The Housemaid: A thrill for those craving revenge

BY BROOKLYN MCKINNEY

Feature Editor

I walk into a store of used books, catching the faint scent of dust clinging to pages tucked behind hidden shelves. As I swing open the door, the bell rings above my feet. More than once now, I’ve been entranced by this piercing eye, beckoning me through the keyhole of a cover on the shiny display. 

The anonymous half-gaze is wide, glazed over with secrets that could only be revealed through its crisp white pages—almost like prey hiding in plain sight, but I saw more than caution there. 

There was a subtle nod to a plot forming, not just inside the door but within the mind behind it.

When I looked away and was no longer hypnotized, I soon became occupied with other titles and mundane tasks. The watchful eye became a snapshot, barely a memory, by the time I would find myself consumed with its mysteries.

I’ve read about Nancy Drew and her pursuit of clues, seen Batman come to life behind comic strips chasing the riddles of Gotham under his black mask and Sherlock Holmes with his quizzical brow resting above the magnifying glass, but this was different.

I made eye contact with the book cover yet again, on a sleepless night through the glowing screen of a Kindle I unwrapped for Christmas, and my irises devoured the words inside, from start to finish.

Through a sharp twist, the pawn becomes the threat, the weaker man the hero, claiming vengeance for all of the victims lost beforehand.

“The Housemaid” isn’t as delicate as she seems. She’s not the unassuming doe-eyed creature that steps timidly into foreboding mansions, but rather a calculated predator camouflaging with her surroundings before she strikes.

The twists and turns in Freida McFadden’s best-selling story are deliciously unpredictable because the housemaid remains deceived until it's almost too late. I consumed the pages with a frenzy, intrigued with her hunt for answers.

She’s beautiful, a snare to men, but her life wasn’t luxurious. She looked out of that keyhole on the top of a great house and the bottom of the world, her heart racing with anticipation as she preserves her livelihood, what fighting chance she has left of a future.

“The Housemaid” is for those who have felt the hopeless rage of oppression and wanted to take matters into their own hands. Unspoken for, she stands for herself and claims a violent vengeance.

This upcoming American thriller author is also a practicing brain surgeon, and you can tell by the precision with which she describes physical injury. It will have you crawling through your skin as your eyes stay glued to the page, scanning for more pieces of the puzzle.

McFadden doesn’t just build a world with monsters; she crafts images, legacies behind menacing personalities with minds split in alarming duality.

Some of these truths remained so dark that I found myself grimacing as I looked away from scenes on the big screen.

But even with their latest adaptation starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, Hollywood still can’t hold a candle to the anticipation of a once spotless home descending deeper into madness with each turn of the page.

Seeing the sinister sequence of events unfold was almost as showstopping as I imagined. If I had indulged in the film adaptation before reading the novel, I may have been completely blinded by the sweet tenderness of Brandon Sklenar’s smile.

The creative liberties taken by screen director Paul Feig only seem to enhance the thrill in this mystery. 

Varying shots and angles of the camera lens captured the reality of domestic abuse: hidden in plain sight from the very people who are supposed to help, until it’s almost too late for them to hear you.

New readers have yet to discover if the housemaid has a fighting chance in this trilogy, while movie fans are eagerly awaiting the release of an upcoming sequel. Sydney Sweeney will make her return to the big screen with “The Housemaid’s Secret,” set for production next year.

In the meantime, “The Housemaid” is now available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime, Apple TV and Fandango at Home. Following its release on Feb. 3, “The Housemaid” should be available to stream with a Starz subscription and through the Prime Starz video channel this April.

Book enthusiasts can pick up their copy of “The Housemaid’s Secret” along with McFadden’s short novella “The Housemaid’s Wedding”—that is, if they can hold off on diving straight into the series conclusion,  “The Housemaid is Watching.”

It’s no mystery that McFadden’s story grew into a New York Times bestselling series and box office hit; her revenge is so deeply gratifying that we can’t look away.