Never Lie by Freida McFadden Review: Twists, Ending Explained & Was It Worth It?

 

🚨 MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD! 🚨

You know that feeling when you open a thriller expecting some casual suspense and end up wide-eyed at 3AM questioning everyone in the book—including the narrator?

Yeah. That’s exactly what Never Lie does.

Snowstorm. Abandoned mansion. A missing psychiatrist. A newlywed couple with more secrets than love. And a final twist so cold-blooded you’ll need to reread the last chapter just to believe it.

Let’s dive into the wreckage.

Never Lie by Freida McFadden Review

🚨 Spoilers Ahead: The Twisted Plot & Ending of Never Lie, Explained

Okay, this is your official warning: if you haven’t read Never Lie and don’t want the ending ruined, turn back now. Because things are about to get real unhinged. Let’s unpack this wild ride.

🏚️ The Setup: House-Hunting from Hell....

Tricia and Ethan, newlyweds still in honeymoon mode, go to view a remote mansion before a blizzard hits. The property? Previously owned by Dr. Adrienne Hale, a famous psychiatrist who vanished without a trace.

Naturally, the storm hits harder than expected. They’re snowed in. No phone. No power. And nowhere to go but deeper into a house that practically breathes secrets.

Ethan seems weirdly okay with this. Too okay.

And that’s when the real mind games begin.

📼 The Discovery: Therapy Tapes and Deception

While poking around the house, Tricia stumbles on a hidden stash of therapy session recordings. Dr. Hale, apparently, recorded every session with her patients. And one voice on the tapes? It's unmistakably Ethan—going by the initials “EJ.”

This is the first major lie exposed.

Ethan had claimed he barely knew Dr. Hale. But these tapes show he was her regular patient. Intense sessions. Anger issues. Trauma. Obsession. It doesn’t add up. And the more Tricia listens, the more Ethan unravels.

At first, she questions him—he dodges.

Then she accuses—he deflects.

And when she finds Dr. Hale’s appointment logs? The truth gets harder to ignore: Ethan’s been hiding way more than a few therapy sessions.

🩸 The Body in the Wall (Literally)

As the storm rages outside, Tricia finds a hidden room behind a bookcase. Inside? The decomposed remains of Dr. Adrienne Hale.

Suddenly it’s not just about lies—it’s about murder.

Ethan insists he’s innocent. Says he didn’t kill her. Claims she was already dead. But everything—the tapes, the body, the missing information—seems to scream otherwise.

And Tricia? She’s terrified. Trapped. And not sure who (or what) she’s married to.

🧠 The Final Twist: Tricia’s Darkest Secret

ust when you think Ethan is the big bad, Freida McFadden pulls the rug out from under you.

Tricia is the killer.

Yep. She murdered Dr. Hale years ago during a therapy session gone wrong. She had been one of Dr. Hale’s patients too—before she met Ethan. The murder was buried, literally and figuratively, in that mansion.

And the real kicker?

She didn’t “accidentally” find that house with Ethan. She wanted to go back. Wanted to see if her secret was still hidden. And when she realized Ethan had his own connection to Hale? She used it.

She manipulated the tapes. Twisted the story. Framed Ethan.

All while convincing us—the readers—that she was just a frightened wife married to a sociopath.

McFadden’s greatest trick isn’t the reveal—it’s how she made us trust Tricia right until the final bloody second.

🔍 Hidden Clues You Missed (Because Same)

• Tricia’s déjà vu in the house.
  Not just vibes—she’s literally been there before. But McFadden makes it feel like paranoia.

• The tape gaps.
  Some of the recordings skip. Some sessions are missing. At first you blame Ethan. But it’s Tricia doing the editing—removing evidence that could expose her.

• Dr. Hale’s concern about a patient.
  The sessions show Hale worried about someone dangerous—but it’s not Ethan she’s afraid of. It’s Tricia.

• Tricia’s calmness under pressure.
  She doesn’t just survive—she plays the long game. Observing. Planning. Manipulating.

🤔 Did It Deserve the Hype? Here’s My Brutally Honest Take

Was Never Lie actually worth all the hype it gets?

Short answer? Yeah—but it depends on what you’re here for.

💀 If you love:

• Fast-paced thrillers that don’t waste time

• Creepy house settings with locked-room energy

• Big reveals and psychological mind games

• A twist that makes you side-eye your own partner...

You’re going to devour this in one sitting. And you’ll probably text three friends afterward like “READ THIS NOW.”

😩 But if you’re looking for:

• Super deep character development

• Believable dialogue at all times

• Zero plot conveniences or loose ends

...then yeah, you might find parts a bit dramatic or over-the-top. Ethan’s reveal does lean into the theatrical, and some moments stretch logic. But honestly? That’s kind of the fun.

🧠 My Final Verdict:

Never Lie isn’t perfect—but it’s addictive, wild, and totally binge-worthy. The twist hit, the pacing snapped, and I was invested. If you go in expecting a fast, twisty ride (not literary fiction), it totally delivers.

⭐ 4.8/5 stars from me. Docking half a point because I should’ve known better... but I didn’t. Freida McFadden gaslit me for 300 pages—and honestly? I’d let her do it again.

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Need more twisted thrillers? Check out my reviews of: 

🥇Verity – "Manuscript or confession?" lives in my head rent-free.

🥈The Silent Patient – If you love unreliable psychiatrists