The Tenant

I absolutely loved this one. Freida McFadden is a genius for plot, though I often feel like her writing is dumbed down a bit. I can never tell if this is on purpose This one has a twist I didn’t see coming; it smacked me over the head in the best possible way. I read it in a single sitting: a rainy Saturday morning. If you love twisty thrillers, this is a must. Blake Porter, our deeply unlikeable (yet somehow still sympathetic) male protagonist, has lost everything. He’s been fired abruptly from his job as VP of marketing for a big ad agency and can’t get a job anywhere. Unable to make the mortgage payments on his new brownstone on the Upper West Side, he’s desperate to make ends meet (and terrified of losing his beautiful fiancée Krista). The two decide to rent out their guest room to help pay their bills, which is when Whitney Cross enters the picture. Whitney seems like everything they’re looking for in a roommate. She’s down to earth, friendly, charming . . . and very beautiful. But something is off. The house always smells like something is rotting. There are strange noises in the house at night. Blake begins to feel like he is losing his mind. He’s always itchy. This new tenant does not seem to be who she says she is at all.