The Tenant by Freida McFadden Book Review

Title: The Tenant
Author: Freida McFadden
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Year of Publication: 2025
Date of Publication: May 6, 2025
Pages: 368 (Trade Paperback)
ISBN‑10: 1464227314
ISBN‑13: 978‑1464227318
Audiobook Read by: Will Damron and Christine Lakin

Summary of The Tenant by Freida McFadden

The Tenant is a story about a man named Blake Porter. Blake was recently promoted to Vice President of Marketing at a Manhattan firm called Coble & Roy. His life seems to be perfectly on track. In addition to the new promotion, Blake is engaged to the woman he loves and, just six months earlier, had purchased a new home. Blake was offered the role after his predecessor at work attempted suicide.

One day, he is called into his boss’s office and accused of leaking his company’s upcoming campaign to a rival agency in exchange for a payout. He is fired immediately and told he would never work in that industry again. Blake is shocked but he feels confident that it would blow over since he is innocent.

A few months later, nothing has changed in terms of his employment but he is struggling to pay the mortgage on a new brownstone he shares with his fiancée, Krista. In need of income and with a vacant room, they begin interviewing a number of potential roommates and eventually welcome a woman who told them her name is Whitney Cross.

“Level ten hug.”

At first, Whitney seems perfect, and even Blake—who wasn’t too excited about sharing their space—starts to warm up to her. But soon, a lot of weird things start to happen: foul odors, strange noises, allergic reactions, and cold shoulder treatment from a stranger. Blake becomes convinced that Whitney is out to get him and is plotting to break him and Krista up. It truly becomes a psychological cat-and-mouse game where readers have to determine who to believe and figure out the motive behind the actions of the characters.

Main Plot & Characters

• Blake Porter: He is the main character in this book. Blake is 32 years old. After being abruptly fired over alleged betrayal of company secrets, he’s financially desperate.
• Krista Marshall: She is Blake’s fiancée. She makes the most amazing cookies.
• Whitney Cross (the “tenant”) / Amanda Lenhart: The new tenant is introduced as “Whitney,” but her real name is Amanda Lenhart.
• Quelizabeth: She is a woman who works as a psychic. She comes over to the apartment and makes a prediction of how things will end.
• Mr. Zimmerly: He is a 93 year old man who lives next door to Blake. Mr. Zimmerly is obsessed with ensuring his neighbor i.e. Blake, takes in his trash can immediately after pickup.
• Wayne Vincent: Blake’s former boss at Coble & Roy.
• Becky and Malcolm: They are a couple. Becky is Krista’s best friend and Malcolm works at the same company Blake used to work.
• Stacie Parker: She is a secretary to Wayne Vincent and also works for Coble & Roy.
• Elijah Myers: He is a long-time friend of Krista and has had a crush on her for many years.
• Kenny: Blake’s boss at his Temp job.
• Gwen: She is Blake’s ex-girlfriend.

Writing Style

The story is told mostly from Blake’s perspective but there are also a few chapters that are dedicated to Krista and Amanda’s point of view. The humor, pacing, and sarcasm in this book are absolutely fantastic. A lot of the events and sequence of things in the book are believable. There is a particularly funny scene involving Blake and Krista’s goldfish that would have you laughing.

McFadden does an excellent job with how the characters especially Blake, Krista and Whitney are written. There is no mistake as to who these characters are and what each of them are capable of.

Memorable Quotes

• As I turn away from the window and follow Stacie out of the office, it doesn’t even occur to me that in the next five minutes, my whole life will come crashing down.”— Blake Porter
• “So you see, when I stabbed Krista that night, I wasn’t saving Blake’s life. I was saving my own. I bet you five bucks Krista never saw that coming.”— Amanda
• “I came from nothing and hated it. My dad owned a small hardware store and was always struggling to keep it afloat, so I’ve taken steps to ensure that my life is going to be different.”— Blake Porter
• “What can I say, if you want to get ahead, you have to make a few enemies.”— Blake Porter
• “I’ve heard ice cold showers are for psychopaths but I’m addicted.”— Blake Porter
• “It’s easy to drive someone out of their mind when you know them well enough.”— Krista
• “What’s a little debt, OK a lot of debt, if I’m dying.”— Blake Porter
• When there is a choice, I always choose myself.”— Krista
• “If I take a bathroom break, I’ve got 20 messages waiting for me when I get back, and I piss fast.”— Blake Porter
• “He literarily went out with a bang.”— Krista

Final Thoughts on The Tenant by Freida McFadden

The Tenant is a very well written book. It keeps you engaged from start to finish and is one of those books that you just know will eventually end up on your TV screen. The main character, Blake, is very likeable and so as a reader you are invested in his well being. The pacing is great, the suspense is incredible and the twist at the end was very well executed.

Rating

Have you read The Tenant? What did you think about the twist? Did you see it coming?

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