Audiobook Review: The Coworker by Freida McFadden
The Coworker
Author: Freida McFadden
Narrator: Alyson Krawchuk
Published: August 29, 2023
Audiobook: 8 hours 12 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: September 20-22, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Book Description:
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.
Jessica’s Review:
This is McFadden’s newest book and I listened to it on audio. We have two very different narrators who tell their side of the story: Natalie and Dawn Schiff:
We have Natalie, the office place ‘golden girl’ who can do no wrong. She’s a beautiful blonde, knows it and uses it to get what she wants (which she always does). She’s also the top sales representative for the company. Her best friend Kim and boyfriend Craig also work for the company called Vixed.
We also have Dawn Schiff who is a complete 180 of Natalie: She is plain, awkward, extremely observant and a stickler for being punctual: You can know exactly what time it is based on when Dawn does certain things like eat and even using the restroom. Dawn Schiff seems to have signs of the Autism Spectrum but McFadden never says if she actually is.
Oh and… Dawn really loves turtles. This love is to an extreme. Turtles are constantly mentioned throughout the book. If you made it a drinking game and took a shot every time turtles were mentioned, you wouldn’t live through to make it to the end of the book! I do say this with humor. I knew turtles were mentioned a lot before I listened to it, but damn it really was a lot! It didn’t bother me though since the love of turtles is part of Dawn’s character. Just be prepared for extreme turtle usage!
This time around McFadden takes on the office workplace and deals with office bullying. We see both sides of what is happening through both Dawn Schiff and Natalie’s narrations. Dawn’s perspective is given through emails to her longtime best friend who writes her back.
Dawn is always at work at 8:45 am and Natalie just kind of comes in whenever she wants. I know where I work that would just not happen! But I also work with the public and we have those set hours. One day Dawn doesn’t come in and Natalie is surprised, and maybe just a little worried about her. Then she answers a phone call where the caller says ‘help me’ and hangs up. This starts with a roller coaster that Natalie can’t get off of and it just keeps going and going! And not in a good way either!
For most of the book it was going to be a three star for me: I wasn’t really attached to either character and it was just really an average read for me. Once it does get moving, I was really into it over halfway. I had a theory and I was actually mostly correct with it! Usually, I hate when I figure out a big twist but this time around, I actually enjoyed it because there was still more to figure out as I didn’t have the smaller details figured out. At about 65% in I was fully invested. Of course, we do have a final twist that I wasn’t shocked with it.
The narrator Alyson Krawchuk did a good job with this one. I have now listened to three of McFadden’s books and all of the narrators have northern accents which make me think this is where the author lives. I did enjoy The Coworker and plan on reading or listening to McFadden’s complete book line up. Her books are quick reads/listens so they can be finished quickly. I just wish I had the time to read her books in one sitting!