Scan barcode
mtstjk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Medical content, and Murder
Moderate: Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Suicide, Medical trauma, Stalking, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
lord_trashcan's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Bullying, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Blood, and Stalking
bookworm_43's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
shyleek's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Ever since my first Frieda book I open her books with an "I'm going to figure this one out" mentality. I have yet to accomplish that.
I thought for sure I had this one! All the clues were there and then of course her surprise ending made so much more sense than anything I could have come up with.
Her books are gruesome, bloody, violent. But if you like to have your mind messed with they are perfect!
Graphic: Bullying, Suicide, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Gore, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Death of parent
alex1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Gore, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Car accident, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Death, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Grief, Medical trauma, and Stalking
neverlandpages4's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
• I was actually planning on reading The Housemaid’s Secret but I saw this recommended in a YouTube video, then decided to start it on my Kindle just to see what it’s about and I literally couldn’t put this down and binged it in two sittings!!
• That’s the thing about this author’s books, they’re pretty short and will have you hooked from the first chapter and you pretty much have no choice but to binge read them because they’re just that good!
• This had such an interesting premise. For the first 20-30% of the book, we’re kind of unsure of Nora’s moral compass. Her dad is a serial killer and even though she’s convinced that she’s nothing like him, we watch her as she grapples with her morality and I thought that she was such an interesting character. I always love reading from morally questionable characters’ POV, I think part of that has to do with The Tell-Tale Heart. It literally made me love villain POVs 🫢
• Something I didn’t like though was the constant red herrings. Anytime I thought a character might be shady, they were immediately cleared. I felt like there was no chance for the reader to try and guess if their theory was right.
• The big twist at the end took me by surprise, but I did partially guess it. The killer was pretty obvious imo, but the way that they’re related to everything was what shocked me.
• This is a fast-paced, fairly short, twisty thriller that I’d highly recommend to anyone in a reading slump! Or to anyone that loves thrillers. And I’ll definitely be reading more of Freida’s books soon!
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Violence, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
sam019's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
a_novel_craving's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gore, Blood, Dementia, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Murder
savvyrosereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Dr. Nora Davis has a secret—her father is serving life in prison as a convicted serial killer. But when Nora’s patients start being killed in a manner that mimics her father’s crimes, her well-kept secret threatens to come to light.
I love a good serial killer novel, so I had high hopes for this one and was immediately engaged with the premise. Overall, The Locked Door was super fast-paced and enjoyable, with lots of mini cliffhangers and a few pretty good twists in the end. I also loved the cat, who honestly earned this book an entire extra half-star in my rating.
I did feel like this book required a decent amount of suspension of disbelief, and left a few too many unanswered questions for my tastes. A few of the details/plot choices also felt unnecessary, and I didn’t love the way the plot resolved. But, all of that said, I was pretty consistently entertained, and I will likely be checking out McFadden’s other titles in the future, so I’d call it a pretty solid read!
Recommended if you like: fast-paced thrillers; serial killer stories; quick reads.
CW: Death/murder; kidnapping/torture; suggestions of animal cruelty; suicide/death of parent; domestic abuse.
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Torture, and Kidnapping