Okay granted, there are worse illnesses in life than being addicted to an author but heaven above, this is serious. So who is this remarkably twisted (and brilliant) author, Freida McFadden? Her most notable work is the The Housemaid which I have not mustered the emotional strength to read but believe me I will…like, soon. Aside from this, she has some other jaw-dropping, unput-downable novels. So why this addiction? What is it about Mcfadden that I (and thousands of others) can’t get enough of? Let me fill you in.
1. Her Writing Style
Now, McFadden is pure genre fiction. She’s not here to brush shoulders with the literary greats. She’s here to hook you on a damn good story. And she does. She trusts her plots enough to avoid long-winded verbose language. She’s consistent with her themes and even her expressions. When you read her books, you’re in her world now. She has you in the palm of your hand and you know, you just know, she will do whatever she wants to your fragile beating heart. And yes, its that dramatic. I have chest pain reading her.
McFadden’s plots are extremely well paced. It doesn’t move too fast to feel rushed nor too slow to lose me. In a good thriller or mystery: every paragraph should serve an essential purpose. This keeps the story contained and focused. Freida balances this perfectly with enough anecdotes to make you feel like you are conversing with a friend — Even though said friend may or may not be a complete psychopath (you know, unreliable narrator and all). She does this without rambling.
Another trait Freida employs effectively is using parallel timelines. Now, this is often a given for thrillers but Freida takes this a bit further. Read her books and you’ll see what I mean. All I can say is, I love it.
2. The Dark Side of Humanity
I suppose this is where the addiction part comes in. Reading thrilllers is entering that private space where the ugliness of human beings are surfaced in an attractive yet nauseating way. McFadden particularly enjoys themes of adultery; female desperation; envy; and resentment. We enter settings we are only too familiar with: suburban life; the workplace; school; university; the kitchen– and we observe how pshychopathic acts can unfold, even as the teeny weeny micro-aggressions (that of course pile up in due course).
And the truth is, we’ve all observed it (probably unsure what to make of it), we’ve all been victims to it and we’ve all internalized it in our own dark and twisted ways. We have to admit how fascinating it is. The mind of a monster is complex and scary. Especially when the monster looks just like us on the surface. McFadden is wholly aware of this fascination and plays with our desire to psychoanalyse.
3. The Joan of Story Arch
Try clench every muscle in your body for a minute and then release. This is essentially what its like to read a McFadden thriller. From the word go you’re in the deepend. And then it gets deeper, sometimes even suffocating. You’re angry at or even for certain characters; you’re practically screaming at the pages; you’re contemplating your own life decisions; you’re wondering what on earth will happen next whilst debating whether you even want to know. You reach a climax that leaves you wondering if your body can handle the emotional stress. And then whooooosh. A wave of relief. Mcfaddan powers down her chainsaw. And you realize she didn’t draw blood. Everything is going to be okay. Well…sometimes.
4. She’s always one step ahead
And rest assured. McFadden will toy with your associations of good and evil, knowing what you’ll predict. Sometimes she’ll even remark with a slight break of the fourth wall: Ha! So this is what you thought, did you? Other times she even affirms our predictions but still manages to twist the plot to a conclusion that we didn’t at all expect. And this is the clinching point. This is the wow-factor that leaves you almost teary-eyed with respect.
All in all
I’m in some kind of heavenly hell with this newfound obsession. I haven’t felt this way since two years ago when I came accross Sophie Hannah’s crime thrillers. What I take from McFadden each time I finish a book by her is to: never underestimate anybody.