Review: The Housemaid’s Secret by Freida McFadden
After devouring the first installment (and only learning about the second installment a month ago!) I jumped into the second adventure!
I have to preface this by saying, I absolutely love Freida McFadden, her books are so entertaining and always have a surprising twist. My favorite thing to do is just grab one of her books and cozy up on the couch. Her books are also easily digestible and engaging.
So, we dove right back into the world of Wilhelmina “Millie” Galloway and her vigilante-like lifestyle of helping women caught in toxic relationships with dangerous partners who mistreat and abuse them. In this installment, we see Millie trying hard to stay away from the law breaking scenarios and focusing on improving her life. She is taking courses and has a consistent job as a nanny to a wealthy socialite in Manhattan, that is until she is fired and is forced to find employment elsewhere. Enter: Douglas Garrick, a wealthy and influential tech genius, who hires her on the spot to maintain his high-cost duplex penthouse spotless. His wife, Wendy, is seemingly severely ill which confines her to the master bedroom day-after-day.
While Millie is uneasy about Wendy being in her room all the time, she is determined to put it in the back of her mind and not involve herself in any domestic situation, until of course, she finds a bloodstained bathroom. Upon investigating, she finds a pummeled and bruised face Wendy, and discovers the true reason why she is hiding in her room. Ofcourse, Millie being Millie, she cannot watch a woman being abused and tries to help Wendy, but ultimately discovers that things are not as they seem.
As soon as I began reading about the Millie and the Garrick family, I knew things were not so black and white and expected twists and turns throughout the book. Still the manner in which the twists were laid out, makes the reading experience completely worth it. I can’t say I didn’t see some of the twists coming, they were pretty apparent, not because the author made it so but because from the start we get a sense that the solution is too simple–that something more is lurking beneath.
I thoroughly enjoyed the few chapters that were in the POV of the main antagonist, it really created a sentiment of dislike for them. It especially made the ending much more enjoyable. One thing I wish McFadden had approached differently was her description of The Bronx and New York in general. She made New York sound like a dangerous gotham-like city, where one can’t take the subway at night without the fear of getting mugged. Or when she described The Bronx. I was born and raised in New York and have lived in The Bronx for the past 15 years, I lived in the South Bronx and in the North Bronx, and the manner in which McFadden described it was inaccurate, to say the least. I have taken the train, late at night and in the early morning hours into/out of The Bronx with no issues. While I love all of McFadden’s books, I hope that in the future, she could approach places with research instead of fear mongering about the, already, vilified borough. I would say that that was the only unbelievable part of the book.
This second installment was not nearly as addicting as the first one, however, it kept up to pace with all of her books and I enjoyed it very much. I am not surprised I keep returning to McFadden whenever I am in a reading slump, she keeps the thrill in thriller!
I highly recommend this book, it was easy to read and quite enjoyable. I won’t rate it 10/10 because of a few issues I have with it, but it is still a very fun and engaging book.
8/10
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