The Witch by Freida McFadden

Some secrets don't die―they wait.

When Julia Barlow loses her job and her apartment, she has nowhere left to go but Pemberton, her family's sprawling seventeenth-century estate in rural Massachusetts. Officially, she's there to check in on her aging grandmother. Unofficially, she's hoping the old house will give her a place to disappear.

Instead, Pemberton begins to unravel her.

Every night, the grandfather clock stops at exactly 3:41 a.m. The lights flicker without warning. And a disembodied voice cries for help outside Julia's bedroom door.

As Julia digs into the house's dark history, she uncovers the story of a woman executed for witchcraft in 1692―and realizes the past may not be finished with Pemberton yet. When decades of family lies begin to surface, Julia must confront a terrifying truth: Pemberton may be haunted by women whose voices refuse to stay silent.

 The Witch, a chilling, twist-filled thriller about secrets―those we inherit, those we bury, and those people will burn to keep silent.

Audiobook, 9 hours, 30 minutes

Published October 6, 2026

 by Dreamscape Media

3.5/5 stars

My first Freida McFadden book was The Housemaid, I’ll admit it wasn’t my favourite. But lately I’ve been enjoying her books on audio, when this her newest came out, I borrowed the audiobook through Libby and gave it a listen.

The story moves between two timelines. In the present day, Julia Barlow’s life has fallen apart. With no job and no apartment, she leaves Manhattan behind for Pemberton, her grandmother’s grand old estate. Which has been in the family for generations. But the house holds more than old furniture and family memories. Woven through Julia’s chapters is a story from centuries earlier, during the days of the witch trials. When being accused could be enough to seal a woman’s fate.

For once, I enjoyed both timelines equally, which is a change for me. Usually I find myself favouring one and rushing through the other to get back to it. Here, both stories had their own secrets and twists to keep me listening. The present-day chapters brought the spookiness, while the past timeline, despite the witch trials, wasn’t all that spooky. Instead, it was gripping in a different way.  As the stories came together it revealed secrets and mayhem.

The Witch is a story of secrets, family and courage to take the next step.  It’s a good pick for this time of year, with just the right amount of spooky atmosphere.

This copy of audio obtained via Libby.