Despite its overwhelming commercial success, Freida McFadden’s psychological thriller, The Housemaid, is far from a perfect read. Trope-heavy and full of obvious contrivances, The Housemaid sets up a tense domestic thriller premise that is meant to be consumed as a fast-paced popcorn novel. This, however, sets the stage for a pulpy screen adaptation, one that mimics the conventions of a lurid thriller with some decent character writing to round things out.