By all accounts, Eve lives an idyllic life as a happily-married, high school teacher. The reader quickly discovers things are not as they appear. Eve and her husband Nate, also a teacher at the school, both teach a troubled teen, Addie. Addie’s got a tainted past and a suspect present, making her the target of bullying by her classmates. Her story, intertwined with Eve’s and Nate’s, will keep you guessing–usually incorrectly! A few other characters you’ll sometimes hate, sometimes love, are also thrown into the mix. The ending is something you won’t see coming. New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden’s The Teacher is a psychological thriller full or plot twists and surprises.

McFadden is a physician who specializes in patients with brain injury and, as an author, she’s a master at turning straightforward plots into convoluted story arcs that make it hard to put down her novels. This book is pure entertainment at its best. You won’t be able to stop reading as you’ll want to find out how it all ends, so don’t pick it up until you have a lot of time to devote to completing it. It’s one of those “Let me read just one more chapter” books; then, you’ll want to read another!

Reviewed May 2024