whitneydaniell

by: Freida McFadden
published: Feb 20, 2023
genre: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
318 Pages, Audiobook from Audible HH:MM (09:45)
GoodReads Link

Books in this series:
Book #1: The Housemaid

Millie is back! This time, she’s been hired by the Garricks; Douglas, the unassuming husband, and, Wendy the meek, hid away wife. While this story does not pick up where The Housemaid left off, there is enough background to bridge the time gap between the two books as the story develops. After saving Nina Winchester from her abusive husband, Millie and Enzo work together to keep several other women from their abusive or cheating husbands. Enzo helps get new identities for the women and on some occasions, Millie does what she needs to do to get the men out of the picture – if you get my drift.

When Douglas Garrick hires her to clean and cook around their penthouse, Millie notices something about the couple isn’t right. For starters, Wendy Garrick is rarely, if ever seen. For most of the time that Millie is working, she is locked in a room – red flag number one.

This book is written as if it could be a stand-alone story or a part of a series; I liked that. While there were a few threads that stitched the stories together, the story wasn’t reliant on knowing what happened in the first books. Here are a couple of my highlights:

• I love the return of Enzo! Although it didn’t really make sense how he just popped back up (I wish that had been written differently) I was glad he was back. Also, Millie asked herself some good questions about Enzo’s departure and return when she questioned it too but, as the reader we didn’t get those answers.
• The story is told from the point of view of Mille early on, then it will bounce between Wendy’s POV and Millie’s – much like the first book. And of course, when we get Wendy’s point of view, it’s going to shake up the whole story because nothing is ever what it seems.
• The pacing and writing were very good. I listened to this book but, it was easy to understand and easy to get through. No big words when little ones would work.
• Audiobook: Narrated by, Lauryn Allman — she did a great job! The Bronx accent was a bit “theatrical” but, I still got the jest.

And with all things, where there is a positive there can be negatives too. Here are some highlights that had me scratching my head.

• The probability of this actually happening is zero. The set-up and plot felt real, Lifetime Move-ish. Very, Fast & Furious — because it lacked reality.
• Wendy was very high and mighty when she thought she had a great plan, bringing Millie in however, in the end, she was a coward. If you’re gonna be a bad bitch, BE A BAD BITCH UNTIL THE END! I didn’t like how she tucked her tail.
• The Face/Off vibe of, is that him? Or is that him? I didn’t like it. I think there could’ve been a better way.

My Final Thoughts: All in all, it was a great listen/read and I was into it the whole way through. I listen to audiobooks on speed 1.5x, so I got through it pretty quick. I like Freida McFadden and will pick up a few more of her books. If you like a murder mystery, thriller, with twists and turns this is a good one to pick up.