The Housemaid's Secret by Freida McFadden

Hello everyone.  I hope you are having a great day.

What is going on with the cost of books?  I thought perhaps it was a temporary thing, but the wacky pricing of books seems to be here to stay. Authors don't get that much of what books cost, so don't blame them.  This leaves me asking why the heck digital books are so expensive. Why are they just a few dollars cheaper than a hardback book?  Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus, and yes, I know that publishers set the price of books.  But if I'm not getting a physical copy, why am I paying so darn much?  My Kindle books have to be formatted, I get it, but so do printed books.  I'm getting no cover, no pages, no paper, no book smell, no book to chuck across the room if it irritates me, and frankly, no book to throw dramatically in case of a fight with hubby. I feel like I've just watched A Christmas Story: no turkey sandwiches, no turkey salad, no turkey gravy, turkey hash, turkey a la king, or gallons of turkey soup.  What? I told you we were a movie line family.  Okay, I'll stop.  Why are paperbacks so expensive?  They are almost as much as a hardback and often more.  What happened to buying a book at the drug store at the beach for $3.95?  Now they are like twenty bucks.  Some big shots at the publishing houses are laughing their butts off at the gullible readers. First of all, if you work for a publishing house, I'm kidding.  Second, you are a lucky duck.  Does your office smell like a library with old books, or like a Barnes and Noble with new books and fresh coffee? These are the burning questions that keep me up at night. And, yes, I am the sucker paying a gazillion dollars for books. I can't help myself; I beg them to take my money.

I recently read The Housemaid's Secret by Freida McFadden.  This is the follow up book to The Housemaid, which was released last fall.  While you'll feel right at home with the same main character if you read the first book, it is completely unnecessary to fully enjoy and understand the second.  This is the story about Millie, who has had a difficult past which she would like to keep private.  Unemployed and in need of money, Millie finds a job as a maid and cook for a couple who live in a lavish penthouse.  When learning of her new duties from Douglas Garrick, he advises her not to go into the guest room.  That is where his wife stays, and she is not well.  Millie must never bother Mrs. Garrick.  This seems reasonable until Millie hears unusual noises coming from the out of bounds room and possible crying from her unseen employer.  Then there is the blood that starts appearing on Mrs. Garrick's nightgowns that Millie is responsible for washing.  

While sequels rarely measure up to their original, The Housemaid's Secret is just as good. The twists remain surprising and worrisome.  The book takes flight on the first page and holds you hostage until the very last word.  A very quick, fun, read that will remind you of why you like thrillers!

This book, worth every penny.

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

Hello everyone. I hope your holiday season has been joyous.

This is the week between Christmas and New Year's.  We don't do anything at New Year's but still the time seems awkward, like everyone is holding their breath waiting for something.  Most are waiting for a new year, a fresh start.  We are waiting for something to change in this house.  It's a mess.  Between both of us being sick, the dishwasher being broken, and tons of boxes from ordered stuff instead of in person shopping...there is junk and dirt everywhere.  What we really need is a maid.  Most of my friends from high school have a "cleaning lady", although lots of people have luxurious things on Facebook.  Seriously, I don't know if I could handle a maid.  Someone else doing your laundry.  To speak like the southern lady I am (who is snickering?  I see you in the back.  It's not that funny.  Okay it is but keep your laughter to yourself.) Anyway, unmentionables are unmentionable for a reason and to have someone else washing.... things...folding and putting away...seems way too personal for me.  I might have to clean up our pigsty myself and rethink the maid thing.

I recently read The Housemaid by Freida McFadden.  This is the story of Millie, who is a young woman recently released from prison who has had a difficult time adjusting to society or perhaps society has a problem with her.  Her difficulties seem to be ending when she is offered a job cleaning house, cooking, and looking after their daughter, for wealthy Nina and Andrew Winchester. The position offers room, board, and a generous salary, far better than Millie currently has living in her car.  What starts out as ideal ends up rapidly changing.  Nina messes up the house on purpose, emptying the fridge onto the floor including cartons of milk.  She gives one instruction then later denies it completely.  Millie is left to wonder what she has gotten herself into and how mentally stable her new employer truly is.  Then there is Andrew.  He realizes his wife has problems and tries to smooth things over with Millie. But Millie develops a serious crush on the handsome husband, who is obviously off-limits.  

This fast-moving domestic thriller is completely addictive with several major twists.  Now if you are a big thriller reader, you may well guess the twists but the whole story is so entertaining and tense, you won't mind a bit.  Engrossing and fun, what more could you want.  I'll tell you....a follow-up book.  We are in luck, a sequel will be released on February 23, The Housemaid's Secret.  I'll be quick to "sweep" it up.

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney

Hello everyone.  I hope you're having a great day.

Are you a big game player?  Video? Board?  My family loved games.  My dad loved cards, specifically Tripoley.  My mom enjoyed card games, but was also a fan of board games and she loved video games.  My mom went out and bought an Atari when they first came out.  Now my niece works for a gaming company.  We played games outside, tag, red light green light, red rover.  Stop laughing youngsters, I know I'm dating myself but you don't know how you're missing out.  We even played games in the pool.  We'd run off the diving board while someone threw us a ball.  The point was to catch it after leaving the diving board but before hitting the water.  Of course, there was the infamous Marco Polo, then the diving games where you had to retrieve things off from the bottom of the deep end.  No we didn't throw chairs in, there were real, weighted game pieces made for pools.  I feel a bit like Dorothy telling the scarecrow he was her favorite, as I think of all our games our absolute favorite was cannonballing my mom who was floating around the pool reading a book.  We would send tremendous splashes of water over her sunglasses and soaking the pages of her novel.  She got even, she started buying thin little romance novels, second hand for a nickel so she didn't care about our antics.  Spoil sport.

I recently read Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney.  This book is a domestic psychological thriller.  The story is about a married couple that go away for a trip to try and save their marriage..  The wife writes a letter to her husband every year on their anniversary and never lets him read it, until now.  I can't say anything else.  First of all, after finishing it I immediately demanded my husband read it and he's smack in the middle.  Also, I guess I wouldn't want to ruin it for you either (read like Eeyore).  Kidding, but seriously, this book is a wow.  It has a huge twist and I want you to be very surprised.  It's full of atmosphere, unlikeable characters, and questions galore.  It is quite the thriller.  The twist was so massive I was smiling for an hour that the author "got me", I never saw it coming.  Neither will you.  This book is not a game, it's the real thing.  Read it, you won't be disappointed.