Publisher’s Description
Who knows what the storm will blow in…
Casey’s cabin in the wilderness is not built for a hurricane. Her roof shakes, the lights flicker, and the tree outside her front door sways ominously in the wind. But she’s a lot more worried about the girl she discovers lurking outside her kitchen window.
She’s young. She’s alone. And she’s covered in blood.
The girl won’t explain where she came from or loosen her grip on the knife in her right hand. And when Casey makes a disturbing discovery in the middle of the night, things take a turn for the worse.
The girl has a dark secret. One she’ll kill to keep. And if Casey gets too close to the truth, she may not live to see the morning.
In this taut, deadly tale of survival and desperation, #1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden explores how far one girl will go to save herself.
Thrilling Reads Review
In The Intruder, Freida McFadden delivers another fast-paced domestic thriller packed with suspicion, secrets, and her trademark jaw-dropping twists. While this one didn’t quite hit the same heights as some of her strongest novels for me, it was still undeniably bingeable.
The setup is classic McFadden: a seemingly ordinary situation that spirals into psychological chaos. When a troubled pre-teen girl enters the picture, the tension ramps up quickly. As always, McFadden wastes no time pulling readers into the drama. The chapters are short, the stakes escalate rapidly, and there’s that signature undercurrent of dark humor that keeps the tone sharp even when things turn sinister.
That said, parts of the plot stretched believability. The central pre-teen character is written as bratty and manipulative, and at times difficult to empathize with. More challenging, though, was the extent of her capabilities—outwitting and physically restraining adults on her own felt exaggerated. Her personality shifts also seemed abrupt. One moment she’s a frightened, vulnerable runaway; the next she’s a calculating, near-supervillain presence. The transitions weren’t always smooth, and the coincidences driving some plot turns required a generous suspension of disbelief.
Still, McFadden knows how to construct a page-turner. There’s an early twist I genuinely didn’t see coming, even if I did anticipate the larger reveal later on. And while the ending tied everything up a bit too neatly for my taste, the ride getting there was undeniably compelling.
Ultimately, The Intruder may not be her most airtight thriller, but it’s another addictive entry in McFadden’s catalog—twisty, darkly entertaining, and impossible to stop reading once you start.
Freida McFadden Interview
My interview with Freida McFadden for Meet the Thriller podcast.
