Want to Know a Secret?

By: Freida McFadden

Narrator: Alyson Krawchuk

ISBN: 9781464249600

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

Publication Date: 03/03/2026

Format: Paperback

My Rating: 4 Stars (ARC)

MAR 2026 MUST-READ BOOKS

From #1 internationally bestselling author Freida McFadden!

Everyone has secrets. Some are worse than others.

Influencer and baking sensation April Masterson knows the secret to the perfect gooey brownies. Or how to make key lime squares that will melt in your mouth. But if you keep watching her offline, you may find out some other secrets about April. Secrets she'd rather you didn't know.

Like… Where did her son go when he snuck out late at night? What was she doing with the local soccer coach behind fogged windows?

And what's buried in her backyard?

April's secrets are enough to destroy her.

I'll make sure of that.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden peels back the layers of a seemingly flawless life to expose a picture of obsession, deception, and the quiet menace that waits just beyond the frame.

Buy the Book

#WantToKnowASecret

My Review

In Freida McFadden's twisty thriller, WANT TO KNOW A SECRET, the life of a seemingly flawless YouTube baking influencer begins to crumble when an anonymous stalker starts sending chilling messages that expose her hidden and tumultuous past.

As her carefully curated online persona is threatened, the façade of her idyllic life begins to shatter, revealing the dark secrets she's fought to keep buried.

Highlights...

The Setting:

April Masterson lives in a wealthy Long Island suburb with her husband, Elliot, and their son, Bobby. She runs a YouTube channel, "April's Sweet Secrets," where she shares baking tips and projects a flawless homemaker image.

The Stalker:

April receives a text from an unknown number asking, "Want to know a secret?" and claiming her son isn't where she thinks he is. This begins a harassment campaign that threatens to expose her past.

The Red Herring:

Maria Cooper, a new neighbor, is framed as the primary suspect for the stalking. However, Maria is actually a red herring; while she has her own minor secrets, she may not be the one harassing April.

The Shift in Perspective:

Mid-novel, the point of view shifts from April to Julie, a neighbor and former prosecutor. This shift reveals that April is an unreliable narrator and has secrets.

Who is the true stalker?

My thoughts...

Freida McFadden, the thriller queen, returns with a fast-paced jaw dropper with mind-bending revelations that will keep readers guessing.

The appealing short chapters with cliffhangers, with an unreliable narratorand a mid-book shift twist that will keep you entertained.

WANT TO KNOW A SECRET has the suburban domestic Desperate Housewife vibe filled with deceptive and false facades. As always, despite the dark themes, there is the sly, dry humor that balances for an entertaining read.

April is obsessed and defined by her need to appear as a perfect social media influencer. None of the characters is particularly likable and dangerously driven. Each character has a secret or a "hidden underbelly" that they are trying to keep buried.

Freida creatively uses the backdrop of suburban luxury to explore several dark psychological themes:

~Appearance vs. Reality

~Suburban Deception

~Vindictive Revenge

~Betrayal & Infidelity

~Unreliable Narrator

Dark & tense, the atmosphere is built on a "steady undercurrent of psychological tension" and "slow-burning" drama. Modern and relevant themes touch on current societal anxieties, specifically regarding "online personas" and "influencer culture."

The neighborhood is depicted as a place where lives revolve around gathering and spreading secrets. The book club is used as a symbolic "representation of the façade"; the women rarely discuss books, instead using the time to judge one another and maintain their social standing.

Recs..

For other "Desperate Housewives" vibes that focus on the dark underbelly of seemingly perfect neighborhoods.

~The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine

~The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose

~The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

~Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris

Special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for providing an advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks

My Rating: 4 Stars

Pub Date: Mar 3, 2026

March Newsletter

Praise

"A midstream shift in perspective turns everything readers thought they knew on its head, ensuring they'll be turning the pages to find out who they can believe...this backlist entry will satisfy readers hungry for more of McFadden's twisty thrillers."

—Booklist

"As a special gift to her savviest fans, the author throws in an even more jolting epilogue that’s as hard to forget."

—Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

#1 New York Times, Amazon Charts, USA Today, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Sunday Times, and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author Freida McFadden is a physician who has penned multiple bestselling psychological thrillers and medical humor novels. Freida’s work has been selected as one of Amazon Editors’ best books of the year, she is the winner of the International Thriller Writers Award for best paperback, and she is a Goodreads Choice Award winner. Her novels have been translated into more than 45 languages.

​ Freida lives with her family and cat in a centuries-old three-story home overlooking the ocean, with staircases that creak and moan with each step, and nobody could hear you if you scream. Unless you scream really loudly, maybe. WEBSITE