The Housemaid's Secret by Freida McFadden

 

Synopsis :

It's hard to find an employer who doesn't ask too many questions about my past. So I thank my lucky stars that the Garricks miraculously give me a job, cleaning their stunning penthouse with views across the city and preparing fancy meals in their shiny kitchen. I can work here for a while, stay quiet until I get what I want. It's almost perfect. But I still haven't met Mrs Garrick, or seen inside the guest bedroom. I'm sure I hear her crying. I notice spots of blood around the neck of her white nightgowns when I'm doing laundry. And one day I can't help but knock on the door. When it gently swings open, what I see inside changes everything...

That's when I make a promise. After all, I've done this before. I can protect Mrs. Garrick while keeping my own secrets locked up safe. Douglas Garrick has done wrong. He is going to pay. It's simply a question of how far I'm willing to go...

This is what I say :

After reading two titles by Freida McFadden, both relating to The Housemaid, I have come to realise that nothing is as simple as what it seems and twist and turn in the storyline are just a norm for the author.

 I have also realised that no two person's opinion about this title is the same. Some loved it, some doesn't and some are rather strong in their detest of this series.

Started with The Housemaid, and I am sure due to its success, book two is entitled The Housemaid's Secret and it is just as intriguing as the original title.  

The main character is still Millie from the first book but she has evolved slightly in book 2. She's similar but not really the same.

Anyway, I loved The Housemaid's Secret and read it during my recent flights.  I am starting on book 3, The Housemaid Is Watching very soon.  I read all these as e-book.

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

 

Synopsis :

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 is what I say :

The Housemaid was introduced to me while waiting for a flight recently as I needed something to read during flight.  I accepted the introduction in good faith and needless to say, am super glad I did as I thoroughly enjoyed ready The Housemaid.

I said I wanted read a thriller and The Housemaid certainly checked that box.  It was written in both the perspective of Millie (the housemaid) and Nina (her boss).

All I can say is that things are not what it seems and people are not who you think they are.  There's so many plot twist and it's been a while since I read something that can surprised me and The Housemaid certainly did just that.

I enjoyed it so much that I am now into other titles by this author. Let's see how her other titles fare against this one.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

 

Synopsis :

Paulo Coelho's masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different—and far more satisfying—than he ever imagined. 

Santiago's journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, most importantly, following our dreams.

This is what I say :

I really do not know what to make out of this title.  I know that The Alchemist is a title that's considered a classic and is much loved by readers all over the world and throughout the years.

However, I am a bit confused after reading it.  Maybe I don't possess the insight needed in order to decipher the meaning behind the book. I read it as it is and it's confusing to me.

Anyway, I do have other titles by the same author and in time to come, I will attempt to read the other titles. Hopefully, by then I am a bit more learned in how the author wants his book to be interpreted by readers.

The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo

 

Synopsis :

This is what I say :

Postscript by Cecelia Ahern

 

Synopsis :

It's been seven years since Holly Kennedy's husband died – six since she read his final letter, urging Holly to find the courage to forge a new life.

She’s proud of all the ways in which she has grown and evolved. But when a group inspired by Gerry's letters, calling themselves the PS, I Love You Club, approaches Holly asking for help, she finds herself drawn back into a world that she worked so hard to leave behind.

Reluctantly, Holly begins a relationship with the club, even as their friendship threatens to destroy the peace she believes she has achieved. As each of these people calls upon Holly to help them leave something meaningful behind for their loved ones, Holly will embark on a remarkable journey – one that will challenge her to ask whether embracing the future means betraying the past, and what it means to love someone forever…

Saying what I think :

Cecelia Ahern brings us back to the life of Holly Kennedy from the famed titled P.S. I love you which was made into a box office movie of the same title.  Watching the movie will make you cry buckets and reading P.S I Love You will do the same.  

Postscript however is more mild in comparison.  Postscripts tells the story of Holly seven years after the death of her Gerry.  She is now in a new relationship with someone named Gabriel.  However, the legacy of Gerry lives on and she met some terminal sick patients who wanted to do what Gerry did for her.  As Holly helped and advised these patients on their 'quest', it is also a journey of discovery for herself and at the end of everything, Gerry still had the last word.

I enjoyed reading Postscript.  It will never be as good as P.S. but it shouldn't compete with P.S. It is a good follow up read for P.S.

p.s. I just realised that while I have read P.S. I Love You, I have never review it.  I think I will revisit this title next.

Travel Reading Suggestion

 

Image from web. Credit to owner

It's coming to the end of the year (almost). I will be having a few up coming travels before the year ends.  One trip is for work, one trip is to run an errand, one trip is to attend a concert, another trip is to attend a wedding and one special trip is for my year end holiday with a special person.

Again, just like before, I am excited to see what reading material I would bring along with me. Each trip carries a different mood and as such I do find it fun to pair my reading with the journey ahead. 

Here are the titles that have made it onto my shortlist:

1. The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo - I have a pdf copy which is convenient when travel as I can just read it from my tablet.  In May this year, I read The Fox Wife by the same author after seeing the title in a bookstore and I enjoyed The Fox Wife tremendously.  I think I will like The Night Tiger as well.

2. Postscript by Cecelia Ahern - I always loved titles by Cecelia Ahern and am super excited to come across Postscript which is the sequel to P.S. I Love You.  The only concern is that it might be embarrassing if I start tearing when reading Postscript in public so it's a title that needs to be read in private.

3. How To Be Idle by Tom Hodgkinson - a book on how to do nothing at various time of the day.  It would be quite an interesting to learn how not to do anything.

4. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho - This title needs no introduction. I have a have a few titles by Paulo Coelho in my shelf. It's time I visit them one by one.

That's about it. I will be right back shortly.

Break

 

Looks like I will be taking a break again.  

See you in a short while.