21. The Housemaid

By Freida McFadden

I had only heard of The Housemaid because of the recent movie adaptation. While on vacay, I found a used copy at Bookshop Santa Cruz for $8.20 USD.  Later, at the San Jose bookstore, I saw the same copy for $10 used in similar condition, so I was stoked.  

The Housemaid was not just a bestseller, it was a #1 NYT MEGA BESTSELLER, as seen on the cover of this paperback edition.  It really was the perfect summer read. The only problem it posed was the nature of its very design: an ultra-processed product in danger of being consumed it too quickly.

Yes, The Housemaid was trashy, but it was also indulgently fun. The superficial, simple-minded writing was just made all the more glaring for me after the beautifully written H is for Hawk. I don't often read mega bestsellers, but some mass fiction writers are better than others. And Frieda McFadden is no Gillian Flynn.  She has constructed a nicely executed plot with a clever twist, but she lacks Flynn's whip-smart wit and intelligence.  Yet despite writing for the lowest common denominator, McFadden is still a cut above the awful Julia Quinn!

There is indeed a whole series of the titular housemaid becoming a professional "helper" for wealthy wives with major husband trouble.  I even found the next book at a bookshop in Kits and had to stop myself from buying it because I didn't want to go down that rabbit hole.  And besides, it was $10!!  Too much for something I can find at a thrift store for less.

 

Like the novel, the movie was also perfectly serviceable mass entertainment that harked back to the trashy domestic thrillers of the 1990s.