Behind schedule, but still making progress, I was able to knock out another research book during August. The fourth book of five: The Coworker by Freida McFadden.
Every time I start a new creative project, I select five other works to read. I call them research books and draw inspiration and knowledge from them.
For example, in She’s Going to Kill You, each chapter opens with an entry from the main character’s diary. I got that idea from one of my research books: Mistborn. While Mistborn is not related by genre, themes, or really in any way at all, each chapter starts with an entry from a diary, or maybe it was a historical record of some kind. Nevertheless, it inspired me to use a similar idea for my novel.
So let’s talk about The Coworker and Freida McFadden. Freida writes thrillers with twists. That’s right in the wheel box of what I’m writing with my Gonna Kill You Trilogy, which makes The Coworker a perfect research book. Though I’m aiming to have a little more comedy in mine.
I’ve actually read three other books by Frieda as research books for this trilogy. While I’d comment that her books all follow a similar structure that provides diminishing returns the more you read, she’s very talented at writing thrillers. I’ve enjoyed the others, which include (in the order read): The Inmate, The Housemaid, and The Housemaid’s Secret. Out of all four that I’ve read, The Coworker is my favorite.
Here’s the synopsis from Amazon:
Two women. An office filled with secrets. One terrible crime that can’t be taken back.
Dawn Schiff is strange.
At least, everyone thinks so at Vixed, the nutritional supplement company where Dawn works as an accountant. She never says the right thing. She has no friends. And she is always at her desk at precisely 8:45 a.m.
So when Dawn doesn’t show up to the office one morning, her coworker Natalie Farrell―beautiful, popular, top sales rep five years running―is surprised. Then she receives an unsettling, anonymous phone call that changes everything…
It turns out Dawn wasn’t just an awkward outsider―she was being targeted by someone close. And now Natalie is irrevocably tied to Dawn as she finds herself caught in a twisted game of cat and mouse that leaves her wondering: who’s the real victim?
But one thing is incredibly clear: somebody hated Dawn Schiff. Enough to kill.
The Coworker is a tense, unputdownable thriller from New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden that explores the dark ways the past can echo through the present―with deadly consequences.
For the first time in my life, I struggled to put a book down when it was time for bed. This is easily my favorite book from Freida McFadden that I’ve read. The structure of the story and the way it unfolds are masterful. The twists are solid and the ending is brilliant. I cannot give this one enough praise. I highly recommend it. You can get your copy here.
Now, I’m off to read my final research book for my upcoming project. I'll report about it next time. Hopefully, I’ll get this one knocked out early September and quickly get back on track with my timeline for They’re Going to Kill You.
Comentarios