The Tenant by Frieda McFadden
Published: May 6, 2025 by Poisoned Pen Press
Buy this book at: Bookshop / Barnes & Noble / Kobo
Synopsis:
There’s no place like home…
Blake Porter is riding high, until he's not. Fired abruptly from his job as a VP of marketing and unable to make the mortgage payments on the new brownstone that he shares with his fiancee, he's desperate to make ends meet.
Enter Whitney. Beautiful, charming, down-to-earth, and looking for a room to rent. She's exactly what Blake's looking for. Or is she?
Because something isn't quite right. The neighbors start treating Blake differently. The smell of decay permeates his home, no matter how hard he scrubs. Strange noises jar him awake in the middle of the night. And soon Blake fears someone knows his darkest secrets...
Danger lives right at home, and by the time Blake realizes it, it'll be far too late. The trap is already set.
Rating:
Review:
This book was my experience with Frieda McFadden. I’ve heard a lot about her and she is very highly regarded in the domestic thriller world. Unfortunately, I found this book aggressively okay. There was nothing extraordinary about it, but also nothing terrible about it.
One of my first, and biggest, issues with the book was Blake. Let me put this bluntly, he’s an asshole. He, regrettably, loses his job and that is the most sympathetic thing that happens to him in this entire book. After that he and Krista decide that they need to get a roommate to help with the bills. For no reason whatsoever Blake begins terrorizing this woman. For example, he tells her that she can use his shampoo and cereal until she can buy her own and then rages at her because those things run out. You gave her permission asswipe! Confronting her in the hallways about every little thing. Frankly, she should have moved right back out. By the time he actually had a reason to be suspicious of her I was already feeling less than sympathetic toward him and felt he deserved what he got.
Krista was a bit better in the beginning of the book. Nothing earth shattering. She’s the perfect fiance. Cooks, cleans, soothes, works, and rarely complains. She was rather boring in the early going actually. Almost an irrelevant factor to the story.
The best character was Goldy the goldfish. It feels odd to say that, but it’s true. There is very little sympathy for anyone else in this book. The plot is fairly standard. It kept me guessing and I enjoyed following the twists and turns. The reveal was very well done. I didn’t see it coming, which is something that I always enjoy. I like it when a book can leave me guessing.
The ending was well done and interesting, but got a bit convoluted. I found myself getting a bit confused. It felt like there were too many moving pieces and it started to lack credibility for me. To avoid any spoilers I will wrap up here. Overall, if you enjoy domestic thrillers then give this one a read. It’s not going to shatter your world but it’s an enjoyable time.