I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Crash by Freida McFadden Published by Poisoned Pen Press on January 28 2025
Genres: Adult, Thriller
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Despite a few minor flaws, The Crash was such a fun ride, with breakneck pacing and plenty of dramatic twists.
This was my first time reading a Freida McFadden book, and it won’t be the last. The Crash is a twisty, over-the-top thriller that reminded me of Stephen King’s Misery a bit, and I read it in only two days. I would classify this as a popcorn read, since you have to suspend your disbelief and get past a bunch of plot holes and ignore some of the dumb decisions the characters make, but as far as entertainment value goes, it delivers.
Tegan is a young, twenty-two year old woman who is eight months pregnant and in dire straights. She barely makes enough money to survive, and she recently discovered the truth about the circumstances surrounding her unexpected pregnancy. Desperate to get away for a while, she decides to visit her brother, who assures Tegan she can stay with him until she has the baby. But she leaves too late in the day and finds herself driving in the middle of a terrible snowstorm. When she loses control of her car and crashes into a tree, Tegan fears the worse. She’s alone, no cell service, and she may have a broken ankle from the crash. Luckily, she’s rescued by a man named Hank, who saw the accident and stopped to help.
Hank takes Tegan to his nearby house, where she meets his wife Polly. Tegan begs them to take her to the hospital, but the roads are bad and there’s no way to call an ambulance, so they set Tegan up in the basement, where Polly, a former nurse, once took care of her dying mother. At first, Tegan appreciates their help, but as the days go by, she begins to feel trapped instead.
We also get chapters from Polly’s point of view, a woman with a bunch of secrets. In addition to the drama unfolding with Tegan’s arrival at their house, we also meet Polly’s and Hank’s nearest neighbor, a volatile man named Mitch who lives alone with his seven-year-old daughter Sadie. At first it’s not clear why these two characters are part of the story, but there is a good reason, although astute readers will figure out Sadie’s role long before the author reveals it.
There is a lot going on in The Crash, which makes for a twisty story. Seeing things unfold from two points of view worked well, as both Tegan and Polly are unreliable characters. Tegan has some preconceived notions of what Hank and Polly are up to, and she basically gets everything wrong, lol. Likewise, Polly assumes the worst about Tegan—young, unmarried, pregnant, no money—and treats her almost like a criminal. Both jump to conclusions way too easily, which makes the reader wonder who is telling the truth, but it also frustrated me because the two women come across as naive and stupid at times.
Which brings me to a few complaints I had. All of the characters make terrible decisions and do things that just don’t make sense. My biggest pet peeve was Polly and her supposed “nursing” experience. She’s a licensed nurse but doesn’t insist on looking at Tegan’s ankle (Tegan is in terrible pain and is afraid to take off her boot, but that’s no excuse. Polly should have checked it out anyway). Polly used to work in labor and delivery—let me say that again, she used to work in labor and delivery—and yet she’s not sure if she can deliver a baby. On the other hand she’s fairly certain she can perform a C-section on Polly if it comes down to that, lol. Keep in mind that Hank and Polly keep promising to call an ambulance as soon as they can, but Polly has an agenda that doesn’t include taking Tegan to the hospital.
Tegan acted the victim throughout the story and I wanted to throttle her at times. Yes, she’s actually a victim, but if she’s determined to protect her unborn child, she could have made better decisions from the very beginning. I mentioned the Misery comparison, and while Tegan and Polly sort of take on the roles of Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilkes, King’s story works so much better because it’s a much simpler premise without so many extra characters and side plots to muddy the waters.
I wasn’t surprised when things became even more over-the-top near the end, it’s just that kind of story I guess. But McFadden manages to wrangle all her various plot threads and gives readers a surprisingly satisfying conclusion. Bottom line, I had a lot of fun with The Crash despite my complaints, and as long as you go in knowing what to expect, you probably will too.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
Great review, Tammy! The characters making terrible decisions and do things that just don’t make sense sounds like most of the books that I read. But I agree that it’s kinda crazy that Polly having used to work in labor and delivery yet not being sure she can deliver a baby but still being fairyly sure she can do a C-section. Um what??? lol
Thanks Stephanie! Yep, Polly was…an interesting character! Ha ha. But there’s a lot of heart at the end that I wasn’t expecting, so bonus points for that.
I’ve thought about reading some of her books I own a couple of the audios. Your definition of popcorn read makes me less interested because I want real, truth and logical as there is so much junk already in the mix. I know. I read fiction, so who am I to want that.
I know what you mean, I like books that work a little harder to make sense, although there is a lot to think about in this story (things I couldn’t talk about because of spoilers)
Sounds totally over the top! I’m glad it was a compelling read, despite the things that don’t make sense. I’m not sure I could handle this… starting with someone eight months pregnant driving into a snowstorm. I’m curious, based on your review, but as I’m not much of a thriller read to start with, feel hesitant about whether I’d pick it up.
I’d definitely recommend other thrillers over this, but I’m glad I finally tried this author, since I see her books everywhere:-)
I plan on grabbing this by using my Kindle Unlimited subscription when it is released. I’ve read one other book by her and I think they are fine for like you said, popcorn reads. I’ve kind of had enough snow at this point in real life but am always ready to read about it. Great review!
It was fun, and I love quick reads, even if they aren’t perfect.
Having spotted the premise for the authors June (I think) release and already gotten intrigued about it I think I’ll wait and make The Tenant my first try with this author. Reading your review has made me increasingly curious about this one especially as unreliable narrators are intriguing but the negatives make me nervous. I mean that C Section/labour one is ridiculous
Ha ha yes that made me laugh! I’m curious about The Tenant now, I might try it as well.
I have only read The Housemaid by this author and thought it wasn’t to bad. I need to try some of her other ones.
I keep hearing a lot about The Housemaid, I might try it sometime.
Neat to see you had fun with it. I’m seeing this title all over
She’s a very popular author:-)
I’ve heard a lot about this author, and several of my book club friends have read a ton of her stories, but I haven’t found one that peaked my interest enough to give it a shot. Maybe one of these days! However, your review makes me think I wouldn’t like them as much as most people seem to. I dislike it when character’s decisions don’t make sense. I need the story to feel realistic even if it’s fiction. Thanks for sharing!
I agree, it’s OK to write over the top scenarios, as long as you can somewhat believe it:-) Thanks for visiting!
I can see the Misery comparison. It also brings to mind the movie, 10 Cloverfield Lane, especially regarding being more over-the-top near the end. I enjoyed it (the movie, haven’t read this book). Glad you mostly enjoyed this one. Sometimes a popcorn read can be fun.
I don’t know if this would work so well fot me, plot holes are okay but stupidity and what you wrote about Tegan aren’t really my cup of tea. But I am glad you had fun!!
I’ve read several McFadden books and this sounds like her usual. I have this on my TBR, maybe on audio at some point. You nailed it with saying this is a popcorn read and you need to suspend disbelief, that’s true to all of her books I’ve read so far. Great review!
I’ve been hearing a lot of people are fans of this author. It’s not my cup of tea, though. I did have a student come ask if we had any in the school library. I wish I had more money, I’d get more books like this. But for now I sent her to the public library since they have library cards there through the school district. Great review!
Even reading your review I was comparing this to Misery in my head – for that reason, I don’t think it would work for me.
Lynn