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BOOK SYNOPSIS
“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…
This addictive, intense and atmospheric domestic drama is written in three parts, the first part is told from the perspective of Millie, a ex con who has been living in her car after she was fired from her job which subsequently resulted in her being evicted from her home. Millie was getting tired of living on junk food and would like nothing more than to stretch out her legs in a actual bed. So, she is understandably delighted when, after attending an interview at the beautiful home of Nina Winchester, she is offered the position of live in housemaid. Ok, so her attic room wasn't much bigger than a broom cupboard and the tiny window had been painted shut but the room contained a actual bed and Millie was really desperate to escape the confines of her car. Plus, there was the added bonus of some delicious eye candy in the shapes of Nina's handsome husband Andrew and Enzo, the groundsman. Initially,the only downside to Millie's new life was Nina's nine year old daughter Cecelia who reminded Millie of a creepy child from a horror movie with her old fashioned dresses and sinister stares. But, as time went by, Millie began to discover that things were not as perfect as they had originally appeared within the walls of the Winchester mansion, Nina's mood swings were as unpredictable as the weather and Cecelia was a obnoxious, spoilt brat. At least Andrew treated Millie with care and respect and as she feel deeper under his charming spell, she began to question why he put up with his apparently horrible wife. But, as we all know, people are not always who they appear to be and Millie will soon wish that she had heeded the warning that Enzo had tried to give her on her first day at the house and gotten as far away as possible from the Winchester family.
The second part of the story is partially written in the form of excerpts from Nina's journal that tell the story of her relationship with Andrew and the truth about the dynamics within their marriage. It's during this part and part three which is written from the alternating perspectives of both Nina and Millie that it becomes obvious to the reader just how clever and manipulative the author had been whilst writing her,at times dark and sinister story. There are some unexpected reveals during both of these parts of the story during which the author takes everything that you thought you knew about her cast of realistic main characters, screws it up into a tiny ball and chucks it into the nearest bin. All three of the adults who lived in the Winchester home were flawed and manipulative and as the hidden secrets began to be revealed,I started to feel so much sympathy and concern for poor little Cecelia's mental well being. What hope was there for her future when almost all of the adults that she interacted with where apparently so messed up.
This is a extremely well written, enthralling blend of domestic drama and thriller with pages that are permeated with spine chilling,intensity and atmosphere. The author draws the reader into her realistic and believable character's fictional world with a intriguing opening prologue and keeps you captivated as the story works its way towards its unexpected closing twist. The plot covers some realistic and relatable issues including mental and physical abuse and coercive behaviour and the story does get very dark at times and has a satisfying dash of poetic justice. This is the first book that I have read that was written by this author and it most definitely will not be my last,gripping, intricately plotted, addictive and very very highly recommended.
AUTHOR INFO
#1 Amazon bestselling author Freida McFadden is a practicing physician specializing in brain injury who has penned multiple Kindle bestselling psychological thrillers and medical humor novels. She lives with her family and black cat in a centuries-old three-story home overlooking the ocean, with staircases that creak and moan with each step, and nobody could hear you if you scream. Unless you scream really loudly, maybe.
To hear Freida talk more about herself in the third person, visit her website: https://www.freidamcfadden.com/
Author social media
Twitter: @Freida_McFadden
Instagram: @fizzziatrist
PUBLICATION DATE: 26th April 2022
Buy link:
https://geni.us/B09TWSRMCBsocial
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