 2022

Publisher: Hachette (Grand Central Publishing)

Pages: 329

My Rating: 4.5/5 stars!

Find it at: Amazon

Frieda McFadden’s on a roll. This is her year for sure! I’m wondering how I have missed these books in the past couple years (New York Times Bestsellers???), only now realizing she’s having bestseller after bestseller and I had to find out why. Picking The Housemaid was only a matter of time, but when it became my local book club’s pick of the month I had no choice :P Also the movie adaptation came out in January so of course I had to read first. And boy did I read this fast! It was over in less than 24 hours and while this may not be a huge deal for someone who has nothing else to do, it was for me because I did it on a Sunday!!! A day when I had my toddler circling me all day and where was my nose buried? In this book, yes. Poor thing. My child, not the book. 

Let’s break it down into sensible, digestible pieces:

Overall theme: This book is about deception - nothing is what it appears to be. And it is also about power, control, and the liability of emotional baggage. 

Millie has a questionable past and she is shocked when she gets hired as a househelp for one of the families in a wealthy neighbourhood. Her employer Nina seems to have something sinister behind her behaviour and words. You know something is off about her but the author does a great job of making it really hard for the reader to figure it out. And then there were the other characters, Nina’s husband Andrew who is charming and too perfect, their daughter Cecelia giving off creepy vibes, and their gardener Enzo who only speaks Italian and doesn’t seem to understand English but spends a considerable amount of time tending to their lawns (to me Enzo had an important role and an air of mystery around him, but in the movie his role was so diminished it was disappointing - I guess most adaptations are). As Millie settles in her new home, she is convinced Andrew deserves better. Soon, things take a surprising turn until it becomes shocking altogether and bam! Plot twist with still a lot of pages to go. 

I do admire the author’s writing style - it keeps you engaged and motivated to keep going, yet it doesn’t make you fly through it. You want to read every word in case you miss something important. The characters are well developed, complete with their flaws and vulnerabilities. They’re relatable through the common themes of complex relationships, helplessness and anger. I did not particularly enjoy the overall theme, the message, the misogyny of it, but it is a well-written story and I am officially obligated to read her other books (especially the next in sequence The Housemaid's Secret). 

In terms of plot twists, loved them! You know something is coming but can’t quite figure it out until it happens. After you gasp and get over the sensations, you’re forced to rethink what you previously read to make sure it makes sense. Honestly, that’s the thing I live for. I want to be challenged, and the twists in this one excited me no end! There’s even a whole vibe to the book. You know how there are some stories (like She Didn’t See it Coming) that are considered “domestic thrillers”, that have a very small setting and everything happens in it? I kind of think of The Housemaid as similar - the vibe was small setting, limited characters, slightly isolating and claustrophobic. The power dynamics and how they shift as the story progresses is also a reason it kept me hooked and interested. I probably won’t go into too much detail about the ending - it kinda was expected but not in the way it happened! 

I’m impressed with the author for the writing and looking forward to reading more by her. Would most definitely recommend reading this one, and then watching the movie. :)