Next up on David’s Book Blurg I’m reviewing The Housemaid by Freida McFadden.

Here’s the blurb

“Welcome to the family,” Nina Winchester says as I shake her elegant, manicured hand. I smile politely, gazing around the marble hallway. 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…

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.

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.

I only try on one of Nina’s pristine white dresses once. Just to see what it’s like. But she soon finds out… and by the time I realize my attic bedroom door only locks from the outside, it’s far too late.

But I reassure myself: the Winchesters don’t know who I really am.

They don’t know what I’m capable of…

Review

The Housemaid follows Millie, a down on her luck gal who is just trying to start her life again after some very painful events.

Millie applies to be a housemaid for the Winchesters, she has zero chance of getting the job if a background check is done…so it’s a surprise when she receives a phone call offering her the job!

The job just seems too good to be true.. a roof over her head, decent pay..and Nina Winchester seems lovely…but…something niggles, is it too good to be true?

When Millie starts there’s a shift to Nina straight away and you’d be forgiven for thinking she was a little crazy..and to top if off Millie sleeps in a attic room that’s more of a closest..Despite this Millie makes the most of things.. it’s still by far better than the alternative.

As the story progresses we learn the marriage between Nina and Andrew is far from perfect, there’s tension and a lot of history simmering..

Millie continues to try to get on with her job and ignore the erratic behaviour of Nina but in doing so she sees something in Andrew..she feels sorry for him, afterall Nina can’t be making him happy.. but she could..but she’s the maid and he’s married.

Things start to take a dark turn. I’m certainly not one for spoilers but it’s safe to say the twists come and while I had some inkling the events that played out were so much better and more terrifying than I could have imagined.

I’m late to the party I know but with all the sunshine we’ve been having I needed a new book to get stuck into. Psychological thrillers aren’t my usual go to genre but I fancied something different.. and I’m glad I pick this one up.

Might I add I bought this at The Works, a favourite haunt of mine for books, so firstly the main reason I picked this one up was the cover, then one simple line in the synopsis had me hooked.. “my bedroom door only locks from the outside”.

Overall I loved this one. The pace of the plot was great and the level of detail and development to the characters matched perfectly. Very easy flow to the tale and gripping is an understatement.

A thoroughly enjoyable and deviously designed story to keep the reader guessing what will happen next.

5/5 Stars!

To find out more head to Goodreads or Amazon.