One by One

By: Freida McFadden

Narrated by: Alyson Krawchuk

A night spent sleeping on dirt and leaves is not how Claire Matchett expected to spend her vacation.

She thought this would be a break from the stresses of work and raising her young children. A chance to repair her damaged marriage. A week of hiking and hot tubs with two other couple friends. It sounded like heaven.

Then Claire’s minivan breaks down on a lonely dirt road. With no cell reception, the group has no choice but to hike the rest of the way to their hotel. But it turns out the woods aren’t as easy to navigate as they thought.

Hours later, they are lost. Hopelessly lost.

And as they navigate deeper into the woods, the members of their party are struck down mysteriously one by one. Has a wild animal been hunting them? Or is the hunter one of them?

But as more time passes, one thing becomes clear: Only one of them will return home alive.

©2020 Freida McFadden (P)2022 Hollywood Upstairs Press

Another banger from Ms. McFadden

Legit creepy! I've been wanting to read this but haven't gotten around to it but the audio is on sale this month(April 2023) on Audible and I couldn't resist. I'm glad I listened to the audio because the "anonymous" chapters were scary! The disguised voices in audiobooks get me every time.

I created many scenarios for this as it went along and it wasn't any of the things I was thinking. She keeps us on our toes!

Disappointing

The character of Claire was written to be as vapid as a person can get. I mean, come on, who doesn’t know that the sun rises in the east? Her character was an extremely disappointing portrayal of the “modern woman” after reading McFadden‘s The Perfect Son” this book was nothing but a letdown. The plot was cliché, the characters were cliché, and the best I can say about it is that it followed a standard format for lost in the woods and finding a cabin.

Not the best

I’ve listened to 12 Frieda McFadden books, and this was my least favorite. Not vet engaging. The characters weren’t particularly memorable. The plot wasn’t exciting, and the ending didn’t have that “oh my god” moment that her other books have. Disappointing.

Either very bad or smartly good

Until the last few chapters I thought this book was perhaps the worst thriller I had listened to. But I have to admit, it redeemed itself. Listen and be surprised!

The ending!

I stayed on the edge of my seat the whole time. I couldn’t put it down until I finished.